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avisreadsandreads's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Toxic relationship
noan's review against another edition
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
geekwayne's review against another edition
3.0
‘Hypericon’ with story and art by Manuele Fior is a graphic novel that takes place in two distinct times and is distinctly linked.
It’s 2001 and Teresa has just arrived in Berlin with insomnia and a new job getting an art exhibit ready. There are also flashbacks to Howard Carter’s 1922 discovery of King Tut’s tomb that Teresa is reading about. Teresa meets Ruben, but he may not offer her the stability she needs as her insomnia frays her fragile mind.
I liked it well enough, but I’m not sure I cared all that much when it was all said and done. The art works well, especially for the Egypt portions of the book.
It’s 2001 and Teresa has just arrived in Berlin with insomnia and a new job getting an art exhibit ready. There are also flashbacks to Howard Carter’s 1922 discovery of King Tut’s tomb that Teresa is reading about. Teresa meets Ruben, but he may not offer her the stability she needs as her insomnia frays her fragile mind.
I liked it well enough, but I’m not sure I cared all that much when it was all said and done. The art works well, especially for the Egypt portions of the book.
kilmorgancastle's review against another edition
3.0
An interesting look at the world of museum exhibitions and museum archaeology but not for me i'm afraid
sevireads's review against another edition
4.0
"You know what sleep is? Something we invented to keep us from noticing how long nights are. A safe passageway that protects our senses from the effects of the passage of time.
When I can't sleep, time slows down, then finally becomes immobile. It deteriorates... and rots, repeating itself to infinity."
Hypericon follows two interconnected plotlines - one being the the story of Teresa, a young Italian academic, who has just arrived in Berlin on a grant to work on an exhibit of Tutankhamen's tomb, and the other - the discovery of said tomb by Howard Carter, described in a book that Teresa reads during sleepless nights.
This is the most beautifully written graphic novel I've had the pleasure of reading in some time, especially in the part towards the middle where Teresa's reflecting on her insomnia and the role of sleep in our lives. The art in the scenes set in Egypt was likewise beautiful and dreamlike. It's only the art of the scenes set in Berlin that I didn't necessarily enjoy, but overall the story had a nice flow to it, despite jumping between the two plotlines every now and then.
There are quite a few explicit sex scenes though, so if that's not something you enjoy in a graphic novel, maybe this isn't the best fit for you.
Thank you to Netgalley and Europe Comics for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
When I can't sleep, time slows down, then finally becomes immobile. It deteriorates... and rots, repeating itself to infinity."
Hypericon follows two interconnected plotlines - one being the the story of Teresa, a young Italian academic, who has just arrived in Berlin on a grant to work on an exhibit of Tutankhamen's tomb, and the other - the discovery of said tomb by Howard Carter, described in a book that Teresa reads during sleepless nights.
This is the most beautifully written graphic novel I've had the pleasure of reading in some time, especially in the part towards the middle where Teresa's reflecting on her insomnia and the role of sleep in our lives. The art in the scenes set in Egypt was likewise beautiful and dreamlike. It's only the art of the scenes set in Berlin that I didn't necessarily enjoy, but overall the story had a nice flow to it, despite jumping between the two plotlines every now and then.
There are quite a few explicit sex scenes though, so if that's not something you enjoy in a graphic novel, maybe this isn't the best fit for you.
Thank you to Netgalley and Europe Comics for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
toniherrero's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0
Quan va caure a les meves mans Celestia del mateix autor vaig quedar fascinat; fins al punt que vaig comprar-ne dos exemplars —el que vaig llegir l'havia agafat de la biblioteca—, un per mi i un per regalar. Posteriorment, vaig agafar prestat La entrevista, que també em va agradar molt, però amb el qual no vaig arribar a connectar de la mateixa manera. Malgrat aquest petit desencís, vaig marcar a foc el nom de Manuele Fior al meu cap i al meu cor. Tan bon punt vaig saber que l'autor havia publicat Hypericon vaig córrer a comprar-me'l pensant, pobre innocent, que no podria igualar les sensacions del primer llibre que vaig llegir. I que n'estava, d'equivocat!
Hypericon narra la història d'amor de Teresa i Ruben, dos joves aparentment molt diferents. Ella acaba d'aterrar a Berlín per dissenyar una exposició sobre el tresor de Tutankamon; ell fa temps que viu en una casa okupa, coneix l'ambient contracultural i s'encarregarà de mostrar-li la ciutat. En una trobada fortuïta sorgirà l'atracció. Les escenes íntimes de la relació flueixen amb una bellesa i una naturalitat fascinant, cosa que és comú a les obres prèvies de Fior, però potser en aquesta ocasió gaudim de dos personatges que s'obren més l'una a l'altre, malgrat tot allò que volen amagar. És una relació bonica i dolorosa a la vegada, com són moltes relacions de parella en la realitat.
Els traços de Fior semblen simples, però estan dotats d'una elegància i una perfecció admirables. Es nota en els personatges, però es nota sobretot en l'arquitectura i els espais berlinesos, que brillen amb llum pròpia sota el prisma de l'autor. I si les vinyetes del present són boniques, què dir de les del passat? El volum encavalca dues històries separades per quasi un segle —la relació de la Teresa i en Ruben i la d'una troballa arqueològica— fent servir com a nexe el faraó-nen i el seu tresor. Així doncs, viatgem des d'un present que no és tan present —al final del llibre podrem situar inequívocament el moment— i l'any 1922, que és quan Howard Carter va fer una de les descobertes més importants de la història.
Servidor ha llegit el llibre que narra la troballa de Carter i Lord Carnarvon a la Vall dels Reis, i l'aura de misteri que rodeja la figura de Tutankamon sempre m'ha fascinat. Recrear aquest moment de la mà de Fior ha estat un regal molt millor del que em podia imaginar: les escenes i els dibuixos estan fets amb una cura que fa estremir, com si nosaltres mateixos fossin qui haguéssim descobert aquelles "coses meravelloses" que van albirar els dos homes a través d'un forat al mur. Pensava que Manuele Fior no podria superar el que va fer a Celestia, però sense cap dubte ho ha fet, i amb una solvència i una intensitat que fan feredat. Hypericon m'ha arribat al cor com molt pocs llibres ho han fet. M'ha tocat per dins, m'ha remenat i ha plantat en mi una mena de llavor. El que sortirà d'aquesta lectura, un dia ho sabré.
Hypericon narra la història d'amor de Teresa i Ruben, dos joves aparentment molt diferents. Ella acaba d'aterrar a Berlín per dissenyar una exposició sobre el tresor de Tutankamon; ell fa temps que viu en una casa okupa, coneix l'ambient contracultural i s'encarregarà de mostrar-li la ciutat. En una trobada fortuïta sorgirà l'atracció. Les escenes íntimes de la relació flueixen amb una bellesa i una naturalitat fascinant, cosa que és comú a les obres prèvies de Fior, però potser en aquesta ocasió gaudim de dos personatges que s'obren més l'una a l'altre, malgrat tot allò que volen amagar. És una relació bonica i dolorosa a la vegada, com són moltes relacions de parella en la realitat.
Els traços de Fior semblen simples, però estan dotats d'una elegància i una perfecció admirables. Es nota en els personatges, però es nota sobretot en l'arquitectura i els espais berlinesos, que brillen amb llum pròpia sota el prisma de l'autor. I si les vinyetes del present són boniques, què dir de les del passat? El volum encavalca dues històries separades per quasi un segle —la relació de la Teresa i en Ruben i la d'una troballa arqueològica— fent servir com a nexe el faraó-nen i el seu tresor. Així doncs, viatgem des d'un present que no és tan present —al final del llibre podrem situar inequívocament el moment— i l'any 1922, que és quan Howard Carter va fer una de les descobertes més importants de la història.
Servidor ha llegit el llibre que narra la troballa de Carter i Lord Carnarvon a la Vall dels Reis, i l'aura de misteri que rodeja la figura de Tutankamon sempre m'ha fascinat. Recrear aquest moment de la mà de Fior ha estat un regal molt millor del que em podia imaginar: les escenes i els dibuixos estan fets amb una cura que fa estremir, com si nosaltres mateixos fossin qui haguéssim descobert aquelles "coses meravelloses" que van albirar els dos homes a través d'un forat al mur. Pensava que Manuele Fior no podria superar el que va fer a Celestia, però sense cap dubte ho ha fet, i amb una solvència i una intensitat que fan feredat. Hypericon m'ha arribat al cor com molt pocs llibres ho han fet. M'ha tocat per dins, m'ha remenat i ha plantat en mi una mena de llavor. El que sortirà d'aquesta lectura, un dia ho sabré.
cwrong's review against another edition
3.0
mi piace molto come disegna Fior però la storia è un po' troppo teen drama per i miei gusti
readyuhbook's review
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Picked this book up as I was looking forward to a FMC in the field of anthropology. Teresa goes on a internship in Archaeology looking after Tutankhamun’s tomb in Berlin. The flashbacks are told in a diary entry format focusing on Howard Carter’s point of view. I found this the most intriguing part of the story other than the romance Teresa fell victim to. I never found a character such as Ruben so annoying and c*ckblocking Teresa from exploring her enculturation with Berlin. This is where the potential of the novel gets cut short. The illustrations don’t even match the cover! Storyline was flat and “Hypericum” or Latin for St John’s wort was introduced by 80% of the book—which didn’t make sense to me unfortunately. However, the graphic novels was well done on building up excitement of Tutankhamun’s tomb discovery and highlighting Egyptian beliefs alongside culture under a few panels. I appreciated the historical elements and adoration for archaeology making it a great introduction to anyone wondering why Anthropology students like what they study.
Thank you Netgalley & Fantagraphics for providing me a copy of an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you Netgalley & Fantagraphics for providing me a copy of an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
beliemi's review against another edition
2.0
The cover was the main reason I did start this, I thought wow this is beautiful. I read the description and got curious.
Sadly, I was very disappointed. The art is okay, not my favorite style ever but I loved the colors and the way they were constant throughout the book, changing when confronted with different emotions. The story was okay but the relationship was very toxic (also the book was a lot more explicit than I initially thought it would be, which bothered me a little because there were no sorts of warnings whatsoever).
Sadly, I was very disappointed. The art is okay, not my favorite style ever but I loved the colors and the way they were constant throughout the book, changing when confronted with different emotions. The story was okay but the relationship was very toxic (also the book was a lot more explicit than I initially thought it would be, which bothered me a little because there were no sorts of warnings whatsoever).
llamadiaz's review against another edition
4.0
i fell in love with the different themes that surround the story. it’s a good and beautiful graphic novel but maybe my expectations were a little too high for this