So, I’ve never really worked on outright softcore before… till now! This book, the first in the Monika series, takes me back to a murky and mortifying late ‘90s adolescence during the glory days of Skinemax and the erotic thriller. Translator and clinical psychologist Thilde Barboni, with a dozen novels to her credit, turns to comics with Spanish pin-up artist Guillem March, best known here for his Catwoman covers, one of which drew some ire that resulted in its alteration. There’s some narrative gesturing at AI via sex dolls, but the book centers around sisterly relationships gone sour, the lifelong fallout from sexual abuse, political intrigue, and corruption Eyes Wide Shut-style.
Desperately seeking her missing sister, the beautiful multimedia visual performance artist Monika follows a lead that takes her deep into the murky underworld of anonymous, and decadent, masked balls for sexual encounters. Intoxicated by the power and mysteries surrounding her, she learns that the path to knowledge can be strewn with dangers never before imagined…
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