If you live in a world where the likes of Poe and Lovecraft would feel at home, would the fictional genre of dark fantasy even exist?

In Forbidden Brides of the Faceless Slaves in the Secret House of the Night of Dread Desire -- a short story by Neil Gaiman, transformed here into a graphic novel illustrated by Shane Oakley -- a nameless author toils by candlelight, trying to write realistic fiction filled with mysteries and dark imagination. His efforts are routinely foiled, however, by a quirky sense of humor that pokes a bit of light-hearted fun at the dark reality in which he lives.

And so, persuaded to try his hand at a more fantastical form of fiction, he delves into an imaginary world that we, the readers, might find far more familiar.

As a story idea, it's a winner, and Gaiman crafts the tale with his usual artful style. As a stand-alone graphic novel -- well, one might balk at the price for what is, really, just a hard-cover comic book. That's not a complaint about the format -- I'm a big fan of graphic novels -- but about the brevity of this offering. It's short, easily read in a single brief sitting.

The art strives to present Gaiman's gothic setting, but it's not terribly evocative. Good illustrations would make the purchase worthwhile, but this inky, black-and-white presentation is merely adequate.