Title: Fables Vol. 1: Legends in Exile

Author: Bill Willingham

Publisher: Vertigo 2002

Genre: Graphic Novel

Pages: 128

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Support Your Local Library; April Read-a-Thon; Fantasy; A to Z Authors: W

When a savage creature known only as the Adversary conquered the fabled lands of legends and fairy tales, all of the infamous inhabitants of folklore were forced into exile. Disguised among the normal citizens of modern-day New York, these magical characters have created their own peaceful and secret society within an exclusive luxury apartment building called Fabletown. But when Snow White's party-girl sister, Rose Red, is apparently murdered, it is up to Fabletown's sheriff, a reformed and pardoned Big Bad Wolf, to determine if the killer is Bluebeard, Rose's ex-lover and notorious wife killer, or Jack, her current live-in boyfriend and former beanstalk-climber. Collects FABLES #1-5.

Another graphic novel to add to my growing comic addiction. This one intrigued me because of the subject matter: fairy tale characters. I love anything with fairy tale stories or characters. And this one did not disappoint. A pulpy detective story featuring the murder of Rose Red. I loved the inclusion of all kinds of various characters (my fave: Prince Charming who married and divorced both Snow White and Cinderella). Each had a very different personality than their original story, which is definitely a good thing. I find most old versions of fairy tales very flat when to comes to characterization. This volume had loads of personality.

As to the story line, I like the premise and most of the execution. The only part I didn't like: the ending. Having the killer of Rose Red be exposed during a party felt way too staged. I wasn't buying the staged wrap-up of the story. It was a bit of a let down after a great story.

Fortunately, this was volume one of the Fables series. I didn't even realize it when I started reading. Now I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series.