Jeannette Arroyo

Ren Graham

Riverdale meets Stranger Things in this debut queer YA graphic novel, developed from a hit webcomic. Set in the haunted town of Blackwater, Maine, two boys fall for each other as they dig for clues to a paranormal mystery. Tony Price is a popular high school track star and occasional delinquent aching for his dad’s attention and approval. Eli Hirsch is a quiet boy with a chronic autoimmune disorder that has ravaged his health and social life. What happens when these two become unlikely friends (and a whole lot more . . .) in the spooky town of Blackwater, Maine? Werewolf curses, unsavory interactions with the quarterback of the football team, a ghostly fisherman haunting the harbor, and tons of high school drama. Combining the spookiness of Anya's Ghost with the irreverent humor of Nimona, Blackwater is one part coming of age story, one part coming out story, and one part paranormal adventure.

Blackwater

First of all, I loved that both artists took turns, switching the style witch each chapter. Very cool to see! The design of the werewolves was perfect, I loved it to much. As for the story and characters, loved it. Tony with his dad in the end was perfect, and Eli with his mom was very grounding. Tony's relationship with Biff and how it changed was very natural. I'm not too sure about Marcia's relationship with her friends, but I liked her as a character. I think the conflict & resolution came too quickly, I was surprised at how few pages were left as I was reading, but still satisfying.

Ari Rose

Riverdale meets Stranger Things in this debut queer YA graphic novel, developed from a hit webcomic. Set in the haunted town of Blackwater, Maine, two boys fall for each other as they dig for clues to a paranormal mystery. Tony Price is a popular high school track star and occasional delinquent aching for his dad’s attention and approval. Eli Hirsch is a quiet boy with a chronic autoimmune disorder that has ravaged his health and social life. What happens when these two become unlikely friends (and a whole lot more . . .) in the spooky town of Blackwater, Maine? Werewolf curses, unsavory interactions with the quarterback of the football team, a ghostly fisherman haunting the harbor, and tons of high school drama. Co-illustrated by both creators, who alternate drawing chapters in their own unique and dynamic styles, Blackwater combines the spookiness of Anya's Ghost with the irreverent humor of Nimona.

Latitude Tamarind

Pitched as Riverdale meets Stranger Things, I found this short comic to be neither of these things but it is definitely a readalike for Teen Wolf. Unfortunately this eARC was 'printed' in black and white, which caused it to be very dark and impossible to see anything, similar to Teen Wolf. I thought a lot of the dialogue was very funny but unfortunately I didn't really know what was going on. Three and a half stars, rounded up for NetGalley/Goodreads.

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Diversity: Puerto Rican asthma user MC, Black character, poc characters, chronic autoimmune disorder character who is an ambulatory wheelchair user

Recommended For...: young adult readers, graphic novel, fantasy, werewolves, ghosts, LGBT, queer

Age Relevance: 14+ (bullying, revenge and negligence, dead animal, animal gore, abelism, cursing, violence, homophobia, abelism)

Explanation of Above: There are scenes of bullying, homophobia, and abelism. There is a huge scene of abelism initiated by revenge and the negligence could have led to someone getting severely hurt. While I felt the character who caused it to be remorseful, that should have been shown more explicitly in the book and proclaimed as wrong because younger teens reading this might not realize that the action could potentially kill someone. There are also scenes of dead animals (deer) and animal gore (deer). There is some cursing in the book and some very slight violence as well.

Synopsis: Tony Price is a popular high school track star and occasional delinquent aching for his dad’s attention and approval. Eli Hirsch is a quiet boy with a chronic autoimmune disorder that has ravaged his health and social life. What happens when these two become unlikely friends (and a whole lot more . . .) in the spooky town of Blackwater, Maine? Werewolf curses, unsavory interactions with the quarterback of the football team, a ghostly fisherman haunting the harbor, and 

Review: For the most part I enjoyed this graphic novel. I liked the story overall and I thought it was pretty good. The world building was decent and it highlighted the atmosphere well. The book had a good beginning story and I’d like to see more.

However, I have concerns about the book. To start with: the book is way too short and the plot was just beginning when it ended. The book did good to show abelism and then try to show how the characters were atoning for it, but I think that should have been more pronounced in the book, especially for the particular scene where one character almost caused another to die. I would have also liked to see more character development, especially for a book that claims to be a queer romance but not have a single frame of romance between the two characters.

Verdict: It was ok, but there should have been more.

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

 

Book: Blackwater

 

Author: Jeannette Arroyo and Ren Graham

 

Book Series: Blackwater book 1

 

Rating: 3.5/5

 

Diversity: Puerto Rican asthma user MC, Black character, poc characters, chronic autoimmune disorder character who is an ambulatory wheelchair user

 

Recommended For...: young adult readers, graphic novel, fantasy, werewolves, ghosts, LGBT, queer

 

Publication Date: July 19, 2022

 

Genre: YA Graphic Novel Fantasy

 

Age Relevance: 14+ (bullying, revenge and negligence, dead animal, animal gore, abelism, cursing, violence, homophobia, abelism)

 

Explanation of Above: There are scenes of bullying, homophobia, and abelism. There is a huge scene of abelism initiated by revenge and the negligence could have led to someone getting severely hurt. While I felt the character who caused it to be remorseful, that should have been shown more explicitly in the book and proclaimed as wrong because younger teens reading this might not realize that the action could potentially kill someone. There are also scenes of dead animals (deer) and animal gore (deer). There is some cursing in the book and some very slight violence as well.

 

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.

 

Pages: 304

 

Synopsis: Tony Price is a popular high school track star and occasional delinquent aching for his dad’s attention and approval. Eli Hirsch is a quiet boy with a chronic autoimmune disorder that has ravaged his health and social life. What happens when these two become unlikely friends (and a whole lot more . . .) in the spooky town of Blackwater, Maine? Werewolf curses, unsavory interactions with the quarterback of the football team, a ghostly fisherman haunting the harbor, and tons of high school drama.

 

Review: For the most part I enjoyed this graphic novel. I liked the story overall and I thought it was pretty good. The world building was decent and it highlighted the atmosphere well. The book had a good beginning story and I’d like to see more.

 

However, I have concerns about the book. To start with: the book is way too short and the plot was just beginning when it ended. The book did good to show abelism and then try to show how the characters were atoning for it, but I think that should have been more pronounced in the book, especially for the particular scene where one character almost caused another to die. I would have also liked to see more character development, especially for a book that claims to be a queer romance but not have a single frame of romance between the two characters.

 

Verdict: It was ok, but there should have been more.

Blackwater

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