by Warren Ellis
First published 2019
Spider Jerusalem prowls The City's streets with his reputation for exposing every kind of human corruption. The veteran journalist has built his career reporting on organ traffickers and DNA thieves while consuming enough drugs to kill ordinary people. Now Spider faces his biggest challenge yet. Two presidential candidates battle for power: the Beast and the Smiler. Spider appears to be the only reporter willing to cut through their campaign lies and uncover the truth. He recruits new assistants to help investigate these political machines. As Spider digs deeper into the candidates' secrets, he discovers corruption that shocks even his cynical worldview. The revelations prove so disturbing that no amount of mind-altering substances can numb the horror of what he finds. In this future world dominated by shallow consumerism and institutional decay, Spider refuses to watch passively as society crumbles. His investigation threatens powerful forces in The City who prefer their secrets buried.
Genres: 21st-century, activism, alternate-history, cyberpunk
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: The City
Period: Future
336 pages · Paperback · Vertigo
Content warnings: drug-use, graphic-violence