howlinglibraries's Reviews (1.85k)

 I've spent several years adoring Sarah Andersen, and most of my life adoring cryptids, so when Sarah started the cryptid comics on social media, I was hooked. I've been following these comics since they started, so I had already read most of these, but it didn't stop me from giggling all over again. My favorites are the Mothman ones — specifically the strips featuring Mothman losing his shit over bright lights — but honestly, they're all absolutely golden and I can't wait to buy a finished copy for my Sarah Andersen collection.
 

 

This is a story about breaking rules, which is ironic, because it broke one of my rules as a reader. Generally speaking, I don't read a lot of sci-fi, and what I do read is what you'd consider Sci-Fi Lite™️. I like stories set in space, the future, etc., but if you start bringing mathematics and physics and particles and atoms into the writing, I'll usually zone out pretty quickly. (I'm working on it, but it's slow progress.) Leave it to Mira Grant to somehow include those things in a story and still keep me nothing less than 100% engaged from start to finish.

What's more, though, is that this is a story about failing government systems, people being forgotten and taken advantage of by the powers that be, and the impossibility of humanity thriving under the fists of capitalism and war. Perhaps that's part of why I loved this book so much, and why it resonated so deeply with me: it's a book written during a pandemic, referencing the pandemic and aftereffects of it, and at times, it points a jaded finger at a government that sat idly by and pursued money while its citizens died and chaos erupted — all while bearing an underlying tone of resentment that I feel in my bones, just like the author (if you follow her tweets as closely as I do, you already know).

And, at the end of the day, it's a story about monsters, too. From the insidious suit-and-tie wearing ones all the way to the big, otherworldly ones. It's a horrific, infuriating, painful, sometimes heart-warming story, wrapped up in Mira's distinct, beautiful, clever writing, and I loved every single page of it.

✨ Representation: Katherine is autistic; Harris is queer 

 Was this ending a little disappointing/anti-climactic? Yes. Was it still a great book that I'm extremely glad I read? Also, yes.

I didn't realize going into this volume that it was the series finale (I guess because I'm so used to most SFF graphic novel series I pick up going on for more than 3 volumes), and I'm wondering if that was the plan at the time of the author creating the first and second volumes, because everything that disappointed me about this volume could be summed up by the same thing: it wasn't long enough! There wasn't enough time to wrap up all the loose ends in one volume, and I wish we could have gotten just one more.

That said, I still adored this series overall and enjoyed this finale very much, so please don't let that dissuade you from reading Heathen! This series has such lovable characters, beautiful artwork, incredible lore, and heartwarming queer rep that I can't help but recommend it so, so highly. Do yourself a favor and spend some time with a badass lesbian viking ♥ 

 What an absolutely underrated hidden gem of a series. ♥ I love these characters and this world and storyline so much. Aydis and Freyja specifically are so lovable, but I also was instantly taken with the ship's crew of badass ladies and the devious little mermaids. The art is lovely and again, the queer rep is an arrow straight to the heart in the best ways.
 

 RE-READ REVIEW: JULY 2022
There's something really incredible about re-reading a book 5 years later and loving it even more the second time. The queer rep made my heart ache in the best, heaviest way, the art was lovely, and the characters... *wistful sigh*

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ORIGINAL REVIEW: JULY 2017
A graphic novel about a lesbian viking who's been exiled from her home, so she goes off on an adventure to save the former queen of the Valkyrie, Brynhild, and to rescue other LGBTQ+ individuals so they don't have to fear the same fate she underwent?

Do you think it was even possible for me to read this fast enough?!

This story was AMAZING. The artwork is stunning, the characters are warm-hearted and pure, and the plot is so intriguing and fantastic. I'm always a sucker for a warrior heroine - especially a lesbian one! - and Aydis is genuinely just... flawless. She has such a good soul and wants so badly to do the right thing, and I loved every moment of getting to know her character.

Every side character in this story is also absolutely splendid. There's Brynhild, who's a raging badass despite nurturing her own inner turmoils. Freyja, who is mischievous and scheming and yet altogether a complete sweetheart. There's Saga, the fantastic horse, and the wolf brothers, Skull and Hati, who are endearing and a little bit comical... I just can't say enough good things about the cast of this graphic novel.

I cannot wait to read more of Aydis' story! I'd recommend this to anyone who likes a good fantasy adventure, especially if you enjoy solid queer rep and some fun viking lore.

Content warning: This book does have some minor nudity as well as portrayal of homophobia, so proceed with caution if either of these things bother you!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Literati Press for granting me a review copy of this graphic novel! All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own. 

 I feel bad rating middle grade books low because I know I'm not the target audience, but as someone who reads SO MANY middle grade stories, I feel fairly comfortable in gauging when something "isn't for me" and when it just genuinely isn't enjoyable, and this was the latter. I was bored out of my mind through this entire graphic novel and couldn't stand almost any of the characters. A secret school full of ghosts should have been SO cool, but it failed on almost every front for me.
 

 Oof, this did not work for me at all. It played so heavily on the "queer girl in the 80s hiding her queerness and being punished~ for it" trope, which felt gross and weird, and the art and storytelling weren't enjoyable, either. Plus, so much of it doesn't make any sense (like why on earth does [redacted] even HAVE a massive kitchen knife in their pocket?!). Nope, don't recommend anything about this.
 

 I love these dumb cinnamon rolls so much.

This volume wasn't as painful as the first volume regarding Persephone's SA experience, but it did still reflect back on that in some ways, and my heart hurts for her every time it comes up. There were also some Choices™️ made by Hades at the end of this volume that I'm extremely displeased with, buuut I also feel pretty certain they'll be taken care of sooner rather than later! (And yes, I know I could read the Webtoon to find out sooner, but I really love the printed versions of these!)

Finally, I just want to gush for a million years about how fuckin' CUTE Perse and Cerberus are 😭 What a good boy! Best boy!!! 

 

Before I give my thoughts on #thighgap, I feel obligated to tell you that it's likely to be an upsetting read for a lot of readers. Not only does the book detail some gruesome side effects of severely disordered eating (our narrator Helen is very pro-ED), but it also includes a tremendous amount of body-shaming. Nearly everyone Helen meets is deemed too fat, too old, too lazy, and/or too ugly in her eyes, and her perspective on beauty and class is downright nauseating to read at times.

Helen and nearly everyone around her are horribly unlikeable, especially the men she spends the majority of her time with. While the elements of Helen's ED and the things she begins to witness are unsettling all on their own, the parts of this book that actually disturbed me the most were how disgusting some of the men were, whether it was making pedophilic comments or discouraging Helen from seeking treatment because they worried she would gain weight.

Of course, the terrible nature of these characters is a massive part of the appeal in this story: it's like a train wreck you can't quite look away from, even though every page is turning your stomach a little more sour. I had to see what would happen next, what choices Helen would make, and where we were heading with her visions — especially the corpse girl, whose descriptions were genuinely my favorite part of the entire book.

As for the downsides, the dialogue was a little off-putting for me. Helen and multiple other characters constantly pause mid-sentence, complete with ellipses, and it kept pulling me out of the moment. Things also began to feel a little bit repetitive at times, especially with the name-dropping of luxury brands — but I'm someone who's very out of touch with designers and didn't recognize half of the names mentioned, so I don't think they'll bother plenty of other readers who might be more in-tune with the world of fashion.

With these minor negatives aside, I'm still very excited to have finally experienced Chandler Morrison's writing after hearing so many of my friends rave about his work for years, and I'll be back for more, no doubt.

All quotes come from an advance copy and may not match the final release. Thank you to the publisher & Sadie Hartmann for the review copy! All thoughts are honest and my own. 

 I'm not totally sure how I feel about this. I mean, I enjoyed it, but it ends so smack-dab in the middle of things really picking up that I felt a little jarred by the ending of this first volume. I definitely want to continue the series and I'm incredibly intrigued by the premise, and I need to know more about Walter and what is actually happening outside of the lake house/property.

All of the characters are a little hard to keep apart from one another, which is the main reason I'm only giving this 4 stars: I think a cast of characters this large doesn't work well in a graphic novel unless the art style lends well to telling everyone apart, and that isn't the case here. (They're also mostly obnoxious and fairly unlikable people, which is something I weirdly enjoy in stories, but if you don't, YMMV on the overall storytelling.)

✨ Representation: multiple queer and/or BIPOC characters, one trans character