(2.0 Stars)

I really thought I'd rate this much higher. I've been a big fan of Mignola for years, but for me, this book just didn't work. I get that it was trying to be set in the backdrop of a pulp style noir, but I felt more like it was a badly done Batman clone. From the very first page, I felt like I was missing some crucial starting point. Like maybe this was based on something previous that I was not aware of. But I don't think that is it. The book does provide "background", but it is done through a series of "flashbacks" that were clunky and unhelpful when they were eventually presented. 

The dialog is unclever, and the situations are unrealistic... even within the fantasy of the story. The book tells you what is going on, but never gives a good reason why I should care. Near the end of the book, you are given a lot more information about the protagonist's reasoning/motivation... but by that point it was "too little, too late". None of the story progression, character growth, or world building was organic or smooth. It was spoon-fed, seemingly as an after-thought.

The narrator did have a gritty deadpan voice, but never really gave the characters any "life". Maybe he never got a good feel for the characters either? He kept a nice pace and was clear and easily understandable.