Content Tags:
Perfect for readers who want:
- Reluctant readers who enjoy graphic novels and less text
- Struggling readers who might be ready for more mature content
- Dark fantasy world filled with magic and monsters
- Overarching mystery about the history of magic
- Mysterious character who lost her memory and has no inclination of who or what she is
- Colorful dark fantasy world filled with diverse characters
Many thanks to Wonderbound and Rockstar Book Tours for an eARC in exchange for an honest, unbiased review. Quotes taken from an unfinished version and may differ from the final product.
I am always up for new dark fantasy graphic novels. It’s one of my two favorite types of graphic novel, if I’m honest, because magic and monsters is always fun and action-packed in visual form. The Verse series caught my attention because of how bright and vivid the art style is, despite having some darker subject matter.
The Verse series by Sam Beck is full of magic, monsters, and mystery. In a lush fantasy world, a girl who looks like a monster must remember who (and what) she is . . . and along the way, she finds a squad of fun, diverse characters.
I really enjoy the way Beck plays with color in this series, shifting between the bright, vivid scenery to darker, more starkly contrasted colors during all the death and destruction (as one might expect). It was so well done. Ultimately, while it took me a while to get into the story, I’ll be interested to pick up the third book of the series to find out how it all ends!
Verse Book 1: The Broken Half
by Sam Beck, Rebecca Taylor, AndWorld DesignAlso by this author: Ghoster Heights, The Brothers Flick: The Impossible Doors
Published by: Wonderbound on September 28, 2021
Genres: Young Adult, Graphic Novel, Fantasy
Pages: 176
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Fife is your typical apprentice blacksmith and he knows one thing for certain. Magic doesn’t exist anymore. Sure, there’s the Verse, but that’s not the same thing at all. Then he meets Neitya, who isn’t your typical girl, and everything he knows changes in a flash of…well…magic.
EVERYONE KNOWS MAGIC DOESN'T EXIST ANYMORE, UNTIL MAGIC CHANGES EVERYTHING.
Fife's plans to become an expert swordsmith are interrupted when he meets Neitya, an extraordinary girl unlike any he's ever met before...primarily because of her horns and amnesia. Worryingly, she seems akin to the monstrous Vel who roam the countryside. but when Fife is attacked by the Vel, Neitya saves him by using a skill thought to be forever lost to everyone: Magic. Fife and Neitya decide to journey together, seeking the guidance they need to unravel the mystery of her origin.
Enter a world where magic once existed and now has left behind only the Verse—a language that is a sad imitation of magic—and the Vel, which are demon-like entities hell-bent on destruction.
In short, it’s a wonderfully fabulous dark fantasy world. If that’s your thing, you’ll likely enjoy this setting. It’s certainly not for the faint of heart, and some of the illustrations can get mildly graphic. You know, as one might expect from a fantasy world such as this where humans are struggling to survive.
While I did ultimately enjoy the world, it took a long time for me to understand the rules of it and to really understand it. I may go as far as saying it doesn’t become as clear, even, until book two. It was very difficult for me to slip into the world during this book, and I ended up confused in quite a few places because I wasn’t quite sure what was happening.
One of the most interesting parts of this world, though, is the creation of Verse. I particularly appreciate the way Beck approaches this, as Verse is a written language that Beck has created, complete with an explanation in the back of the book that equates Verse symbols to the English alphabet. So if you’re curious, you can go back and decode the panels with Verse, which I thought was pretty neat!
Meet Neitya, a mysterious women who looks an awful lot like a Vel but has the intelligence and personality of a human . . . and absolutely no idea where in the world she came from or what (let alone who) even she is.
This is a pretty common trope, but one that I never really get sick of. I mean, there’s so much tension in this dilemma, right? Which is delicious. Especially when said mysterious person happens to look like a demon and is able to perform magic, which rightly shouldn’t exist anymore.
Neitya isn’t on this journey alone. She’s joined by an utterly adorable (and terribly naive) swordsmith-in-training named Fife, who is the first to discover Neitya. Over the book, she finds more friends—a squad, even, one might say—of diverse characters, which I absolutely love to see. There’s nothing that specifically calls out their differences. Rather, these characters come in all different shapes, sizes, skin types, and hair styles, and they simply exist together (. . . or they don’t, because villains are a thing, but for valid reasons that have nothing to do with genetics).
In a desperate world where humans are struggling to survive, it makes sense that people might turn to somewhat desperate measures.
One of the things I especially enjoyed about this book is that the villains aren’t necessarily wrong. Misguided, sure, but at the end of the day, they’re doing their best to save humanity.
The mythology and world-building in this book is just *chef’s kiss*. As I’ve said, I was very confused about it for most of the first book and had trouble getting a feel for the world, but by the end of this book? I was definitely hooked and wanted to know more.
This is where Beck’s writing really shines. As I’ve mentioned, I enjoy what she does with the colors and illustrations, but since graphic novels have fewer words, the writing sometimes becomes all the more important than a prose book. I was utterly hooked to scenes like this, where the writing was just *chef’s kiss* and I had to know more.
Verse Book 2: The Second Gate
by Sam Beck, Rebecca TaylorAlso by this author: Ghoster Heights, The Brothers Flick: The Impossible Doors
Published by: Wonderbound on June 28, 2022
Genres: Young Adult, Graphic Novel, Fantasy
Pages: 256
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
The YA fantasy series continues with a dangerous and dark turn, while magic is on the move and fears are faced alone.
FACE THE MAGIC
THE BATTLE FOR THE FUTURE OF MAGIC HAS TAKEN ITS FIRST PRISONER.Held captive by the leaders of a dangerous new movement, Neitya is forced to face a darker side of her abilities that threaten to tear her away from Fife, her only true friend. The only way back to one another may be to follow their destinies down divergent paths and discover what it means to face their worst fears alone.
In her struggle to remember her history, Neitya makes some rather dark secrets about who (and what) she is.
While I thought the first book started slowly, book 2 in the Verse kicks off pretty fast-paced and ready to dive into the thick of things. Things aren’t exactly going great, as one might imagine for a dark fantasy world. Neitya starts learning a little more about her past, as one might expect . . . but she doesn’t love everything that she’s learning. Because trauma is hard and sometimes forgetting things is a blessing.
There are some moments that I think are meant to be revelations for the character that I didn’t quite understand and had to read a couple times because I felt like I must have missed something (and maybe I did) so I was a bit confused. It was written as if the reader should know or understand some bit of history about the world that I was not privy to or didn’t remember, so that was a bit confusing for me.
Overall, though, I enjoyed following Neitya on her quest to find the truth. Even if truths aren’t always nice. The enduring mystery is one that I’m wholly invested in and look forward to learning more about!
So much character growth happens in this book. The sort that is full of emotions and messy and not always pretty but so very necessary for growth.
It’s why I enjoy second books so much! The characters haven’t quite found themselves yet, and they’re just wandering around lost, trying to determine who the heck they want to be. I’ll admit, this comes with a bit of an awkward time skip that caught me off-guard, but Beck slips the reader back into the story fairly easily.
Neitya, obviously, is coming to grips with discoveries about herself that she’s making along the way. None of which I’ll actually give away because spoilers. Duh. It isn’t just Neitya, though. Her whole little squad are struggling with the Vel, who are gaining in power and in number. Fife himself is struggling with his own personal perceived failure and how best to save those around him when he can’t even save himself. It’s a rough time for everyone, and the tension is absolutely wonderful.
Where I felt the first book was a little lacking in world-building, this second book more than makes up for it. I absolutely love all the mythology and history in this book!
Beck is absolutely on top of their game with the writing in The Second Gate. The danger is ratcheted up from the first book (as one might expect), and the tension just builds in such a wonderful way. The prose adds something irreplicable to the story, especially the way it bridges the present with the history of the world. I absolutely loved the rich history of the world, and I was eager for more of it.
While this second book was longer than the first, it felt like it went by so much faster because I was so invested in the story and couldn’t turn the page fast enough.
About Leah Cupps
Leah Cupps is an author, designer and entrepreneur. She came up with the idea for Harley James with her oldest daughter Savannah. Savannah had taken an interest in Mayan history and so the two of them worked together to come up with the idea for the first Harley James book; the Mystery of the Mayan Kings.
Leah lives in Indiana with her husband and three children. She is also the cofounder of Vision Forty Press, a small family owned publishing company.
2 winners will receive a finished copy of VERSE BOOK 2: THE SECOND GATE, US Only.
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Week One
| 6/13/2022 | The Momma Spot | Guest Post |
| 6/14/2022 | Sadie’s Spotlight | Guest Post/IG Post |
| 6/15/2022 | BookHounds YA | Guest Post/IG Post |
| 6/16/2022 | Ya Books Central | Guest Post |
| 6/17/2022 | Two Chicks on Books | Guest Post |
| 6/18/2022 | @jaimerockstarbooktours | IG Post |
Week Two
| 6/19/2022 | Lady Hawkeye | Excerpt/IG Post |
| 6/20/2022 | Read With Serena | Review/IG Post |
| 6/21/2022 | Living in a Bookworld | Guest Post |
| 6/22/2022 | #BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee Blog | Spotlight |
| 6/23/2022 | Lifestyle of Me | Review/IG Post |
| 6/24/2022 | Rajiv’s Reviews | Review/IG Post |
| 6/25/2022 | @thechattybookworm | TikTok Review/IG Post |
Week Three
| 6/26/2022 | Fire and Ice | Review |
| 6/27/2022 | Eli to the nth | Review/IG Post |
| 6/28/2022 | Nonbinary Knight Reads | Review/IG Post/TikTok Post |
| 6/29/2022 | Library of Alexandria Archives | Review/IG Post |
| 6/30/2022 | TakeALookAtMyBookshelf | Review/IG Post |
| 7/1/2022 | The Bookwyrm’s Den | Review |
| 7/2/2022 | A Backwards Story | Review/IG Post |
Week Four
| 7/3/2022 | Nerdophiles | Review/IG Post |
| 7/4/2022 | modefii | Review/IG Post |
| 7/5/2022 | @allyluvsbooksalatte | Review/IG Post |
| 7/6/2022 | Two Points of Interest | Review |
| 7/7/2022 | onemused | IG Post |
| 7/8/2022 | beersbooksandboos | Review/IG Post/TikTok Post |
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My son wasn’t much of a reader, but he loved graphic novels. I think he would enjoy this one.
Wendy recently posted…Book Review: Dog Friendly by Victoria Schade
Hope he gets to check it out!