I’m new to the “Fairest” titles, despite this being Volume 4. I have, however, read a number of issues of Fables, to which this series is connected. Based on this book…I am hooked!
Perhaps it was precisely because I haven’t read any of the previous issues, but I really enjoyed the mystery of what was happening…trying to keep up with an ongoing story-line was part of the fun.
This story features a sleuth-style Cinderella trying to solve a mystery that is centuries old. From an attack on Snow White, to an escaped Fairy Godmother, and friends and foes from times past, ‘Cind’ has her hands full as she globe-trots trying to put the mystery (and a few men) to bed.
A delightful side story is the effects of Fairy Godmother’s changing mice into men, and how one of the coachmen/mouse makes the choice to stay human and enjoy human sexual encounters.
There also seemed to be a good deal of cross-over to Fables, which I rather liked, and it didn’t seem dependent upon having read the other series to get the current story.
The artwork was generally a little more ‘cartoony’ than I prefer in my graphic novels, and certainly much more cartoony than what I’ve seen in Fables, but I felt it worked well here. Everything about this book declares it a light, fantastic-fun read, to keep the general reader interested in the Fairest/Fables universe.
Was I enlightened or moved by the mystery? No. But I had fun here in this Fairest world, and sometimes ‘fun’ is ignored or over-looked. Because I had fun, I’m looking forward to visiting this series again.
Looking for a good book? Fairest, Volume 4: Of Mice and Men is a delightful, adventurous venture in to the Fables-style world, with many cross-over characters, but on a not-quite-so-intense level.
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Fairest, Volume 4: Of Mice and Men
author: Marc Andreyko
artist: Shawn McManus
publisher: Vertigo
ISBN: 140125005X
paperback, 144 pages
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