Polyphemus

Have you ever wondered what would happen if something akin to a crossroad demon got a fresh out of rehab not too bright and desperate death metalhead instead of a jazz musician? Haven't we all really, well, look no further this is exactly the question Ashford sets out to answer in Polyphemus.

The story is dripping in metal in the most delightful way but it would still be quite a solid read for someone who isn't into the genre at all (no knowledge of metal required to understand the story). The characters come across as pretty realistic, honestly most of them remind me of the type of guy-in-a-band™ that we all know and low-key wish we didn't know.

I'm tempted to call this a coming of age story even though it's one that comes way late but in the end what it really is is a bleak little story, which seems to be Ashford's specialty, and I love me a bleak one so I loved every minute of this one!