John Constantine is finally back in England. Of course, it doesn't take long for him to be embroiled in a new mess of supernatural proportions.

His first stop is Liverpool, where his sister and her husband are less than enthusiastic that the brother they've been mourning for the past several months is not actually dead, again. And John isn't pleased when he realizes his niece, Gemma, isn't off teaching in France as her postcards home would have her parents believe. He intends to find her, and that means first sorting out the creepily pleasant old lady in the top flat, as well as the young waitress who hopes to be the sorceror's apprentice.

The trail leads John back to London, where he belongs, and he's soon mixed up with a broad spectrum of magical folk in an effort to recover a long lost object of immense power; the problem is, no one knows what it looks like, but everyone thinks John -- and maybe Gemma -- can figure it out. You just know everyone won't be getting out of this one intact.

Red Sepulchre brings the writing of Mike Carey (best known for his work on the Lucifer series) to Hellblazer, and it's a match made in Heaven. He's got a good feel for the kind of buggered-up trickery Constantine is known for, and his text blends well with the grimly dark artwork by Marcelo Frusin. This, much more than the American wanderings that filled the preceding few volumes, is what I expect from this title, and I'm pleased as punch to see Carey understands his readers as well as the character.

by Tom Knapp
Rambles.NET
26 May 2007