Sara Ryan + graphic novel + coming-of-age set in Oregon = CAN'T WAIT TO READ IT!

I had heard rumors earlier this year at ALA Midwinter about Sara Ryan's upcoming graphic novel from Dark Horse but I didn't press for more information because I didn't want to seem too fangirl scary. (It happens when dealing with a favorite author.) Imagine my delight then, when my stack of Previews arrived and I found Bad Houses scheduled for an October 30th release. Here's the description:



Lives intersect in the most unexpected ways when teenagers Anne and Lewis cross paths at an estate sale in sleepy Failin, Oregon. Failin was once a thriving logging community. Now the town's businesses are crumbling, its citizens bitter and disaffected. Anne and Lewis refuse to succumb to the fate of the older generation as they discover--together--the secrets of their hometown and their own families.

On her website, Sara describes it as: "My first graphic novel, Bad Houses, with art by Carla Speed McNeil, is about love, trust, hoarding, and dead people's stuff."

If you are familiar with Sara's previous work then you will be very excited about this one. If you aren't, then get over to her site, read about all her previous books and mini-comics and then you will be very excited about Bad Houses too.

Basically, Sara is one of the best there is at creating very human (as in no vampires), very believable (no "trying to get vampire to notice you" or "falling in love with vampire" or creating a "vampire/werewolf love triangle" plots), very smart (but not eye-rolling-this-is-what-an-adult-author-wishes-they-had-sounded-like-when-they-were-a-teenager fake kind of smart) and, most importantly, very compelling characters. She's the real deal and anything she puts out there is well worth your time.

Expect to hear more from me on Bad Houses after its release and look for a review in my column this winter.