Although the artwork was gorgeous this was a face palm of a book to me. Due to the ever infuriating actions of the characters in this book.

This story is set in a time when woman should be seen and not heard. The FMC’s lust for the man with the worst intentions is like nails on a chalkboard. Also PSA the dog dies in the end.

Disclaimer: references to abuse, violence, suicide.

Indiana is a novel that follows the tale of Indiana, a melancholic noblewoman wedded to a tyrannical spouse, residing with her cousin Ralph and her foster sister, Noun. The entrance of Raymon, a fellow nobleman, disrupts her somber yet steady existence. Raymon's arrival alters the relationships among the characters, bringing to light concealed desires and pushing the limits of societal norms. The story delves into themes such as love, freedom, and the quest for happiness, all unfolding within the context of 19th-century France.

What appealed to me in this book was the expert graphic novel adaptation of the original material. It avoids unnecessary verbosity, captivates with engaging illustrations, and skillfully conveys emotive qualities. A noteworthy addition is the inclusion of perspectives from the author herself at the outset and conclusion, which are both from pivotal moments in Sand's life, as I think it helped provide valuable context to the novel. Personally, I value historical accuracy, and the period-appropriate costuming is commendable without attempting to 'modernize' the narrative for today's audience. Overall, I feel that the narrative effectively captures Indiana's sense of entrapment, emphasizing her youth and inexperience, coupled with the great illustration work and adept translations into the graphic novel format, I personally enjoyed this work from Claire Bouilhac & Catel.

*Thank you to the publisher for providing an advance copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

I sincerely wish I had been exposed to “Indiana” at the same age I began reading other classics. The knowledge that it was read more than “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” and their times of publication is easy to believe, and given the story is written by a woman, makes sense that it has lost its power. But the story itself is enduring, captivating, and honest. I was drawn in immediately by the characters and their dynamics.

In terms of the graphic novelization, I was in love. The coloring, expressions, and settings were all beautiful. I enjoyed how the prologue and epilogue were done by different artists, and show the contrast between Sand’s life and “Indiana”. I found myself drawn to the colors and patterns used throughout and could differentiate the meanings of why they were each used.

Overall, I quite enjoyed this graphic novel. I did notice quite a few spelling errors (considering this is an ARC, it makes sense, but it did detract from my reading). I felt I did not understand Ramiere’s intentions with Indiana at first, and felt this could be better portrayed with letters or deeper facial expressions focusing only on Ramiere. Even though I have not read the source material, I absolutely feel this was a full story and took into account all of the story details.

I don't think this book was for me. And I think that if this wasn't presented as a graphic novel I would have never found a interest in this classic. The story is not appealing to me from the beginning but that is because I am not usually a romance reader. I also didn't like the characters and their personality, but Indianna was the worst.
The story is understandable but I don't think I have the knowlegde to unserstand everything it is suppose the said but that can also be because I found myself skipping pages because the story wasn't interesting me.
The main thing I like about this book are the graphic. They were consistent throughout the story, the emotions of the characters were well depicted and understandable and each characters had distinct features.

Thanks to NetGalley and Europe Comics for the copy of this book.

This is a book within a book, and a good one at that.
I've never heard of George Sand (my bad) or her book Indiana. The author chose to use a male pen name for fear of not being taken seriously in literary circles if she'd published under her own. Having read this graphic novel, I must agree - the story may hit different from a male or a female author.
This graphic novel adaptation is exciting with its varying artwork and expressive colour scheme, and it makes me want to read the original book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Europe Comics for an Advance Review Copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

I'm not going to lie, but I think I may be a bit too dumb to understand the nuances of this story. I had never heard of the author George Sand or the book Indiana. I saw from the plot blurb it was considered a ground-breaking feminist novel during the time it was released. I will have to take their word on that. The plot feels a bit scattered, and it's hard to understand any character's motivations. They all feel rather flat and none of them are very good people. Be they either outright malicious or just victims of their own naivete, I found myself slowly coming to dislike all of them. The art style was honestly the only think about this graphic novel that I liked. Though, in the end, I think being re-done as a graphic novel hurts the story. From the excerpts I've now read of the original novel, it appears the graphic novel version makes the story even harder to comprehend.

Spoiler talk on my GR as always!

I can honestly say I would have never gravitated towards this classic novel if it wasn’t for it being turned into a comic. I think this is a great and accessible way for classics to be read.
In terms of the plot itself… it was a bit lackluster & scattered. I felt no real attachment to any character — I would say due to their selfishness. It just felt like watch something descend very slowly.
The illustration was great and I enjoyed the brief insight into George Sand.
Thank you to Europe Comics and NetGalley for this Arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was quite the surprising read for me. Although I had heard of George Sand before I was not super familiar with her work and her biography so it was quite cool to read this old classic in a completely new format.

The book tells the story of Indiana, a sad noble lady married to a tyrant of a husband. She lives with ber cousin Ralph, a widower who has been devoted to her since childhood and Noun, her foster sister.

She then meets Raymon, another nobleman and his arrival complicates her sad but stable life. Raymon's presence challenges the dynamics among the characters, revealing hidden desires and testing the boundaries of societal norms. The narrative explores themes of love, freedom, and the pursuit of happiness against the backdrop of 19th-century France.

Indiana, as a character, infuriated me a bit. I truly could not believe some of the choices she makes in this book. But I also believe that part of it was due to the style of writing that was popular at that time.

The art was quite good, specially when it came to the characters. I could understand why people fell in love with Indiana by simply looking at her and her character design managed to portray both her beauty and her fragility. But I wish the backgrounds and environments were a bit more detailed.

All in all it was an enjoyable evening read but it didn't move me all that much emotionally, which is why I'm not giving it a higher rating.

Thank you to the publisher for providing an advance copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I knew nothing of the pen name George Sands going into this. This graphic novel follows a woman of the 1830s making her mark as an author in history. I have a great appreciation for the art illustrations and time accurate fashions of this graphic novel. My only quam was that the font of the text made it a bit difficult to read. I'm sure it's easier to read as a physical copy but ir just want as enjoyable on screen.

This is an excellent introduction to George Sand's novel of marriages of convenience and unrequited emotion. At first glance, it may seem overwrought and Indiana herself rather shallow and simple. But it is a novel of its time (1830s France) and, more importantly, was from a female author about women and their society cages.

Story: At 19, Indiana lives well with her older and more tyrannical husband. She is bored and feels no affection for her husband, creating a listless existence of every day being as unremarkable as the next. Then she is introduced to the young and handsome next door neighbor. Unsure of her new feelings and wanting more life than she has, Indiana and Raymon begin an affair. But are her goals with the relationship the same as his?

First and foremost, this is a very well done graphic novelization of the original material. It isn't overly wordy, the illustrations are engaging, and there is some really good emotive quality going on. We can see Indiana's frustration, her husband's highhandedness, Raymon's flightiness, and Ralph's steadfast (and apparently boring-appearing) nature. The plot takes place in Paris as well as an island off the Southeast of Africa where Indiana was brought up.

One excellent addition is that we get perspectives from the author herself at the beginning and the end - each from a very important time in Sand's life. Those two sections are excellent and really put the novel into perspective.

For me, I always appreciate historical accuracy and the costuming is done right here for the period. But this also stays true to the story and doesn't try to 'modernize' it for today's audience. We can feel how trapped Indiana is but also just how young and inexperienced as well. I don't know that I was convinced as much with her handmade Noun's story and how it relates to Indiana. As well, there are vagueries in character that somehow just didn't translate well into the page. But for the most part, this really is well done.

In all, I enjoyed this novelization of the George Sand novel. Excellent illustration work with very good translations into the graphic novel format make this a worthwhile read. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

I read Indiana twice for two different classes during my master's in French. This romantic classic by George Sand is on a par with British romantic staples like Wuthering Heights or Jane Eyre. Indiana is the titular character. She is a young, sensitive woman married to an older brute of a man. The book follows her life as she is seduced by a scoundrel and generally beaten down by her circumstances. I picked up this graphic novel adaptation for a couple of reasons: the art is really gorgeous, and I was wondering how the author and illustrator would make it work. Indiana translates really well to the ill- ustrated format! If you've been wondering about classic French literature - or even if you haven't but this review has sparked an interest - I think this is a great place for you to start. This version also includes a bit of history about George Sand, groundbreaking author, which I found a great addition!

Content note: references to suicide, domestic violence, sexual assault, and animal abuse.

This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the novel.

Claire Bouilhac and Catel Muller’s graphic novel is a version of the famous/infamous writer George Sand’s (Amantine Dupin) first, individual novel Indiana. This interpretation is framed by scenes from Sand’s own life. It opens in Paris in 1832, Sands is outlining the inspiration for her new book and its relationship to her own life as someone who escaped a domineering husband. Her story centres on nineteen-year-old Indiana who’s married to a much older, controlling and abusive man. Her only reliable companion is former, “foster sister” Noun, they grew up together in a remote, French colony. Their fates are intertwined when they both become involved with a new landowner who's moved to a nearby house. I’ve never read Sand’s original book but, if this adaptation is fairly faithful, it’s positively dripping with melodrama from dastardly, villainous husbands to unscrupulous seducers.

Sand’s narrative was apparently considered quite scandalous when it first appeared mainly because of her fierce, underlying critique of the position of married women in France – essentially the property of their husbands. However, the feminist message is undercut by the character of Indiana who has an infuriating tendency to faint or fall ill whenever she encounters a challenge or dilemma. Sand's story moves between France and a French colony in the Indian Ocean, and the shadow of colonialism also made this difficult for me to relate to. Although there’s a gesture towards recognising colonialist oppression and the practices of slavery that sustained it, these tend to be included here more as an incidental backdrop to Indiana’s personal journey. In addition, the representation of Noun – who’s presumably supposed to be read as Black here – made me slightly uncomfortable, too often seeming to reproduce various, problematic stereotypes. The graphic novel itself is fluid and the artwork reasonable although it sometimes tips towards caricature. It’s also grounded in extensive research: Bouilhac used photographs to reproduce Sand’s settings which include a house in Rohant based on one from Sand’s childhood. And Bouilhac’s Indiana is drawn to resemble the actress Isabelle Adjani. Overall, it works well as an accessible introduction to Sand’s work. Translated by L. Henson.

This was a beautifully illustrated adaption of George Sands' famous Indiana into graphic novel form. It's amazing how easily the loathsome characters translate! The intro and epilogue using Sands herself was interest and even the style of illustrations was different and set those parts off.

Genre: 19th century french literature, adapted to graphic novel
Paris and Ile Bourbon, late 1820s

Written in 1832, Indiana is a sweeping tale of human emotion and drama set in the period it was written. Indiana Delmare is an ill young woman married to a strict gentleman to whom she has little real affection. One evening a young gentleman is assumed to be a burglar and shot on their estate, and Indiana and her maid Noun nurse him back to health. His name is Raymon de Ramière, and he conducts a passionate affair with Noun, and also proclaims his love for Indiana. A tale of betrayal and heartbreak, where the villain is the nature of humanity and how we treat one another.

I don’t tend to pick up graphic novels, as I tend to get distracted from the narrative arc of the story. I’m not generally a visual person (I don’t visualize when I read), so a graphic novel is typical an exercise in patience for me while reading. I should not have worried though, because the illustrations in this graphic novel do such a good job capturing the tone of emotion and the style of the era, as well as the utter drama of the book.

I knew very little to nothing about George Sand when I picked this up, other than it was a pen name for a 19th century woman writer. The graphic novel frames the tale of Indiana with two different eras of Sand’s life, from her time writing with (and dallying with) novelist Jules Sandeau in the early 1830s with her long affair with engraver Alexandre Manceau in the 1850s. Well-renowned and respected as a literary giant, she eschewed gender norms and attracted all manner of famous men to her bed. The framestory for the graphic novel helped me, as a reader unfamiliar with Sand, place her work.

In short, I would absolutely pick up more classic novels in graphic novel form. Personally, though, I still often need to read summaries as I go (I do this with almost any classic I read, as the narrative styles are denser and I often miss plot points). I recommend this as an accessible way to read Indiana!

Not my favorite graphic novel. Too much dialogue for my liking. If you are a big fan of the crown and shows like that, you will love it.

Beautifully illustrated graphic novel of Indiana a novel by George Sand. This is a creative way to introduce another generation to a work by Sand. The novel is full of intrigue, love, lust, honor and marriage in a different time and country. I was only familiar with the story from a movie version. I like how before and after the story there is a bit about the author including the fact that when the book was published it outsold Victor Hugo.

This was such a wonderful graphic novel adaptation! The illustrations were beautiful and captured the time period so well. The story was easy to follow in this format, and the book beginning and ending with George Sand's personal life publishing the novel and reflecting on it was a great way to bookend the entire thing. Would recommend to anyone who loves the classics or classical romance novels!

I had never read George Sand’s work before and this introduction through graphic novel was interesting!
The art style was absolutely gorgeous and a treat to look at! The story itself is full of passion and secrets/treasons…A true classic.
I admit I was very surprised by the end since the book seems to be over with several white pages until we go back to George Sand talking about her book, (now as an older woman) revealing the end of her novel.

I recommend for those who want to discover this classic in another form!

Big meh energy.

What more is there to say? I don’t have any other comments to put here. Please let me post this review.

A beautiful narrative about women finding not only themselves but also the freedom to do so. I found the authors strength to not only propel the narrative of Virgina's story but also to let her live on her own. I love adult graphic novels and the illustrations were gorgeous in this. Graphic novels also provide a different avenue of learning history and understanding text which I love the representation that brings! A great read indeed :)