In Review - ‘Black Water Lilies’ from Europe Comics.

Black Water Lilies.

Script by Fred Duval, Michel Bussi 

Art by Didier Cassegrain

Full Colour - 144 pages 

£7.99 (digital only).

Published by Europe Comics (originally published in French by Dupuis). 

The Story - ‘Three willful women: one old wicked, one young and selfish, and the third in the prime of her life. A man murdered three ways: stabbed, bludgeoned, and drowned in a stream. The mystery brings brash young Inspector Laurenç to the postcard-perfect Norman village of Giverny, home to Impressionist Claude Monet’s gardens and studio. Like any small town, Giverny has its secrets. But have they to do with greed? Lust? Missing paintings? Jealous husbands? Laurenç soon finds himself head over heels for a pretty schoolteacher—and in over his head. Dider Cassegrain brings Michel Bussi’s bestselling novel to life in lush, delicate watercolors worthy of the famous canvases that lend the book its name: Monet’s immortal Water Lilies…’

This is a comics adaption of Michel Bussi’s prize winning novel of the same name.

Review - The cover drew me in with it’s astonishingly on point joining of the cross generational murder mystery I was about to read and the gentle and peaceful (mostly) art of Oscar-Claud Monet. It really is quite something!

This is a story of a whodunnit thriller set in the town of Giverny in rural France. A place that is increasingly being ruined by the ‘English speakers’ there to soak up the inspiration and locations of the Lily paintings of Monet and more. It is also a small enough town that it’s occupants know everything about each other and live in a countryside of scandal and rumours.

‘’Observe and Imagine.’’

Intertwine the very French twist on the Midsommer Murders vibe and quality of the investigation with the light and scenery of the paintings of the impressionist himself. There is also an added smouldering passion at play here between the investigator and the main suspect’s wife. A cleverly paced and played out game of romantic and sexual temptation that may well muddy the waters. These women, and one in particular, may be adorned in the flowery dresses of the rural French countryside but they have the talons of the Noir femme fatale.

At it’s hear this album has a really intriguing puzzle that you get all the necessary clues along the way for the reader to solve it. I can see why this was a bestseller and I can also see why it would seem quite a task to tackle adapting. But the comic totally works and that is both a credit to the story and the art.

The action is observed by an old woman who self-describes herself as the ‘witch’ of the area. Who is she and how does she narrate the events to come becomes an integral part of the story. Photographs appear that accelerate the intrigue and the Detective Inspector and his staff pursue these with vigorous professionalism (at least to start with.....). Later this Detective may well overstep the boundaries of his own pursuance of truth and become a part of the conspiracy himself? (I'll leave you to find out).

‘The crime of dreaming. I consent to its creation’

• Louis Aragon ‘Nymphee’. 

The intrigue and extremely logical and detailed investigations are not carried out in the sterile confines of a police office and interview room but rather in the streets, cafes, meadows, cathedrals and riverbanks of the town and surrounding area itself. A place so beautiful and idyllic that it allows for the breathtaking artistic abilities of Didier Cassegrain to take flight. 

Cassegrain uses what appear to be gentle and blended colours to signify the personality and details of the people, landmarks and gorgeousness of the canvas he works upon. He then uses the flourish of a thicker black ink line to stake out the figures on his landscape. This art is really something to slow down and relish as you scroll onwards. I read this in the digital version on an iPad and the backlight of the device adds to the brilliant use of sunlight playing across the town. You can feel the dramatic summer heat in the air and the relaxation of the atmosphere in the grey/blue of the early evenings. For in a book so entrenched in not only a murder but also the images and history of Monet the art had to take centre stage. Every panel could be a print on your wall and it’s definitely a comic where you can marvel at each and every page. 

This is a book that I wish was a physical and translated copy. This is currently only available as a digital copy in the English language version.

This book is a must-read for fans of whodunnits and also for those with an interest in comics (and) fine art. It is also one of the best looking books you will read for sometime.

Highly recommended.

You can find out more about this book and others equally as stunning by visiting www.Europecomics.com and make sure that you sign up for the newsletter.

You can also follow this company on Instagram @europecomics and on twitter @EuropeComics. Thanks again to Irina Polianina for hooking me up with a review copy.

Here are some details on the creators from the Europe Comics site.

Born in 1965 in Rouen, France, Frédéric Duvalfirst studied history. He completed his master’s degree by studying the caricatures of a newspaper during the Dreyfus Affair. He published his first book, 500 fusils, in 1995. In 2008, for comics publisher Delcourt, he published the science fiction series Meteors, illustrated by Philippe Ogaki, before tackling an old dream with illustrator Zanzim: to adapt Tartuffe as a graphic novel. In 2010, he then published the first volume of the speculative fiction series Nico (Dargaud), alongside Philippe Berthet. In 2016, he wrote the tenth volume of XIII Mystery (Dargaud), under the direction of Jean Van Hamme. The year 2018 marked the release of his latest science fiction series, Renaissance(Dargaud; Europe Comics in English), alongside Ememand Fred Blanchard. His most recent work is the masterful literary adaptation Nymphéas Noirs (Dupuis; Black Water Lilies, Europe Comics), illustrated by Cassegrain.

Michel Bussiwas born in France in 1965. He was a geography professor at the University of Rouen before publishing his first novel in 2006 (“Code Lupin”), and is now one of the most widely read French authors, most notably for his crime novels. In 2011 he published the award-winning mystery “Nymphéas noirs,” adapted as a graphic novel in 2019 by Fred Duval and Didier Cassegrain (Dupuis; “Black Water Lilies,” Europe Comics). His books have been translated in dozens of languages around the world.

Didier Cassegrainwas born in France in 1966. He studied at a vocational drawing school as well as at the Gobelins school in Paris. He then went to work on television series for France Animation before joining Disney Studios for a year, followed in turn by a stint with a company called Story. That’s where he met Fred Blanchard and Olivier Vatine, who pushed him into the comics world. Tao Bang was soon born (Delcourt, 1999). In 2019, in collaboration with Fred Duval, he illustrated the masterful literary adaptation Nymphéas Noirs (Dupuis; Black Water Lilies, Europe Comics).

‘Deep down, people admire crazy’.

Many thanks for reading.