ellejaoy's review
4.0
I really enjoyed the characterisations in this short & speedy graphic novel. The artwork was lovely and while I thought the plot jumped around a little, it was easy enough to follow and enjoyable. I felt like I could read a lot more of Dancy and was attached to even Maisie by the end of the novel.
trike's review
3.0
An albino girl tasked with dealing out holy justice encounters a town full of ancient evil. The origin story is hinted at as we’re dropped in media res. I found Dancy Flammarion’s abilities to be wildly inconsistent, which is a complaint I’ve had about Kiernan’s characters before. Sometimes Dancy’s a Buffy-level badass, sometimes she’s a normal girl.
This is in the same general story space as [b:Preacher, Volume 1: Gone to Texas|95431|Preacher, Volume 1 Gone to Texas|Garth Ennis|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1309914494s/95431.jpg|1433215] and [b:American Gods|30165203|American Gods|Neil Gaiman|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1462924585s/30165203.jpg|1970226] although not as dense or intense. At one point I was reminded VERY strongly of Johnny Cash’s song “The Man Comes Around” (https://youtu.be/k9IfHDi-2EA) and there was a note at the end of that chapter that it was written with Cash playing in the background. It’s almost a transcription of the song.
This is neither bad nor great. It is what it is.
This is in the same general story space as [b:Preacher, Volume 1: Gone to Texas|95431|Preacher, Volume 1 Gone to Texas|Garth Ennis|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1309914494s/95431.jpg|1433215] and [b:American Gods|30165203|American Gods|Neil Gaiman|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1462924585s/30165203.jpg|1970226] although not as dense or intense. At one point I was reminded VERY strongly of Johnny Cash’s song “The Man Comes Around” (https://youtu.be/k9IfHDi-2EA) and there was a note at the end of that chapter that it was written with Cash playing in the background. It’s almost a transcription of the song.
This is neither bad nor great. It is what it is.
jrug's review
4.0
My first encounter with Dancy Flammarion was in Caitlin Kiernan's short story collection Alabaster. I mostly enjoyed those stories, but they were a bit too...determinedly odd for my taste to really land with me. This comic solves a lot of the problems I had connecting with the prose narratives.
Kiernan's words and the visual art mesh very smoothly. Dancy and her world are well-realized, and I got a sense of emotional involvement in the action that I didn't always have when reading the short stories. I'm happy to see that we'll be getting more of Alabaster in comic form.
Kiernan's words and the visual art mesh very smoothly. Dancy and her world are well-realized, and I got a sense of emotional involvement in the action that I didn't always have when reading the short stories. I'm happy to see that we'll be getting more of Alabaster in comic form.
lobodepapel's review
4.0
Lobos, brujas, maldiciones, pueblos freakys, más lobos, fantasmas y una overpowered Buffy en versión albina que sigue las órdenes de un serafín desquiciado.
¿Qué puede salir mal? :3
¿Qué puede salir mal? :3
barb4ry1's review
3.0
There's more to Dancy Flammarion than meets the eye. She used to be the seraph, the hand of God. And now? Now she's an albino lunatic slaying monsters and accompanied by a disagreeable and foul-mouthed blackbird.
It's gory and violent and the art looks terrific. The writing didn't awe me but I'll pick up the next vol.
It's gory and violent and the art looks terrific. The writing didn't awe me but I'll pick up the next vol.
knewms's review
4.0
Story and art worked perfectly together. Added bonus- at the end if each issue, the album that was played during writing and illustrating was named. I played the album while reading along. Brought it to an entirely different level.
mackle13's review
2.0
2.5
First thing that's good to know is that this comic follows from earlier novels in the series - Threshold, where Dancy is introduced, and then Alabaster and Alabaster: Pale Horse, a short story collection. I had read the novels previously, so I'm familiar with the character and the setting - but, if you're not, this book sort of just dumps you into the story without giving much in the way of background.
This entry into the world is ok. The story suffers a bit, I think, from the lack of Kiernan's haunting prose, which really adds something to her stories. It's still there in snippets, but it's not the same at all. I thought this story might work better in comic form, but I found myself missing the lyricalness of the language I've come to expect from these stories.
Also, I wasn't a huge fan of the art, which is nowhere near as cool/detailed as the cover pictures.
Mostly, though, I just found this a so-so story, mostly because Dancy kept getting her ass kicked and having to be saved. She's always something of an underdog character, but, in this, she seemed almost secondary to
I did like the smart alecky bird, though...
That said, I did like the ending - the way that - so, I'm still onboard for continuing the series as I'm curious as to where it'll head next.
First thing that's good to know is that this comic follows from earlier novels in the series - Threshold, where Dancy is introduced, and then Alabaster and Alabaster: Pale Horse, a short story collection. I had read the novels previously, so I'm familiar with the character and the setting - but, if you're not, this book sort of just dumps you into the story without giving much in the way of background.
This entry into the world is ok. The story suffers a bit, I think, from the lack of Kiernan's haunting prose, which really adds something to her stories. It's still there in snippets, but it's not the same at all. I thought this story might work better in comic form, but I found myself missing the lyricalness of the language I've come to expect from these stories.
Also, I wasn't a huge fan of the art, which is nowhere near as cool/detailed as the cover pictures.
Mostly, though, I just found this a so-so story, mostly because Dancy kept getting her ass kicked and having to be saved. She's always something of an underdog character, but, in this, she seemed almost secondary to
Spoiler
the ghost of a werewolf girl (that she did kill, in fairness).I did like the smart alecky bird, though...
That said, I did like the ending - the way that
Spoiler
Dancy defied her angel and is now more her own person, and now she's absorbed all that dark powersaltylane's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I wanted to really like this, but it’s super confusing to someone who’s unfamiliar with the original stories this is apparently based on. I’m supposing it’s meant to have more in the series after, too, but I dunno if I’ll bother with them or not…
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Violence
Minor: Rape
denizyildiz's review
4.0
Dark and haunting, yet still incredibly delicate and beautiful
This is a collection of the miniseries. I have never before read any of them so it was a first encounter with Dancy for me. At first I thought the story line was rather the usual straight forward dystopian. But then layers were added, pasts were revealed, questions were raised… and it became more and more intriguing.
The question I was left with who was the really monster? The one that was never given a choice and made into one- or the one that brings death in its wake no matter how good the intentions?
The ending was not an ending at all- I am hoping that Kiernan will do another sequel.
The last few pages with the goblin kinda confused me actually. Might be because its an ebook- still I wasn't sure what suddenly happened or where it fits it with the rest of the story.
The thing that definitely does make this a fantastic graphic novel is the art work.
The art work is beautiful!The ink and pencil work really good. The colors are incredibly well chose for the mood of the story.
In fact there are many amazing details in the art work that underline the story line.
The novel is beautifully dark and haunting. At first glance a dystopian paranormal that is beautifully illustrated but with hidden depth that slowly unfold and leave one thinking. While it has powerful fight scenes and horror in it, it also has a gentle and surprisingly subtle side to it.
Definitely a must for lovers of this genre!
art work 4.5stars
storyline 3.5stars
ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in return for a honest review. Thank you!
This is a collection of the miniseries. I have never before read any of them so it was a first encounter with Dancy for me. At first I thought the story line was rather the usual straight forward dystopian. But then layers were added, pasts were revealed, questions were raised… and it became more and more intriguing.
The question I was left with who was the really monster? The one that was never given a choice and made into one- or the one that brings death in its wake no matter how good the intentions?
The ending was not an ending at all- I am hoping that Kiernan will do another sequel.
The last few pages with the goblin kinda confused me actually. Might be because its an ebook- still I wasn't sure what suddenly happened or where it fits it with the rest of the story.
The thing that definitely does make this a fantastic graphic novel is the art work.
The art work is beautiful!The ink and pencil work really good. The colors are incredibly well chose for the mood of the story.
In fact there are many amazing details in the art work that underline the story line.
The novel is beautifully dark and haunting. At first glance a dystopian paranormal that is beautifully illustrated but with hidden depth that slowly unfold and leave one thinking. While it has powerful fight scenes and horror in it, it also has a gentle and surprisingly subtle side to it.
Definitely a must for lovers of this genre!
art work 4.5stars
storyline 3.5stars
ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in return for a honest review. Thank you!
pearseanderson's review
2.0
Okay, I read the first issue of this in Year's Best Weird Fiction Volume 2 and it was amazing. This graphic is not amazing. It has a lot of things going for it, but it never uses the rich setting to its advantage (the final story, Alabaster:Shelter did some of that). Kudzu, Nehi, covered bridges, Greyhounds, defiled churches, circus signs, c'mon guys. This should be easy. Instead, Kiernan decides to focus on the overused supernatural aspects of the Southern Gothic: abandoned plantations, grimoires, evil werewolves, ghosts with dastardly plans that trick out the protagonist and finally offer their hand in the vague, bad-guy scheme. C'mon. You could've worked with your material in a much better way than having Dancy going around, stabbing beasts, being saved and herded towards the next location, and repeating until a terribly unfantastic ending. I want back what I read in that Weird Fiction anthology: the riddle game, the bus stop, the talking bird, the seraph, the whispers about highway killings and forest monsters. There's a great broken Americana/Southern horror Gothic/low fantasy that isn't being told properly, and it saddens me.