Preceded by Chaos Vol. -1 by M. Wheeler, illustrated by B. Bicknell

Information about the book

Title: … Preceded by Chaos Vol -1 (…Preceded by Chaos #3)

Author: M. Wheeler

Release Date: 26th June 2018

Genre: Graphic Novel

Publisher: Clink Street Publishing

Format: Paperback

 

Summary

…Preceded by Chaos is a graphic illustrated series, charting the dramatic past, present and future of a young emergency room doctor, as the stress of saving lives threatens to overwhelm him. Mitchell Weaver is a troubled young Emergency Medicine doctor, orbiting a world of high-stress, intense pressure. It’s a distinguished profession with the burden of a variety of particularly disturbing personal demons that he must battle in order to maintain the façade of sanity and control. The third installment of the series, Volume -1, takes place before the first book in the series, Volume 0, before Mitchell’s attempt at sobriety and self-awareness. During this chapter Mitchell travels to Spain in an attempt to find a part of himself that his been lost. But ultimately, Mitchell’s trip to Barcelona may be an escape more than journey.

Review

After reading this book, I don’t really know what to feel about it. Reading this book on its own, before reading its companions (this is a prequel to a series already out), I would say it left a lot to be desired. A lot of stuff happened in a short amount of time, so at times I find myself feeling somewhat confused by the plot and the direction of the story. Additionally, I found myself not really liking any of the characters, apart from those that have very little parts to play – this may be a result of the protagonist, Mitchell, makes some very questionable decisions and seems to be a bit of a shitty person.

However, this being said, I’m very intrigued as to what happens after this prequel. It is stated that this is the story of before Mitchell’s attempt at sobriety and self-awareness and I am very interested in where the story leads him and whether or not he becomes a better person. Additionally, at the end, we are given some information that hints at a main plot device for the sequels, which may in turn affect Mitchell and his future life decisions. Although I wasn’t a huge fan of the prequel, I still do find myself wanting to carry on with the series as it left so much to be desired and like I said previously, I really want to know where the story leads and if Mitchell can fight his demons and find what he wants in life.

This book is also illustrated by B.Bicknell, who provides some wonderful illustrations of particular scenes in the book. As the book was fast-paced, it was nice to have something solid for you to focus on and give you another sense of what is happening during that current moment. I personally am a fan of graphic novels (although I’ve not read nearly as many as I’d like to), so I found it very exciting when I came to a part of the book that contained a picture. The way the pictures were drew also went perfectly with the themes and the overriding emotions of the book – it as a whole is quite dark and with Mitchell either drunk or high a during a lot of the book, the roughness and haziness of the drawings fit in perfectly and really encapsulates the feelings of the book and the emotions of Mitchell and the situation. One of the things I enjoyed most, was that the majority of the book took place in Barcelona, Spain and upon Mitchell trying to find inspiration through the architecture and the Picasso museum, we was able to see visible, through the drawings, what he was witnessing also, as if maybe we are there with him.

Although I wasn’t a huge fan of the book as a whole, it has definitely peaked my curiosity and considering it was only a short book with some wonderful drawings, I would recommend that people read it, especially if you’ve the other books beforehand as I think it would provide some wonderful insight into the character of Mitchell and the troubles of his life.