Dark, terrifying, and sad.
A good read, with interesting art style and story telling, but also very graphic, and very hard to digest in one go. This is one of the only GN I read this year that I couldn't go through one sitting. But it was a very interesting read nonetheless.

While I did enjoy the art and design, I don't think it felt very authentic. The dialogue was cringy, as was the development.

A lifelong fascination with the Salem witch trials and how they came to happen in this country led to my easily choosing the graphic novel The Daughters of Salem to read. A brief introduction from author/illustrator Thomas Gilbert assures readers right off this is a work of fiction; that though players from the real-life events played out in colonial Massachusetts appear throughout, the author's main intention was in taking a much lesser-known figure of the village, young Abigail Hobbs, and giving her a backstory connecting her with the real-life Reverend Parris's daughter Elizabeth as a friend. Part One begins when Abigail is offered a gift from a young man in her village, and her stepmother sees it as Abigail reaching womanhood, drawing the young men now. A big no-no in this Puritan community circa 1690, so Abigail pretty much becomes a prisoner in her own home, to both school and "protect" her - until she finds ways to sneak out to gather food or wood, and begins a friendship with a male member of the native Abenaki tribe who plays music and allows her to dance and feel alive again, all as mass hysteria of demons and witchery begin to take hold in the village proper. Part One of The Daughters of Salem is darkly, depressingly illustrated to fit its time and subject matter, and cuts off at a cliffhanger, just as things get really ugly, leading you to want book two ... but overall the bleakness of story and art, along with knowing the story is more fiction than fact, left me cold and feeling oddly disconnected from any of the characters at all. Not bad, but sadly not enough for this reader to continue to Part Two. 3/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

The Daughters of Salem Part One
By Thomas Gilbert
Europe Comics

Subtitled “How We Sent Our Children To Their Deaths,” Gilbert says of the book in his intro that the story is his exploration of the problem of femicide in western culture and the dominance of patriarchy in these cultures. To do so, he takes elements of the historical reality of Salem while telling the story through the eyes of Abigail Hobbs, a 14-year-old Salem resident who recounts the events starting the day she became a woman.

Abigail’s experience is essentially one of something resembling innocence being forced to accept a role in a paranoid world that sees women only as sexual prey responsible for their own safety against the overtures of men. Shame is revealed as a burden passed between women through the generations and utilized by society as a prison to keep them in their place.

This is the lens through which Gilbert presents Tituba and Abigail’s contemporaries in Salem, as well as Abigail’s secret interaction with a Native American lurker in the forest that she calls the Man in Black because of the dark face and body paint he wears, but whose presence the other villagers use as proof of the Devil’s interaction. The collective racism brought on by Tituba and the Man in Black, along with the blinding rage of their religious beliefs and the misogyny inherent in their culture, all mix to work against the peace and bring danger and death to the community.

This is an excellent and intense beginning that mixes history with extremely relevant fiction, taking care to comment on current events without skimping on the allure of the drama because of preachiness.

Could not even acess this title with my kindle! Such a disappointment I wanted to read it so bad! If you get the kindle edition let me know!

A great reimagining and update on a story many of us are familiar with. Thomas Gilbert pulls double duty here and does so pretty masterfully, the artwork and story are fresh and perfect for a new generation of readers. At least compared to when I read The Crucible in high school! What I appreciated about Gilbert's work here is how he deftly weaved the fear of the feminine with broader societal fears of change that were so elemental to that time. To see how the older women of this community passed down the fear of female power were some of the most powerful scenes in this story. This tale never stops being heartbreaking, and it doesn't shy away from the horror of vigilante justice, prejudice, bigotry, and hatred for that which you may not understand. Some of the visuals may prove disturbing for some readers but this one is worth picking up, reading, and discussing.

Oof. I knew going in that this was going to be a darker story, but this ended up being just too dark for me. I love the cover art, but do not think it is representative of the story or the art within the pages. I'm left feeling like this is a story I *should* have enjoyed (or at least appreciated), but what I really feel is a bit dirty.

Approach with caution.

Thanks to NetGalley and Europe Comics for providing me with a DRC of this book.

I an fairly new to comic books but it is a genre I am exploring with relish. I found The Daughters of Salem to be an intriguing read. The premise was interesting but I found the plotline a little vague. The illustrations were unrelenting grim and thus I found the reading experience a little hard going. I'm not sure I enjoyed it enough or was hooked enough by the story to seek out the next issue.

I didn't like it. It is too dark, horrid and unnecessary cruel. Also the story doesn't make sense to me. I am well aware of the Salem witch trials in 1692-1693, but the comic book handles the topic in a bizarre fashion without historical accuracy. Maybe it will appeal to other readers.

It wasn't awful and the author did state that they were taking creative liberties with the story. But it felt like too many creative liberties were taken to make it still a story about Salem.

I was originally intrigued by the concept of this graphic novel, but I just couldn't get into it. The story line seemed to be all over the place, I (personally) wasn't into the art style, and while I am all for graphic scenes, I just can't do animal abuse.

I received this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I am interested in history and the fictional retelling of the Salem Witch trials made me interested to read this. Although it is fictional, I liked how the author managed to portray the root of why the village men did what they did. The xenophobia, sexism, religion, among other reasons caused the deaths and chaos in the village. It made me think that those issues are still present today and like that fictional village, deaths happen in the modern world due to those.

I somehow like the first part and looking forward to the next. The art style fits the narrative and I like how the colors change to depict the kind of mood the scene has.

Received via NetGalley for review.

Graphic novels and comics are probably the most subjective to review, since not only is there the plot and the characterization to judge, but the art as well. And, unfortunately, the art didn't do it for me here. The characters were too caricatured (which works for the Reverend and the townspeople - their inner ugliness spills out to their appearance, that's fine, but doesn't really work for the sympathetic characters). The scenes of the woods were beautiful, but that's about all I enjoyed.

Gilbert did a fantastic job portraying the terror and shame Abigail went through when she went to Little Mother's house and became a women, as well as how quickly and easily the townspeople turned towards paranoia and misdirected anger when things started going badly, which is easily the strongest part of the story. It's clearly well researched and vivid, and does an excellent job getting the message across.

The whole angle with the Native Americans is interesting. I'm not sure if that's entirely historical or not (I've never heard of their involvement in the Salem Witch trials, but given the time period and the location of the town it makes sense that they'd be there), and I think the romance between Abigail and Mxweh was unnecessary (can't a woman long for freedom without a man involved?).

I'm thankful for the opportunity to review this graphic novel, but won't be seeking out the second part.

Amazing! I loved learning a slice of history through a beautifully illustrated graphic novel. The writing was amazing too. I thought it was amazing.

Brutally honest, I would actually rate this particular graphic novel three and half stars but the system does not allow for that type of rating so I'll round up. Abigail Hobbs has grown up in Salem but things are changing. Her childhood friend, Peter, gives her a wooden donkey as a gift and this sets off a chain reaction. When she comes home, her stepmother confronts Abigail and forces her to see Little Mother, who proclaims that she has become a woman and must change her ways. She can no longer look at men, must wear a wimple to cover her hair and her childhood is now in the past.

However the day this happens, Abigail meets an Indian man in the woods, which is her safe haven away from the hustle and bustle of her own village. As she becomes more isolated in her town, Abigail turns to the woods and her friends to escape. Eventually, this causes the villagers to turn violent and to burn down the tavern and anything evil. My only complaint about the graphic novel is I wish the budding romance and friendship between Abigail and Mxwel had been featured more prominently and I'm hoping that the next volume will focus on this.

Thomas Gilbert’s The Daughters of Salem portrays the horror that was the Salem Witch Trials and being a young woman in Puritan society. His stark illustration style was at times unsettling- The “Little Mother” character was terrifying! While I wouldn’t likely teach with this particular graphic novel, I think it would be a good addition to a middle school or high school classroom library. It provides a look at an interesting and terrible episode of American History, and can help students build their background knowledge for later studies. It also would be a good support for struggling readers studying the topic.

I'm really sad I didn't like this, as I was really looking forward to reading it. The period of the Salem witch trials has been used as a mirror for society quite a few times, and can be rather powerful. The book even starts off very strong, showing the main character's violent transition into womanhood and the awful way in which puritanical beliefs trap young girls. But after that, everything felt... flat.

It might have something to do with the artwork, which at times seems unresolved. We follow the lives of the people of Salem, and how quick they are to point a finger when things go wrong. We also have some interactions with native Americans, but that whole bit just felt... weird. Fake. I was unable to suspend my disbelief for it.

I don't know, but something about this comic rubbed me the wrong way. It ends when it just starts getting interesting, though not interesting enough for me to want to read anything more.

This review is also posted in my blog :
https://onewordtoomuch.wordpress.com/2019/02/11/the-daughters-of-salem-how-we-sent-our-children-to-their-deaths-part-1/

Thank you to Net Galley for a free copy of this book in trade for an honest review.


It’s a dark read to begin with. I’m not quite familiar with the case of Salem’s Witch trial, but I think this might be a good graphic novel to picture what happen in 1690’s. Since this is part 1, things are still in the dark on how the story goes.

The story follows Abigail who just turned into a young woman. The society especially the women are afraid of the temptation that comes with her adulthood. Her friendship with the black face Indian who she secretly meets and Elisabeth Parris is what keeps her happy. Salem is pictured as a small village. Abigail’s secluded small world. The town is obviously gripped by the Reverend Parris and their fear in God. The people swallowed everything the reverend said.

Some of the scenes in the story are quite disturbing. As the story goes, more incidents that involved violence occurred in Salem. From the murder of a black face Indian to the murder of 2 women who owns a tavern. There are so many misunderstanding. It’s not a time for a young woman to be herself. It really is the time of when people is afraid of God and will do anything that is considered insane.

The illustration is very detailed and somber colors. The whole aura of the book feels like ancient history. The expressions on the characters are sometimes scary, distorted with rage, sadness or fear. Big eyes or sometimes sweats, tears as well as blood are pictured in quite detail. There are many fine lines that help created depth for the illustration. I love the details of the illustration. It gives the story a dark mood, which is suitable for it.

I would love to read part 2 of the story and review it here. I’m just curious what would happen to Abigail and her family.
Recommend for those who like historical fiction, not afraid of a little blood and love dark mood illustration.

The Daughters of Salem is an intense reimagining of the events that took place in Salem Massachusetts in 1692. Thomas Gilbert’s intent with his work is to consider the issue of femicide in Western societies, which he does with thoughtful composition and terrifying depictions of insidious oppression, victim blaming, and mass hysteria.

My how things have changed?

Abigail Hobbs is a confident young woman confined to the narrow ideals of late 1600’s Massachusetts. Her first brush with gender expectation comes early, when a young boy gives Abigail a little wooden donkey as a gift. It’s obvious to the rest of the township that the boy is giving her a token of his affection, but to innocent Abigail it’s a simple kindness. Her mother and the other women of the township react to the incident with violent fervor–they begin to initiate Abigail into “womanhood”. They teach her the first thing that most mothers unknowingly teach their daughters: men only want one thing, and if they get it it’s your fault for tempting them.

As the years pass and the weather turns, the homesteaders begin to revolt against their Pastor. How could God forsake their crops, their livelihoods and their families? The good people of Salem turn to superstition and paranoia. They blame the demons that live in the woods, the “foreign” Native tribe who dress their bodies in black. Abigail knows the men in black aren’t dangerous. She’s befriended a member of the tribe on weekly excursions into the woods. Her curiosity leads to love rather than fear.

As the gloom progresses, the townsfolk lay guilt firmly atop the heads of women just minding their own damn business. Red-headed Bridget Bishop just wants to run her family’s tavern in peace, but in marches a mob ready to light it up. The time has come for these men to blame someone else for their own sins and throughout history women and the marginalized have been easy targets.

The Daughters of Salem doesn’t necessarily teach us anything we didn’t already know about the witch trials, but it deftly illustrates the incidents of femicide that are left out of our lessons in primary. It’s not just superstition that brought about the accusation of two-hundred people and the murder of twenty between 1692-1693, but the fear of a woman’s power.

I have a passionate love for this type of gritty, personal art style. It reminds me of Upgrade Soul by Ezra Claytan Daniels, my favorite graphic novel by far of 2018. The strokes show the exaggerated fatigue of the human face. It serves the subject matter so well.

Because I can’t have everything I want right away, this is only the first volume of what I imagine will be a several volume series. It’s a fast read but a heavy one, so digest it slowly. Loved it, can’t wait for the next one.

Thanks to NetGalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

An interesting tale of what happens when hardships set in, and people turn against each other looking for a scapegoat. Even more disturbing, it is based on historical events. Obviously ot would not have been easy to be a woman in the village of Salem, Massachusetts in the 1600s. Men can basically do whatever they want to you and claim it on you tempting them or the town turning its back on religion.

The artwork matched the mood of each scene- happier ones are more carefree, cheerful and colorful, worse scenes are washed out and angry lines. Dust turning look at history.