Holy Shadow

About the book

A violent and searing story—uncomfortable and dramatic—that takes the best of the manga tradition and ultra-violent Asian cinema and brings it to Argentina, blending it with local conflicts. One of the most significant graphic novels produced in Argentina over the past 20 years, written by Paula Boffo.

Excerpt

Juana lives in Jujuy with her older sister Marisol, her grandmother, and Lorena, a shaman who communicates with spirits. Troubled by family tensions and the bullying she faces at school, Juana goes with Marisol to the market in La Quiaca one day. The sisters get into an argument, and Juana loses sight of Marisol. She disappears, just like so many other girls. And although Juana doesn’t know it, even if she does suspect it, Marisol falls victim to human trafficking. Juana cannot get over the guilt, the pain, and the horror of imagining what may have happened to her sister. And as she spirals deeper into despair, she turns to a higher power: the “Degolladas,” a group of violent spirits of beheaded women who grant her extraordinary powers to bring her own form of justice. Now her mission is to find Marisol, no matter how many heads she has to chop off with her machetes. Her destiny is to plunge into the red; her destiny is to become the Holy Shadow.

Translated by Lucía Ronco - Edited by Marita Propato