Her Infernal Descent from Zac Thompson is a modern reimagining of Dante.

I wish I could put my finger on what either worked or didn't work for me here but I can't. The art wasn't bad but it did not grab me and at times it was more of a distraction than an actual part of the storytelling. Without going back and looking, my recollection is that it seemed muddy to me. The use of William Blake and Agatha Christie instead of Virgil and Beatrice sounded interesting but Blake became tiresome and Christie just never seemed to come into her own. Some of the updated circles of hell were interesting but not much beyond that.

I admit that I love Dante's Divine Comedy but I have liked other stories that have riffed off of it so I don't think I was one of those who wouldn't like this version because I love the original. That said, when you update classic literature you are asking for some kind of comparison, even if not a direct canto for canto one. Fortunately, this one is different enough that there really isn't a comparison, this is its own story using a Dantean frame.

I can't really recommend this but I also wouldn't discourage someone from reading it either. I am glad I read it and there were parts that I enjoyed, just not enough for me to say I liked the whole thing very much.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via Edelweiss. ( )

Her Infernal Descent is a modern retelling of Dante's Divine Comedy. A mother journeys to the depths of the underworld in order to retrieve her family. Along the way, she comes across famous people, some who help, and others that thwart. She engaged in many, often ridiculous, trials in order to progress. I just wasn't feeling this graphic novel. There's such promise here, but it just didn't live up to the promise. Divine Comedy is a rich philosophical, alchemic tale. It makes you think. Her Infernal Descent did not. There was a lot of telling, that would have been better shown, especially since illustrations could have been so impactful. This is a light, quick read. Don't go into it expecting the emotional depth of Dante's classic.

***Many thanks to Netgalley and Diamond Book Distributors/ Aftershock for providing an egalley in exchange for a fair and honest review ( )