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Steeple
Steeple Volume 3: That's the Spirit
A supernatural tale of friendship, the devil, and moral gray areas from the creator of Giant Days !
A new year begins in Tredregyn, and a Satanic ritual goes awry—bringing the filming of a cozy TV detective drama to town. Unfortunately, this particular Pandora’s box contains a few things a lot less pleasant than casual jobs and showbiz glitz. Plus, in a special backup feature, a teen sleuth puts the cat among the parish pigeons as she attempts to solve the disappearance of a glamorous author.
A new year begins in Tredregyn, and a Satanic ritual goes awry—bringing the filming of a cozy TV detective drama to town. Unfortunately, this particular Pandora’s box contains a few things a lot less pleasant than casual jobs and showbiz glitz. Plus, in a special backup feature, a teen sleuth puts the cat among the parish pigeons as she attempts to solve the disappearance of a glamorous author.
176 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2022
About the author
John Allison
274 books818 followersJohn Allison is the author and artist of the British webcomics Scary Go Round and Bad Machinery.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See other authors with similar names.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See other authors with similar names.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
September 29, 2022
John Allison can do no wrong, if you ask me. His peculiar brand of humour and ridiculous storytelling is exactly in my alley, and this third volume of Steeple continues the excellence that the first two volumes started. Billie and Maggie are still trying to find their places in the world, even as Christmas, the arrival of a film crew, and a crossover with one of Allison's other characters Lottie Grote keep them on their toes.
September 24, 2022
John Allison crafts another wonder of sultry comic art, eldritch weirdness and quirky, wry humor.
Readers of his previous works (Bobbins, Scary-Go-Round, Giant Days, and Bad Machinery) will find more mature and nuanced storytelling than his early days, but that very same absurdist bent that drew us in so many years ago.
The new crew (sexy, sometimes naughty, Maggie Warren; saintly, sometimes Santanist Billie Baker; the tasty crumpet Reverend Penrose) encounter the reality shifting personal gravity of Charlotte Grote.
Volume 3 (originally published as a web comic) continues to expand the universe of small-town Tredregyn and its supernatural inhabitants (as well as some very hedonistic humans).
Everything by Allison is a joy to read and Steeple Volume 3 is an absolute must read.
Readers of his previous works (Bobbins, Scary-Go-Round, Giant Days, and Bad Machinery) will find more mature and nuanced storytelling than his early days, but that very same absurdist bent that drew us in so many years ago.
The new crew (sexy, sometimes naughty, Maggie Warren; saintly, sometimes Santanist Billie Baker; the tasty crumpet Reverend Penrose) encounter the reality shifting personal gravity of Charlotte Grote.
Volume 3 (originally published as a web comic) continues to expand the universe of small-town Tredregyn and its supernatural inhabitants (as well as some very hedonistic humans).
Everything by Allison is a joy to read and Steeple Volume 3 is an absolute must read.
November 28, 2022
Completely unhinged and I love it. Where's the rest?
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August 8, 2023Like the previous book, this one compiles a few online Steeple stories. The first, about a drunk supernatural leech, is the shortest of the bunch and forgettable. The second features Shelly Winters and Charlotte Grotte from past Allison comics, and it's the best part of the book. I like the Steeple characters, but there's a reason Lottie and Shelly pop up in all of Allison's comics, they're great. The last story takes up half the collection. It's a little all over the place: there's a film crew in town, Billie has a fling, Penrose confronts his past trauma, Maggie confronts her daddy issues, and politics involving the Satanic Church reach a boiling point. Fun stuff, with the usual inspired dialogue, but I feel like Allison could have tightened the story better, or left out a plotline or two.
December 4, 2022
Honestly I think I'm just bored of Steeple. It wasn't John Allison's best work, but it was fine enough. This volume breaks the mold a bit by giving some semblance of actual ongoing plot but that plot is pretty boring.
September 7, 2024
Hi Again!
I finished reading another volume of Steeple (I think this might even be the last one which is incredibly sad), I love all of John Allison’s graphic novels and I was really enjoying this one as well. I did a google search and a GoodReads search and did not see a fourth volume. However, I do know that John Allison has some other graphic novels I need to pick up still so those will be coming up for me soon as well as continuing my re-read of Giant Days. But in the meantime, let’s talk Steeple Volume 3 (and hope that we get to meet this crew of characters again soon).
SPOILERS AHEAD
In this volume, Billie is needing rent money, which she firmly disagrees with since she does not even get a paycheck but its time to make a new prayer and hope that it works (either that or work at a super sketchy gas station down the road). Luckily for her the prayer works but in a way she absolutely did not expect.
As always this was another great volume! I love John Allison’s work so much and highly recommend all of it. This volume was no expectation, it was fun and I loved seeing how Billie’s rent situation worked out. I absolutely can not wait to pick up another graphic novel in the near future!
Goodreads Rating: 5 Stars
I finished reading another volume of Steeple (I think this might even be the last one which is incredibly sad), I love all of John Allison’s graphic novels and I was really enjoying this one as well. I did a google search and a GoodReads search and did not see a fourth volume. However, I do know that John Allison has some other graphic novels I need to pick up still so those will be coming up for me soon as well as continuing my re-read of Giant Days. But in the meantime, let’s talk Steeple Volume 3 (and hope that we get to meet this crew of characters again soon).
SPOILERS AHEAD
In this volume, Billie is needing rent money, which she firmly disagrees with since she does not even get a paycheck but its time to make a new prayer and hope that it works (either that or work at a super sketchy gas station down the road). Luckily for her the prayer works but in a way she absolutely did not expect.
As always this was another great volume! I love John Allison’s work so much and highly recommend all of it. This volume was no expectation, it was fun and I loved seeing how Billie’s rent situation worked out. I absolutely can not wait to pick up another graphic novel in the near future!
Goodreads Rating: 5 Stars
December 16, 2022
A missing author and a detective procedural filming in town are the basic plots for this collection, but the series is still more about the characters than the action, which is what makes it so enjoyable. The scenarios do offer fertile ground for the characters to bounce off each other, and we get a little more back story about Maggie and the Church of Satan (in a simmering B plot that feels like a long-term story arc). The series is still a lot of fun, with a great collection of outlandish characters who play off each other to great effect, both comedically and otherwise. I laughed out loud several times during my read, and am continuously amazed at how John Allison manages to do that with all these different settings and characters (although this book does in fact feature a crossover, which just adds to the fun). Still highly recommended.
September 5, 2022
First off: a cross over with Charlotte Grote from Bad Machinery. Squee!!!
Secondly: I think this is the volume where the series just got super-comfortable and fun for me. Not that it wasn't fun before, but the positions of Maggie and Billie are much more settled, and I finally got more comfortable with the Satanist Church stuff (especially when the Reverend is asking help from Brian). And if you have never read any of the series, probably none of the above makes any sense. Suffice it to say that this is a worthy successor to Bad Machinery, and I am looking forward to many volumes to come.
Secondly: I think this is the volume where the series just got super-comfortable and fun for me. Not that it wasn't fun before, but the positions of Maggie and Billie are much more settled, and I finally got more comfortable with the Satanist Church stuff (especially when the Reverend is asking help from Brian). And if you have never read any of the series, probably none of the above makes any sense. Suffice it to say that this is a worthy successor to Bad Machinery, and I am looking forward to many volumes to come.
September 23, 2022
Finally! Collects the later volumes of Allison's Dark Horse title Steeple, which, unlike the earlier issues, only appeared on his website.
Continuing the adventures of former curate Billie Baker and her best friend Maggie Warren in a small town in coastal Cornwall, Billie continues to contend with her recent loss of faith in the CoE and recruitment to the Church of Satan. Hijinks ensue!
Also featuring the odious Magus Tom Pendennis, the loveable Warlock Brian Fitzpatrick, the unruffable Mrs. Clovis, and the stoic but beleaguered Reverend David Penrose.
Continuing the adventures of former curate Billie Baker and her best friend Maggie Warren in a small town in coastal Cornwall, Billie continues to contend with her recent loss of faith in the CoE and recruitment to the Church of Satan. Hijinks ensue!
Also featuring the odious Magus Tom Pendennis, the loveable Warlock Brian Fitzpatrick, the unruffable Mrs. Clovis, and the stoic but beleaguered Reverend David Penrose.
January 21, 2023
I can't wait to see where this series goes next. I was so happy it got a second and a third volume and this little to be continued on the last page makes it clear there is a fourth! I fell even more in love with all the characters this time around, they were all fleshed out more deeply and given more backstory. The introduction or new villains, and new characters who will hopefully be back in the fourth volume will make me keep reading as long as Allison is making them.
January 4, 2024
billie and maggie tangle with an energy vampire, a film production, billie's inability to pay her rent at the church of satan, a missing children's author, and maggie's shitty dad. this was great fun, i've loved the whole series so far and i can only assume it will continue to be wonderful. the art is cute, the characters are ridiculous and sweet, it makes me laugh out loud. highly recommend, 5/5.
Read
July 6, 2024Well, I timed this one poorly for the Christmas special, though the literal sesh gremlin was a great idea. But the story with the terrible storm felt more seasonally appropriate for this soggy July. And before that brings Sunday TV favourite Clotted Crime to town, and moves the plot along, there's the charming crossover with the wider Allison world; I'm glad the visitors noticed how much hornier Steeple is than his other books.
September 23, 2022
I've read John Allison's comics since the early 2000s, and I've always thought highly of his art and his humor. But Steeple is an extraordinary comic book. It's funny, exciting, cozy, irreverent, sexy, and calming, all in equal turns. If I must be reductive, I'll describe it as a cross between XFiles and the Vicar of Dibley. I love it.
November 22, 2022
I think the series is starting to head into satire, and that's fine. Roughly the last quarter of this volume is about the filming of a British detective series that takes place in a small seaside town. IMO spoofing the same small town series that seem to always be on PBS or Acorn.
A little bit of character growth does takes place, and seeds are sowed for future storylines.
A little bit of character growth does takes place, and seeds are sowed for future storylines.
Want to read
June 2, 2022Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through Edelweiss.
October 29, 2022
Lottie!!!! 😍😍😍
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 30, 2022
It's so nice to have the web comics released as ACTUAL books! Yes, I am an old git who loves paper products. This one includes some character crossovers from the Allison-verse. Oh yes!
November 3, 2022
Picking up this book felt like visiting old friends! This volume has two shorter stories followed by a longer plot line. Looking forward to some answers in Volume 4!
November 26, 2022
John Allison, good for the bones.
December 20, 2022
Now we've got a real story going on
January 2, 2023
Really fun crossover with some old friends. Really feels like peak John Allison to me.
January 5, 2023
Quirky messed up characters with big hearts. The feel good never stops. John Allison kills it!! Again.
February 2, 2023
Rating : 3,5 ⭐
September 12, 2023
Not as bad as volume 2, not as good as volume 1. Still a bit directionless
October 7, 2023
Cawpile: 6.93 3.5*
February 1, 2024
Another great installment! Allison and Borras are really terrific artists and writers. It's as cool as Giant Days and as fun as well! Definitely digging this concept and story.
September 27, 2022
Allison nails small town English life in this insular Cornwall Coast.
Billie and the Reverend have great character building here, but I wasn't as pleased about Maggie's being daddy issues.
The jokes are great. Charlotte's cameo was cute, but I'm not sure how much it added.
Billie and the Reverend have great character building here, but I wasn't as pleased about Maggie's being daddy issues.
The jokes are great. Charlotte's cameo was cute, but I'm not sure how much it added.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews