Book Reviews: Locke & Key Volumes 5 and 6 by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez

Locke & Key: Volume 5 – Clockworks and Volume 6 – Alpha and Omega
by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez (741.5 Hil)

Clockworks and Alpha and Omega are the 5th and 6th (final) entries in the Locke & Key graphic novel series by author Joe Hill (the son of Stephen King) and artist Gabriel Rodriguez. They comprise the final “third act” of a complex story with horror underpinnings. Each graphic novel is, itself, composed of six comic book issues.

The overall storyline is not told in purely chronological order. Though there is a “throughline” set in the current era, there are many flashbacks that help explain the originals of the supernatural threats faced by the contemporary characters…with some scenes set as far back as the U.S. Revolutionary War. At its core, this is the story of the three Locke children — Tyler, Kinsey and Bode — who move to Keyhouse on the Eastern seaboard, with their mother, after their father is brutally murdered. Over the course of the entire series, they discover that Keyhouse sits on a nexus of supernatural power, dating back to the 1700s, and that a series of “magical” keys have been designed that give their users a variety of unusual powers. By the time of Clockworks and Alpha & Omega, the main supernatural threat to our heroes has grown in power and influence and these final two graphic novel volumes build to a deadly conflict between Good and Evil.

Joe Hill, Stephen King’s son, has definitely inherited Dad’s penchant for telling compelling stories. This is a multi-layered and complex tale, with characters that multi-faceted and flawed. Gabriel Rodriguez’ art continues to impress me. There are occasional hiccups, where something doesn’t seem up to his regular quality, but for the most part, the characters all remain consistent, with incredible facial expressions, and the level of details he puts into larger illustrations is tremendous. Because of the nature of the story, there are sometimes rather gruesome imagery.

These two volumes cannot be read on their own. You HAVE to start at the beginning of the series, and carry through to the end of volume 6. This series is appropriate for fans of both comic books and horror. The language used in some scenes would normally have me place it in the realm of “R”-rated films, so that caution is offered to potential readers. [I would give Clockworks an 8 and Alpha & Omega a 10 — it really wraps things up very powerfully. I would probably give the entire Locke & Key series overall either an 8 or 9 rating.]

[ Wikipedia page for Locke & Key ] | [ official Joe Hill web site ] [ official Gabriel Rodriguez web site ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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