Hum (Diablo Publications – Marcano / Lenoci / Podseta)
Through the vastness of deepest space they came: a forgotten Human Colony searching for paradise – and finding it in the furthest reaches of the Universe.
Heaven for some… hell for others.
When a natural disaster leaves the majority of the Colony blind, the unaffected survivors turn their helpless, stricken brethren into slaves.
One thousand years they have waited. In chains of darkness. Praying for the dawn of freedom. Suffering the torments of bondage and oppression until the day of reckoning that will wage servant against master, brother against brother, light against dark, past against future, dreams against reality, life against death.
Enter the world of HUM.
The novel opens up with a quote from Abraham Lincoln “As I would not be a slave, so would I not be a master, this expresses my view of Democracy”. This is great way to open up the dramatic epic that is Hum.
I was first introduced to Scott Marcano in 2008 when he independently published The Unwanted (still one of the best indie smart horror stories on the market – review here). Mr. Marcano showed his ability to write a compelling suspence story there, he then broke his own mold and wrote and directed the successful indie romantic comedy “The Journey” (here). Mr. Marcano continues to show the depth of his talent with Hum. Hum runs about 250 pages, retails for $20 and you will not get a better story per dollar anywhere… don’t care the publisher, writer or genre. When I first started reading it, I was a little tempted to throw it into the “space opera” category, but soon came to realize that Hum was not filled with your typical melodrama… but pure drama. The setting is classic science-fiction, the characters keep you plugged in and the story… well, the story is epic. We witness a captivating turning point in a culture from both a close up and wide-angle lens; Scott Macano and Tom Lenoci as a team narrate this beautifully without a hiccup.
Speaking of beautiful… I am unfamiliar with any of Renzo Podesta’s other work, but I want to be. This is a consistently gorgeous book! 250 pages and you get the feeling all of them were given his full attention. His ability to use, synthesize and swap color, B&W, various inking techniques and shade help complete this story. Like other great artists, he was much more than simply the illustrator… he was the cinematographer and interpreter.
There is no other word to describe HUM but AWESOME! This is exactly what the independent press is about!
Grade: A+
