I just didn't like it. Maybe it was a subtle allegory but I'd have to do research first. Other than some very obvious things about owning your labor it didn't vibe for me. The scifi story line was... weak to non-existent, the emotional arcs one dimensional and boring. A disappointment ( )

*Received via NetGalley for review*

A miner, angry at his government's exploitation of their labor, flies a ship into the sun and extinguishes it. Now the world is in permanent darkness, and while lamps are lit at the beginning of every "day," people suffer and turn their hatred and anger to the man's wife and child that he left behind. The town demands a blood sacrifice in the hopes that it will return the sun.

While there are some interesting themes in this story (hatred, exploitation, forgiveness, light vs dark, etc.), it' read pretty dull :/ I was never really invested what happened to the characters or the world. ( )

I'm hardly a comic person so requesting this comic was mainly to complete my TBNT Book Challenge and also it was written by Roxane Gay, an author I truly liked. I am glad that I did as I've enjoyed it a lot plus it's a meaningful read. Straightforward and simple yet impactful illustrations that can be easily understood with sentiments shared across the globe.

Thanks to Boom! Studio and Netgalley for this e-ARC in return for my honest review.

Here's my full review:
http://www.sholee.net/2020/10/mpov-sacrifice-of-darkness.html ( )

When a mine owner’s actions cause a miner to feel only ice and darkness in his soul, he buys a flying machine and flies it into the sun to try to gain warmth. But in doing so, he absorbs all the sun’s warmth and light, throwing the world into perpetual darkness and leaving his family to suffer the anger of the townfolk.

The graphic novel The Sacrifice of Darkness is based on a short story by Roxanne Gay. Overall, I found the story beautiful, even profound and the art complements it perfectly as the vibrant colours before Hiram’s act are replaced with darker more drab colours after. However, I suspect if I had read the original story first, I would have enjoyed this version more. Not to say I didn’t like it. It’s just that I found the story occasionally hard to follow without more explanation. ( )

Lovely lush inked images pair with fantastical dreamy story. Themes include light, sun, industrialization, mining, marriage, childbirth.
Contains: self harm. ( )