Member Reviews
As someone who grew up loving the Craft, this graphic novel was wonderfully nostalgic. I enjoyed the story, it was interesting and help my interest. The art was great too, I liked that the four main characters were pretty diverse. Running Fat Girls in Fiction, I picked this up to because of the body diversity. But I'm so glad I did. I really enjoyed it, I will probably be buying this for my daughter.
(Thank you to NetGalley, Europecomics, Taous Merakchi and Da Coffee Time for letting me have the opportunity to read this as an ARC)
Aaahhh! I can’t even begin to describe how much I loved this! It has witches, it has demons, it has LGBTQIA+ representation, it has awesome friendship and funny characters as well as awesome art. What more could you ask for?! I highly recommend anyone to read this and I’ll definitely try and find this at my local store and then buy the following volumes because I honestly loved this so much! I honestly read this so fast and was so surprised that it had ended so quickly and now I honestly need more!
Again thank you to NetGalley, EuropeComics, Taous Merakchi and Da Coffee Time for this amazing ARC and I can’t wait to read the next volumes!
I would recommend this book to lovers of graphic novels! it reminded me of over my dead body by Sweeney Boo. I'm in my witchy era and this book provided all the goods. Did i mention that it featured a member of the LGBTQ+ Community? This book was easy to read and I read it within a few hours. It features 4 close friends who have found their own way but are brought back together with the need to save a tree in their local community. I won't say too much incase i spoil it for you, but they find out a lot about themselves throughout the story.
What makes this book different from all others?
It is a witchy story that features found family whilst also not diminishing the importance of their own families. These girls rely heavily on one another to survive and it's thrilling to see how they care and support one another and take an interest in each others lives and the well being of the whole group.
Thank you Netgalley for gifting me a copy of this book.
It was very easy to get into and to read. I loved all the characters and would have loved to get to know them equally (I felt like we got to know more of Lily's life).
I loved the style of this graphic novel: the illustrations are gorgeous. I especially loved the ones at the beginning around the tree with every character.
The story was great too, it made me smile from time to time and I had a great time reading it! I would recommend it!
Thank you Netgalley for sending me this e-arc.
This graphic novel was hard to read at some spots. On the phone the words are way to small but I feel the physical book would be much easier to read.
I really enjoyed the art work and color schemes used in Coven. I fully enjoyed the story and was invested, would’ve been 4 stars but the ending was too sudden and tied up too cutesy. The characters were real, funny and kick ass. It reminded me of The Craft in the best way.
This graphic novel felt a bit derivative of movies like The Craft but was different enough to not feel like a complete rehashing. I liked the art style and character design though I wish there had been a bit more character-building for their families.
I'm not sure if it was the ARC copy provided or just the Kindle version in general but the text was a bit difficult to read even when enlarged.
Overall, this is a fun read for folks who are into witchy graphic novels.
I recieved an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Coven is an unobjectionable, if extremely middle of the road read. It feels a lot like somebody's first attempt at a webcomic: the characters aren't super well defined, the story kind of seems to trip over itself a little bit as it goes along, and there's some inconsistency with regard to the art- sometimes characters feel a bit "off model," or close-ups or awkward composition feels like it was put in place because the artist wasn't confident drawing the pose or angle that would have actually worked. Combined with slightly awkward panelling and some overstuffed dialogue bubbles, this definitley feels like it was drawn by an artist new to the medium. Not to say that there isn't potential here, though: the use of colour was thoughtful, and I loved the designs of our main gals: no same-face syndrome here, and a range of body types, fashion preferences, etc. helped them all feel unique.
In terms of the plot itself, this is pretty cookie-cutter YA urban fantasy fare, which is... fine, but definitley not very memorable. I think this could've worked better with three main leads- if not two- to let the characters breathe a little bit more and improve on the pacing. Their relationships also felt somewhat ill-defined: there wasn't time to establish their unique dynamics as pairs or really even get a sense of why these girls were friends (and even the narrative seemed to go back and forth on whether they remained close or used to be, and drifted apart?) I find I can't remember any of their names. It was nice to see a sapphic woc as a lead however, but again, the lack of focus on any of the characters individually means I can't dredge up any fondness for any of them.
Finally, the twist at the end was both a little bit predictable for me personally- it felt overly signposted- and... Arguably slightly undermined what little tension the book had managed to construct. This very much feels like the first volume in a series, as well, which makes for a slightly frustrating conclusion: I think that's what ultimately knocked this down from a three-star to a two-star for me.
This graphic novel is amazing; it's gives the nostalgic feels of The Craft (which is also referenced in the novel) and the chilling adventures of Sabrina. Love all the representation present in this novel and absolutely adored the creepy, yet cozy vibes. Definitely a novel I might look into buying for spooky season.
Coven was a cute little spooky read about a team of teenagers who, while also exploring relationships ranging from platonic to romantic, came together to defeat chaos after unintentionally unleashing it while trying to save something sacred to them.
I liked it a lot! It was pretty fast paced and I would like to know more about what brought them together as witches initially (and before the big chaotic debacle). My only real issues were with convenience (of their parents—kind of a let down at the end of the story) and what Lilly’s relationship deal was. I wish we knew why she was annoyed by people wondering about her relationship.
This one was just okay. The basic plot intrigued me but I feel like there was just not enough background on the characters to make me care about them. I would potentially try this author again but this one really was only okay.
Final Rating: 2.5 stars
The synopsis was really intriguing; the aspect of witchcraft appeals to me, however I didn’t enjoy reading this graphic novel. It started out good with the 4 girls reuniting after some unknown reason (it doesn’t mention why they stopped hanging out with one another). As the story progresses I just felt it was really rushed. They used witchcraft to save the tree, then moved onto growing flowers, then brewed a self-esteem potion and it just felt rather monotonous. There was no real background story and it felt as though things were thrown in to be relatable - Lily had a “thing” with a guy (that came across as a little manipulative), and Eve has a crush on a girl that’s not pursued as all they did was dance together. And of course the LGBT+ character has LGBT parents…. In all honesty I got bored about 40 pages in.
The cover design works beautifully and the artwork is incredible. It fits perfectly to the storyline. Truthfully it’s a good starter graphic novel for witchcraft but unfortunately it wasn’t my preferred read which was disappointing as I initially looked forward to reading it.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing the material.
i didn't love the ending (also do check cw especially for a depiction of suicide) but i really enjoyed the art style and these characters, it was fun and made me laugh. i enjoyed watching these girls do a ritual gone wrong and figuring it out with enough of personal life mixed in throughout the story. it felt too fast paced in some areas and maybe could've used a longer story to give more character development that made sense.
Thank you Netgalley for letting me read Coven.
I enjoyed my time with this graphic novel. Love the illustrations and always like witchy themes.
It was a fast and easy read which is always nice when it comes to graphic novels.
I really love the witchy vibe of this graphic novel. The anticipation of what was going to happen next kept me hooked! I truly enjoyed the art style and the way the characters were represented. I would highly recommend to read this!
Flew through the Coven much faster than even I anticipated. It's a great, easy read definitely aimed at younger teens. It doesn't recreate the wheel but it plays out well worn tropes on the nose in a way that works for the target audience and makes slipping into the world familiar and cozy. It's definitely a read that allows you to simply shut off your brain and enjoy. It's a simple witchy, fabulously queer teen drama.
My only real criticism is while we got good time to figure out who all the girls were as people, it was a little rough getting to know and follow who was who in terms of names. That and some of the socially aware commentary seemed a bit shoehorned in rather than flowing naturally with the conversation (usually when the teens were having a sassy gotcha moment. Some times it worked, sometimes it got an eyeroll out of me).
Now, I'm no artist, but I really enjoyed all the little details in what is otherwise a simplistic art style, and the colouring and use of lighting really made the lineart pop. It also added to some genuinely (but nothing inappropriate for a young teen audience) creepy moments which gave me the right amount of spice to get me hooked into the plot in between all the teen drama.
The ending definitely gave the creative team behind this book all the leeway in the world to make it into a series and I hope they do more! I can see the Coven being something that gets better with a few more instalments.
*Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review*
Gosh, this story was such a treat. I mean, witches are always fun!
The main story/plot was super fun and interesting but, something I loved so so much, was how we got a look into each girl’s life and personality. (I especially enjoyed learning about Lily).
The art is so beautiful, I found all the art of the scenery and room’s really detailed and I often found myself spending extra time looking at all the details.
The story ended in such a way that there could be more books in this world, and I REALLY hope there will!
I think it’s easy to say that I absolutely adored this graphic novel!
This is a wonderful graphic novel. I really enjoyed how the characters came together and were brought to life on the page. The artwork is gorgeous. I’m a sucker for dark saturated colors but I felt they really captured the mood of “Coven” so perfectly. Would definitely recommend this to a friend.
Witches and all things occult, and in a graphic novel? Bring it on! Everyone loves those, right? Also, seems like this is something that is a hot topic recently. There are many witchy books recently. I remember when I was kid, I would have loved those also. Back then somehow there were really few of those, but kids love exploring mysteries and thinking about all sorts of unexplainable and mysterious things, and I feel like diving into a made-up world of witchy possibilities is such a great way to explore the possibilities of alternative and made up fantasy worlds.
This book does just it, there is a group of witchy teens (and a witch mother!), who live their lives and deal with all kinds of teen issues, all while having the witchy theme in the background. I see this book as such a nice way to explore friendship, relationships, and growing up, but with an added bonus of a witchy background story.
Also, loved the inclusive diversity of this book’s characters. Anything with queer characters – and I’m sold!
I asked my tween daughter who would she recommend the book to, and she said the book would be perfect for everyone who loves books with magic, demons, a little bit of horror, and a hefty dose of witches. If there ever is a sequel, we both will gladly read it!
A diverse group of teenage friends decide to start dabbling in the occult, then get more than they bargained for. This is not a bad novel by any means, but this exact concept seems to be getting done a lot these days, and this specific entry to the genre just doesn't have anything about it that makes it stand out from the crowd to me. It's not a bad novel by any means, but the entire way through I couldn't help but feel that all of it had been done before, and often better, by other books.