Oni Press' horror series Crownsville, written by Rodney Barnes and illustrated by Elia Bonetti, is now available to read in its entirety. The publisher is offering the complete first issue for free to celebrate the upcoming trade paperback release on August 11.
Crownsville is a five-issue limited series that explores the dark history of a real-life institution. Founded at the turn of the 20th century, the Crownsville Hospital was an all-Black psychiatric facility located near Annapolis, Maryland. The series delves into the hospital's legacy of overcrowding, neglect, patient abuse, and alleged illegal medical experiments. Though closed and now a condemned ruin, the story suggests that the hospital's past continues to haunt its present.
The narrative follows Annapolis police detective Mike Simms and journalist Paul Blair as they investigate an unexplained death at the abandoned hospital, which is initially ruled a suicide. Their investigation uncovers the grim realities of the hospital's past and reveals a connection to the "anguished spirits of the dead" said to be trapped within its walls.
The trade paperback edition of Crownsville, featuring cover art by Andrea Sorrentino, will be released on August 11 and is available for order on Amazon.