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mehsi's review
I received this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange of an honest review.
So this turned out to be way weirder than I had expected given the cover. I am still not sure what to rate so this one will go unrated. I mean, I just don’t know if I liked liked it or just liked hated it? It is so confusing, but this book was just too much for me.
We have a cannibal dude who is the son of the boss of the orphanage. Not that his dad can do much, and neither can anyone else except him and two orphans. The rest is dead and gone. Lying or sitting in places (which yes, is fucking disturbing). I am still not entirely sure if they all went naturally or not. I mean, there is talk about typhus and such, so who knows. Given everything with the son he was already a psychopath before (given what he says to his sister I lean to that) or he turned into one (I am still leaning to the first one though). I wasn’t a fan of the guy. I mean, WTF dude, murdering people who come in for help or want to help you? I get you need food, but um.. No? Eww. No. Fuck no. I never liked the son, not just because he was a fucking psychopath, but also because he thought he was the boss. He thought he was everything. He forced two orphans to do his bidding and even eat along with him. I would have run away, then again, given how NOPE that guy is… maybe you won’t get far.
So this turned out to be way weirder than I had expected given the cover. I am still not sure what to rate so this one will go unrated. I mean, I just don’t know if I liked liked it or just liked hated it? It is so confusing, but this book was just too much for me.
We have a cannibal dude who is the son of the boss of the orphanage. Not that his dad can do much, and neither can anyone else except him and two orphans. The rest is dead and gone. Lying or sitting in places (which yes, is fucking disturbing). I am still not entirely sure if they all went naturally or not. I mean, there is talk about typhus and such, so who knows. Given everything with the son he was already a psychopath before (given what he says to his sister I lean to that) or he turned into one (I am still leaning to the first one though). I wasn’t a fan of the guy. I mean, WTF dude, murdering people who come in for help or want to help you? I get you need food, but um.. No? Eww. No. Fuck no. I never liked the son, not just because he was a fucking psychopath, but also because he thought he was the boss. He thought he was everything. He forced two orphans to do his bidding and even eat along with him. I would have run away, then again, given how NOPE that guy is… maybe you won’t get far.
despinareviews's review
4.0
3.5 rounded up
A very creepy horror graphic novel covering a story about two orphaned siblings who live with another child during WW1, the abandoned dolls they live with and the missing eyes from the once inhabitant orphans ...
This novel was CREEPY but so well drawn. If you are happy to read dark books with on-page fully drawn depictions of death, mutilation, cannibalism and more, this was incredibly high quality and a full story in short form. The themes covered weren't my favourite but the story felt complete and rounded off in a satisfactory fashion. The art was incredibly HQ and it definitely brought you into the eerie world it created.
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this graphic novel in exchange for an honest review,which I leave voluntarily.
A very creepy horror graphic novel covering a story about two orphaned siblings who live with another child during WW1, the abandoned dolls they live with and the missing eyes from the once inhabitant orphans ...
This novel was CREEPY but so well drawn. If you are happy to read dark books with on-page fully drawn depictions of death, mutilation, cannibalism and more, this was incredibly high quality and a full story in short form. The themes covered weren't my favourite but the story felt complete and rounded off in a satisfactory fashion. The art was incredibly HQ and it definitely brought you into the eerie world it created.
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this graphic novel in exchange for an honest review,which I leave voluntarily.
twiinklex's review
4.0
I have been on the hunt for a good horror comic and this really hit the spot! It was creepy, gory and bittersweet all at once. The story took quite a few turns that I didn't see coming at all and there were some really solid scenes. A quick but enjoyable read!
Thank you to Europe Comics and Netgalley for an ARC of this book.
Thank you to Europe Comics and Netgalley for an ARC of this book.
elizabethlk's review
4.0
3.5 stars.
Empty Eyes is a fascinating and creepy little comic. Set towards the end of the First World War, the story follows two young children alone in an orphanage except for the evil older child they are trapped under the control of and some seemingly very creepy dolls. The art has a great creepy vibe to it. I do think I would have enjoyed it more if there had been more time to build the story, but it's still enjoyable. It's a great story for spooky season or for anyone who enjoys their horror stories on the more historical side.
Empty Eyes is a fascinating and creepy little comic. Set towards the end of the First World War, the story follows two young children alone in an orphanage except for the evil older child they are trapped under the control of and some seemingly very creepy dolls. The art has a great creepy vibe to it. I do think I would have enjoyed it more if there had been more time to build the story, but it's still enjoyable. It's a great story for spooky season or for anyone who enjoys their horror stories on the more historical side.
gabriele_queerbookdom's review
4.0
Representation: Slavic primary, secondary and tertiary characters.
Content Warning: war, death, violence, gore, blood, cannibalism.
Review to come...
Content Warning: war, death, violence, gore, blood, cannibalism.
Review to come...
bladelikesbooks's review
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Empty Eyes is a middle grade horror comic set in Europe in 1917 during the First World War. It centres 3 children living by themselves in an orphanage and they have resorted to cannibalism to stay alive.
Two of the children were orphans from the orphanage and one of the children is the son of the owners of the orphanage. Everyone else who had lived there died from typhus so those three were left alone.
I really liked the art style, I thought it was quite unique and added to the creepiness of the story. It was a bit slow paced so I’d say that it leaned more towards being character driven than being plot driven.
This was a fun, interesting read and I enjoyed it. I think if you like creepy dolls that end up being the good guys, I think you’ll love this. I will say though, there is a scene with pretty graphic child death so definitely be aware of that before going into it.
TWs/CWs - Blood; Body Horror; Cannibalism; Child death; Corpses; Fire/fire injury; Gore; Gun violence; Murder; Plane crash; Smoking; Suicide ideation; War
librarianryan's review
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- 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
4.5
War itself is horror. Abandoned children in an orphanage full of dead bodies is horror. Make one of these children kind of crazy and a cannibal, and the stakes are increased. But luckily, they are two children who don’t want to be cannibals and don’t want to live this life. However, it is World War II, and the children must find a way to survive. It turns out that the dead children of the orphanage aren’t really dead. Their spirits have been moved into the dolls with which they used to play. These dolls have empty eye sockets and once full the dolls come back to life. Their doll life is meant to help the children escape and punish the cannibal child whose parents owned the orphanage. This book is spooky, freaky, and horror laden. The illustrations are fantastic. They perfectly fit the mood. They range from being the gray browns that you would expect when speaking of World War II to the bright vivid colors of a children’s playroom overrun in blood. There are lots of trigger warnings in this book, the main one being cannibalism, but there’s also abandonment, death, destruction, a little bit of everything. Wow, it’s sad to think about in broad terms (as I discovered while telling a friend about the story) but it’s a fantastic study in horror that I will be recommending for years to come.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cannibalism
herasrevenge88's review
3.0
I recieved a e-arc of this manga from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.
This book was GRUESOME!(Lots of gore). If you are creeped out by dolls then I definitely do not recommend you read this. This manga is the story of orphaned siblings during the height of WWII and what they are forced to endure and do in order to survive. The dolls are vessels of the orphans that didn't survive. I don't want to say too much but for a short 90 page manga, it still managed to creep me out and had me empathizing with our main character. A little too potentially realistic for comfort (minus the dolls part). I could see this being a situation that could occur to orphan children during such a time as WWII; it certainly wouldn't be the first time in history this kind of thing was done. Very good, very creepy/gruesome artwork.
This book was GRUESOME!(Lots of gore). If you are creeped out by dolls then I definitely do not recommend you read this. This manga is the story of orphaned siblings during the height of WWII and what they are forced to endure and do in order to survive. The dolls are vessels of the orphans that didn't survive. I don't want to say too much but for a short 90 page manga, it still managed to creep me out and had me empathizing with our main character. A little too potentially realistic for comfort (minus the dolls part). I could see this being a situation that could occur to orphan children during such a time as WWII; it certainly wouldn't be the first time in history this kind of thing was done. Very good, very creepy/gruesome artwork.
panic_at_the_bookshelf's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
CW: gore, cannibalism and dolls
This graphic novel is so different than the usual horror I read. At first I thought the dolls would be the typical cliche scares a horror would throw at you, but it soon turned out that the scariest thing in the story didn't look as scary. And I loved that twist! I think this might be the first time where I felt myself to be on the side of dolls, things that usually scare me enough to hide underneath my blanket. Most of the time you read a horror story through the eyes of the victims, now you also got to see a few scenes through the eyes of the "bad guy". Therefore I think the story was original and creepy. The art style was very pretty to look at, while it also gave the right amount of goose bumps. The ending did go a bit fast. Suddenly a lot was happening, so I had to reread a few things.
I am very curious about the story behind this orphanage and the Nurk family!
I would highly recommend any horror lover to read this graphic novel during spooky season!
Special thanks to Netgalley, Diego Agrimbau, Juan Manuel Tumburús and europecomics for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
This graphic novel is so different than the usual horror I read. At first I thought the dolls would be the typical cliche scares a horror would throw at you, but it soon turned out that the scariest thing in the story didn't look as scary. And I loved that twist! I think this might be the first time where I felt myself to be on the side of dolls, things that usually scare me enough to hide underneath my blanket. Most of the time you read a horror story through the eyes of the victims, now you also got to see a few scenes through the eyes of the "bad guy". Therefore I think the story was original and creepy. The art style was very pretty to look at, while it also gave the right amount of goose bumps. The ending did go a bit fast. Suddenly a lot was happening, so I had to reread a few things.
I am very curious about the story behind this orphanage and the Nurk family!
I would highly recommend any horror lover to read this graphic novel during spooky season!
Special thanks to Netgalley, Diego Agrimbau, Juan Manuel Tumburús and europecomics for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Gore, Cannibalism, Child death, Murder, Violence, and War