Black Gold by Rob Starr

 

Blurb

'After the sudden death of her husband, fraud investigator Kiara Fox is thrown into a high-stakes case that pulls her halfway across the world.

In South Africa, oil tankers are mysteriously arriving at port with far less cargo than when they left – leaving the insurance company boss Tyrone haemorrhaging money. Despite her grief, Kiara can’t turn down the opportunity to help him work out what is happening as she knows this case could secure her family’s future.

At the heart of the problem is Adesco Oil, a family-run empire. CEO Gavin Adriaanse wants to transform the company into an eco-friendly powerhouse, but his brother Tony will stop at nothing to protect the family’s wealth. Tensions are rising, especially with the launch of Neptune, a revolutionary new oil rig poised to change the industry forever.

But when Kiara arrives, the case becomes far more dangerous than she ever anticipated. As she digs deeper, she uncovers a web of corporate deceit, betrayal, and espionage – both within Tyrone’s insurance company and Adesco Oil. With powerful enemies lurking in every shadow, Kiara realises that someone is willing to kill to keep the truth buried. The closer she gets to the heart of the conspiracy, the more deadly the game becomes.

In a race against time, Kiara must navigate a world where profit meets power and uncovering the truth could cost her everything.'

My Thoughts

 Another outing  for Insurance Fraud investigator Kiara Fox sees her off sees her off to South Africa to investigate an oil company. There's climate change, protectors, villainous villains and plenty of thrills to keep the pages turning.

I enjoyed Kiara's first outing so this was a no brainer for me - and I'm happy to say that so far (I'm 3/4 of the way through as the book only arrived with me this past weekend). I'm enjoying it as much as I hoped I would and can't see the pace dropping off any time soon.

Starr builds the tension well and I can certainly see this being the perfect read for the beach.

Minky Woodcock: The Girl Called Cthulhu - Cynthia Von Buhler

 

                              BLURB

 'Inspired by a true WWII maritime operation, shocking satanic events, monstrous men, and one salacious sea creature, this volume tells the tale of Minky’s encounter with legendary horror writer H.P. Lovecraft, creator of the dreaded Cthulhu.

 Following the death of Harry Houdini, Minky is approached by the occultist and writer Aleister Crowley to help vindicate him from an accusation of murder. This throws Minky into an occult underworld and leads to a much bigger investigation involving a missing man and Britain's secret service. Meanwhile, Lovecraftian horrors plague her dreams, and it’s up to Minky to discover the connections between the two writers and the mysterious death of her mother. Based on an actual WWII maritime operation inspired by a detective novel, Minky discovers how writers, including Ian Fleming, helped end WWII.'

                          MY THOUGHTS

 This is the third graphic novel to feature 'gumshoe' detective Minky Woodcock and finds her mixed up with the likes of Houdini, Crowley and Lovecraft - and I'll be honest, it was those last two names that drew me in. A mix of 40's crime fiction, The Old Ones and inspiration from real historical events had me itching for this and when it landed I was not disappointed. 

 The story itself is quite excellent as is the artwork. I read it fairly quickly then went back and read it again, this time paying more attention to the artwork - Von Buhler has made something a bit special here. And yes, it's sauciness is always going to be part of the appeal but the horror and crime aspects, the real 40's vibe of the whole thing make for a stand out read.

 Titan have made an excellent job of producing this too (a part of their 'Hard Case Crime' imprint) The quality of the print and the paper is absolutely top notch.

 Minky Woodcock: The Girl Called Cthulhu is published by Titan Comics on 8th July 2025 (or tomorrow as I right this).