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A review by thebooknerdscorner
The Deep Dark by Molly Knox Ostertag
5.0
An oftentimes dark graphic novel that explores themes of grief, self acceptance, and learning to fight one's own inner demons.
Magdalena "Mags" Herrera is technically still a high school senior, but she feels like she grew up a long time ago. Between taking care of her abuela, working a part-time job, hooking up with a girl who's in another relationship, and the bloody secret she keeps hidden in the basement, there's not much childhood innocence left in this girl. That is, until her childhood best friend Nessa steps into the picture, bringing with her memories of happier times. Despite Mags' best efforts to keep her distance, she can't help but be attracted to Nessa's positive light. But every secret has its price, and Mag's doesn't want to put Nessa at risk with hers.
Holy smokes, this book gets really intense and strays to some seriously dark places at time. Ostertag does a great job of channeling how Mags' is feeling at all times through her art style, creative usage of paneling, and insanely astute use of color. Her pain, sorrow, grief, happiness, hope, confusion, and so much more really bleeds off the page, which added such an intense undertone to this entire graphic novel. No really, the way Ostertag utilizes color is phenomenal and really showcases the power of using graphics to tell a story.
I really didn't know what to expect going into this one, but there were many things that surprised me. I love the Spanish culture that is intermingled in this tale, and the fantastical elements that stem from it. I don't want to go into too many details due to the fact I wasn't expecting Mags' secret at all, so I want to keep it that way for other readers, too. The latine family also intensified some of the family dynamics, which added to the sharp nature of this story. The fact that Mags' abuela love telenovela's is also an added bonus.
The casual inclusion of transgender, butch lesbian, and other inclusive identities was great to see. These characters know who they are at this point in their lives that this story takes place but we do get glimpses of their past selves. Seeing Mags and Nessa in the past really shows how far they've come with accepting themselves as they are, while also at the same time highlighting all of the personal growth they still need to go through over the course of this novel.
The approach to romance in this story was also super cute, but really realistic. Both Mags and Nessa were in pretty toxic relationships at the start of this story. Them meeting up a decade after knowing each other really helped them get out of their toxic situations, which I was glad to see. The whole scene with Nessa's boyfriend was really intense and might have pushed things a little too far, but I'm glad it worked out for our main characters in the end. Mags and Nessa still have many things they need to work through, but I truly think we all need someone who is willing to feed even the darkest parts of ourselves.
Overall, "The Deep Dark" is one fantastic graphic novel. The art is beautiful and really pushes the limits of graphic storytelling with the way that it uses color. The characters are realistic and all have their individual issues and flaws. The plot was super engaging, and many aspects of it took me by surprise. I really enjoyed my past experience with Ostertag's work, but "The Deep Dark"pushes her masterful storytelling to another level. I would highly recommend this one, but do note the darker vibes compared to the author's previous work.
Magdalena "Mags" Herrera is technically still a high school senior, but she feels like she grew up a long time ago. Between taking care of her abuela, working a part-time job, hooking up with a girl who's in another relationship, and the bloody secret she keeps hidden in the basement, there's not much childhood innocence left in this girl. That is, until her childhood best friend Nessa steps into the picture, bringing with her memories of happier times. Despite Mags' best efforts to keep her distance, she can't help but be attracted to Nessa's positive light. But every secret has its price, and Mag's doesn't want to put Nessa at risk with hers.
Holy smokes, this book gets really intense and strays to some seriously dark places at time. Ostertag does a great job of channeling how Mags' is feeling at all times through her art style, creative usage of paneling, and insanely astute use of color. Her pain, sorrow, grief, happiness, hope, confusion, and so much more really bleeds off the page, which added such an intense undertone to this entire graphic novel. No really, the way Ostertag utilizes color is phenomenal and really showcases the power of using graphics to tell a story.
I really didn't know what to expect going into this one, but there were many things that surprised me. I love the Spanish culture that is intermingled in this tale, and the fantastical elements that stem from it. I don't want to go into too many details due to the fact I wasn't expecting Mags' secret at all, so I want to keep it that way for other readers, too. The latine family also intensified some of the family dynamics, which added to the sharp nature of this story. The fact that Mags' abuela love telenovela's is also an added bonus.
The casual inclusion of transgender, butch lesbian, and other inclusive identities was great to see. These characters know who they are at this point in their lives that this story takes place but we do get glimpses of their past selves. Seeing Mags and Nessa in the past really shows how far they've come with accepting themselves as they are, while also at the same time highlighting all of the personal growth they still need to go through over the course of this novel.
The approach to romance in this story was also super cute, but really realistic. Both Mags and Nessa were in pretty toxic relationships at the start of this story. Them meeting up a decade after knowing each other really helped them get out of their toxic situations, which I was glad to see. The whole scene with Nessa's boyfriend was really intense and might have pushed things a little too far, but I'm glad it worked out for our main characters in the end. Mags and Nessa still have many things they need to work through, but I truly think we all need someone who is willing to feed even the darkest parts of ourselves.
Overall, "The Deep Dark" is one fantastic graphic novel. The art is beautiful and really pushes the limits of graphic storytelling with the way that it uses color. The characters are realistic and all have their individual issues and flaws. The plot was super engaging, and many aspects of it took me by surprise. I really enjoyed my past experience with Ostertag's work, but "The Deep Dark"pushes her masterful storytelling to another level. I would highly recommend this one, but do note the darker vibes compared to the author's previous work.