A stunning collision of art and narrative.
Subduction is a thoughtful, timely, unsettling mystery set on a tiny, earthquake-plagued island. In Todd Shimoda’s classic blend of science, philosophy and character development, the book slowly reveals one island community’s haunting past marked by betrayal, jealously, lust and loss.
Endo, a young physician unjustly charged with a patient’s death, is banished to the island to care for the few remaining elderly residents. Determined to remain on their crumbling island and resuscitate their defunct fishing industry, the aging islanders plot against all outsiders. After a suspicious death and attacks on Endo and his fellow newcomers, he discovers why the islanders don’t wish to leave: years ago, jealousies, lust, and violence ripped apart their lives, and the wounds haven’t healed. The aftershocks of the islanders’ pasts, as well as Endo’s own troubled history, replay violently in the present just as a massive earthquake strikes.
Exquisitely designed with L.J.C. Shimoda’s brushstroke artwork throughout, Subduction also features a four color, sixteen-page illustrated retelling of the myth of Kashima, the Japanese god who controls a giant, thrashing catfish that causes earthquakes. The myth offers clues to the mysterious motives of the island’s denizens.
Learn more at the book website. Subduction is also available as an eBook.