Crooked Little Vein by Warren Ellis & Covenant by John Everson

Review by Lincoln Crisler

One of these two books is my favorite-read for 2008 and the other is my runner-up. Trouble is, I can’t decide which is which. You decide:

In the red corner, featuring a whirlwind descent into the vulgar cesspit of several American cities, from veteran comics writer Warren Ellis… Crooked Little Vein! Michael McGill, a ‘shit-magnet’ private eye, accompanied by a free-loving girl he found on a street corner, searches for a hidden, second Constitution of the United States. The plot sounded hokey to me at first, and the nastiest parts of the book are horrible exaggerations (just about anything that happens to Mike in this book would be too much for one man) but the book is well- and tightly-written. I’ve been reading Ellis’ comics work since I was a teenager and this debut novel was a real treat.

In the blue corner, reprinting a Delirium Books publication, from veteran horror writer and journalist John Everson… Covenant! Everson’s mass-market debut tells the story of Joe Kieran, a reporter who’s exiled himself to sleepy little Terrel. Unfortunately for Joe, Terrel’s not what it appears and he just can’t let go of a good story. It’s a complete tale in and of itself but its sequel, Sacrifice, comes out in mass-market form next Spring!

It’s a tough call, really. I read everything Ellis puts out as fast as I can find it and I’ve sought advice from Everson on writing and publishing. I’d point any aspiring pro-writer to both of these guys as shining examples of the craft, and I aim to be where they are as soon as possible. The deciding factor should really be the quality of the books, but both are ten stars out of five. The two are nothing like each other, and I enjoyed them both for entirely different reasons. Vein is witty and vulgar in the extreme and Covenant is the kind of in-depth, detailed story I usually only find from the “masters,” King, Straub or Rice.

Either way, you can’t lose. Check ’em both out, and drop us a line if you manage to come to a decision!