Review by Frank Plowright

Against all the odds, Zeke has taken a job as a publicity consultant fending off the bad press a series of unfortunate events has generated at his father’s organic body part replacement facility. However, toward the end of Thorne in the Flesh there was an accusation that his mother’s death was murder, adding to other aspects of his father he resents.

Rob Guillory sidesteps that for Roots of All Evil’s opening chapter, instead having Jed Jenkins confronted with the truth about himself by someone who’s past caring what happens to them. After a decade of relative piece Jed knows it’s time to pay the piper, but even he doesn’t entirely realise how much is now beyond his control as the technology he’s cultivated is leaking into the wider area. As with so much in the world, a lot is rooted in the past and connections that have soured, and the opening chapter also looks at happier times in Freetown back in the day.

The curious thing about Farmhand is that despite almost everyone having something to hide, and a vast percentage of the cast acting in their own self-interest, Guillory still manages to make them sympathetic. Not everyone, though. In the previous volume he revealed who was responsible for much of Freetown’s troubles, and the Roots of All Evil title and cover illustration provide the confirmation, while the revelation as to how much was achieved is supplied here. Readers are likely to be distracted with so much else that’s going on, so it could well be that their bigger plan slips by, but that’s something for The Seed.

It’s not the only marker, but if you want to know how well Guillory’s plotting Farmhand and how quickly it moves, consider how much has changed from the start of each volume by the end. Factor in his great goofy cartooning and the overall creative premise and Farmhand really makes the grade.