Son of Sam | Musings of the Monster Librarian

Book Review: Conquer: Fear of a Black Cat by Edward M. Erdelac

Conquer: Fear of a Black Cat (John Conquer series, book 2) by Edward M. Erdelac

Self-published, 2023

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8856895413

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

Forget about those silly excuses for black heroes that Marvel comes up with: if you want a real black hero-you call John Conquer. Whereas book 1 in the series was a collection of short stories, Conquer gets his own full-length (over 500 pages) novel this time. The book succeeds on all levels, and hopefully won’t be the last one in the series. John Conquer is without a doubt one of the most interesting book characters out there today.

Set in 1978 Harlem, private investigator John Conquer has finally got a case that may be too much for him. People are turning up dead all over Harlem with their hands cut off. For Conquer, this case is personal- one of the victims is the lady who raised him. What follows is a good detective crime story that races all over the city, from Studio 54, to CBGB’s, to Untermeyer Park, as Conquer tries to put the pieces together.

This book is a period piece, and in that aspect, it’s absolutely perfect. The author did a staggering job of making 1970’s NYC seem real: this seems so true to life you can almost smell the spray from the graffiti on the subways. The descriptions, the mannerisms, the dialogue: it’s all perfectly true to life. The book is a phenomenal example of world-building: .

The plot itself is a good one. The author again does a fantastic job of mixing voodoo and all sorts of magic into a standard detective story. It’s what gives the Conquer stories their unique flavor. Sometimes Conquer has to pound the pavement like a normal detective, but often he has voodoo tricks he can use to help solve the case. One improvement over the last book is this time, some of the lesser-known gods and magic items come with a bit of background, so readers won’t need to make Wikipedia runs. Some of the characters from the previous stories return. Detective Lou Lazzaroni plays a part, and Conquer is, thankfully, still driving the Cordoba inhabited by the wise-cracking ghost, Pope. Conquer and Pope make a perfectly mismatched team, especially when they are squabbling about disco. Some real people from the 1970s also pop up in the story. David ‘Son of Sam’ Berkowitz plays a part, and there are also appearances by Muhammed Ali, Andy Warhol, and…Donald Trump. (anti-Trumpers will be ecstatic with Trump’s part) The gangs from the 1970’s cult classic film The Warriors also pop up in the narrative. The new characters in the book are quite intriguing, with Conquer’s drunken sort-of security guard Oshkosh being one of the most fun. For a detective story, this one has a fair amount to keep track of, but the author wisely inserted a recap into the story around page 300 for any readers who might have gotten a bit lost.

‘Da bottom line here: this is a fantastic knockout of a story. You wanna hang with the slickest, baddest cat out there? You’ve gotta read Conquer. Hopefully, this isn’t the last we’ll see of him. Highly recommended.

Reviewed by Murray Samuelson

Graphic Novel Review: Her Life Matters: (Or Brooklyn Frankenstein) by Alessandro Manzetti and Stefano Cardoselli, art by Stefano Cardoselli

Her Life Matters: (Or Brooklyn Frankenstein) by Alessandro Manzetti and Stefano Cardoselli, art by Stefano Cardoselli

Independent Legions Publishing, 2020

ISBN-13: 9788831959827

Available: Paperback ( Bookshop.org )

Dr. Jamaica Foxy, a brilliant scientist, creates Franky, an eight-foot tall gentle giant. Dr. Foxy teaches Franky life lessons, essentially raising him. Franky even calls her Mom. He loves his mother, John Coltrane, Duke Ellington, and watching baseball games. Apart from his mother, Franky has only one friend in the world: thirteen-year-old Mary Shelley. Set in the summer of 1977 in Brooklyn, New York, the Son of Sam killings keep people off the streets… most people, anyway. One morning, Dr. Foxy’s path crosses that of some white supremacists wandering the streets looking to start a fight. When Dr. Foxy doesn’t return home after hours of waiting, Franky searches for her himself. What he discovers enrages him, turning him into a force of vengeance.

I love seeing what authors can do with the Frankenstein story. While this isn’t the first one where the authors have used Black Lives Matter as a focus, it is one that has a unique take on the monster tale. Dr. Foxy is a Black woman striving to improve her community through her science, teaching and raising Franky to be a caring, thoughtful individual. Against the backdrop of a tumultuous time in history, the authors call out the racial injustice faced by Black Americans today. The authors created a powerful story in Her Life Matters: (Or Brooklyn Frankenstein). The artwork is stark in its presentation, black and white art using negative space effectively. I would put Cardoselli alongside Mike Mignola and Frank Miller in its presentation.

Linda D. Addison provides a short but powerful introduction to this incredible graphic novel. Recommended.

Contains: depictions of white supremacists, gore (in silhouette), violence against Black community, violence against women

Reviewed by Lizzy Walker

Editor’s note: Her Life Matters: (Or Brooklyn Frankenstein) is a nominee on the final ballot for this year’s Bram Stoker Awards in the category of Superior Achievement in a Graphic Novel.