Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hardboiled Defective Stories | 1988 | Charles Burns | Buy |
| 2 | Curse of the Molemen | 1991 | Charles Burns | Buy |
| 3 | El Borbah | 1999 | Charles Burns | Buy |
| 4 | Skin Deep: Tales of Doomed Romance | 2001 | Charles Burns | Buy |
| 5 | Black Hole | 2005 | Charles Burns | Buy |
| 6 | Final Cut | 2024 | Charles Burns | Buy |
Charles Burns’s standalone graphic novels span over three decades and range from absurdist noir to body horror. His early works like Hardboiled Defective Stories and El Borbah feature a hulking, masked private detective in surreal crime scenarios, while Skin Deep collects his darker romance stories.
Black Hole (2005) is Burns’s most acclaimed work. Serialized over ten years, it tells the story of Seattle teenagers in the 1970s who are affected by a sexually transmitted plague that causes grotesque physical mutations. The book won the Harvey Award, the Eisner Award, and the Ignatz Award.
His most recent graphic novel, Final Cut (2024), continues his exploration of dream logic and fragmented identity.