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w w w . i d w p u b l i s h i n g . c o m • $ 2 4 . 9 9

Written by Hill and featuring artwork from Gabriel Rodriguez, Locke & Key tells ofKeyhouse, an unlikely New England mansion, with fantastic doors that transform all whodare to walk through them... and home to a hate-filled and relentless creature that will notrest until it forces open the most terrible door of them all...

Locke & Key creator Hill is apast recipient of the Bram StokerAward, the World Fantasy Award,the International Thriller Award, andthe Sydney J. Bounds Best NewcomerAward. This collection of the first Locke &Key storyline features an introduction byRobert Crais, author of the best-sellingElvis Cole novels.

Acclaimed suspense novelist and New York Times best-sellingauthor Joe Hill (Heart-Shaped Box) creates an all-new story

of dark fantasy and wonder: Locke & Key.

“It's great! ...The art here by Gabriel Rodriguezis some of the finest stuff in comics today... Theteam of Hill and Rodriguez is top notch!”

- Blair Butler, Fresh Ink

“In a year of auspicious comics debuts, Joe Hill turned in one of the few comics that truly came from adifferent place. Written with skill that makes me jealous, courage that makes me smile, and honesty andbrutality that makes me want to see what comes next. Okay, I’m officially a fan.”

- Ed Brubaker, Eisner Award-winning writer

“Solid pacing and plot twists, combined withRodriguez’s clean lines and detailed pencils makeLocke & Key a lock for best horror book of the week.”

- Wizard Magazine

“Holy S#%@! This is intense, man...you have got to pick up this comic!”

- Pete LePage, Pulp Secret

“A modern suspense thrillermeets something more wondrousand magical.”

- IGN.com

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LOCKE & KEY: WELCOMETO LOVECRAFT: VOLUME 1. SEPTEMBER 2008. FIRST PRINTING. Locke & Key script © 2008 Joe Hill, art © Idea and DesignWorks, LLC.All rights reserved.IDW Publishing, a division of Idea and Design Works, LLC. Editorial offices: 5080 Santa Fe St., San Diego, CA 92109. The IDW logo is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.All Rights Reserved. Any similarities to persons living or dead are purely coincidental. With the exception of artwork used for review purposes, none of the contents of this publication maybe reprinted without the permission of Idea and Design Works, LLC. Printed in Korea.IDW Publishing does not read or accept unsolicited submissions of ideas, stories, or artwork.Originally published as LOCKE & KEY: WELCOME TO LOVECRAFT Issues #1–6.

Locke & Key created by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguezwww.idwpublishing.com

11 10 09 08 1 2 3 4 5

ISBN: 978-1-60010-237-0

Writ ten by : Joe Hi l l

Art by : Gabr ie l Rodr iguez

Colors by : Jay Fotos

Let ters by : Robbie Robbins

Ser ies Edi ted by : Chr is Ryal l

Col lect ion Edi ted by : Just in Eis inger

Col lect ion Designed by : Robbie Robbins

IDW PublishingOperations: Moshe Berger, Chairman • Ted Adams, President • Matthew Ruzicka, CPA,Controller • Alan Payne, VP of Sales • Lorelei Bunjes, Dir. of Digital Services • Marci Hubbard,Executive Assistant • Alonzo Simon, Shipping ManagerEditorial: Chris Ryall, Publisher/Editor-in-Chief • Scott Dunbier, Editor, Special Projects • JustinEisinger, Editor • Kris Oprisko, Editor/Foreign Lic. • Denton J. Tipton, Editor • Tom Waltz, EditorDesign: Robbie Robbins, EVP/Sr. Graphic Artist • Ben Templesmith, Artist/Designer • NeilUyetake, Art Director • Chris Mowry, Graphic Artist • Amauri Osorio, Graphic Artist

LockeandKeyVol1-int.qx:Layout 1 8/7/08 3:22 PM Page 2

JOE HILL:For Tabitha Jane King:

Literary locksmith, mother, friend. Love you.

GABRIEL RODRIGUEZ:To Catalina:

You unlocked my dreams.

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house

Hill’swelcome to

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I was in London to promote a book called TheWatchman, slamming between BBC radiointerviews and bookstore stock signings whenmy UK publicist says, “We have anotherAmerican writer in town. Shall we join up forlunch?”So the two American writers got together,

hunkering down over fish and potatoes in a hiplittle London restaurant not far from Trafalgar.The other guy was a tall, friendly dude with athick beard, black duster, and easy smile—JoeHill.After swapping a couple of obligatory “touring

writer” stories as we got to know each other, wediscovered a mutual passion: Baseball. Beingfrom Los Angeles, I bleed Dodger blue. Joe, fromNew England, is a hardcore member of Red SoxNation. This was a perfect conversational matchbecause so many ex-Dodgers were then playingfor Boston (Julio Lugo and J.D. Drew amongthem, both of whom would bat over .330 in theupcoming post-season), and ex-BoSox weretaking the field in Chavez Ravine (ace startingpitcher Derek Lowe and All-Star infielder NomarGarciaparra, to name only two). Our Britishhosts probably glazed over as Joe and I rattledon—not about horror novels and crime fiction,but Derek Lowe’s durability, J.D. Drew’scommitment to the game, and whether or notthe BoSox had the stuff to make it to the 2007World Series (they did, crushing the ColoradoRockies in four games, much to Joe Hill’s nodoubt considerable delight).After lunch, we swapped books as our

respective publicists dragged us away for moreinterviews, and I spent the rest of my tour and thelong flight home sucking down Heart-ShapedBox. I immediately bought 20th Century Ghosts,and devoured the short stories. Then Chris Ryalldropped the first three Locke & Key scriptson me.When baseball scouts judge player talent,

they consider five tools: Hitting for average,hitting for power, how fast the guy can run, howwell he can throw, and how well he can catch.

The very best players—think A-Rod or KenGriffey, Jr.—can do it all: Crack a key

single when it counts or slam a homerun, steal a base, throw out arunner, or make one of thosespectacular hauling-ass-back-to-the-ball-over-the-shoulder catches.Most players in the bigs show twoor three tools, but the very bestplayers have all five.

Joe Hill is a five-tool player.Check it out. A fabulous first

novel. The killer short stories,which require a different skill setthan writing a novel. And,

now, this amazing graphic novel, which is anentirely different form of storytelling than novelsor short stories. I’m betting dollars to donuts itwon’t be long before we see Hill’s byline on amajor motion picture.The scripts for the first three issues of Locke

& Key blew me away. And this was even beforeGabriel Rodriguez’s stunning art, which hasbeen hauntingly colored by Jay Fotos to achieveexactly the right tone and mood. FromKeyhouse’s imposing lines to murderer SamLesser’s listless, watery eyes; in the depiction ofTyler Locke’s withdrawal to the pain burned intoKinsey’s face, the art and story are perfectlymatched to reveal not only the characters, but asteadily mounting tension that will creep youout, surprise you, and is guaranteed to keep youturning the pages.I read the scripts in a single evening, then

pleaded with Ryall for more.Locke & Key is a graphic novel of the richest

kind, presenting a story and charactersconceived with all the depth of a full-blownnovel, yet perfectly rendered by both writer andartists to take advantage of the graphic medium.Here we have these three lost children—theoldest brother, Tyler, who feels responsible forhis father’s death; Kinsey, the middle sister, whohas already saved her younger brother once,and is now trying to save herself; and six-year-old Bode, who may well be the key, so to speak,to their survival—hauled across the country bytheir mother after their father is murdered by ahomicidal student; these three kids who are atonce real because of the secrets they carry, andhow the author subtly intertwines their personalstories with the mysteries of Keyhouse and theforces that have drawn them home. (Memo tothe Locke family: You want to rebuild your lives,you sure as hell do NOT retreat to a town calledLovecraft.)

Locke & Key works so well, I think, because itresonates with basic fears that all of us share—our loss of innocence; that we might unwittinglyhurt someone we love; that revealing ourselvesin a moment of weakness might inevitably leadto our undoing. Or worse. This is the stuff ofgreat stories, and when the author tosses inthrills, chills, and the promise of worse thingswaiting, the reader is in for a helluva ride.As the Locke family arrives in Lovecraft, Tyler

laments that a high school kid can only be onething—the jock, the slut, the smart kid, or thevictim.If Joe Hill was only one thing, it would be this:

An amazing story-teller.Welcome to Lovecraft.Welcome to Locke & Key.Welcome to Joe Hill’s house.

by Robert Crais

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LOC

KE

&K

EY:

Welcom

etoLovecraft

HILL

•R

OD

RIG

UE

Z

1

w w w . i d w p u b l i s h i n g . c o m • $ 2 4 . 9 9

Written by Hill and featuring artwork from Gabriel Rodriguez, Locke & Key tells ofKeyhouse, an unlikely New England mansion, with fantastic doors that transform all whodare to walk through them... and home to a hate-filled and relentless creature that will notrest until it forces open the most terrible door of them all...

Locke & Key creator Hill is apast recipient of the Bram StokerAward, the World Fantasy Award,the International Thriller Award, andthe Sydney J. Bounds Best NewcomerAward. This collection of the first Locke &Key storyline features an introduction byRobert Crais, author of the best-sellingElvis Cole novels.

Acclaimed suspense novelist and New York Times best-sellingauthor Joe Hill (Heart-Shaped Box) creates an all-new story

of dark fantasy and wonder: Locke & Key.

“It's great! ...The art here by Gabriel Rodriguezis some of the finest stuff in comics today... Theteam of Hill and Rodriguez is top notch!”

- Blair Butler, Fresh Ink

“In a year of auspicious comics debuts, Joe Hill turned in one of the few comics that truly came from adifferent place. Written with skill that makes me jealous, courage that makes me smile, and honesty andbrutality that makes me want to see what comes next. Okay, I’m officially a fan.”

- Ed Brubaker, Eisner Award-winning writer

“Solid pacing and plot twists, combined withRodriguez’s clean lines and detailed pencils makeLocke & Key a lock for best horror book of the week.”

- Wizard Magazine

“Holy S#%@! This is intense, man...you have got to pick up this comic!”

- Pete LePage, Pulp Secret

“A modern suspense thrillermeets something more wondrousand magical.”

- IGN.com

L&K VOL1 HC2.qx:Layout 1 8/7/08 3:07 PM Page 1