Hallowe’en Comic Tales: The 13th Stone

By John Freeman on October 31, 2016

It’s become something of a Hallowe’en tradition for comic creators Bryan Coyle and Lee Robson to create a short comic for the season, but this year (with the help of Bolt-01), they’ve gone one better and done a full blown 22-page one-shot, The 13th Stone. It’s a deliciousy creepy tale oozing the kind of scratching the back of the eyeballs creeping horror you’d expect from this team.

Taking a job in the small English village of Argleton, archaeologist Joy Lambton finds herself wiling away her spare time investigating the ancient stones that stand on the outskirts and trying to solve one particular mystery that surrounds them: why the few sources she can find claim there are only eleven stones, when there are clearly twelve.

But when she learns of a thirteenth stone, Joy begins to uncover the strange and sinister connection they have to the village…

“The comic has been released – initially – via Gumroad, on a ‘pay what you want’ basis,” Lee tells us, “and hopefully, it’ll be released – at a fixed price – on ComiXology in early 2017.”

The 13th Stone punches all the kind of buttons those of us who grew up watching Children of the Stones and Sky in the 1970s still enjoy, while offering a sympathetic eye to both sides of those caught up in a mystery far bigger than both parties. Brian’s line work on this is graceful, understated and haunting, with just the right eye for detail to bring a healthy substance to the tale, complementing that ” what if it were true” vibe I like about the kind of fictional histories conjured here.

If you’ve ever grown up in a village with its own stone circle like me, that only adds to the enjoyment.

Brian Coyle is a writer and artist situated in Cookstown, “the Los Angeles of Mid Ulster”, and when says that when he is not tipsy on grape juice plus or engaged in being fabulous, you’ll find him on his blog, talking about comics and bad television like they were important rather than the cultural detritus of a civilisation in decline.

Lee Robson is the writer/co-creator (with Bryan) of the critically acclaimed indie graphic novel Babble, published by Com.X. Currently living and writing in the north east of England, his work has appeared in various anthologies, including the Eagle/True Believers Award nominated FutureQuake, its sister publication, the horror themed Something Wicked and Accent UK‘s series of themed anthologies.
Happy Hallowe’en!• You can find more about the comic here on Lee’s web site and buy it from: Gumroad, Sellfy or Payhip

• Lee Robson’s Blog: imaginarystories.co.uk | Twitter: @lee_robson | Find his work on ComiXology

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.