Jonathan Hill

Three siblings search for their missing mother across a ruined America in this original graphic novel perfect for fans of Scott Westerfeld and Neal Shusterman. Eight years ago an earthquake—the Big One—hit along the Cascadia fault line, toppling cities and changing landscapes all up and down the west coast of the United States. Life as we know it changed forever. But for Vietnamese-American Virginia Crane, life changed shortly after the earthquake, when her mother left and never came back. Ginny has gotten used to a life without her mother, helping her father take care of her two younger brothers, Wes and Harry. But when a mysterious package arrives for her eighteenth birthday, her life is shaken up yet again. For the first time, Ginny wants something more than to survive. And it might be a selfish desire, but she's determined to find out what happened to her mother—even if it means leaving her family behind.

Odessa

Wes Michaud

Anna Leigh

Thank you Netgalley and Oni Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not really sure what exactly I think of this. It was just... Okay. I don't regret reading it, I think the idea of this world was really cool and well thought out.

The one big downside for me was the characters, not that they were bad, just that the 2 little kids were such brats in my opinion ahaha. I really found it iffy that they all just left their dad back at home, like all the time I kept thinking "their poor dad".I also thought the situations were resolved abit to easily and coincidentally.

On a positive note, I thought the art style was really cool and unique. I really loved the vibe of the dusky pink, and I'd love to see more of Jonathan Hill's work!

Juliana Callahan

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

This book is definitely a light and easy read. Despite the end-of-the-world atmosphere, the tone remains relatively upbeat and sometimes comical as the group of siblings travel across the country. I thought that the art was very well done and I liked the choice to only use three colors as I felt it added to the feel that their world is relatively stagnant. 
The characters were reasonably fleshed out although I didn't feel as though they developed as much as they could have individually. We see the relationship between Wes and Ginny improve towards the end of the novel which feels somewhat rewarding, but the lack of characterization makes it hard for you to bond with these characters. I was under the impression that this was a standalone but I do feel like it could be read as one despite an impending sequel.

zilver 

I have a huge weakness for post-apocalyptic stories and graphic novels so this one sounded right up my alley. "Odessa" tells the story of 18-year-old Ginny, who's living in a world post-enormous earthquake that ruined the World As She Knew It (or, at least, part of it, as we later find out). She's living with her two younger brothers and her dad, scavenging sites in order to get enough stuff to trade for food. Her mother has left them - or that's the thought until Ginny receives a letter from her mum and decides to set out and try to find her. 

I'm at odds about whether I liked the style of this one. I don't think the art itself was entirely my thing - though I did really appreciate the land- and cityscapes. The way people think the world will change and overgrow when humans (have to) stop being involved fascinates me. I did like the use of colour - simple yet really effective. 

The sibling dynamics between Ginny, Wes & Harry were great. Very accurate and funny and endearing to see. To see Ginny shift back into more of a sister-role as they go on the road, after having felt like she needed to be their mum at home. 

I will say I think the story and the storytelling left me a bit unsatisfied. I didn't feel like I had a great grasp of the characters, and at times they came off a bit flat because I felt like there wasn't a lot of space to really get to know them besides their sort of core-characteristics, which we get to know pretty early on. I'd have liked to see more about their past, or get to know and understand the world they live in currently a bit better. A lot of that was left a bit too vague and distant for my liking, making it difficult to really connect. 

I'm curious what the next part will bring, though, and I'm sure I'll get answers to some of my questions when that comes around! 

I received a free ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

Ethel

A heart-warming journey in an apocalyptic world

Key words: survivors, search, family, friendship, apocalyptic, science-fiction

First, I would like to thank the publisher for granting my request on @Netgalley. For the first few pages of the book, I was a little bit confused about the story as I didn’t understand the transitions and who was who at first. Then, it got better and I got into the story. It was quite a nice read but not an extraordinary one either. I’m a bit sad with didn’t get into the Maya/Ginny relationship at all but I hope to see more of it in the next book. Apart from that the plot was full of actions and emotions, especially when this apocalyptic seems so dangerous and full of bad guys. I didn’t get emotionally attached to the characters but I did find them brave and courageous. Concerning the art, I liked the colours (black, white and pink) which I think is better than black and white. I enjoyed the drawings but didn’t love them as this is not really my style. It doesn’t look cute or anything. It is quite a long graphic novel (300 pages) and I believe it could have been shorter, especially since it is not a standalone as I initially thought. 
Overall, the story is not extraordinary and a bit complex but the subject of children going through everything to find their mum is heart-warming.

3/5

Erin 

3.5 stars. This is definitely an introduction to a wider story. While it's a great setup, you do feel unsatisfied because it feels unfinished as a reader. But I did enjoy it for the most part despite this. I think the dystopian-like world we are introduced to is really interesting. Basically, there was a catastrophic earthquake that split the western US away from the rest of the country, and nothing was ever the same as it was before. Gangs rule California, the worth of currency is based upon whether you're in the north or the south, and San Francisco is nearly completely underwater. I'm really interested in Ginny's journey, and why her mother left their family in the first place. We don't get the answer to that in this book, nor do we even meet her mother. We do however still meet another member of her family, who first appears in disguise, and who begrudgingly helps Ginny and her brothers along in their journey, which I really love. Give me all the grumpy yet compassionate characters. I am definitely interested to see where they go next and who/what they encounter, especially because I do feel unsatisfied. I'm also interested in the relationship between Ginny and Maya, because dear lord, it was mentioned once in passing and then never again?? The art is nice, albeit not really my style and I wish it wasn't completely monotone, but you can't have everything. I will almost definitely be reading the next book to see where Ginny ventures next. 

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Leonie

“Odessa“ was an interesting read, but fairly long compared to other graphic novels. At some point the story started dragging.
I didn’t love the art style either.
In addition, I was under the misconception that this was a standalone, so not getting a proper ending for the story was an unfortunate surprise.
Overall I didn’t love “Odessa“ and probably won’t read the sequel.


[I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.]

Odessa

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