Peter and Maria Hoey Bring Animal Stories and Bend of Luck to TBubs

Peter Hoey and Maria Hoey of Coin-Op Books will be bringimg her two new graphic novels to Thought Bubble in Harrogate tomorrow. Animal Stories and The Bend of Luck, both published through IDW Publishing and the first time at a UK comic book convention for both titles. And  you’ll find them at Thought Bubble in the Redshirt Hall, table 56.

Animal Stories

After tremendous acclaim for their series Coin-Op Comics, two brilliant creators present their first graphic novel: a menagerie of wild tales. Pushing the boundaries of their dazzling and unique narrative style, Animal Stories weaves together six short stories exploring the mysterious relationships between humans and other animals. A girl who keeps pigeons starts receiving messages from a new bird in her flock. A ship’s crew rescue a dog, only to find far stranger things in the sea around them. A reincarnated cat with criminal intentions, a parrot who leads a revolution, and a squirrel who tempts a woman in a beautiful garden glade. Drawing inspiration from Aesop’s Fables, film noir, and the Old Testament, Peter and Maria Hoey apply their singular and sophisticated visual storytelling to create a new set of modern animal tales for modern times.

The Bend of Luck

Imagine a world where Luck, the most ephemeral of ideas, has a physical form. Precious stones of luck, mined like gold, are worn as bringers of fortune. But luck breaks both ways. While the blue gems may grant advantage to those who wear them, their blessing is fickle and unpredictable. In the blink of an eye, good luck can turn to bad. We follow the life of a man who comes into possession of some powerful stones — but the success enjoyed by the father goes awry when he tries to pass this luck onto his son. This graphic novel tale is told in alternating scenes between the two generations, The Bend of Luck follows felicity’s course, like an arrow, through a family’s destiny.

Thought Bubble is the UK’s largest comic art festival; a week-long celebration of comics, illustration, animation, and more that culminates in this weekend’s comic convention. Focused on those who create comic books, specifically the artists, and the writers, it is especially supportive of small press. The festival was founded in 2007 by Yorkshire artist, Lisa Wood, also known as Tula Lotay, and was organised as part of the Leeds International Film Festival to raise the profile of comics in the area. The first Thought Bubble was held on Saturday, 10 November 2007 in the basement of Leeds Town Hall and was attended by a couple of hundred people, but has grown a little since then. The convention originally ran throughout Leeds but, in 2019, due to issues with Leeds City Council and the need for more space, the convention moved to nearby Harrogate. And earlier this year, Lisa Wood stepped down from the role of director to be taken by Travelling Man’s Nabil Homsi. This week’s events are already underway and the convention begins on Saturday the 12th of November until Sunday the 13th of November. Bleeding Cool will be reporting from the show all weekend long. Do feel free to say hi!