IRON CIRCUS COMICS
CROSSROADS AT MIDNIGHT GN
(W) Abby Howard (A) Abby Howard
A masterful collection of tales from the faded border between our day-to-day world and the horrifying unknown on the other side of midnight. An old woman living alone on the edge of a bog gets an unexpected - and unsettling - visitor, throwing her quiet life into a long-buried mystery. A misfit little girl, struggling to make friends, meets an understanding soul one day at the beach: but why will he only play with her alone at night? In this collection of evocative, unnerving slice-of-life horror, five stories explore what happens when one is desperate enough to seek solace in the unnatural, and what might be waiting for us at the Crossroads at Midnight.
JULIAN IN PURGATORY GN
Being the mayor's son comes with a lot of pressure: pressure to conform, perform, and live up to expectations. But Julian's opting out of it all. He's living on his girlfriend's couch, dealing drugs, and watching the days pass, empty and unfulfilled. It... wasn't too bad, to be honest. At least, not until Dana flushed his stash and booted him to the street. Alone, adrift, broke, and jonesing, Julian has burned his last bridge, his schemes have gone from "moronic" to "tied up in an abandoned mine shaft," and the tiny town of Piney Bluff is swiftly running out of safe harbors for its most fortunate son. It's time for Julian to take some steps, but first he has to find a way out of purgatory.
LAST DANCE GN
(W) Hanna Schroy (A) Hanna Schroy
Miriam has trained her whole life to fulfill her dreams and it's finally paid off now that she's the prima ballerina, but she's been keeping a secret. The years of sprains, fractures, and bruises have been taking their toll, and she has to give it all up forever. Distraught, Miriam runs from the studio and discovers a secret room she's never seen before. Inside she finds a pair of gleaming white and gold slippers, and a mysterious voice whispering to her in the dark. If she tries on the slippers, it says, she'll regain the strength to raise en pointe. Soon, Miriam is back, but each achievement on her journey back means more negotiation with the spirit who claims it wants just one harmless thing in return... to join the ballerinas and dance, just like her.