FIGHTS: Review - Sonambulo fights crime in 'Sleep of the Just'

 EX-LUCHADOR TURNS DETECTIVE IN THE RAFAEL NAVARRO TITLE
by
Bowie V. Ibarra

Rafael Navarro is one of America's most talented independent comic book artists.  I recently had the opportunity to pick up his title, 'Sonambulo in Sleep of the Just'.  It was a real find.  The story is a noir-style mystery mixed with elements of lucha libre.

The story revolves around our hard-boiled hero, Sonambulo, which is Spanish for 'Sleepwalker'.  Sonambulo was once a lucha libre star until he had a fateful run-in with the mob, who beat him down, shot him, and left him for dead.  Instead of dying, however, he fell into a kind of hibernation state, waking up years later.  When he woke up, he never went to sleep again and was afflicted with the superpower to 'see' other people's dreams.  It's that ability that helps him put puzzle pieces together to solve crimes.

The story itself is a lot of fun.  But the best part of the title is the art.  Navarro has a very distinctive artistic style that brings its characters to life.  The black and white story helps add to the spookier elements to the story, and also give you that 1950s TV feel of the story.

If you have the opportunity, find this graphic novel or the individual copies of each chapter.  'Sleep of the Just' is not only well-crafted story with dynamic art, but a fitting tribute to the tradition of crime fighting luchadors.  This title is ZBFbooks.com approved!

You can pick up a copy of 'Sleep of the Just' and other works from Rafael Navarro at his official website HERE.

And if you like lucha libre stories with zombies, pick up the ZBFbooks.com title, 'Sword of the Angel'.  It's about a Mexican luchador who faces the zombie apocalypse with spectators after a pro-wrestling event in San Antonio.  It's a great title you can find HERE in paperback or kindle.

BOWIE V. IBARRA is the author of the 'Down the Road' zombie horror series from Permuted Press.  Bowie likes to refer to his works as Tex-Mexploitation, as they all feature strong cultural elements of south Texas, where Bowie was raised.  Some titles include 'Codename: La Lechusa', 'Tejano Star and the Vengeance of Chaplain Skull, and Alamo Rising.

Network with Bowie at his official website ZBFbooks.com.