A review by literaryland_livin
MrBallen Presents: Strange, Dark & Mysterious by MrBallen

5.0

Are you a fan of the strange, dark, and mysterious then this graphic novel is for you! YouTube sensation, podcaster, and master storyteller John B. Allen has curated a truly haunting collection of stories to keep you up late into the early morning hours listening to every bump in the night. 

When I first heard that Mr. Ballen was releasing his first graphic novel filled with an assortment of mysterious and chilling phenomenons such as UFOs, giants, and all the eerie paranormal hauntings I immediately knew I had to read it! Upon reading this it is abundantly clear the amount of time, dedication, and passion that has went into this project and to say I was blown away by this graphic novel is an understatement. I absolutely devoured every bone chilling tale! The formatted short stories are just the right length, making reading one story at a time an easy addition to your nightly pre-sleep reading. I also loved the decision to make these short stories into a graphic novel as it added an extra immersive layer to the hauntingly mysterious tales with the amazing illustrations of Andrea Mutti’s bringing them to life. Truly the star of the show tho without a doubt is the way in which Allen weaves these terrifying stories in such a way that you find yourself easily at the edge of your seat completely invested, waiting to see what horror is lurking on the next page. Bottom line whether you choose to share this with friends around the campfire or alone hiding under the covers consuming late into the night this is an absolute must read for spooky season! 

Mr. Ballen Presents: Strange, Dark, & Mysterious: The Graphic Stories comes out October 1st, 2024. Thank you NetGalley and Ten Speed Press, Ten Speed Graphic for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.