It’s the most wonderful time of the year! That time when we all start freaking out about meeting our Goodreads goal. I had some rather wonderful changes happen this year which left me with much less time for reading. I had to lower my Goodreads goal twice and I am still reading half of what I usually read! Admittedly, I read quite a few graphic novels this year to even make that measly goal. So here I am to share with you some mini reviews of said graphic novels! Also, I want to make sure everyone knows about Hoopla! Hoopla is available through your local library (if you are lucky, like me) and it allows you to borrow movies, videos, music and audiobooks straight from your browser, tablet, or smartphone. The graphic novels look AMAZING on my iPad, I almost prefer them to the print! That is how I read most of the books featured in this review!

Title: Monstress

Author: Marjorie M. Liu

Genre: Fantasy, Horror

Series Information: 1 collected edition (so far)

Source: My public library via Hoopla

I waited to pick up Monstress and I was so worried that it wouldn’t live up to the hype. Boy was I wrong to wait. Monstress was amazing. It has such a deep and interesting plot with so many layers, and the artwork is absolutely stunning. This was one of those graphic novels that kept me guessing throughout, and kept me wanting more from all of the characters. The ending completely blew me away and I absolutely need to know more. In a few words, it was vibrant, intriguing and one of the best graphic novels I have ever read.

Title: The Wicked & The Divine

Author: Kieron Gillen

Genre: Fantasy, Mythology, Paranormal

Series Information: 4 collected editions (so far)

Source: My public library via Hoopla

I am somewhat all over the place with my opinions on The Wicked & The Divine so let me share with you my initial review of the first two collected editions: I barely knew what was happening for the first half of this graphic novel. However, things came together and I was very impressed. I read this using Hoopla and the artwork blew me away, it was so stunning. Too impressive for words, really. Overall, it was an entertaining read, and I look forward for what’s to come. Then, upon reading book three, I wasn’t sure that I was going to continue on with the story as I found it to be so underwhelming, and the artwork was lacking the vibrant nature of books one and two. Finally, I just finished the fourth collected edition and wow! I absolutely could not stop reading. Everything came back together and the beautiful artwork returned and I could absolutely not put it down. I need to see where this series goes. As long as you can power through that third collected edition, you will be rewarded. Definitely recommended!

Title: Locke & Key

Author: Joe Hill

Genre: Horror, Fantasy, Thriller

Series Information: 6 collected editions in the original series, 1 full cast audio

Source: My public library

I actually read the graphic novels last year, but Joe Hill (and Audible) offered a free copy of a full cast audio of the graphic novels and I grabbed it thinking that it would be interesting. The graphic novels are fantastic. The illustrations are great, the story is funny and dramatic and scary at times. For fans of Neil Gaiman and Vaughan for sure. The narration was no where near as good as the original graphic novels. At times, the full cast narration was a bit jarring but overall I found it to be very entertaining. The audio is recommended for those of you who have read the graphic novels as it just adds to the experience.

Title: Nimona

Author: Noelle Stevenson

Genre: Fantasy

Series Information: Standalone

Source: My personal library

Nimona was adorable. The illustrations were fun, the story was so full of heart. Nimona the character was very sweet and adorable, though at times I found her to be a little bit annoying (I am definitely in the minority on this). I loved the banter between Nimona and Blackheart, though I wanted more on Nimona’s background. Definitely give this a go as it’s a cute and quick read, but be prepared to finish reading feeling as if you were missing a bit from the overall story.

Title: American Vampire

Author: Scott Snyder

Genre: Horror

Series Information: 8 collected editions in the series

Source: My public library via Hoopla

I picked up American Vampire on a whim when my brother mentioned that it might be something that I would enjoy. I have only read through the first three novels, but I have to say that they get more and more entertaining as you go along. I love our lead, Pearl. I found myself taking pictures of some of her scenes and sending them to the beau like, “look honey, who does this remind you of?” Hint: she’s sort of a sassy badass! There are a lot of flashbacks in this series to learn more about the main baddie, Skinner, and they are always some of the most interesting bits for me. The artwork is great, and the story surprising. I can’t wait to see what’s next in this series.

Title: Wytches

Author: Scott Snyder

Genre: Horror

Series Information: 1 collected edition so far

Source: My public library

I really struggled with this one. This is written by the same author of American Vampire so I was very disappointed to find that I did not love it as much as his other works. I found the art to be a little messy and confusing at times and I didn’t find the story scary at all. However, the ending did leave me wondering which made me want to continue on with the series, and a lot of trusted reviewers found this novel terrifying and rated it much higher than I did. I would say this is probably my least recommended graphic novel, but if you need something quick and don’t mind the horror aspects then give it a go.

Title: Preacher

Author: Garth Ennis

Genre: Fantasy, Horror

Series Information: 9 collected editions

Source: My public library via Hoopla

This is another series that I started this year on a whim, and I did so because I wanted to read some before starting the TV series (which I looove)! This series is a little older, the first coming out in 1996, so the art was good but not great. The plot, however, was really dark and interesting. Upon finishing I was left with that feeling of “hmm this wasn’t great, but I want to see where things go…” Thus far, I have read the first two in the series and want to see what happens next. Admittedly, I love the show a lot more than the graphic novels. Side note: This also happened when I tried to read Lucifer THREE TIMES! I just cannot get into it, though I love the show!

Title: Pretty Deadly

Author: Kelly Sue DeConnick

Genre: Fantasy, Western

Series Information: 2 collected editions (so far)

Source: My public library

I have to be honest, if I had been reviewing just the first in the series (so far) then I would have probably had a harder time recommending this series. I found the artwork in the first collected edition beautiful, but so confusing. Things were all over the place and I had a hard time following the artwork in how it related to the overall plot. The story was fantastic and heart wrenching and I loved it so much. Then I read the second and I was completely blown away by the vibrant artwork, and yet I found the plot lacking! Overall, because things seemed to flip flop between the first two, I will definitely recommend this series and cannot wait to see what comes next.