Publisher's Weekly Review
This Prohibition-era clash between New York mobsters and moonshiners from West Virginia is soaked in equal measures of hooch and blood. Long-time collaborators Azzarello and Risso (100 Bullets) reunite with panache for the story of a negotiation gone wrong and the violent consequences thereof. It is 1929 and "Handsome" Lou Pirlo has been given his first real assignment by his boss, Joe Masseria: go down to West Virginia and get the producer of some wonderful moonshine to supply Joe's organization. Hiram Holt, the bootlegger in question, isn't interested in a partnership, though, and he and his family try to send Lou on his way. Lou is enamored of the liquor and Hiram's foster daughter, Tempest, and doesn't want to suffer the consequences of failure, so he stays in the mountains. Joe sends reinforcements who turn the failed business deal into an extended gun battle. Lou also discovers that something savage lurks in the mountain woods, and the tale takes an unexpected turn. Risso's superb art relies on shadow and silhouette for drama, recalling newspaper strips of old such as Little Orphan Annie. It's a brilliantly told riff on the gangster tale. (May) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Library Journal Review
In this first volume of a new series by Azzarello and Risso, the renowned creators of 100 Bullets take readers deep into a well-constructed Prohibition-era werewolf horror story. A successful mob boss of the New York City underground sends his smooth-talking boy Lou Pirlo to the backwoods of West Virginia to obtain some high-quality Appalachian hooch. Hiram Holt's moonshine is worth dying for, and it's kept that way in order to protect not only the alcohol but also Holt's family and secrets. Lou doesn't take any of the opportunities given to him to get out of the situation and soon finds himself last on the moonshine receiving line. By the end, the werewolf guarding the Holt liquor could be any one of the mountain people claiming to be part of the proprietor's clan. Perhaps the creature's true identity will be revealed in Volume 2. Verdict Moonshine stands up against Robert Kirkman and Paul Azaceta's Outcast with its supernatural and voodoo witchcraft elements. Recommended for anyone interested in fantasy-tinged mob thrillers who are not turned away by foul language or gore.-Teresa Potter-Reyes, Helen Hall Lib., League City, TX © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
