Thank you, NetGalley for the early copy of Lifetime Passes. All opinions expressed are my own. This is a darkly comedic graphic novel about a group of teenagers who spend the summer taking the elderly from a care facility to their favorite amusement park in hopes that they will pass away while there, resulting in lifetime passes. What starts as a macabre plan turns into a heartwarming story for Jackie, our main character.

I will say there are two very unlikeable characters that made this a bit of a challenging read initially. Still, it quickly became a rather lovely story that touched on many topics like race, immigration, sexuality, and mortality.

Thank you to Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

First I would like to say that the description for this graphic is a bit inflated. This isn't some hilarious comedy, it's more of a drama that pulls at the heartstrings, bridges generations, and throws in some delightful gallows humor to make the story pretty well rounded. I requested this ARC based on how fun I thought the cover art looked. I was really happy to discover a really great storyline filled with characters who felt real. Jackie and Phyllis both have complicated histories and I really felt the park brought them together.

I will note: the copy I had to review was only in black and white, which made some of the lettering a bit difficult to read, but I'm sure the final colorized copy will be perfect.

This graphic novel had a very nostalgic feel for me only because I worked in a nursing home for a few years back when I was a kid. So the assisted home and elderly were what reminded me of that time. It was also accurate when it came to those small details.

The overall story is about a group of teens who enjoy going to a local amusement park often. When one of the teens found out that she can’t afford a season pass, the group comes up with a plan that involves taking the elderly to the amusement park with them and getting lifetime passes. I’ll leave the “why” for those who read it.

I was under the impression that this was a horror. This was not horror but a YA fiction. If the synopsis was more accurate it would gear more towards the people who would enjoy this.

I received this and as an eARC to read for free in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Abrams ComicArts - Surely for giving me access.

WOW. While good, this is definitely a twisted and interesting way of getting lifetime passes to an amusement park. We follow Jackie, who can no longer afford her season pass to Kingdom Adventure. So she devises a plan with her friends to take the elderly to the park in hopes on will kill over while they are there so they all can receive lifetime passes.

Now, if that has you turn off from wanting to read it, there is more to the story than just that. Jackie starts to grow and befriends one of the elderly, Phyllis. As they bond and get to know each other, Jackie realizes this isn't what she want and gains a conscience. What starts out as a greedy way to get free passes, turns into a story about growth, friendship, and love of lost ones alive or deported.

Being myself mexican I really enjoyed the representation given, Even though the art style wasn’t my favorite it presented the story perfectly and had me laughing at some moments. I would say this is a great light summer read.

This is story that I think everyone should go in blindly. It's filled with life lessons and is really wholesome. The art style is unique and the characters are really well developed. The story is just amazing, I'd love to read a whole book about it as well.

Amazing art and interesting characters. Even if I was not enjoying since the beginning the main character - Jackie, I liked how the story evolved and how the author triggered awareness about old people, aging, immigrants, gay representation. The story has it all.
I do not want to give spoilers therefore I will say only that Jackie, our main character wants lifetime passes to a Disneyland-type theme park in her community and has heard a rumor that if someone in their group dies on the park's property, she and her friends will be given the passes.
The characters are complex and they will for sure make everyone who reads the graphic novel relate in a certain aspect with what they are confronted in their daily activities, events since it’s life with all the pretty and nasty colors.

Thank you NetGalley and Abrams ComicArts for this early digital copy in exchange for an honest review!

3.5 Stars (rounded up to 4).

When I originally started this graphic novel I was not expecting to enjoy it as much as I did.

(Sidenote: The eARC I received was in black and white so some of it was a little harder to read and I feel like I wasn't able to completely enjoy the artwork as much as I would have if it were in color. However, I will be purchasing a copy for my collection when this book is released and I can't wait to see the gorgeous art in color, because one of the reasons I requested this book was the cover. I mean look at it, it is GORGEOUS!!!)

The reason I didn't rate this book 4 or 5 stars is because for me it did have a slow start and all of the characters were very unlikeable. Also, their motives for wanting to bring senior citizens to an amusement park with the hopes that one of them would die and then they would receive Lifetime Passes to said park didn't sit that well with me...

HOWEVER, I am so glad that I stuck with it and by the end I feel like this was both a really great story and it was actually really heartfelt. I really enjoyed Jackie as a main character, but my favorite character was definitely Phyllis Adler. I loved learning about her backstory and her connection to the park. I also really enjoyed Jackie and Daniel's friendship and I wish we got to see more of it.

In conclusion, while I did have some problems with this graphic novel I still really recommend it if you are looking for a quick, easy, and heartfelt read! :)

I am grateful to have received an e-ARC of this book through NetGalley.

The premise of this books sounds super cool. A bunch of teenagers taking th elderly of a care home to an adventure park so if one of them dies, they all get free passes.

I was intruiged by the story and really excited to read this. My first and biggest problem was the quality of the ARC I received. I'm sure the finished version is way better but I couldn't enjoy it properly. The whole book was black and white and the drawings were such bad quality that I had a hard time understanding the pictures. With higher quality and colour it would have gotten 4 stars.

Besides that I quite enjoyed the story. It was fast paced and a very quick read like most graphic novels. They touched on some heavy topics like deportation, adoption and death. It was still a funny book though. I couldn't really connect with the characters though, even though they had interesting backstories. There are way too many characters who all just have little time in the book so you can't really get to know them. I don't think I remember any the names except for the protagonist Jackie and the old Lady Phyllis. I liked the old women but besides her most characters felt a bit hollow and cliche.

What I would really enjoy would be a movie! I think this story would be beautiful as a movie and I truly hope they will one day produce it. I think it's a too detailed story for the comic and too short for a novel but a movie would be perfect.

Generally I would recommend it if you like graphic novels. It's a fun read and if you are actually paying for it I'm sure it will also be nice to look at.

4.5/5

A great story and amazing art. The story starts out weird and I didn't like the main character much but she found who she wants to be and I grew to enjoy her character. I love the old lady and her relationship with the kids and how much she taught them. This story because so wholesome and I will eventually be adding it to my physical collection and definitely recommend.

Disclaimer: I read this in advance on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I received a free e-ARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this graphic novel! It includes a theme park, young/old friendship trope, a Mexican main character, a sassy elderly woman, gay representation, and many parts of the story that make you laugh. There are many goofy moments, but there is also a lot of heart. Not many stories can pull off both! However, I do not see this story as “darkly comedic.” I mean, it had it’s funny moments, but there wasn’t any dark humor. With that aside, I still liked the plot and the relationship between Jackie and Phyllis.

The main character, Jackie, is a Mexican American teenager who works at a senior living home. Because her family is low on funds, she can’t renew her season pass to her favorite theme park, Kingdom Adventure. While on one of her last trips to the park, she goes with a group of her friends and secretly finds out that if someone dies at the park, the group with them gets lifetime passes. So she has a meeting with her friends to hatch a plan to create a volunteer program that takes the elderly to the park in hopes that one of their supervised adults dies while they are on the property.

The first elderly person to participate is Phyllis Adler, who begins to befriend Jackie. Phyllis shares her life story with her and Jackie tells her about her parents who were deported when she was a child. It also turns out that Phyllis has a special connection to the Kingdom Adventure theme park. Her friend Daniel also becomes attached to Mr. Sloan and these heart to hearts are starting to make Jackie feel bad about the reason she started the program in the first place. Jackie now feels conflicted. Will she continue the volunteer program or has she grown so close to Phyllis that she will give up her chance at someday getting a lifetime pass? Or does she have a choice if her friends threaten to tell everyone the reason they started the program and that it was initially Jackie’s idea?

If you enjoy elderly banter, theme parks, or a lighthearted story that may also cause you to shed a tear when its over, I recommend reading “Lifetime Passes.”

Lifetime Passes is one of those teen summer feel-good stories. It starts with a pretty morbid backstory: some teens want lifetime passes to a Disneyland-type theme park in their community and have heard a rumor that if someone in their group dies on the park's property, they will be given the passes. Jackie Chavez's parents were recently deported, so she spends her time helping the aunt she lives with at the local nursing home, where she cooks up the idea that these old people are basically just lifetime passes waiting to happen. As the story unfolds, we learn more about the characters and the importance of home, family, and memories. It is a bit corny and the conflict is sort of one sided with a kind-of obvious (and again, corny) twist, but it was good fun and definitely contains important life lessons so younger readers may not be as aware of how blatantly mushy the book is.

I actually was not expecting to like this as much as I did and even found myself shedding a tear during one part, despite all its cheesiness and the fact that I saw it was coming a mile away. I would like to see this made into a movie at some point. I wish the ARC had been higher quality and again, my biggest complaint with graphic novel ARCs is that many of them are slightly pixelated and have black and white rather than in full-color, but the illustrations seemed good enough and I was able to determine character's features, races, and expressions easily from the line art.

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.

This was a fun romp of a graphic novel. I was laughing so hard in places and I truly just wanted to scadoo myself right in there along with the characters.
This does touch on a few tougher subjects like loss, and toxic relationships but in a way that is wholly digestible and doesn't take away from the fun atmosphere but in fact adds depth. And while I realize that the initial premise of this book seems dark this is so much more that that. I was interested by the premise but it was the characters that really drew me into the story.
Speaking of the characters I loved them! A couple of them were unlikable but it was very much on purpose. I adored Phyllis and not only because she reminds me of my own great grandma but because I would read anything with her in it! I honestly want a whole series just following Phyllis. She is such a wonderful character.
Like I said this book was so so much fun. I felt like I was in an amusement park as I read this. I can not wait to see these characters brought to life in full vivid color either. I am so excited to get my hands on that I want to be able to time jump just to have it in my hands! Do yourself a favor and get this! You will have so much fun!

Lifetime Passes is a YA graphic novel that follows 16-year-old Jackie Chavez and her group of friends who hatch a morbidly problematic plan to ensure guaranteed future visits to their local amusement park, Kingdom Adventure: bring in senior residents of Valley Care Living nursing home into the park with hopes that one of them dies in the park and that the park offers them lifetime passes to avoid controversy.

This rather morbid premise for a YA graphic novel would take many aback but after reading it all, it was quite a light and meaningful read for young teens that touches on issues of race, sexuality, mortality, immigration, preservation of memories, friendship, gratitude and compassion for others in the community and much more. Jackie’s character in particular was quite nuanced and developed and through her and her interactions with the other characters, we were able to see how those issues and topics fleshed out. The senior residents' narratives are also ones that were noteworthy, as they strongly paralleled those of the teenagers, showing that age is not really a boundary that prevents both groups from interacting, understanding, and learning from each other. Overall, the graphic novel successfully was able to convey most of the emotions and the points that they intended to send across to the reader clearly.

However, some of the characters, particularly the self-centred teenage characters were portrayals and narratives that did not sit well with me. I personally felt their characters were too animated and out of place, especially since the novel addressed grounded realistic issues and topics. In addition, some of the plot points concerning them, particularly near the end, felt very abrupt and quite extreme for the narrative. Definitely shock worthy but it could have been much lighter and realistic than how it was narrated.

In general, I would recommend this as a substantial light read for younger readers that ticks many boxes for diverse representation and nuanced social commentary. I would note, however, that readers should be cautious and critical of some of the characters behaviour and some plot points presented in the graphic novel.

Thank you NetGalley and Abrams ComicArts for providing an eARC of this graphic novel in exchange for an honest review.

Let me start off by saying yes, there were some annoying and characterized characters (the obsession of teens with an amusement park?), but even with that I still got misty-eyed. And I also hate star ratings.

3.5 Stars rounding up because I enjoyed the end.

Appeal terms:
Characters: brooding, flawed, LGBTQIA diverse,
Storyline and Pace:character-driven and fast-paced
Tone: amusing, darkly humorous

I enjoyed this graphic novel and I can't wait for the colored version. The graininess people are complaining about was done for copyright issues, which does make reviewing a bit more difficult, but I also understand.

My favorite part of this novel? The relationship between Phyllis and Jackie. I would read about them again in a heartbeat. I also enjoyed some of the representation especially because you weren't hammered over the head with, but it did add a bit to the story nonetheless.

This entire story left a very sour taste in my mouth.

Call me a fuddy-dud, but the idea of "dark humor" (or attempts of dark humor) being targeted at young adults isn't something I've ever really understood.
In particular, we're talking about the idea of being rewarded in exchange for someone's death. It's an idea that I wasn't entirely sure how I felt. "Could be funny, could be awkward". It ended up not sitting well with me.

Along with that, the characters were genuinely and intentionally unlikeable. Until at least some of them were meant to mature and stray from the herd mentality.

Unfortunately I found the art provided in the ARC very low quality which made it difficult to read and sometimes impossible to understand movement.
Such as the climax of the story. I had to re-read the page more than once to understand exactly what happened.

That said, there are good moments where difficult subjects like immigrations and the effects it has on families. Adoption, races, not fitting in, feeling bullied, and not to judge a book by its cover. I enjoyed the bits about character history and bonding with the assisting living center residents.
However, the ending, the twist, the plot; just outside my comfortable zone. This just was not my cup of tea.

**Thank you to ABRAMS and NetGallery for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. **

What would you do if you cou couldn’t get a yearly pass to go to something that you went to all the time with your friends? Jackie loves to go with her friends to the local amusement park. When her aunt tells her she doesn’t have the money to renew her pass, Jackie is upset. Jackie helps her aunt at the senior living facility. When she finds out that you can get a lifetime pass if someone dies in their group, the one living get lifetime passes to the park. So Jackie tells her friend the idea of taking a senior from the senior living facility, they think it’s a great idea for the most part. Jackie gets approval from her aunt and from the director for the senior living facility. The friend are delighted until they realize that seniors don’t walk as fast as they do. Jackie becomes close to one senior and discover things age didn’t know. What are those things?

I enjoyed this graphic novel s it was an adventure for Jackie and another friend from the group learned to treasured their time with the senior.s. Jackie learns about herself, what her life is about and true friendship. She learns how to cope with unexpected incidents. The graphic novel starts out with a somewhat dark theme that turns into a happier theme. It is good to live life.

Slated for publication October 2021.

Lifetime Passes, created by Claudia Aguirre and Terry Blas is going to be a really strong fall release. I was impressed with the Advance Copy which was in black and white and (for piracy protection reasons) a lower grainier resolution, I am sure the full color release will POP and astound readers.

‘Lifetime Passes’ caught my attention with the publisher description and cover art.

The graphic novel starts off slow but doesnt stay there. The main cast is a band of friends that appear to be a mixed bag that do not belong together. Their only tie seems to be their various obsessions with an alt reality disneyland built on the story of a princess who saves herself. For their unique reasons, the 4 friends scheme to gain permanent access to their favorite amusement park.

There is a rumour that a death on the property of Kingdom Adventure converts to hush passes (good for life) for the entire group. For protagonist Jackie Chavez, senior citizens from her aunt’s nursing home seem like a solid element in their equation. None of them expect a feisty old woman who has her own motives for playing along. The arc of Jackie and Phyllis jumpstarts and accelerates the novel from zero to heartwrenching pretty quickly.

Focuses on themes of isolation vs community, race, family, tradition and love.. I really respect the craft put into the making of this book and cannot wait to read critical reviews and discuss with friends this fall.

Much love for what might be Jackie’s favorite t-shirt sporting a Metallica font that reads ‘Mexicana’.. Also.. I want a churro sword

I don’t know what I was expecting from this graphic novel but I was pleasantly surprised by all the important topics it focused on like found families, elder care, and being kind to people. I enjoyed it. Some parts felt a little slow but the ending was surprising. The drawing was really well done!

I absolutely adored this one ❤️ such a fun read with a super quirky premise. Didn't see the ending coming at all. So many important topics addressed and just filled with representation of all kinds. Highly recommend, can't wait to see it in full colour