The Nice House on the Lake, Vol. 1

 Tell me a story... about a vacation gone wrong

The Nice House on the Lake, Vol. 1 (issues #1-6) by James Tynion IV, Alvaro Martinez Bueno (Artist), and Jordie Bellaire (Colorist)

Publication date: March 1, 2022

Date read: March 14, 2022

They all know Walter - some from high school, some from college, one from more recently - but they've never hung out all together as a group. But after a difficult year, when Walter invites everyone to a week at an idyllic lake house, they all decide that they can put up with Walter's eccentricities for a short amount of time, reconnect, and relax. But when something goes wrong, they're all thrust into a new reality that will make them reconsider who to trust, and figure out how to survive. 

I know that description was vague, but I really believe that the less you know about the plot going into this one, the better. I knew absolutely nothing when I started this, and I'm happy about that.

However, not being able to talk a lot about the plot does make writing a review a bit harder... but I'll do my best.

As far as the plot goes, I really loved it. In horror, it's hard to come up with a completely new idea, and the "group of people brought to an isolated location" troupe is nothing new. But I wasn't expecting the direction this story quickly took, and I enjoyed being along for the ride. This is only Volume 1 of a series, so nothing is wrapped up at the end, but I can't wait to read more. 

I thought that the art in this collection was also great. It is drawn in a somewhat realistic style (as opposed to a cartoonish one). I loved the expressions that the artist was able to create on the characters, and the scenery was gorgeous when it needed to be, and disturbing at other times. Both artist and colorist did a great job. (I will also freely admit that I picked this one up based on the cover art, which is wonderful.)

I did, on a few occasions, have a difficult time telling characters apart or remembering which was which, but I don't feel that I can blame the artists for this so much, because I read it on my phone (as an advanced digital copy) as opposed to a larger physical copy. I am purchasing a physical copy to have now, though, and plan to read it again to see if I have an easier time keeping them straight. (In the back of the volume is a page showing each character, their name, and their nickname, but it wasn't easy for me to move back and forth between the pages on the digital copy).

Overall, I loved this story. It went in a direction that I really wasn't expecting, but that I was completely on board with. If you like horror comics (a little gruesome, but not so realistic that it was hard to look at), I definitely recommend this one. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Trigger warning: gore, death by fire

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book