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mfrisk's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I wanted to love this book - queer horror graphic novels are a favorite genre for me for sure but this one fell flat for me. The characters felt one-note and showed little growth until we were almost done with the book. The romance also felt very sudden and random and I wished it had been built up more throughout the story. I also didn’t get why nothing was explained about how either character became werewolves. It felt like a lot was missing from this story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, and Chronic illness
wends_nblw's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I'm unsure how to review this.
I only picked this up because I saw : two guys that I thought could be lovers, one of them nerdy, the other a poc. And my poc gay ass thought "perfect!!!" so I knew absolutely nothing else about this book. I didn't go in looking for good rep or anything so luckily, I wasn't disappointed like the reviewers I've seen.
I can't speak to the autoimmune rep, as I am not and I would recommend reading reviews from those who are.
Aside from that, I enjoyed the story. I liked the whole two troubled guys falling in love because they're both kind of idiots. I was very pleasantly surprised to see Eli was trans since I hadn't known that going in. [unlike some reviews, i found this to be quite endearing, as i enjoy when characters are just trans for the sake of being trans.]
I did not like Biff or Marcia; and I honestly just really, really hate how Biff was handled. The ending was rushed. It's discouraging that Eli really got the short end of the stick even at the ending.[like tony gets a mini dad moment but eli can't have his mini mom moment??? why????]
All in all, it was good. Just don't go looking for good rep.
I only picked this up because I saw : two guys that I thought could be lovers, one of them nerdy, the other a poc. And my poc gay ass thought "perfect!!!" so I knew absolutely nothing else about this book. I didn't go in looking for good rep or anything so luckily, I wasn't disappointed like the reviewers I've seen.
I can't speak to the autoimmune rep, as I am not and I would recommend reading reviews from those who are.
Aside from that, I enjoyed the story. I liked the whole two troubled guys falling in love because they're both kind of idiots. I was very pleasantly surprised to see Eli was trans since I hadn't known that going in. [unlike some reviews, i found this to be quite endearing, as i enjoy when characters are just trans for the sake of being trans.]
I did not like Biff or Marcia; and I honestly just really, really hate how Biff was handled. The ending was rushed. It's discouraging that Eli really got the short end of the stick even at the ending.
All in all, it was good. Just don't go looking for good rep.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Animal death, Chronic illness, Body horror, Medical content, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Gun violence and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Homophobia
kittykolektor's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This is a cute teen paranormal mystery. Kind of the Scooby Doo gang becoming friends and meeting real monsters. The art work is beautiful, but the story felt a little rushed at the end.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying and Homophobia
libscote's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
Tony has a pretty good life (minus his relationship with his father) but he finds himself drawn to Eli, a quiet boy who is often picked on. As they grow closer, they start to deal with a mysterious force in the woods, one that attaches itself to Tony as well. I enjoyed it. The Maine setting is not a real town, but it didn't bother me, the way it can. There were a few parts where I thought things changed around quickly, but the story flows well otherwise. I like that the chapters alternate between Tony and Eli's perspectives, with each author taking a chapter so the styles are slightly different.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Homophobia
bookenbee's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I loved this! The end felt rushed, but it was overall a well paced story and great characters. Tony and Eli are so sweet together. If there was a sequel to this to answer some questions/give us more background on the characters it would be even better!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Ableism, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Medical content, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Body horror, Blood, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, and Toxic friendship
booksdogsandcoffee's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Thank you to net galley and Macmillan children publishing group for this arc in exchange for an honest review:
3.5 stars
Tony is the track star everyone loves and adores, Eli is the kid with a chronic illness who no one knows or cares to know about. He is always missing school because of the pain. Through unlikely circumstances the Eli reaches out an olive branch to Tony and the two become friends. But there is a something curious about Eli, and something even more mysterious going on in their small town of Blackwater.
I'm not sure I was able to see all of the graphic novel. From what I did read I really enjoyed the story of Tony and Eli. Tony being the tough track star, but really deep down is a nice guy is always one of my favorite characters. I also really liked how asthma was depicted in the graphic novel. Eli was also another great character. Myself growing up with a chronic illness I missed school a lot, lost friends left and right. so relating to him was very easy. And he is jewish!! The rep in the graphic novel was awesome to see. There was ableism and bullying, but you do see Tony working away from it during the novels progression.
Cw
Bullying
Ableism
chronic illness
animal death
emotional abuse
homophobia
3.5 stars
Tony is the track star everyone loves and adores, Eli is the kid with a chronic illness who no one knows or cares to know about. He is always missing school because of the pain. Through unlikely circumstances the Eli reaches out an olive branch to Tony and the two become friends. But there is a something curious about Eli, and something even more mysterious going on in their small town of Blackwater.
I'm not sure I was able to see all of the graphic novel. From what I did read I really enjoyed the story of Tony and Eli. Tony being the tough track star, but really deep down is a nice guy is always one of my favorite characters. I also really liked how asthma was depicted in the graphic novel. Eli was also another great character. Myself growing up with a chronic illness I missed school a lot, lost friends left and right. so relating to him was very easy. And he is jewish!! The rep in the graphic novel was awesome to see. There was ableism and bullying, but you do see Tony working away from it during the novels progression.
Cw
Bullying
Ableism
chronic illness
animal death
emotional abuse
homophobia
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Ableism, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, and Bullying
Moderate: Toxic friendship
betweentheshelves's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s for an advanced copy of this to review! Always on the lookout for new YA graphic novels, so I was excited to start this one. If you’re a fan of slow burn horror, this one should definitely be on your TBR!
What I appreciated about this book is the way the spookiness kinds of winds its way into the story. It doesn’t happen outright, it’s subtle. Little things here and there put into the frames. It’s definite a slow build, which is okay in graphic novel format! I was intrigued about where the story was going to go, even if a lot of the other characters seemed oblivious.
I don’t think I read the entire graphic novel because the ending felt kind of abrupt. The story was over too soon! For that reason, I’ll definitely check out a final copy when it comes out to give it my full opinion. I also wanted a bit more interaction between Eli and Tony. It’s clear there’s something there, but their relationship isn’t at the forefront. There should be more of it!
All in all, I think there’s a lot of potential here, and I’ll definitely check out the final version when it comes out later this month.
-------
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There's a lot of build up in this, and then it ends on a cliffhanger. Hopefully that's not where it's actually going to end? But stayed tuned for a full review to come!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Ableism, and Bullying
Moderate: Animal death, Chronic illness, and Gun violence
Minor: Animal cruelty, Body horror, and Homophobia
melaniereadsbooks's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Thank you to netgalley for an arc of this book and then to Henry, Holt, and Co for sending me a finished copy!
In the town of Blackwater, Tony is a popular track star with a crush on the quiet, nerdy Eli. But something is happening in the woods, and Eli might know what it is.
So, weirdly enough, the netgalley arc of this that I got only had half the book? Either that or it didn't download properly. So I read the e-arc and thought...what a terrible ending! It felt like it was the middle of the story. I was so disappointed because I felt like it had so much potential...Then, the publisher sent me a finished copy and I was like, "wow, this sure is bigger than it seemed." Cue me realizing I had only read half the book. So I read the second half, and my disappointment went away because this was fabulous!
Creepy and cute--I love the budding relationship between confident Tony and shy Eli. I love the chronic illness rep with Tony's asthma and Eli's autoimmune disease. I love the character development that happened in this book! The plot was interesting and I liked how it turned out. I wish the werewolf aspects had been developed a little more, but I did like that part overall!
The characters are really what made this book stand out to me!
In the town of Blackwater, Tony is a popular track star with a crush on the quiet, nerdy Eli. But something is happening in the woods, and Eli might know what it is.
So, weirdly enough, the netgalley arc of this that I got only had half the book? Either that or it didn't download properly. So I read the e-arc and thought...what a terrible ending! It felt like it was the middle of the story. I was so disappointed because I felt like it had so much potential...Then, the publisher sent me a finished copy and I was like, "wow, this sure is bigger than it seemed." Cue me realizing I had only read half the book. So I read the second half, and my disappointment went away because this was fabulous!
Creepy and cute--I love the budding relationship between confident Tony and shy Eli. I love the chronic illness rep with Tony's asthma and Eli's autoimmune disease. I love the character development that happened in this book! The plot was interesting and I liked how it turned out. I wish the werewolf aspects had been developed a little more, but I did like that part overall!
The characters are really what made this book stand out to me!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Ableism, Animal death, and Bullying
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Chronic illness
Minor: Animal cruelty, Homophobia, and Body horror
armontheroad's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Blackwater was a very fun time! If you’re looking for a YA supernatural graphic novel with ghosts, werewolves, and an Achillean romance, this is for you! I adored the fact both our protagonists were chronically ill. We have Eli who is a trans boy with an autoimmune disorder that leaves him isolated from his family and peers. Then there is popular Tony who is an asthmatic Boricua hiding his chronic illness at school so he can continue to be popular. Eli can see ghosts and Tony becomes a werewolf after being bitten by one in the woods.
Not going to lie, I didn’t know if I could get on board with the romance after something Eli does at the start of the book, but I’m really glad I could. Romance aside, I really appreciated the friend group that is formed!!
My only criticism is the art style. The art style isn’t for me but that has no impact on my review. However, the graphic novel is in black and white. This usually isn’t an issue but in this volume, it was very difficult to see what was going on, especially when we were following our characters of color. Other than that, I think this is worth your time! Cannot wait to have this in my book collection and desperately hope we get another volume in this world!
CWs/TWs: Gun violence, animal death, homophobia, ableism, bullying, alcoholism.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism
Moderate: Gun violence and Bullying
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Homophobia, and Ableism
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