Reading: AQUAMAN VOL. 1: UNSPOKEN WATER - Kelly Sue DeConnick (writer), Robson Rocha (illustrator)

Following the events of Drowned Earth, this graphic novel combining Aquaman comics #43-47 opens with the hero of the sea washing ashore of the strange community of Unspoken Water - a small village of older adults barely surviving via what they can catch in their fishing nets - with absolutely no memory of who he is, or his past. Donned with the nickname "Andy" by the villagers, Arthur Curry - the Lord of Atlantis - befriends a young woman named Caille who seems obsessed with the sea, otherwise seeking help from the villagers to find out who he is and why he's there (the villagers are sure the sea gave him to them for a reason) ... while at the same time there seems something hidden, almost wrong, with the very people Andy is trying to befriend. Remaining spoiler-free, that's about as much as can be said here ... except that Unspoken Water just might be the most sumptuous, beautifully-illustrated graphic novel this reader has ever read. DeConnick's story, as well, doesn't miss a trick, the mystery of the village and what's really going on building suspense perfectly - as well as playing in a big way into the mythology of Aquaman and his history - before an enemy comes forward and some pretty hard battle lines are drawn (and fought). The strong story and characters only help the reader buy into what's going on, emotional investment in the characters guaranteed - but truly, beautifully, nearly every page of this lush graphic novel is a sensational work or art, doing Arthur Curry's alter ego total justice; whenever water/the sea appears on the page, it's as if it's a separate character of its own, fully come to live. I can't even remember how many times I must have said "Wow" under my breath, turning the pages of this gem, and with a brilliant story and plenty of action and a major super-villain to back it up, Aquaman Vol. 1: Unspoken Water may well be the best DC graphic novel I've ever read.  5/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.