Strange Cases

A rakish law student inherits his late mother's practice—and its beastly secrets—in this sumptuous gothic graphic-novel debut from Riotbones

In the wake of his attorney mother's sudden death, dutiful law student Jude Aguilar returns to the town of Lazaro to take over her practice—but the only thing stranger than the peculiar cases she left behind are the clients themselves.

As the cases unfold, Jude uncovers a tapestry of family secrets and local monsters. Can he save Lazaro, his mother's legacy, and himself before it all goes up in flames?

Drawing inspiration from both European gothic tradition and Filipino literature and culture, debut author-illustrator Riotbones paints a surreal world that is both uncanny and comfortably familiar. Outwardly dark, oftentimes bizarre, but tender and human at the core, it is a somber but hopeful tale that interrogates the concept of “monstrosity” and asks us to rethink what “justice” is, ultimately revealing the soft underbelly of what it means to be human.