Sunstone Volume 1

I've been a big fan of Stjepan Sejic and of Sunstone from DeviantArt. I've read the comics and series already with the virtual copy, but I always felt I should support the artist. So ended up buying the print editions as well. Completely worth it. It's a classy, sexy, fun look at the story of Ally and Lisa. Also makes for a lot of fun conversations when you have friends over.

If you have followed the webcomic as I have done for the last 2 years, you need no introduction.

First volume in a comic series that is strictly for grown ups only.This is the story of two ladies. Ally and Lisa. And how a mutual interest in getting into the world of BDSM leads to them getting heavily into such things. As people, the two of them click from the off. So where will things go? Just Mistress and sub, or something more?Unlike most comic paperbacks, this isn't a collection of single issues. This is just one long volume. Things are left unfinished at the end, because it's the start of the series so there are more volumes to come.There are full page pictures of the characters at the start and end of the story. And there is a section at the back of extras, which give a fascinating insight into the creative process and how it came to be in the first place. With lots of extra sketches also.This is all written and drawn by Croatian artist Stjepan Sejic. Who will be a familiar name to some, from his work on 'Harleen'. A very dark take on Harley Quinn's origin for DC Comics. That was a superb comic, so seeing his name on this attracted me to it.This is amazing. There is no other word for it. The art and the colouring are fabulous to look at, bringing things to life so vividly. It's not afraid, as in Harleen, to do some experimenting with the panel layouts. And the facial expressions are so good at conveying emotion.It is a very interesting look into the world of it's subject matter. As it says early on, it's all about human nature and our traits. The things we keep hidden behind our smiles.But it's also a great character story. The dialogue and the characterisation is so believable. People babble and talk nervously the way real people do when emotion overcomes them, and the way it captures nerves and worrying in advance of something how it might take is just so spot on.This had me from the off. And I want to see where it goes. I will get book two as soon as I can. Looking forward to it.

I’ve been in a relationship for a while. I had forgotten what it’s like to meet someone that you “click” with. Fortunately, author Stjepan Sejic did not, because this is one of the sweetest, most heartfelt things I’ve read since I got through Saga.I have a suspicion that a lot of artistic renditions of naked ladies are done because a dude with a pencil was horny and wanted to make his whacking material seem more highbrow than it really was. If I’m right, then a great many masterful pieces of work may well exist because boobies are magnetic to the male soul. I mention that because this is in large part a lesbian bondage comic, and when you mention that, for a lot of folk it suddenly leaps into total clarity why you bought the thing. Well, I’m not going to act like I’m immune to my baser urges; the idea of a Sapphic kink comic was intriguing from the off. Guilty as charged. But that said, what separates this from other naughty artistry is the sheer warmth of it. It captures that heady rush of completely falling for someone so perfectly that it manages to almost substitute it’s eroticism for just raw enjoyment at seeing these characters happy. There’s not even a story to speak of in a conventional sense as of yet, it’s driven solely by its character moments. Basically, two women meet up for a BDSM session; it’s meant to be all about the sex, but immediately their feelings for each other start developing and it’s all captured so well, the awkward, nervous interactions of meeting someone in the latex-clad flesh for the first time and that manic tangle of thoughts immediately preceding it to the euphoric post-coital bliss when it turns out that things went alright. You get engaged in these two, the instantly likeable Lisa and Ally, our Submissive and Dominant. The book comes mostly from Lisa’s perspective as she recounts the events in question; because of this I’m hoping the series itself concludes on a high note because you’ll find me hanging from a light fitting if a series so sweet ends sour. Through her eyes, you can understand – if you didn’t already – why BDSM holds the appeal it does for its fetishists, so more than a tender portrayal of a budding relationship Sunstone also functions as an exploration of this particular fetish so well that even if BDSM isn’t for you the allure of it becomes obvious.Sex – especially homosexual sex – is stigmatized somewhat. It’s not a new observation by any means, but when I’m trading books with my friend at work I don’t have a second thought about handing her the most perturbingly violent tomes in my collection, but if she were to be caught with…I dunno, “Scalped” by Jason Aaron or something I doubt she’d be as far up crap creek as she would be if she got caught thumbing through Sunstone. This is the sort of appalling stupidity that I would’ve expected of a guy huffing lighter fluid I once got trapped in a conversation with who blamed Eminem for inspiring Jack the ripper. There’s nothing to be furtive or ashamed about for most people when it comes to sexuality. I mean come on, above all, the book is just wholesome - the type of thing that feels good for the soul. A word about the art too; it’s more than just the way people are drawn (which is clean and expressive) but the pages themselves, which often display inventive and thematic panel layouts. Even just superficially, this is a gorgeous piece of work. The colouration helps too – rich, deep reds. This book looks how romance is meant to feel. It’s very light on things that I can meaningfully point to as detractors as well. There’s an occasional janky line here or there that mostly lands flat because it’s unnecessary – there’s one point where Lisa remarks that even angry she can’t help but care about Ally, but the context of the panel itself is completely sufficient to communicate that without the audience needing to be told; the result is clumsy dialogue. It’s not a problem for most of the book and ranks as little besides a nitpick at worst. Thing is, that’s what most of the things that bother me about this book are – nitpicks.I’ve seen some lesbians express surprise that the book is as well done as it is; they’re used to their representation from the pens of men being somewhat shallower than this. In a sense I feel like that’s the best endorsement of it – the seal of approval from actual people within the communities it represents. It’s not my usual thing, so that perhaps has something to do with how giddy I am over discovering it, but man, I can’t help it, it’s just such a good book, by turns funny, touching and lascivious often within the same page. So if you, dear reader, find yourself with money to burn in the comics budget this month, you could do much worse than pick up this wonderful little volume.

As I've grown older, I've come to the very reasonable conclusion that the one thing that really, really gets me where it counts when I'm reading a book, is romance. I love the stuff. The worst thing though is that it is usually written so damn badly; rafts of stilted dialogue that sounds like a script from a bad rom-com as opposed to real life, contrived situations and leaden cliches, and nothing you can relate to because the characters seem to be selling you the idea of romance as opposed to the relatable reality. And when it comes to my favoured world of comic books, it's often way beyond bad and just plain stinks. This is why when I discovered Terry Moore's Strangers in Paradise I was blown away. After that, I thought I'd never see a book that came close to SiP for sheer wonderful reality. Then I found Sunstone.Lisa is a young woman that wants to experiment with her sexual boundaries. Ally is a woman that knows where hers are, but is terribly lonely. When they meet in an internet chatroom and start talking about BDSM, their lives begin to change forever. When Lisa suggests they take the next step and meet in person, both are terrified of what might happen. And sparks fly. Lisa takes her first steps into a world of ropes and restraints, with Ally firmly guiding her, and between them a quirky, kinky romance begins to blossom. Neither of them expect it to happen - Ally worries things are getting too emotional too fast, Lisa's peers are judgemental about her relationship with another woman - but when you meet someone that completes you, should you keep playing your prescribed roles of Mistress and Submissive, or do you just fall in love?Just in case you hadn't picked this up by now, this comic book is very much for adults. It has graphic sex, but it is not gratuitous or crass. In fact, it's the complete opposite. It makes the polarising subject of bondage and makes it incredibly tender and loving. This is primarily a romance, and that is what comes through in this book in spades. It has all the awkwardness and humour of real life, and the sexy passion of a blooming relationship. The author/artist Stjepan Sejic manages to pull off something quite miraculous by making his characters seem real, and the artwork is rendered in beautiful warm shades and has a glorious fluidity and life to it. It has a cinematic quality, and embraces the reality of BDSM in a way that makes 50 Shades of Grey look like the timid, suburban, and disingenuous handling of the subject that it is. Sunstone manages to communicate a reality, one that is sweet and loving and naughty.I confess I didn't go into this book blind; I am a fan of Sejic's work already, and had begun reading Sunstone when he posted it online. It is though a book that does something I didn't think was possible - it's a romance comic that I think comes very, very close to the high mark of Strangers in Paradise. It's a more adult, sexually explicit book, but one that has a warm beating heart behind it, and a wonderful sweetness that's hard to resist. If LBGT stories, or BDSM, are of interest to you, you'd be mad not to read Sunstone. And if you're just wanting to read a sexy, realistic love story, you should read it too. 50 Shades of Beige it ain't.

Essentially, the story of the first three days of a BDSM relationship between two women, a frustrated - but enthusiastic domme - and an anxious submissive.Both have been frustrated by their lack of success in finding someone to share their interests with. Then Ally comes across Lisa in a chat room, and after 2 months of back-and-forth online they agree to meet.So, basically, Sunstone covers the events leading up to that long weekend.Beautifully drawn by Stjepan - who started this series as a side project on Deviant Art. Really, I loved the style of the art - and I have a soft spot for Lisa's tendency to bite her lip (which I have in common with Ally).Yes, the cover drew odd attention when I read this one in public, and yes it contains scenes of nudity. However, I definitely recommend this one. I will certainly pick up the next Volume.This isn't about action or adventure (well, the adventurous maybe). Sunstone is about the awkward and uncertain path of two people trying to find their way in a niche world filled with pitfalls and potentials. Ally and Lisa have their own back stories and you learn a little about them. I read this over three days in measured sessions - the art's too good to just wolf down in one go.Indeed, I was kind of disappointed when it ended. However, the back of the book has an interesting story from the author and artist about how he came to create the Sunstone project in the first place (he previously worked on Witchblade). It also contains piles of additional pictures, pin-up style images, streams of tiny reprints of the original Deviant Art pages.Definitely recommended.

This is a really unique example of what comics can do when in the hands of a sensitive and creative writer. The storyline has a lot of tasteful nudity, featuring 'normal' women of the sort rarely seen in comics. However, although the BDSM theme might put some off this is at heart a simple love story between two young women, which is explored in a sensitive way which never drifts into exploitation or sensationalism.The creator is new to me, but has a skill with character scripting and art which is rarely seen these days of major 'epics'. The last series that I enjoyed, almost, as much as this was Saga, but this has the potential to be among my all-time favourite series- and all time for me is a long while!Highly recommended for anyone who wants to see what the comics medium is capable of delivering in the hands of a master storyteller. The subtlety and pure sensuality with which the BDSM scenes are handle just makes the whole experience even more satisfying.Now how do I get through to May when volume 2 is out?