A review by katharine_opal
String #1 by Paul Tobin

adventurous funny mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

There were many things that I liked about this graphic novel. Yoon-Sook Namgung is a young Korean American woman with the ability to see "Strings". No, not the Red string of fate, but the Blue strings that show sexual partners and Black strings that show death. This concept was honestly a really interesting, and very cool play on the common "Red String of Fate" story trope. I also enjoyed the other characters, they were all fairly well-rounded and felt very real. However, the pacing is all over the place in this comic. Some scenes are just characters walking and talking, and my God there is just so much dialogue and the scenes just drag. The action scenes are intense, but always pretty short. The way events unfold in this story doesn't feel smooth at all. It's just "lots of talking then suddenly OMG THIS IS HAPPENING then oh well that's over". I think if the pacing was better this would have gotten a much better rating from me. I do have to say, I absolutely love the art style! The character designs, and the locations, all look so pretty in this art style.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!
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