In the world of body brokerage, making things right is messy work

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

JUNE 14, 2024, (PORTLAND, OR) — It’s never too late for a bad person to do the right thing, even if it destroys you in the process…

Announcing the all new twisted crime series from Mad Cave Studios, THE BODY TRADE, by critically acclaimed writer Zac Thompson (Project Riese, Breathed A Body), with inks by Argentinian artist Jok (Forty Coffins) and letters by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou (Shanghai Red, Red Sonja); featuring cover B by Jacob Phillips (Houses of the Unholy).

Kim Krilic is a divorced ex-con who’s trying to atone. However, his short temper tends to get the best of him. When he returns to Florida to bury his estranged son, he’s sickened to find an empty grave. His son’s remains were sold into “The Body Trade”. Armed with righteous fury, Kim sets out to reclaim his child’s corpse. But one act of vengeance causes everything to spiral out of control.

The Body Trade is an unrelenting revenge story set against the backdrop of America’s aftermarket for dead bodies. Critically acclaimed writer Zac Thompson (Blow Away, Into The Unbeing) and star artist Jok (In Hell We Fight) team up for this neo-noir crime thriller rife with bloodshed and brutality, in the tradition of Blue Ruin and Hell or High Water!

“I’ve wanted to create this comic for years and collaborating with Jok is a dream,” said Zac Thompson. “Through his lines and colors he’s built this incredible mood on the page that captures the gaudy excess of Florida balanced against the horrific stylings of an industry of death. Together we’ve created a story that’s both a fierce revenge yarn and an interrogation into a seedy corporate underbelly of America. The Body Trade is a raw and unflinching neo-noir where an ex-convict goes up against the intense might of corporate power and will do anything to win. But what when there’s nothing illegal about what you’re up against—how do you expose the truth?! And will anyone care when you do?”

“When The Body Trade knocked at my door, I was working on some children and YA projects that required a light hearted style, gentle narrative and festive color palette,” said Jok. “Zac’s story needed quite the opposite, as it explored deeply dramatic themes, some gore and a heavy atmosphere. It’s been a great pleasure to meet and work with Zac and the team. I hope readers get hooked by The Body Trade, as it combines elements I’ve enjoyed in other works of fiction such as True Detective, Thomas Harris novels and Scorsese’s movies. Zac is brilliant and I believe we share the same view and taste for these kinds of stories. We’ve both certainly put our hearts in this one.”