3 stars

I got a Netgalley arc of this story so thank you to Netgalley and Plough publishing.
I picked this up because the Protestant reformation is one of my favourite historical periods to read about. However, all the previous media I'd consumed about it had been more focused on England so reading about it in Northern Italy, Austria and Czech republic was refreshing. I also learned about the Anabaptists for the first time.

When the story focused on Jakob Hutter it was much stronger, as I found that the addition of the fictional character Peter (inspired by a real life spy) quite weak. Jakob was meant to be his friend yet Peter didn't hesitate ratting him out if it meant getting a chance with Katharina who was so obviously not a match for him, if he would only take into consideration other things like her values and life goals instead of just 'her beauty and sincerity'.

The art style was lovely, it was sort of smudgy and simple and paired well with reading about peasant's revolting and forming their own religious sects. The plot was the strongest part of this story and I guess that is because it is rooted in real life historical happenings, and whilst I understand the recounting of these events to the reader seems to be the biggest purpose of this graphic novel, I wish there was better characterization. For example, rather than following the pov of Peter, I would have preferred Katherina's pov, with a focus on what her life was like before being exposed to anabaptism and what made her so inclined to believe in its teachings. It would have also elevated her romantic arc with Jakob. I would have also liked to see more of Jakob x Peter before being exposed to Anabaptism and their previous failed attempt at Protestant reformation.

Overall this was fun to read, quick to get through, educational and the art style was cute. Since this graphic novel is part of a series about radical reformation I will definitely be checking out the other books to get educated in a fun way.