The Plot
A supernatural tale of home, history, and horror—where an estranged uncle must return to his ancestral home and confront the evil that's plagued his family for generations.
📖 Vault Comics • Started 2019
The Plot is an eight-issue gothic horror series published by Vault Comics as the launch title for their Nightfall horror imprint. Written by Michael Moreci and Tim Daniel, with art by Joshua Hixson, the series received critical acclaim including praise from The New York Times, which noted “There is a great balance between realistic dialogue and unspeakable horror and a cliffhanger that practically demands the reading of the next issue.”
The story follows Chase Blaine, a man who spent his life running from his family—until his estranged brother and sister-in-law are murdered, leaving him as guardian to his niece and nephew, MacKenzie and Zach. Seeking stability for his newly-formed family, Chase moves to his ancestral home in Cape Augusta, Maine—a house that overlooks a deep, black bog teeming with family secrets that won’t stay drowned.
The series drew inspiration from classic gothic horror, particularly the works of Shirley Jackson and Stephen King, as well as Ray Russell’s The Haunting of Hill House. But Moreci and Daniel crafted something distinctly their own—a story about what family means, the weight of inherited trauma, and whether we can escape our past or are doomed to repeat it.
What sets The Plot apart is its emotional core. The characters are sad—their grief is palpable and real. Rather than relying on cheap scares, the series examines how loss and sadness affect people, creating dread that permeates every page. The bog itself becomes a character, representing the dark waters of family history that come lapping at the doorstep no matter how far we run.
Joshua Hixson’s art delivers on the promise of dread, creating a coastal Maine setting that feels both beautiful and deeply wrong. The horror builds slowly—gothal tradition of foreboding dread that wraps around you like fog—before erupting into grotesque imagery that Variety described as “out to get you.”
The series appeared on numerous “best of 2019” lists and earned praise from industry icons including Brian Michael Bendis, who called it “another winner from Vault Comics.”
Perfect for fans of Locke & Key, The Haunting of Hill House, and We Have Always Lived in the Castle.
