Deep Dark Fears is pretty easy to sum up. It’s a list of fears (sometimes irrational) illustrated and brought to life on the page. They are ridiculous and frankly foolish to be afraid of and yet you will find one or more to relate to. We all have irrational fears to go along with our real fears. Things that we don’t share with anyone because it’s not exactly something you can slip into a conversation. Creator Fran Krause opens the book by explaining how it started. With his own irrational or as the book calls them “Deep Dark Fears.” He explains that the series picked up in popularity and soon people were submitting their own fears and now there’s a book collecting them.

That said, there’s no narrative so if you’re expecting that, that’s not the type of book this is. It’s like a comic strip with a bunch of one-off stories/jokes only the joke is that someone has an actual fear of this happening. Before I give you an example I will say that if you absorb other’s fears then you should maybe avoid this book. Otherwise you’re likely to pick up a few new things to be afraid of.

Now I’ve said that there’s are irrational fears, but there are some rational ones… or I’m irrational for thinking that. For instance, the very first one is falling through ice and being swept away by the current. I blame Hollywood for that one. Fear #2 is what I would call irrational, that you’re actually constantly screaming and everyone is pretending your normal. See, there’s a range.

The artwork is what really seals the deal on this collection. Krause’s style has some familiarity to it, but in a strange way looks like a kids book. I hope that’s intentional because it’s like a kids book for adults and that’s cool with me. It also at times reminds me of medical commercials promoting new pills that may cause suicidal thoughts. Which is also funny to me. The art looks water colored and in general is a great looking style for the stories. If Krause ventured into other stories with his art, I would definitely follow as its not limited to this style of storytelling. If anything, this shows how versatile Krause is.

If you need a good laugh, then definitely check out Deep Dark Fears. The only problem it suffers from is the same problem that plagues all collections like this, in that you really shouldn’t read through it in one sitting because you become numb to the material. Otherwise, it’s an enjoyable collection with some great art.

Score: 4/5

Deep Dark Fears Creator: Fran Krause Publisher: Ten Speed Press Price: $14.99 Release Date: 9/29/15 Format: Hardcover; Print