Keyhouse towers on the rocky promontory of Lovecraft Island, where it has stood since the days of musket balls and revolution. Lonely and unsane, the ancient manse has been under the guard of the Locke family for generations.
For over a century they have protected its secrets… and its dozens of reality-twisting keys.
There is a key that can bring shadows to life, a key that can set the soul free from the body, a key that will wake echoes of the dead… and more.
Perhaps the most powerful of them is the Anywhere Key. He who possesses it can open a door in one place, and step through another, anywhere in the world.
In 1915, fourteen-year-old Jonathan “Jack” Tyler Locke imagined the keys might be used to crush the Hun menace and bring a fast conclusion to The World War. But in the killing fields of Ypres, Jack was overwhelmed by a weapon as monstrous as the keys themselves– chlorine gas–and fled, using the Anywhere Key to return home.
German soldiers pursued him into Keyhouse and in the battle that followed, Jack’s mother, Fiona, was struck down. Tormented by her loss, Jack opened a door to HMS Titanic in an attempt to drown himself and Keyhouse both. He succeeded at the former… and failed at the latter.
For the surviving members of Jack’s family–his father Chamberlin, his sisters, Mary and Jean–the years since have had the uneasy quality of a dream curdling into nightmare…
…A bleak, heart-breaking dream from which they cannot seem to awaken…
Locke & Key created by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez Sandman based on characters created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, and Mike Dringenberg Written by Joe Hill ~ Art by Gabriel Rodriguez ~ Colors by Jay Fotos ~ Letters by Shawn Lee ~ Assistant Editor (IDW) Megan Brown ~ Editor (IDW) Chris Ryall ~Associate Editor (DC) Maggie Howell ~ Editor (DC) Chris Conroy
Marie Javins, Editor-in-Chief, DC Comics • Daniel Cherry III, Senior VP – General Manager • Jim Lee, Publisher & Chief Creative Officer • Joen Choe, VP – Global Brand & Creative Services • Don Falletti, VP – Manufacturing Operations & Workflow Management • Lawrence Ganem, VP – Talent Services • Alison Gill, Senior VP – Manufacturing & Operations • Nick J. Napolitano, VP – Manufacturing Administration & Design • Nancy Spears, VP – Revenue
Nachie Marsham, Publisher • Rebekah Cahalin, EVP of Operations • Blake Kobashigawa, VP of Sales • John Barber, Editor-in-Chief • Mark Doyle, Editorial Director, Originals • Justin Eisinger, Editorial Director, Graphic Novels and Collections • Scott Dunbier, Director, Special Projects • Anna Morrow, Sr. Marketing Director • Tara McCrillis, Director of Design & Production • Shauna Monteforte, Sr. Director of Manufacturing Operations • Ted Adams and Robbie Robbins, IDW Founders
Special thanks to Jim Lee, Mark Doyle, Chris Conroy, Briar Darden, Jay Kogen, and DC Entertainment for the invaluable assistance and partnership. And our Endless gratitude to the Lord of Dreams, Neil Gaiman, for opening up the Dreaming to the Locke family. For international rights, contact [email protected]
Facebook: facebook.com/idwpublishing • Twitter: @idwpublishing www.IDWPUBLISHING.com YouTube: youtube.com/idwpublishing • Instagram: @idwpublishing LOCKE & KEY/THE SANDMAN: HELL & GONE #1. APRIL 2021. FIRST PRINTING. Locke & Key © 2021 Joe Hill and Idea and Design Works, LLC. The Sandman © 2021 DC Comics. LOCKE & KEY created by Joe Hill & Gabriel Rodriguez. SANDMAN based on characters created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, and Mike Dringenberg. IDW Publishing, a division of Idea and Design Works, LLC. Editorial offices: 2765 Truxtun Road, San Diego, CA 92106. The IDW logo is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Any similarities to persons living or dead are purely coincidental. With the exception of artwork used for review purposes, none of the contents of this publication may be reprinted without the permission of Idea and Design Works, LLC. Printed in Canada. IDW Publishing does not read or accept unsolicited submissions of ideas, stories, or artwork.