Letters for Lucardo

The cover for Letters for Lucardo

The only letter we see is in the very beginning, and quickly crumpled up. Our first impressions are formed through intimate words and trembling hands. It isn’t until the second panel of the seventh page that we are introduced to Lucardo, and from the perspective of the so-far anonymous letter writer. That person is Ed Fiedler, a scribe for a family of vampires. Anne Rice is typically credited with making vampires sexy, but writer and artist Noora Heikkilä builds on a foundation going back to Bram Stoker’s original epistolary format.

Letters for Lucardo wastes no time on mythology or the angst of gay romance. The world building is left to small details and peripheral characters. Where did the vampires come from? How are they able to abide in sunlight? Is this world so sexually progressive despite appearing to take place in the past? These are details that don’t matter, particularly with such rich characters and story.

I’ve written on erotica before, and the qualities that transform it into art are all present here. Even if Letters for Lucardo were little more than an excuse to show explicit sex scenes between its main characters, the depth those characters have and the themes they explore make this book far more than the sum of its parts. Ed is a reluctant lover to an ageless beauty, but his trepidation is charming and sweet. The dynamic of their relationship evolves, from the hint of S&M as Ed continues to call Lucardo “my lord” during sex to the two of them experimenting with different positions.

The design is lovely. Lucardo is all soft curves in contrast to Ed’s straight lines and angular face. The architecture and clothing are all vague hybrids of European and Asian designs. The grayscale is the perfect form for this story, lending an antique and hazy quality to it. We are looking at Ed’s memories, after all.

In addition to the older biracial couple at the heart of the narrative, there is an intriguing nonbinary side character. Elimedes is a vampire courted by Lucardo’s father, and only appears for a few pages, but their presence resonates. Letters for Lucardo is a thin volume, but carries a great deal of thematic weight.

Letters for Lucardo was funded via Kickstarter and published by Iron Circus Comics earlier this year. It is available from comiXology and the publisher’s website.