Book Review - Hellshock - Jae Lee***** A bit of history, hope I get this right. Hellshock was originally a four part comic published in about 1994. Then there was a second series, destined to be another four parter, of which only three parts were ever published. Now Jae Lee has added the last chapter of the second series and the whole lot has been put out as a graphic novel. If you read the bumph on the back you might expect an entirely different novel from the one you are actually getting.... "In the confines of a psychiatric hospital a suicidal young woman meets an enigmatic stranger who believes he is an angelic presence not of this earth gifted with the powers of GOD. Is she being seduced into a cult ... or is she bearing witness to a miracle?" That really doesn't do the book any justice at all, Jae Lee has created a story that is far more subtle and thought provoking than the blurb writer would have you think. The young psychiatrist Christina Marceau struggles with her first internship at County General, she has come armed with hope, her brand new doctors qualification and the will and desire to better people's lives. Swiftly she comes to realise that she can do only a pitifully small amount to help those who need her most. She becomes entranced by the patient Daniel, he is mostly silent and enigmatic, withdrawn and bewildered, there is none of the talk of Godly powers as described in the blurb, instead we see Christina putting herself in danger, her already fragile mental state worsening into a mental condition of her own as she becomes obsessed by this man. She talks of her closeness with her patients, but she becomes so close that she cannot see she is begining to mirror her patients symptoms. Hellshock may be poorly titled as well, in fact it would be better served with a different title, blurb and by getting rid of the semi-Christian symbols that line the front and back covers, when a book tackles a serious topic, it deserves in itself to be treated seriously, instead the publishers have gone for a schlock horror take with the covers. Hellshock is beautiful though, the mental hospital is depicted as a crumbling piece of Victoriana, brooding and oppresive, the final chapter is stunning with a butterfly filled leaf stewn autumn contrasting with grim hospital, and serving to illustrate Christina's mental state in a clever and vivid manner. A very clever story, intelligent and also beautifully drawn and inked.