3.5 Stars (I received an e-arc from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review)

This was one of the most interesting plotlines I have read in a graphic novel and has a beautiful art style. We follow a group of four vampires (two males and two females) who somehow get involved in espionage through World War 1 and 2. Another plot we follow is an FBI agent who is trying to figure out who the vampires are but not knowing they are vampires. It goes back and forth between the two plotlines over about 50 years and the ending definitely goes off with a bang.

2.75✨

Who wouldn't want to read a story about four vampires in the 1940s who some badass things and gave the Nazi some bad time?!!!

This story had a very interesting premise and for the first half of it, I was really enjoying it. The art was fabulous and I like the adventure, but the storyline kinda shifted a bit towards the end and the ending was not what I was hoping for.
Like, why start a book on a very high note and then end it in that way?!!!!

I received a complementary review copy of the book from Netgalley and Oni press in exchange for an honest review.

I've seen some pretty mixed reviews on this, but I really loved this. It was over a period of time and was really vampires v. FBI, which is not what I was expecting. For each time period, you got to see how they worked with each other and then against each other. The art style was intriguing and the first set of pages is what really drew me in. The only reason I'm giving this 4 stars instead of 5 was because I wish they would've delved deeper into the history of the vampires and even just a little bit more character development throughout. There was such a great set-up for us to see the vampires flourish and really show their personalities, but I feel like that got lost in the storyline. Overall, really loved it and can't wait to add it to my library.

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

The Vain is a Vampire vs Secret Service graphic novel with some great events. I read mixed reviews for this book but I really enjoyed it! I found the story line very unique and the illustrations were amazing.
The book has LGBRTQ+ characters and is set during the war. The secret service agent in the novel is searching for the four vampires that are wanted for a string of robberies and murders, but has a struggle to bring them down. They're vigilantes and slippery to catch up with.
I thought this was a unique and fun read and is definitely worth the read even if just to admire the artwork!!

This graphic novel wasn’t exactly what I expected it to be. I enjoyed some aspects of it, while others weren’t really my cup of tea.

First of all, I assumed that the story would take place in 1941, as is said in the synopsis. That wasn’t the case. Rather the story jumps throughout many different time periods. At first that didn’t bother me but then it started to feel as if we were spending too little time in each period. It made the story feel rushed and it didn’t feel like we had the time to really get to know the characters. I liked their interactions between each other, but there wasn’t that much that stood out to me in regards to them. Aside from the fact that we had lesbian vampires in this story, which is always great.

The Vain is a very gory graphic novel, so if that is something that bothers you I would recommend staying away from this one. I don’t have a strong opinion on the art in this graphic novel. I liked it well enough, but it’s by no means a favourite of mine. I think it served its purpose in telling the story. The story in itself was interesting and I enjoyed seeing where it would end up, though (as I already mentioned) the pace wasn’t the best. The story did loose me towards the end of it.

Overall, I had fun while reading The Vain but this isn’t a graphic novel that is going to stick with me, as it wasn’t that memorable to me.

3.5 Stars (I received an e-arc from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review)

This was one of the most interesting plotlines I have read in a graphic novel and has a beautiful art style. We follow a group of four vampires (two males and two females) who somehow get involved in espionage through World War 1 and 2. Another plot we follow is an FBI agent who is trying to figure out who the vampires are but not knowing they are vampires. It goes back and forth between the two plotlines over about 50 years and the ending definitely goes off with a bang.

I will round this one up to one and a half stars. The art style was okay but I couldn't get into the story, I wasn't invested or interested in what was going on. I felt like it jumped around a lot to the point where I was confused what was going on and where the characters were at in the book. Overall an alright read but only because I appreciated the drawings.

*Many thanks to the publisher for my free copy for review*

This was a mixed bag. I liked what the art style was going for but it wasn’t quite right. The faces and bodies feel a bit stiff, like they are not as expressive as they should be. I also had issues with the pacing and story. Once I got to the end of the story I could see what they were trying to do, but the whole time getting to the end felt jumpy. The story feels like it’s missing connective tissue to tie each scene together. And I could not force myself to care about these characters. There were certain frames that I really liked. It showed some cool horror elements that I would have liked to see more of. This comic shows promise. I think if they had more pages to be able to fully flesh out the story this would have been a better experience. (Goodreads)

link to youtube review: https://youtu.be/iF1khU4KbUk

I thoroughly enjoyed this graphic novel. It was a unique urban fantasy/horror set in 1940s Chicago that focuses on blood bank robbers that are actually vampires. As time passes, their ability to steal blood in large quantities becomes increasingly more difficult, and the agent that has been chasing them for so many years gets closer and closer to catching them. It's an interesting and unique take on the criminal heist trope.

This was not my favourite graphic novel. Although the artwork was very good, but the story was a bit too slow. This one was simply not for me.

I also found the font to be too small and difficult to decipher.

I really did not love this Graphic novel. It was confusing and the writings were very small. Hence difficult to read

This was not a favourite with me. The artwork was very good but the story was a bit to boring for me and I lost interest. I think this is a matter of taste. This one was simply not for me.

3.5 / 5 stars
all I need to say: Sapphic Vampires!
The storyline was very intriguing with diverse characters. The plot is twisted and well done. Easy and quick read.
The comic/graphic novel follows different perspective over a longer span of time. One perspective is a group of four vampires, trying their best to get blood for survival. The other follows an FBI Agent trying his best to convince others that vampires exist.
The only negative was that at one point the plot line for me personally lost me a bit. Might, however, not been the fault of the book but my reading comprehension
Recommended to read it in a physical/colour copy as the black-and-white made it at times a bit difficult to read (grey font)
Trigger Warning for gore, trauma, drug abuse.

‘Your mission is ... havoc.’

This is a late ARC review, and I do apologise! My attention span is spoonlike at the best of times. But I'm glad I've finally picked this one up.

The art in this graphic novel is freaking awesome, it must be said. The story begins in the 1940s with a robbery by the infamous Blood Bandits, a group of vampires. This sets off a game of cat and mouse between the investigators and the robbers that crosses the US just as WWII begins.

While I loved the art, I was a little less engaged with the storyline. But I think I'm just not in the right mood for this story right now, so I'm going to come back to it for a more focused read in future. It's definitely not badly written, but I ended up skimming it, which isn't a knock on the material at all, just a sign that I'm a total mood reader and need to return to this when I'm in the mood for a good historical graphic novel.

This looked promising, but ultimately, it ended up being a bit lacklustre. I'd say the most successful aspect of The Vain was the artwork, but even that wasn't enough to really create a pleasurable reading experience. Instead of rushing to see where the story goes, I found myself rushing to basically get it over with, and not even the heartfelt ending could elicit much of an emotional connection to any of the characters. You win some, you lose some, I guess.

Fun version of vampirism in a new era with characters that had some depth and brought in LGBTQ+ themes.

Full review to be posted soonish.

I would like to thank the publisher and netgalley for providing me a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I would give this 2.5 stars if I could. It looks great and the illustrations give character and add depth to the text. However, I wanted and expected more from this story i.e. more gore and shocks. It didn't set up the characters well at the beginning and lacked tension throughout. I didn't learn anything new about vampires and the obsessive FBI agent didn't work for me. Despite being a satisfactory read I was disappointed.

I got this on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

Honestly, I really liked this story. Love a good vampire story, love LGBT+ rep, love a heist story, and also love the idea of vampires being involved here and there in history, but also trying to stay secret. Tbh, I wish we had less of the FBI investigator, and that we got even more stories/situations from the vampire gang. I just found myself so disinterested whenever we followed the FBI investigator, and honestly considered skipping them several times. (Didn't tho). Otherwise really nice story, and liked the ending!

These thoughts will also be shared on my Youtube channel! Subscribe to my channel: Pam's Shenanigans!

Thank you, Netgalley, and to the publishers, for lending me the e-ARC for The Vain. This does not affect my review in any way and form.

The Vain tells the story of four blood-bank robbing and stylish vampires, just living the life of crime and money and somehow getting entangled with the war against the Nazis - all for their thirst for LITERAL blood. They've underestimated their enemy, an FBI agent who witnessed their killing of an important scientist and is on a mission to catch them.

It had so much potential to be a good comic series. What started strong has gone muddled starting at chapter 3. There were a LOT of time skips that weren't shelled out or explained well.

I really wish it wasn't a standalone graphic novel instead. The plot and the characters could've been developed more. What could've been easily a great Nazi-killing vampire story felt bland and trite instead.

Trigger/Content Warnings: gore, graphic mutilations