jhstack's review against another edition
2.0
The plots and characters take a while to reach an unsatisfactory ending. There's no answer to the creature or its potential connection to Emile, the love triangle fizzles, and the town council is stuck in their ways. (e-galley from NetGalley)
anastasia18's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
becks_books's review against another edition
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a free review copy in exchange for an honest review.
I unfortunately didn't finish this because it really isn't my kind of thing. I found it confusing and I couldn't tell the difference between most of the male characters because it's set at a time where I think all men pretty much looked and dressed the same. The time setting seems kind of interesting and I liked the art, but I wasn't getting anything out of the reading experience so I think I'll just try Blacksad by the author which gets much better reviews instead.
I unfortunately didn't finish this because it really isn't my kind of thing. I found it confusing and I couldn't tell the difference between most of the male characters because it's set at a time where I think all men pretty much looked and dressed the same. The time setting seems kind of interesting and I liked the art, but I wasn't getting anything out of the reading experience so I think I'll just try Blacksad by the author which gets much better reviews instead.
zionacook's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
wwtpeng's review against another edition
2.0
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for granting me an ARC of this book. This book deals with a small town following the civil war, conflicts between the Town's residents, and a Beowulf style monster. The art is quite good with crisp lines and colors.
I am going to come out and say my major issue with the book: it certainly wasn't the artwork and it wasn't the plot of the story. It was the PDF file that could only be viewed in Aldiko Book Reader. Every time I needed to zoom in to view text the page had to refresh and every time I had to zoom out the page had to refresh. The app also does not allow for viewing with the screen rotated. Many pages were also just blanks in the viewer. I'd say 20 percent of the content was missing.
I am going to come out and say my major issue with the book: it certainly wasn't the artwork and it wasn't the plot of the story. It was the PDF file that could only be viewed in Aldiko Book Reader. Every time I needed to zoom in to view text the page had to refresh and every time I had to zoom out the page had to refresh. The app also does not allow for viewing with the screen rotated. Many pages were also just blanks in the viewer. I'd say 20 percent of the content was missing.
thebookishaustin's review against another edition
3.0
I read an ARC of this, from the publisher.
As far as graphic novels go, this one was ok. I think there's a lot of set up in these first two parts but also not a lot happens. The characters definitely need to be developed more in depth. I'd be curious to see where these story arcs are going though...
In terms of artistry, I thought the book was beautiful; the different color palettes for different settings were fantastic and added different vibes throughout.
As far as graphic novels go, this one was ok. I think there's a lot of set up in these first two parts but also not a lot happens. The characters definitely need to be developed more in depth. I'd be curious to see where these story arcs are going though...
In terms of artistry, I thought the book was beautiful; the different color palettes for different settings were fantastic and added different vibes throughout.
etienne02's review against another edition
3.0
3,5/5. The illustrations in that book are awesome. Like the story there are quite dark, but there is beauty in darkness, and this book is full of it. Unfortunately the story development is a bit slow for my comic book liking, but it's still a book worth looking at!
hypops's review
2.0
Where Canales’ earlier book, Blacksad, suffered under the weight of its source material (mid-century films noirs), Fraternity suffers under the weight of having too many ideas. The premise alone already sounds way too busy: a 19th-century utopian community is beset from within by racism, classism, ableism, religious difference, food shortages, illness, greed, and love triangles, and it is beset from without by the ongoing US Civil War, deserting soldiers, the return of an old friend, and, oh right, a forest monster.
Clearly, the book lacks focus. Even a 1,000 page comic would struggle to find its footing amidst so many competing and overlapping ideas. But at a mere 120 pages, there’s simply no way for it to develop any of these ideas to any degree of satisfaction, let alone complexity.
Yes, as with Blacksad, the art in Fraternity is gorgeous. But also like Blacksad, Fraternity’s art far surpasses its writing. Canales does very well in securing ultra-talented collaborators, so he’d likely do much better working as a comics editor instead of as a writer.
Fraternity is another beautiful disappointment.
Clearly, the book lacks focus. Even a 1,000 page comic would struggle to find its footing amidst so many competing and overlapping ideas. But at a mere 120 pages, there’s simply no way for it to develop any of these ideas to any degree of satisfaction, let alone complexity.
Yes, as with Blacksad, the art in Fraternity is gorgeous. But also like Blacksad, Fraternity’s art far surpasses its writing. Canales does very well in securing ultra-talented collaborators, so he’d likely do much better working as a comics editor instead of as a writer.
Fraternity is another beautiful disappointment.
wcs53's review
3.0
This was a decent enough graphic novel that I borrowed from the library. Set in a failed utopian settlement during the American civil war, it tells the story of a number of different characters, but doesn’t really bring them together in the way I had hoped. It’s a dark tale, well-drawn, but I wanted more.