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snowreo's review
3.0
First of all, thank you to Netgalley and Diamond Book Distributors for making this ARC readily available to read through their site!
Trigger warnings for this graphic novel include: death, blood, attempted suicide, hair pulling, bullying
Nightmare in Savannah features high school student Alexa Bowman, who moves to Savannah to live with her grandfather after her parents are imprisoned for embezzlement. There, she meets Fae, Chloe, and Skye, three social outcasts who are eager to make her part of their group. After a night of drinking in the woods, they find themselves deeply entangled with the Faerie world.
I originally picked this up because I loved the art style on the cover; it gave me very big Hex Girls vibes. That love carried through during the entirety of my reading experience. I really loved the sketchbook style and the way emphasis was placed on certain characters in certain scenes based on whether they were colored in or whether they were drawn out completely or only sketched. It made it easy to see who was important at what points in time and who was able to stand in the background as support. I also think the same goes for the color scheme. It makes it super easy to see the mood of particular scenes. It was also just really pretty.
I think the main characters Alexa, Skye, Fae, and Chloe were super interesting. I liked seeing each of their stories and how their past traumas (bullying by a best friend, parental care, neglectful parents, and more) culminated into how they act towards others and what their motivations are throughout the plot. Their lives aren't perfect and that's what makes them feel more real. I also like how it isn't revealed all at once, it's revealed in several sections throughout. However, I felt like the other characters like Jen were a little too one-dimensional and static and some of them such as Lucas seemed to serve no purpose to the plot.
I also loved all the diversity! It was amazing to see characters of color, characters with birthmarks or blemishes, LGBTQ+ characters, and more. It made the universe feel even more immersive and special. I also like the faerie lore and how they're portrayed in a more sinister light than a lot of popular media nowadays.
My biggest issue with the novel was the pacing. It was extremely fast-paced, and especially in the very beginning and the very end, it was hard to keep track of what was going on and why. The transitions between scenes and events was extremely choppy, so it very much felt like I was being jerked around from scene to scene which made it a little harder to enjoy at points. The passage of time is also affected because of this, because I can't tell how much time actually passes from start to finish and calls into question whether the strength of the friendships and romances actually makes sense. If this were longer or were in multiple volumes, that would definitely be preferable.
Overall, despite the drawbacks, I had an extremely fun time reading this. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes graphic novels, YA fantasy, mysteries and gothic horror without the "extremely scary" element.
Trigger warnings for this graphic novel include: death, blood, attempted suicide, hair pulling, bullying
Nightmare in Savannah features high school student Alexa Bowman, who moves to Savannah to live with her grandfather after her parents are imprisoned for embezzlement. There, she meets Fae, Chloe, and Skye, three social outcasts who are eager to make her part of their group. After a night of drinking in the woods, they find themselves deeply entangled with the Faerie world.
I originally picked this up because I loved the art style on the cover; it gave me very big Hex Girls vibes. That love carried through during the entirety of my reading experience. I really loved the sketchbook style and the way emphasis was placed on certain characters in certain scenes based on whether they were colored in or whether they were drawn out completely or only sketched. It made it easy to see who was important at what points in time and who was able to stand in the background as support. I also think the same goes for the color scheme. It makes it super easy to see the mood of particular scenes. It was also just really pretty.
I think the main characters Alexa, Skye, Fae, and Chloe were super interesting. I liked seeing each of their stories and how their past traumas (bullying by a best friend, parental care, neglectful parents, and more) culminated into how they act towards others and what their motivations are throughout the plot. Their lives aren't perfect and that's what makes them feel more real. I also like how it isn't revealed all at once, it's revealed in several sections throughout. However, I felt like the other characters like Jen were a little too one-dimensional and static and some of them such as Lucas seemed to serve no purpose to the plot.
I also loved all the diversity! It was amazing to see characters of color, characters with birthmarks or blemishes, LGBTQ+ characters, and more. It made the universe feel even more immersive and special. I also like the faerie lore and how they're portrayed in a more sinister light than a lot of popular media nowadays.
My biggest issue with the novel was the pacing. It was extremely fast-paced, and especially in the very beginning and the very end, it was hard to keep track of what was going on and why. The transitions between scenes and events was extremely choppy, so it very much felt like I was being jerked around from scene to scene which made it a little harder to enjoy at points. The passage of time is also affected because of this, because I can't tell how much time actually passes from start to finish and calls into question whether the strength of the friendships and romances actually makes sense. If this were longer or were in multiple volumes, that would definitely be preferable.
Overall, despite the drawbacks, I had an extremely fun time reading this. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes graphic novels, YA fantasy, mysteries and gothic horror without the "extremely scary" element.
mekeisha's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
geekwayne's review
3.0
'Nightmare in Savannah' by Lela Gwenn with art by Rowan McColl is a graphic novel about why it's important to choose your friends wisely.
Alexa moves to Savannah to escape the criminal past of her parents. When she tries to make new friends, she finds out she can't escape her past that easy. That leaves her making friends with the outcasts, but the outcasts have their own nasty secret: they are fairies with an evil streak.
I didn't mind the story, but it feels like a retread. The story is better than the weak art and color.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Maverick, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
Alexa moves to Savannah to escape the criminal past of her parents. When she tries to make new friends, she finds out she can't escape her past that easy. That leaves her making friends with the outcasts, but the outcasts have their own nasty secret: they are fairies with an evil streak.
I didn't mind the story, but it feels like a retread. The story is better than the weak art and color.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Maverick, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
maylon93's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This felt so rushed and needed to be multiples volumes, but the magic was cool and I didn’t expect a lot of the things that happened
malexinator's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I bought this graphic novel before checking reviews and later when I saw how poorly it was rated by readers I figured I made a mistake. But I loved the art style and the concept (and I had already spent my cash money) so I gave it a shot anyway and, honestly, it is not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. Yes, it's very fast-paced, especially the very beginning, but it didn't feel disjointed or convoluted. Comic books often feel this way and it was nothing more than what I was expecting. Plus, the timeline "jumps" enhanced the choked and hazy feeling of the story being told. The art style, also, was haunting and did a great job at creating unease and emphasis throughout the graphic novel.
"Nightmare in Savannah" gives very similar vibes to The Craft and I enjoyed how the tone stayed consistently tragic, heavy, and hopeless and that even the relief at the end was still bittersweet.
I liked it!
"Nightmare in Savannah" gives very similar vibes to The Craft and I enjoyed how the tone stayed consistently tragic, heavy, and hopeless and that even the relief at the end was still bittersweet.
I liked it!
jayykitty's review
2.0
Confusing at its best. The beginning had a nice pace and then it kept speeding up to an abrupt ending that didn’t quite click for me.
lyriumbones's review
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
togasauress's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.25
chelseayedinak's review
4.0
* I received an advanced copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review *
This gave me such Craft vibes! It follows a group of Changelings reckoning with their new powers and how to use them. My main issues with this were pacing and the ending. Much of the story was art without words, which can certainly work at times, but at others, I had to reread pages trying to figure out how we got from one point to the next. The story also escalates super quickly and there was overall just a lot happening and then it ends suddenly. I think I would have preferred this to be longer so that the story could be drawn out longer and not feel so rushed. It's a solid creepy read for Halloween, though, and the art is fun, so overall I'd still recommend it!
This gave me such Craft vibes! It follows a group of Changelings reckoning with their new powers and how to use them. My main issues with this were pacing and the ending. Much of the story was art without words, which can certainly work at times, but at others, I had to reread pages trying to figure out how we got from one point to the next. The story also escalates super quickly and there was overall just a lot happening and then it ends suddenly. I think I would have preferred this to be longer so that the story could be drawn out longer and not feel so rushed. It's a solid creepy read for Halloween, though, and the art is fun, so overall I'd still recommend it!
jkenna1990's review
4.0
This was a really fun graphic novel. It was fast paced, which was fine by me, and the story was a fun take on fairies.