A friend asked me for a recommendation for a graphic novel to introduce her to the medium, which is always a fun challenge. She stumped me, though, when I asked her preferred genre, and she said ‘cozy mystery’! I would have previously thought that graphic novels covered pretty much all genres, but I couldn’t think of a single cozy mystery. I sent her Jason Little’s Shutterbug Follies, which I would classify as more of a quirky mystery than cozy (a fine distinction), while I did a deeper dive through my library stacks.

The Good Asian by Pornsak Pichetshote and Alexandre Tefenkgi

This is very much noir, and not cozy, but is also super interesting! Starting with him stuck in an immigration detainment camp, Edison Hark is a Chinese police officer working in San Francisco in 1936. Tracking down the missing Chinese maid of a millionaire family takes him through all levels of society. The author and artists capture classic noir perfectly in both narrative and style, and weave in an impressive amount of historical detail. My only complaint is a common one with graphic novels, that is was just too abridged. The characterizations and plot felt rushed to the point that I had some trouble keeping track of the investigation, which certainly blunts the suspense and reveals a bit. Even with the compression, volume 1 ends on a cliffhanger with no solution yet in sight.

Nancy Drew: The Palace of Wisdom by Kelly Thompson and Jenn St-Onge

 Man, I loved me some Nancy Drew when I was a kid, but I was very conscious that I wasn’t the target audience for this at a middle-aged adult, and I didn’t particularly like it. By trying to give her some edge, I think, Thompson ends up making Nancy pretty bratty. She is single-minded and careless of those around her, and her friends are understandably frustrated with her, but a lot less understandably forgiving. I spent most of the book wondering why they hadn’t all dropped her already. I did like the art, though – sort of Kim Possible-y.

Goldie Vance by Hope Larson and Brittney Williams

On the other hand, Goldie Vance is for even younger readers, and it was an utter delight! The teenage daughter of the manager of a Florida resort hotel, Goldie works as a valet but has ambitions to be a hotel detective. The characters, storyline, and art are all wonderfully 60s pastiche: bright and fun and over the top. There are drag races, Russian spies, and a mermaid bar, among plenty else. It is completely ridiculous and so, so fun!

The Fade Out by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips

…and back to noir again. This time, quite literally. Set in Hollywood in 1948, The Fade Out covers noir like a checklist: a cynical screenwriter with crushed idealism, a beautiful blonde with swoopy hair (a couple of them in this case!), a tangled web of power and secrets, and so, so much drinking and smoking. It’s…fine. The art is decent, the story is well fleshed out, beyond the norm for graphic novels. There was just nothing new or surprising in any of it, it felt like pure nostalgia, which isn’t so much for me, but does hit for a lot of people, given the raving blurbs on the back cover.

Mamo by Sas Milledge

Sort of a mystery, I guess, but mostly cozy fantasy, Mamo reminds me a fair amount of Howl’s Moving Castle, which is a huge compliment for me. When Jo’s mother falls mysteriously ill, she seeks out her town’s witch for help. Orla is the granddaughter of the late witch and very reluctant to take on the role, but is conscribed into assisting Jo with her mother and then with wider occurrences throughout the town. The story focuses primarily on the two young women and their often conflicting views of their hometown and their own role in it, with the various curse-breaking taking second fiddle. It is very sweet and touching, and the art is beautiful.

Taproot by Keezy Young

An even cozier fantasy! Hamal is a gardener who can see ghosts, and Blue is the ghost that loves him. When it turns out that Hamal’s ability is causing wider disruption in the balance of life and death, the two must find a solution. It is very cute, and the art is lovely, but it felt rushed in a way that Mamo didn’t, even though Mamo covered very similar territory in less pages. I think perhaps Taproot tries to cover too much: the overarching supernatural mystery, the core relationship, side characters, gardening, etc. That said, though, I really appreciated a bit of a surprise twist in the absence of any antagonist; conflict comes from misunderstandings and miscommunications, not any dichotomy of good vs. evil, which we definitely need more of in narratives, especially for young readers.

… I never did find a cozy mystery graphic novel, so the search continues!