Somna: A Bedtime Story, from DSTLRY

Somna: A Bedtime Story is an erotic folk horror graphic novel set in 17th-century England, the era of the Witch Trials. It’s a beautiful mix of the supernatural, religious men who know no bounds, women’s sensuality, and dark history. As we all know, these witch trials happened all over the world for a long period.

Now, imagine being a young, beautiful woman (Ingrid) filled with desire and lust for your husband. He, on the other hand, is a sexually repressed witch hunter (Roland) who sets sinful women ablaze for all to see. Due to the lack of physical attention from the man she loves, Ingrid becomes restless as her dreams become haunted by a voice offering her all that she could want.

What is a girl to do?

Somna takes this question and tells us a story of the dangers of a woman who expresses any kind of sexuality in a world of a God-fearing, authoritarian society. Married or not, sin is sin. Ingrid does what she can to offer her body to her husband and expresses her desire for him. However, Roland turns her away as he must focus on the task at hand; witch hunting.

Somna: Book 1

Opening with a hauntingly erotic dream and the burning of a woman; straight out of the gate, the reader knows they are in for a ride.

The reader follows Ingrid as she becomes more and more restless. Her sleep is haunted by an entity that speaks to her and wishes to fulfill her needs. These intense dreams are filled with the desire she is yearning to express with Roland.

When she is awake, she expresses her urges but is turned away, “God’s blood, Ingrid, get a hold of yourself.” His words only push her deeper into the arms of the Entity who knocks when her eyes are closed. Roland, coming home from burning a supposed witch, announces that he will be leaving town to investigate the accusation of another.

Apparently, he is very skilled in the art of witch hunting and must focus on ridding the world of sin. Ingrid doesn’t wish to be left at home, as her dreams are becoming worrisome to her. Her husband tells her to work more, work harder, and she’ll be much too tired to dream. Later, we meet the town’s priest, who seems creepy and rules his flock with a heavy, godly hand. He has no sympathy for witches, and he proudly displays that.

We are also introduced to Ingrid’s lifelong best friend, Maja, who definitely comes off as a bit crass as she expresses having dreams of a man who is now widowed due to his wife being a witch. The reader can feel that Maja may be more than she is putting on.

Ingrid’s dreams continue, and the Entity’s grasp feels stronger with each night that passes. Ingrid makes one more pass at her husband before he leaves in hope to fulfill her lust and maybe silence her dreams. Roland yet again turns her away and leaves her to her own devices. The Entity takes full advantage of this, and he shows her a secret he hopes will open her up to him.

SOMNA: Book 2

Ingrid acts on a secret she was shown by the Entity in her dreams and tries to prevent any harm that could come toward her best friend Maja and the widower Sigurd. She also seeks guidance from the priest; who questions her more on her odd behavior as of late rather than hearing her out and giving her the advice she desperately needs. Every time Ingrid reaches her hand out for help, the men surrounding her turn away.

The Entity offers guidance, whereas those around her only offer rejection. Maja’s husband comes across Ingrid, and they discover they are both looking for Maja, who has gone missing.

As the story progresses, we find out Maja’s husband has been murdered. The town is on high alert as Roland is still out on his witch hunt. The priest decides to ask questions in his absence. Ingrid doesn’t take this well, and after the funeral, Maja and the priest have a sit-down talk that Ingrid isn’t privy to.

Alone and with no one to really turn to, Ingrid finally takes the only hand that has been offered to her. The Entity and Ingrid finally share the desire she has been wanting for so long. He takes her, and she takes him. Thinking that it’s no more than a dream, Ingrid forgets herself. Unfortunately, her husband walks through the door.

SOMNA: Book 3

The reader watches Roland react to the vision of his wife’s naked and distorted figure in front of a roaring fire. We know no good will come of this, but Ingrid explains everything to him and is relieved he is home to help her with her dream problem. However, this is the calm before an inevitable storm.

She realizes he has bound her hands. The priest enters their home and announces that there is a fire happening on the other side of town. Roland needs to tend to it, and leaves her there bound, scared, and all alone.

Later, Maja breaks in and tells Ingrid her side of the messed-up secret she now knows Ingrid has complete knowledge of. Maja can’t have that secret leaked, so she attacks her tied-up friend as the Entity makes his presence known, telling Ingrid what needs to be done. Ingrid fights it as she doesn’t wish to harm Maja in any way and later wakes up in a carriage and an iron muzzle upon her face.

There is more to this story, but seeing that there have been some spoilers already, we will leave this one on a cliffhanger. Somna: A Bedtime Story is perfectly haunting, witchy, and so very spicy! Everything you want in a great folk horror read is here. The pacing is perfect, and the buildup is even better. We all know how the story ends; it is the very end that almost every woman accused of being a witch or possessed by the devil experienced. Whether it was death by fire, water, or stone, their end was decided before any trial. With only their word against town rumors, blind faith, and a patriarchy that meant them only harm, they stood no chance.

Writers and artists Becky Cloonan & Tula Lotay have mentioned that they were inspired by their own experiences with sleep paralysis, folk horror films such as Midsommar, The Witch, Witchfinder General, and, of course, The Entity. Along with the rigid oppression of women under the 16th-century patriarchy, where any woman who expressed normal sexual desire, even towards her own husband, was stigmatized and would be seen as possibly possessed by the devil himself.

The art of reality and dreams

The artwork is very expressive and gives the reader a clear distinction between Ingrid’s reality and her dream state. You are placed carefully within her psyche with each turn of the page. Cloonan and Lotay use color and texture variations to pull you in and out of sleep just as Ingrid experiences it. It’s done so beautifully, and her dream state panels are absolutely breathtaking. The pages look how sleep paralysis feels. There’s a hazy layer on the panels of her dream sequences that makes the colors and lines soft, almost heavenly. While the reality panels are blunt, dark, and the lines are hasty, much like her real life. The art is done so that if you took out all the word bubbles, the story would still carry its own weight.

Folk horror and dark history

Since we are on the subject, I’d like to talk about my new appreciation for the folk horror genre and its importance to the world’s dark history. As a horror fan, I both regret and don’t regret sleeping on this genre of horror.

Why do I regret it?

Quite frankly, it is just so good and, in many ways, very important. Much like Somna: A Bedtime Story it is seductive and horrifying. The aesthetic, the atmosphere, the rituals, and most of all, the important stories it tells. These are all based on facts in history. Whether it’s in books, film, or graphic novels, one thing we can count on with folk stories is that they shine a light on our very dark history and remind us that most of these things really happened. These stories are part of the history of the human experience. Sure, all writers embellish to make it more exciting for readers and viewers. But I don’t get the sense that they have to push the envelope very far.

Why don’t I regret it?

I don’t think I could have truly appreciated what the genre had to offer. Of course, I enjoyed it at face value, but to really immerse myself in all that rich, dark history it displayed for us wasn’t in my wheelhouse at the time. I love dark history, but sometimes it’s hard to sit through when it is being given so directly. Folk horror makes it alluring while forcing you to sit with it, to really think on the subject matter.

The dark history behind the story

When I was younger, I became obsessed with the killings of women who were said to be witches. I was so taken aback by how many women died during the Salem Witch Trials of the late 1600s. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t wrap my head around it. I went down that rabbit hole and came out on the other end in such disarray and disbelief.

After reading Somna, which takes place during the same era in England, it reminded me that this dark history was a worldwide event and not only a US phenomenon. The English witch hunts ran much longer, between the early 15th and the early 18th century. That train of thought carried its way across an ocean and plagued a whole new society. Creating so much unnecessary violence and fear towards women, all because their God said so. Like in Somna, some people used this as a way to have others killed for personal reasons; it was the easiest rumor to start, and the hardest fire to put out.

All in all, I would give 5 out of 5 and would highly recommend this miniseries to anyone who enjoys witchy reads and historical fiction.

Writers & Artists: Becky Cloonan & Tula Lotay 2023 from DSTLRY