Reviews

Tragedy, memory, sacrifice, and horror. What else could a reader ask for? The Keeper follows Aisha, a young girl who has found herself orphaned and in the care of her grandmother. Once a mysterious force seemingly both gracious and malevolent begins to descend upon all that she knows, Aisha must ask herself what it means to preserve a family legacy and whether or not she has the strength to carry it on her own.

Full disclosure, I do not read many graphic novels. I've found that I tend to walk away from them with a surface-level understanding of their stories as my brain slips into the ineffective "few-word-go-fast" mentality. However, the striking cinematic images and expertly crafted sympathetic dialogue united to forge an incredibly stirring narrative that I savored. While I think this story thrives in its short format, I would have loved to see a more episodic version of the story that explored the other characters and the more mundane elements of Aisha's life. What does your morning routine look like when a shapeless eldrich manifestation of your family's dying breaths clings to your every maneuver? Asking for a friend.

haydenkristi's review

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

brokenspine's review

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

Although I was underwhelmed it was still an entertaining read. I enjoyed the artwork; however the story itself was missing something. To me the pacing was off. The climax moved at break neck speed whereas I felt like it came to a grinding halt around the 40 page mark.

In spite of those negatives I would definitely read something else by this husband and wife duo.

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