Crownsville by Rodney Barnes; artwork by Elia Bonetti
Many thanks to Oni Press and NetGalley for allowing me to preview
Rodney Barnes’ latest graphic novel Crownsville. I wasn’t sure what to
expect with this graphic novel, but the fact that its setting is a notorious
segregated all-Black psychiatric facility that has been abandoned seemed
interesting to me. I love haunted facility stories, and I’m particularly interested
in these kinds of abandoned buildings. However, I wasn’t prepared for the utter
horror and fright that is in this book, but Crownsville takes readers on
a wild ride that directly confronts the horrors of racism, segregation, and the
kinds of unethical medical experiments conducted on minorities like the infamous
Tuskegee Experiments or the experiments conducted on inmates in Philadelphia’s Holmesburg Prison between 1951 and 1974. Sometimes it’s the reality in which the
horror is rooted that makes it so terrifying, and Crownsville’s emphasis
on these unethical medical experiments and exploitation of vulnerable and marginalized
populations helps to capture the horrors of racism and segregation.
The story starts with three main characters- journalist Paul
Blair, who just lost his mother before she is able to reveal a confession about
her work at Crownsville on her deathbed; detective Mike Simms, who is nearing retirement
and jaded from the increase in drug violence that plagues the Annapolis and
Baltimore areas; and Todd Hicks, a newly hired security officer, tasked with
guarding the abandoned Crownsville facility during his first day on the job.
The three men’s lives converge when Todd, after hearing some strange noises as
he arrives for his first shift, discovers the body of the guard he is set to
relieve in a room in Crownsville. Although it appears to be suicide,
investigating officers are skeptical of Todd, who reports seeing a toy by the
body. However, we can also see that the investigating officer views Todd’s race
as being another factor in questioning him. Blair is assigned to investigate
the story, and with his mother’s deathbed revelation about something not being
right about Crownsville, Blair reaches out to Detective Simms for some background
information about Crownsville. Hicks eventually goes missing as he continues to
hear and see the lingering remnants of Crownsville’s fraught and hidden history
of human experimentation. Blair and
Simms begin to unravel the mystery of Crownsville’s experiments after some
incredibly discoveries are unearthed, leading them to a nearby military base,
where they eventually learn the true depravity of these experiments and the human
cost in Annapolis’s Black community.
This was a wild and exciting graphic novel that expertly
blends mystery, horror, and social commentary in an engaging and exciting way.
Although the first part where the characters are established is a little slow at
first, the story really picks up in Part 2 and propels readers forward into a
crazy and eventful ending. Although this story has supernatural elements to it,
the underlying specter of human experimentation on Black populations in the 20th
century makes the story all the more horrifying. As I was reading this, I
couldn’t help but think of Tananarive Due’s excellent book The Reformatory,
which similarly uses supernatural elements to frame the real-life horrors of
racism and segregation to show how these ghosts of the past continue to haunt
us. Rodney Barnes’ writing is excellent in this story, presenting realistic and
engaging characters who pursue the truth despite the potential horror and
dangers that lurk within the abandoned Crownsville facility. Furthermore, Elia
Bonetti’s artwork moves from an eerie tone to outright horror with terrifying
images of the human experiments that continue to haunt Crownsville. This is an
exciting and engaging read. Highly recommended!
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