With The Devil’s Cut arriving in (brick and mortar) stores this week, DSTLRY has announced a second title that will spin out of the anthology — Somna by Tula Lotay and Becky Cloonan.
The project will feature both creators as writers and artists, and DSTLRY says it’s been a decade in the making. It spins out of their 11-page story “What Blighted Flame Burns in Thee?” from The Devil’s Cut anthology and is an “eerie exploration of puritanical oppression and forbidden passion presented in oversized, 48-page perfect bound issues.”
“Somna culminates from a decade plus reveling in the darkest mythologies of history,” Cloonan said in a statement. “Being able to explore these lifetime obsessions alongside one of my favorite creators has made this a career-defining project.”
Here are the details from the publisher:
Set amidst the terrifying backdrop of the witch hunts in a quiet 1600s English village, Somna follows one woman’s escape from the confines of her puritanical world. Ingrid is unhappily married to Roland, the town’s bailiff and chief witch hunter, who has embarked on a single-minded quest to purge the ‘heretics’ in their midst. After a prominent town leader is found murdered, accusations fly and no one is above reproach from Roland’s deadly crusade. Ingrid has her suspicions about who the real murderer is, but even as she searches for the truth, she’s pursued by a shadowy figure. Ingrid gravitates to the foreboding phantom in ways she can’t resist; does this otherworldly seduction hold the key to the mystery? Or will he damn Ingrid’s soul to the blackest circle of Hell?
“I can’t express how excited I am to finally see Somna conjured into existence,” Lotay said. “Becky and I have been finessing this brutally dark and sexy journey for years, and there’s been nothing like it before in comics.”
The first issue will have two covers, one by Cloonan, shown above, and one by Lotay, shown below:
Somna is the second title announced by DSTLRY, following the announcement at Comic-Con of Jock’s Gone.
While print copies of DSTLRY’s titles will be sold in comic shops, their digital plans deviate from under publishers. In their original press release announcing their arrival, they said they plan to launch their own marketplace to sell “limited digital drops” of their titles. With The Devil’s Cut arriving in print today, some fans have asked on Xitter if that digital marketplace would launch as well. Co-founder David Steinberger gave an update, saying “the experience just isn’t quite ready for prime time. Thanks for your patience!”