Closer

by Antony Johnston, Mike Norton

Thirty years ago a government experiment went horribly wrong, leaving one scientist dead and several injured. Project Hermes should have signaled a triumph of humanity—the discovery of true quantum teleportation. Instead it was deemed a failure, cancelled, and covered up. Forgotten by everyone—everyone except Graham Butcher. After devoting his life to the completion of Project Hermes the reclusive physicist is now dying, penniless and bitter. But not before the Project is completed. Tonight, Butcher has invited six people to his home, each with a different connection to his failed trial. Together they will ignite a new age, rising from the ashes of a past they all would rather forget. A man's dream will become reality, while an ancient evil will be rustled from a centuries old slumber.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Fiction, Horror

144 pages, Paperback

First published June 22, 2004

About the author

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Antony Johnston is one of the most versatile writers of the modern era.

The Charlize Theron movie Atomic Blonde was based on his graphic novel. His murder mystery series The Dog Sitter Detective won the Barker Book Award. His crime puzzle novel Can You Solve the Murder? reinvented choose-your-own-story books for a mainstream audience and was a Waterstones Paperback of the Year. The Brigitte Sharp spy thrillers are in development for TV. And his productivity guide The Organised Writer has helped authors all over the world take control of their workload.

Antony is a celebrated videogames writer, with genre-defining titles including Dead Space, Shadow of Mordor, and Resident Evil Village to his credit. His work on Silent Hill Ascension made him the only writer in the world to have contributed to all of gaming’s ‘big three’ horror franchises.

His immense body of work also includes Marvel superheroes such as Daredevil and Shang-Chi, the award-winning Alex Rider graphic novels, the post-apocalypse epic Wasteland, and more. He wrote and directed the film Crossover Point, made entirely in quarantine during the coronavirus pandemic.

An experienced podcaster and public speaker, he also frequently writes articles on the life of an author, and is a prolific musician.

Antony is a former vice chair of the Crime Writers’ Association, a member of International Thriller Writers and the Society of Authors, a Shore Scripts screenwriting judge, and sits on the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain’s videogames committee. He lives and works in England.

Reviews

[Weslyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love a good black and white graphic novel, so I was hooked from the start. The plot is quite predictable, but that didn’t lessen my enjoyment any. It’s a mixture of a whodunnit mystery, horror, and sci-fi with a little bit of a twist. Great for a quick read and I’m sure I’ll read it again.

[Ashleigh Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like that this graphic novel was in black and white which made it feel more spooky I thought by also bringing people back who basically made this horror happen was something which was a great addition. This is very easy to read and one that I was able to sit and read in one sitting. I do think however I would have liked a little more information on how the scientist got a feather from the god in order to make his machine work.

[Frances · Rating 4 out of 5]

Balanced between three stars and four, so let's go high. An engaging read. :)

[Alex Sarll]

In an isolated mansion, a small group are killed one by one after a teleportation experiment goes awry - I think this would have worked better as a Twilight Zone episode than it does as a graphic novel, but there's a lot worse you can do than that.

[Geoff Sebesta · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring. By the numbers. Sorta well drawn.