Blacksad: A Silent Hell

John Blacksad, the private detective of this noir comic series, takes on a case in 1950s New Orleans. A celebrated pianist has dropped out of sight, and Blacksad is hired to find out what happened to him. The search leads through a city where jazz pours out of every club and where violence lurks close behind the music.

The trail runs through drugs, voodoo and the noise and color of Mardi Gras. Behind the festival's masks and parades lies a rougher side of the city, and the closer Blacksad gets to the truth, the more dangerous the job becomes. It is the most perilous case he has faced so far.

Juan Díaz Canales writes the story and Juanjo Guarnido draws it, with the series' trademark cast of animal characters and richly painted watercolor art. The book won the 2011 Eisner and Harvey Awards in the categories for international material.