"Secrets of Camp Whatever" is a delightful, supernatural romp. It's a great readalike suggestion for fans of Lumberjanes or Gravity Falls.

I really enjoyed this graphic novel, it had everything!

Drama, love, friendship, adventure and a bit of a spooky vibe. I also really loved the supernatural part of this book.

Willow, Emma, Molly & Violet are the four characters that we get to follow the most and I seriously love their little friend group. They’re not very much alike personality vise which I enjoyed, it really shows that people doesn’t have to be the same or enjoy the exact same things to be good friend.

I also really liked the fact that the main character Willow was hard of hearing. I’ve never read a book before where one of the main characters had hearing loss and I think it’s so important that everyone gets to see themselves in the book they read.

diversity opens minds. Therefore I found it really great that the author choose to make Wil have hearing loss. She uses a hearing aid and hears with it but also uses sign language.

The art was really great! The colors were beautiful & the characters were pretty diverse which I enjoyed. I also liked the fact that this graphic novel could be read by both an younger audience (even kids?) and adults! Books that work for all ages always got that little special something.

I can’t wait to follow Willow and her friends in the upcoming books!

•Character development- 4☆
• Story Plot- 4☆
• Side characters- 4.5☆
• Flow of the story- 4☆
• Overall - 4.5☆

Willow does not want to move and she does not want to go to camp. She especially doesn't want to be seen or treated as the camp's "VERY FIRST DEAF CAMPER." Plus, everyone seems a little weird, the cook might be a vampire, and campers keep disappearing. At first the story felt very generic and I was not a fan of how the art style made everyone look like they had a cold. However, the more I read, the more the characters became endearing and I fell into the story. I really liked how the story addressed Willow being deaf/hard of hearing and how she is treated by others in regards to that. I really loved the special touch of blank speech bubbles from her perspective when her hearing aid batteries died. I will eagerly pick up the next volume as I can't wait to see where the story goes - the ending gave me some Bailey School Kids vibes.

Note: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley. I was not compensated in any other fashion for the review and the opinions reflected below are entirely my own. Special thanks to the publisher and author for providing the copy.

A fun graphic novel that will delight young readers who crave supernatural suspense. I really appreciated the diverse cast, especially the fact that Willow was Deaf. However, Grine missed the mark a bit on his exploration of the Deaf lived experience. This is one of those moments where I wish a similar story could be told from a Deaf author because while Grine clearly did his research and made a good effort, there are subtleties about Deaf culture and experience that just didn't seem to be there.

This review is based on an ARC copy.

Mist covered island, spooky ghost stories of supernatural legends, and stone gnomes.... who isn't immediately intrigued? I was hooked from the first mention of supernatural mishaps on a mysterious island that hosts a summer camp for children each summer. This graphic novel deals with the morality and mystery of the unknown and how to handle those different from yourself. I am intrigued by the legend and how that will unfold in the sequel. Definitely a good read for those who like mystery and supernatural occurrences.

Secrets of Camp Whatever is a horror/mystery story aimed at middle schoolers. In some ways, it is very much like Gravity Falls but without the out and out weirdness or humour though I think a more apt comparison would-be cult classic Eerie Indiana. The Secrets of Camp Whatever leans heavily on Willow’s curiosity and investigative instinct to push the action along. Willow, a deaf, eleven-year-old is very reluctant to attend summer especially as her family is moving to a new town. Willow’s a confident kid but her anxiety due to her deafness in being around new people is apparent. She’s a likeable protagonist. She quickly forms a gang with Violet and Emma.

From the off, there’s something odd about Camp Nowhere. Set on an isolated misty island surrounded by woods it is a classic horror setting. Willow’s nerves are put on edge by the eccentric characters she meets even before she gets to the camp from the creepy clown greeting parents at the dock to the obnoxious camp director Mr Tooter. I don’t want to give too much away in terms of plot but there are creatures in the woods around Camp Nowhere and there is something disturbing them. Much of the story focuses on Willow’s efforts to find out what is at the heart of the weirdness that is happening on the island.

At over 270 pages long, I felt that the book lagged in places. It was neither weird nor as scary as I would have liked. There is plenty of humour in the book and some neatly written dialogue. A favourite line of mine is Willow muttering under her breath that she’ll “Disable your face” after someone refuses to fight her because of her deafness. Overall I felt like it played it a bit too safe. There really was only one moment when Willow’s deafness put her in jeopardy, and I felt there was more that could have been done around the challenges she faces living in a hearing world.

However, as a mystery book, it works well, especially for its target demo ( my 10 year nephew enjoyed it a lot). Willow and her gang use their wits and cunning to solve their problems which is welcome as it would have been easy for this to devolve into an action comic. I was pleasantly surprised that the book managed to wrong-foot me too on occasion.

The art is smooth. With one notable exception, everything on the page is perfectly judged. Page layouts and panel composition meant it was easy to read, and my eyes never felt lost. I love the choice to thickly line the characters. Grine has a keen eye for giving just enough detail to each panel to make it work. Secrets of Camp Whatever is pleasing to look at. There is a savvy use of colours to set the ambience. The character designs are cracking, ranging from the wholesome Emma to the mysterious Mr Elric.

However, there is one thing that annoyed me tremendously. All the characters have red noses. I found this distracting, and it is not a choice that I understand. Aside from that, the art here is excellent.

Secrets of Camp Whatever is a cute horror mystery story. It sits somewhere between Nancy Drew and the aforementioned Gravity Falls. So if you like either of those, you’ll love this. Apart from the pacing lagging a bit toward the middle of the book, this is accomplished storytelling and a graphic novel that I think many children will enjoy a great deal.

I thought this would be a nice and fun read but uuuuuuh, this wasn't. Mainly because I was so annoyed with Willow, the main character. She's running into trouble at any time and is just "oh well this won't be dangerous" when it had been proved that it is, in fact dangerous. And that her friends followed her anywhere? They met and they're all "Willow's our leader we'll do everything she does" they didn't have much personality besides that.

I did like that Willow was deaf and that it was an important part of the story, like when she needed to find her hearing aids batteries. But the way the villain kept shouting at her as if she'd hear him better... If I were Willow's parents, I would not have sent her to this strange camp where a kid went missing and the director is just rude to my daughter. But whatever.

The supernatural parts (and creatures) were kind of interesting, hinting at something way bigger.

I really enjoyed this graphic novel, it kind of reminded me a bit of Lumberjanes but for kids (I mean I guess Lumberjanes is a YA comic, right?). I loved the characters and I really enjoyed the storyline. Definitely recommend it if you love slightly spooky stories and as I've said before, especially if you enjoyed the Lumberjanes comics.

I loved the artwork in this as well, I loved the colours and the style is one of my absolute favourites! Might check out more comics by this author/artist as well! And I will definitely be looking forward to any sequels coming out, but I guess that won't be for a while, as this one won't come out until somewhere this month!

A slightly slow moving but generally interesting tale of a very unusual kids' camp. Why are so many of the adults working at the camp so weird, and what are the camp's secrets? Art is good and not cluttery.

Such a fun, fantastical read!

We meet Willow on her way to Nowhere, where her and her family are moving too. Also in Nowhere is a island which has a summer camp that her father used to go to. Willow is going there for the week while her family moves in but she really doesn't want to go.

Willow makes friends, finds a mystery, and solves it! In the story you will find some magical beings that help make the story all the better.

I really loved the inclusivity of the characters abilities, and all the different personalities we meet. This has got me looking out for Volume 2.

Really recommend this Graphic Novel for 10+ years, all the way to adulthood. I had a blast reading this.

This is slightly lower middle-grade than I'm used to (see the numerous poop jokes), but it's still a fun and entertaining read. I honestly believe that any kid who enjoys mystery, adventure, and the supernatural would gobble this up, and the ending sets the world up nicely for new escapades and secrets to be uncovered in future volumes.

Loved the art! I feel this would be easy to recommend to kids looking for something exciting but not too scary. I also feel like it's a great read for both girls and boys!

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to review this book because it is amazing! Willow the main character is such a bad ass with her no- nonsense attitude and purple hair. Willow is deaf and has hearing aids, which is such lovely representation to see in a visual novel, that kids like Willow will see themselves in the story too. The author showed what it was like for her without hearing aids, using blank bubbles when other characters were talking to Willow along with several characters knowing sign language and showcasing some of the SL in the novel! Then the rest of the characters are all such a vivid bunch, and honestly they all had immediate connections. Yes, they just met at camp but they just become friends in an instant. Then when these supernatural characters appear, the girls are just like okay, this is a thing and are ready to help them without thinking. I'm just here for that kind of get go solidarity and them coming together to solve the mysteries at this camp.

This novel in intensely creepy and makes for such perfect night reading, hidden under the covers and a flashlight but this book does well to balance the scary with a bit of humor at the right times as not to completely terrify the reader. The humour is quite stupid funny but something all kids adore. The art style is very modern and easy to fall into, with its muted colour palate but I feel like it hints at a classic style with the hair styles and face shapes that remind me of Tintin (to the best of my limited knowledge of graphic novels and animations)

Overall, this book really hits all the point with a gripping story and interesting characters wrapped up in a chunky book that makes for perfect weekend reading and will leave the readers guessing until the very end of the book.

A delightfully entertaining, creepy, funny graphic novel about a magical camp riddled with mysterious creatures and the unlikely friendships that it spawns. Great illustrations, wonderfully written characters. I enjoyed every page and can't wait for the next installment! Also can't wait to purchase this for my library!

**ARC provided by NetGalley for honest review**

This was a fun, middle grade graphic novel with spooky mystery and fantasy and summer camp shenanigans. There were also many interesting characters. The lead character was also hearing impaired which seemed like cool representation. Would recommend for middle schoolers or anyone who can appreciate that type of story. **3 stars**

Willow and her family are moving to Nowhere. Literally. Their new home town is called Nowhere, and her dad used to live there when he was a kid. Willow is about to start middle school, but first they have to get settled. While the parentals are moving in, Willow will be shipped off to camp on an island near the town. She’s not happy about it. At. All.

A stop at a diner puts Willow and her family in touch with the locals, though, and Willow finds out that there are mysterious happenings going on at the camp. Something about a witch and a new camp director, and a kid that once went missing at the camp. Willow’s pout turns into more of a curious glimmer, and she seems ready to see what camp experience awaits.

The art in this middle grade graphic novel is misty and full of great angles and perspectives. The shadowy grays and purples add to the sinister silliness. The pacing is perfectly timed, and Grines shows off his talent with lots of erie facial details like pointy noses on the creepier characters, and wacko hair and mustache on the outrageous camp director, Mr. Tooter.

Tooter turns out to be something of a big game hunter, but not the usual kind. The island of Camp Whatever is said to be rich with imaginary beasts including a Sasquatch that Tooter plans to snare. Willow meets her cabin mates, and there are the usual camp shenanigans that ensue. Snacks from Willow’s cabin go missing and her hearing aid batteries must have been taken too. She’s determined to find the batteries, because Tooter has already outed her as deaf and she doesn’t want to resort to signing if she doesn’t have to. The cabin mates begin to bond over the possible recovery of their candy and snacks, and Wil convinces them to sneak out after lights out to investigate. Little do they know what they are about to discover. The book soars with everything from fog leeches to mummified gnomes, and the target audience will devour each and every campy plot twist and bizarro creature that Wil and her friends discover. Stock up on extra copies of this one. It’s perfect for just about every reader on your list.

Unfortunately this title was archived before I was finished reading it, so my review is just from the first part, which was just spooky enough for young readers but still kept me interested! I also liked the illustration style!

First of all, thank you to NetGalley, Oni-Lion Forge Publishing and Chris Grine for the Advanced Reader’s Copy of Secrets of Camp Whatever Volume 1!

I really enjoyed this graphic novel. It was a really fun and enticing introduction to a new series!

Secrets of Camp Whatever follows Willow, a deaf, purple-haired teenage girl and her friends she meets at camp. Together they find themselves in a world of mythical creatures, legends and lore.

Volume 1 is action packed and filled to the brim with interesting mythical creatures, and lots of spooky mystery. It really keeps you guessing the whole way through, with plenty of shady characters, and some interesting twists.

Secrets of Camp Whatever also did a fantastic job in showing the reader what life is like for a person who is deaf or hard of hearing. Our main character, Willow uses hearing aids and sign language. Chris Grine used a fantastic technique in this volume to visually show how Willow is unable to hear when her hearing aid batteries run out. Blank speech bubbles were in place to show that people around Willow were speaking, but she was unable to hear. These bubbles then filled with text when one of Willow’s fellow camp-mates was able to sign to her what was being said. As someone without a hearing difficulty, I thought that this was a really important and educational was of realising what it is like for those who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Secrets of Camp Whatever, in my opinion is a great graphic novel for all ages. It’s fun, funny, educational, inspiring and has no trouble hooking you from the first page when we enter the town of Nowhere with Willow and her family.

I really enjoyed reading this volume, and happily sat and completed the whole thing in one session. I’m already thinking about what will happen next, and can’t wait for the next instalment!

I have posted my review to my goodreads page, and will be sharing my review on my booksragram (Instagram @lostinthepaiges) and with my private Facebook book club.
I am also excited to recommend this book at work. I work with a student who is hard of hearing, and I think they will love to read about Willow and see themselves represented in a main character.

So fun! I can’t get over how enjoyable this read was. The art is friendly and warm and the story was compelling and unpredictable. I didn’t see so many twists and turns and I can’t wait for volume 2!!

I received a digital ARC through NetGalley from Oni Press. This middle grade graphic novel follows 11-year-old Willow to an island summer camp known for its tales of mythic creatures and mystery. Is the cook a vampire, is Bigfoot in the woods, and why do those stone garden gnomes look so real? Willow and her new friends think the new camp director is up to no good. After a camper is “sent” home, the kids adventure at night to see what information they can find. This is really cute, easy to read, and fun. The computer generated art is ok. Willow is a deaf character with hearing aids. She is bullied, but Willow stands up for herself and is quite the leader throughout the story.