Steve Niles’ graphic novel, Callisto is a satisfying blend of gritty science fiction, noir detective story and cultish supernatural horror, with the kind of twisty plot that rewards readers’ attention to small details. Illustrated with cinematic sensibility by veteran artist Andrea Mutti, the story feels like it belongs in the canon of Ridley Smith blockbusters like Aliens and Blade Runner.
The story begins on Callisto, a mining settlement, with two employees discovering a wrecked spaceship containing two cursed objects: a knife and a grimoire. In a world where physical books are rare, the latter is already an object of curiosity, but this tome is more than just a quaint artifact. Carried on the spaceship by religious missionaries, the leatherbound pages enthrall the unwary, bestowing success and power, but exacting a bloody price. Wherever the book goes, violent deaths follow — for the artifact’s possessor and everyone around this person.
Detective Becca Ramos soon finds the seemingly straightforward case has become much more complicated after the book, entered as evidence during the police investigation, disappears. As Becca and her partner probe a maze of connected murders, she begins to suspect corruption in the police department itself.
Niles is an experienced writer of horror and comics, and his expertise shows without being showy. He allows the unfolding plot to reveal deeper themes, and while his characters experience moments of lightness, generally the thread of tension is pulled ever more tightly, and a foreboding feeling permeates the book.
Colorist Lee Loughridge does a standout job creating a unifying palette and using color to help clarify who is talking in long shots where speakers wear helmets, and Scott Hampton and Chris Shehan provide a gorgeous main cover.
The story’s final twist arrives a little too quickly and ends with a cliffhanger, something that might make more sense for an ongoing monthly than a graphic novel. Still, anyone fond of shadowy cabals and moody, atmospheric tales of police corruption will find this a deeply satisfying read.