From New York Times bestselling author Daniel Kraus (the horror master behind Whalefall, The Shape of Water, Trollhunters, The Living Dead, and The Autumnal) and award-winning artist Dani (Arkham City: The Order of the World, Coffin Bound, The Low, Low Woods) comes the most disturbing superhero story ever told.
Forrest Molson is going nowhere. One year out of high school—and one year into sobriety—she’s working with her father as assistant groundskeeper at Athanasia Cemetery, the final resting place of fallen members of the Dynamic Guild, Venture City’s resident superheroes.
At her lowest point, Forrest discovers Athanasia’s darkest secret. At night, the cemetery soil bleeds a substance created from the ooze of rotting superheroes. This ooze becomes Forrest’s new drug—and she’s intent on using the unpredictable powers it bestows to be judge, jury, and executioner of Venture City’s evil citizens. But, as she loses her mind to her new addiction, she inches closer to becoming the most evil of all.
ATHANASIA is a superhero story seen through the darkest lens.
Colors: Brad Simpson. Letters: Jim Campbell
“A provocative and unsettling superhero story. Kraus finds fresh angles on grief, vigilantism, and comic-book science.”
Publishers Weekly
“9/10. A superhero comic unlike many others; a critique on the very nature of superheroes married with an intimate exploration of the destructive power of trauma.”
Geek Vibes Nation
“5/5. Stands alongside some of the great, dark superhero tales such as Watchmen, Black Hammer, and The Boys as another pillar in the ongoing dissection of the superhero story. “
Capes & Tights
“Menacing – the dark tone of the story acts in direct contrast to the stereotypical stylized nature of standard superhero fare.”
Booklist
“Expertly combines massively personal storytelling with a through dissection of the superhero mythos.”
AIPT
“Cool, stylish, and really, really dark.”
Fangoria – Colors of the Dark
“Athanasia is a quietly unsettling vision of superheroes as horror, the stark black-and-white art of Dani — powerfully punctuated by flashes of luminous green from Brad Simpson — the ideal partner to Daniel Kraus’s dark parable of grief, addiction and blighted potential.”
John Lees, The Nasty, Sink, Orla!