''Britten and Brülightly'' is a British

graphic novel A graphic novel is a self-contained, book-length form of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and Anthology, anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comics sc ...

written and illustrated by

Hannah Berry Hannah Berry is a British comics artist and writer based in Brighton. She is the third UK comics laureate and the first woman to be offered the role, taking over from Charlie Adlard in 2019. In 2018 she was inducted as a fellow of the Royal Soc ...

, and published by

Random House Random House is an imprint and publishing group of Penguin Random House. Founded in 1927 by businessmen Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer as an imprint of Modern Library, it quickly overtook Modern Library as the parent imprint. Over the foll ...

under their

Jonathan Cape Jonathan Cape is a British publishing firm headquartered in London and founded in 1921 by Herbert Jonathan Cape, who was head of the firm until his death. Cape and his business partner Wren Howard (1893–1968) set up the publishing house in ...

imprint on 3 April 2008.

Plot

Fernandez Britten, private investigator, would rather be called a 'private researcher'. Tired of years spent dragging people's unpleasant secrets to the surface, the only thing which keeps him going is the hope of one day unearthing a happy resolution along with the truth. In that vain hope, he takes on the case of

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

Berni Kudos, whose

fiancée An engagement or betrothal is the period of time between the declaration of acceptance of a marriage proposal and the marriage itself (which is typically but not always commenced with a wedding). During this period, a couple is said to be ''fi ...

Charlotte Maughton refuses to believe he would ever have killed himself.

Impact

Award-winning comic author

Bryan Talbot Bryan Talbot (born 24 February 1952) is a British comics artist and writer, best known as the creator of '' The Adventures of Luther Arkwright'' and its sequels '' Heart of Empire'' and '' The Legend of Luther Arkwright'', as well as the ''Gra ...

named ''Britten and Brülightly'' as one of his three "Best of 2008", calling Hannah Berry 'an exceptional talent' and 'one to watch'. In its round-up of the year's graphic novels,

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

called ''Britten and Brülightly'' 'effort-lessly Book of the Year', praising Hannah Berry's 'perfect marriage of soaringly beautiful drawing and writing'.

Inspirations

Author Hannah Berry has stated that her hand-painted art drew inspiration from the French comic-book tradition, quoting Nicolas de Crécy's ''Belleville Rendez-Vous'' as a particular favourite, while the story and the style of the art itself made use of film noir techniques, particularly those of '‘neo-noir’ types like

David Fincher David Andrew Leo Fincher (born August 28, 1962) is an American film director. Often described as one of the preeminent directors of his generation, David Fincher filmography, his films, of which most are psychological thrillers, have collectiv ...

Christopher Nolan Sir Christopher Edward Nolan (born 30 July 1970) is a British and American filmmaker. Known for his Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Blockbuster (entertainment), blockbusters with complex storytelling, he is considered a leading filmma ...

and the

Coen brothers Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, together known as the Coen brothers (), are an American filmmaking duo. Their films span many genres and styles, which they frequently subvert or parody. Among their most acclaimed works are '' Blood Simple'' (198 ...

, and ‘old-school noir’

Carol Reed Sir Carol Reed (30 December 1906 – 25 April 1976) was an English film director and producer, best known for '' Odd Man Out'' (1947), '' The Fallen Idol'' (1948), '' The Third Man'' (1949), and '' Oliver!'' (1968), for which he was awarded th ...

."Skipping (Brü)lightly along with Hannah Berry"

Forbidden Planet ''Forbidden Planet'' is a 1956 American science fiction action film from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, produced by Nicholas Nayfack and directed by Fred M. Wilcox (director), Fred M. Wilcox from a script by Cyril Hume that was based on a film story by ...

International blog log, 5 June 2008. Retrieved on 15 July 2009.

References

2008 comics debuts British graphic novels Jonathan Cape books 2008 graphic novels {{2000s-graphic-novel-stub