Thank you to Net Galley for a free copy of this book in trade for an honest review.
It’s a dark read to begin with. I’m not quite familiar with the case of Salem’s Witch trial, but I think this might be a good graphic novel to picture what happen in 1690’s. Since this is part 1, things are still in the dark on how the story goes.
The story follows Abigail who just turned into a young woman. The society especially the women are afraid of the temptation that comes with her adulthood. Her friendship with the black face Indian who she secretly meets and Elisabeth Parris is what keeps her happy. Salem is pictured as a small village. Abigail’s secluded small world. The town is obviously gripped by the Reverend Parris and their fear in God. The people swallowed everything the reverend said.
Some of the scenes in the story are quite disturbing. As the story goes, more incidents that involved violence occurred in Salem. From the murder of a black face Indian to the murder of 2 women who owns a tavern. There are so many misunderstanding. It’s not a time for a young woman to be herself. It really is the time of when people is afraid of God and will do anything that is considered insane.
The illustration is very detailed and has somber colors. The whole aura of the book feels like ancient history. The expressions on the characters are sometimes scary, distorted with rage, sadness or fear. Big eyes or sometimes sweats, tears as well as blood are pictured in quite detail. There are many fine lines that help created depth for the illustration. I love the details of the illustration. It gives the story a dark mood, which is suitable for it.
I would love to read part 2 of the story and review it here. I’m just curious what would happen to Abigail and her family.
Recommend for those who like historical fiction, not afraid of a little blood and love dark mood illustration. ...more
Thank you to Europe Comics and Net Galley for a free copy of this book in trade for an honest review.
Well, this sure is a grim read. It’s a tragic story of survival with a tinge of revenge and love thrown in together. Each character is swept either by faith or sheer bad luck into this entire turn of events. You will find that each of them has their own reason on why they become who they were in the story.
Set in the time of slavery, it sure makes it not a cheerful read. It reminds us on one of the darkest ages of human history. It’s the time when families are ripped apart by war and consumed by human greed. It’s when humanity is lost and only money and profit takes over.
The story is quite simple, but there’s a plot twist and it’s quite surprising. I might not understand what makes Atar Gull loves his father more than his son. His plan is cunning and a bit complicated, but he achieved his goal. However, the end comes in full circle.
Illustration is ok, a bit simple, not too much detail, especially on the faces and eyes. It comes in solid black lines and solid coloring style. For the black skin character especially the main characters, the eyes are only pictured as white color, makes it look creepy. It’s a contrast between a very dark skin with a white eye. It also shows the strength of character. From the side of coloring, brown hue, red, dark blue and black dominates the illustration. It’s quite suitable for the story setting in Africa and Jamaica.
Recommend for those who like a historical fiction set around slavery time. There’s a bit of blood, violence and nudity shown.
Today I want to share about 1 manga that influenced my drawing style and with a background story that makes me look deeper into French Revolution history. I basically love history, but this is one of the first historical-fiction I’ve encountered in manga style.
The story follows some fictional character that run in tandem with the actors of the French Revolution. Oscar Jarjayes, Andre Grandier, Rosalie are all fictional characters that guide the tragic story of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI from their wedding until death.
What I like about this story is although it’s fictional, but the characters are intertwined quite harmoniously with the real persons. For example, Oscar is being made personal guard of Marie Antoinette. That way, we could see the Queen’s life closely. Some humor is also inserted (manga style of course). It makes the whole story lighter, even though they are supposed to be more serious. The love story between Oscar and Andre is bittersweet. It’s a bit too late but it’s there.
Rosalie’s story is intertwined with the story of the affair of the diamond necklace. By the end, Rosalie is the remaining character that accompanied Marie Antoinette during her last days. So, even though these characters are fictional, but they play an important role in telling the tragic story of Marie Antoinette.
Illustration style is very detail. It’s very feminine, with lots of flowers and curves that adorned the details of the costumes and background. The lines are light, curvy and somehow it makes the whole illustration feels romantic and tragic. It really suits the story. The background is also well illustrated, apparently with good research. The cover image is the Indonesian version of this manga.
Recommend for those who love manga, historical fiction especially French Revolution, bittersweet romance and good illustration (manga style of course)
I got this book from Net Galley in trade for an honest review. Thank you Europe CoThis review is also posted in my blog : La Casati: The Selfish Muse"
I got this book from Net Galley in trade for an honest review. Thank you Europe Comics for this opportunity.
Story
This is an interesting graphic novel to read. I’ve never heard of “The Marchesa” Luisa Casati Amman until I read this book. And it lead to another Google search (yap…curiosity got the hold of me). Apparently she was dubbed Lady Gaga from the 20th century and her style inspired some big designers in the haute couture world.
I think it’s a good idea to make someone’s autobiography in comic style, especially with lots of images to feature in the book. It makes it less boring especially with someone as interesting as Casati.
The one thing is confusing is the way the narration is done by each character. Sometimes by Casati, sometimes by the other characters. I tend to read the statement first then the character name. It’s quite unusual and I’d rather have 1 narration throughout the story. Good thing that the characters didn’t just tell their story but also interact with Casati. The weird part is when Casati’s dying. She told it in her own narration, which is quite ghost like. Other than that, the story itself is well research. All the important images and people that involved in Casati’s life is pictured. Include her lovers, painters, photographers and a wax figure artist. It’s quite fascinating how 1 person could be a model of so many media during her lifetime.
Illustration
I like the illustration style with uneven lines and water color blending. I also like the color of Casati’s hair. It’s so vibrant and the way it’s pictured, it’s so wild like her personality. I don’t quite like the eyes. Somehow it’s a bit much…compared to the real images of Casati. I think it’s a bit exaggerated. But all in all, the style of the illustration fits the story. It got that “old” aura that makes you feels like watching an old movie.
Love the expression on Casati’s faces. Especially when she’s upset, it’s so expressive. With her big eyes and wiry hair, it’s so energetic. When she grew older, the wrinkle around her eyes and mouth are quite detail. I could see the difference when she was young and old.
Recommended for those who loves artwork done in watercolor and pen, historical fiction and autobiography of an interesting character.
This is my first time review a comic/graphic novel, so it might not be too perfect. I got a Posted too in my blog https://onewordtoomuch.wordpress.com/
This is my first time review a comic/graphic novel, so it might not be too perfect. I got a copy from Netgalley in order to give an honest review. Thank you for Europe Comics for this copy.
Story
For the first book, I like the story. It’s not too complicated, easy to understand and to follow. Not too many characters and the words are not too long. So, it’s perfect as a comic book. Something that you could read for relaxing while enjoying the story and artwork.
I’ve always been interested in historical fiction, like Greek and Roman history. The time of Nero is one of the most intriguing stories. Given he’s quite cruel in his own way, I think he makes a good background story. However, in this first book, Murena’s story is not really clear. I hope it become clearer in the next book.
Artwork
Love the artwork. It’s real, as close to human. Not being too exaggerated like big muscles or long legs, but just normal human being. I also like how the lines are accentuated in each drawing, many small lines that create effects like shadows and strengthening each character and background. It gives the comic some serious and dark feeling, but not too dark. The blood in the drawings are also not too much, which is good. It’s just quite a normal amount of blood.
Recommendation
Recommended for those who like historical fiction especially Roman history and won’t squirmed with nudity and blood. Also, if you like some serious drawings, this is the graphic novel for you. ...more
This is one book from the historical fiction genre that I like. The story is told from the vantage point of dr.Crippen. About his childhood, how he struggle to become a doctor (although it’s not real), his relationship with the women in his life. There is a sad aura surrounding the character that makes you think that the murder is justifiable. His wife is a bully and he’s done everything he could to satisfy her and still it’s not enough.
All his entire life, he’s been bullied. The wrong thing is that he can’t stand for himself. In the end, it’s a woman that has to stand for him.
How this much is true, I don’t know. But I love the way the story is told. It’s not as Crippen the killer, but more like Crippen as a human, how he feels, love, lived. There is some humanity and good reason why the murder happened. We’re talking about someone who’s being pushed too far up until to a breaking point he can’t take it anymore.
What confuses me is it looks like the murder is done by his mistress instead of him. But that’s for the history to answer for itself.
Recommend for those who love historical fiction, a bit of romance, blood and lots of human emotion involved. ...more
This book triggers my interest in the British history. Previously, I'm only interested in the French court. But after reading this one, well I've got This book triggers my interest in the British history. Previously, I'm only interested in the French court. But after reading this one, well I've got to say...it's such an interesting history and make me want to know more....more
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