Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I liked the artwork of this graphic novel, it was really cute and beautiful but the story was less entertaining for me.

This graphic novel has beautiful art, but I found the story extremely confusing. The book dumps you into an unfamiliar world with no explanation, and even though that kind of beginning can build interest and intrigue, I still didn't know what was going on when I finished the book. I expected the author to share more backstory as the book continued, but there were just more and more random things happening, raising new questions without giving any answers. The pacing is also difficult to follow, and I struggled to sense the passage of time.

The only parts I could clearly follow were extremely derivative of Lord of the Rings, down to one character saying, "I have to do this alone" and their friend replying, "And I'm coming with you!" The characters go on a quest to destroy the cursed object that one of them has found, and they get dragged into water by bog bodies. The story also cuts to a creepy, dark entity saying that the cursed object is part of it, and the cursed object starts messing with the bearer's mind. Since this book is a short, fast read, the sheer number of parallels to Lord of the Rings felt like way too much.

One of the main characters is nonbinary. This is part of the background of the story, and it is not a talking point. It's just there, with no backstory or explanation. The story includes some dark elements, especially towards the end, with both disturbing images and violent moments. The characters' language involves some common euphemisms, such as "flipping," along with silly, imaginary euphemisms and insults.

This story will most likely appeal to the target audience of middle grade readers who enjoy fantasy graphic novels. Kids devour graphic novels so quickly that they won't necessarily care about the story quality in each one, and can just be glad to have something else to read. However, some kids will still find this confusing, and because this story ends on a cliffhanger, they will have to wait until a future installment to see if the author answers any of their questions.

I received a free copy from the publisher through Amazon Vine in exchange for an honest review.

I always feel a bit guilty giving anything less than a 4 star review.
There are parts about this book I liked—such as the art, Goose and some lovely moments. However, at times I felt there was something missing. A lot of the dialogue felt very fake because of the fake slang. Many of the characters were not very likeable or developed. I think I would feel more invested in a nice book about Herb and the dandelion cubs.

However, I probably will read the second book when it comes out. Hopefully some the questions I have will be answered by the next book, but I do slightly wonder whether this book is trying to deal with too many topics (bullying, mental illness, grief(?)) and so is struggling to do any of them very thoroughly.