This was a lot sweeter than I was expecting! A great palette cleanser with everything going on! I did think character development was a little weak but it is hard to accomplish in this format

I went in expecting a full graphic novel with a fully fleshed story, but this is a fairly short comic that im guessing will have more issues. It intrigued me, so i might check out the next one but im not really hooked as of yet. i think this type of story though would be better as a graphic novel and be released as a full story. the main character and his friendships really confused me, how on earth did these 3 people become friends, they seem to hate eachother and have nothing in common. I was into one of the art styles much more than the other so it made the style changes a bit disappointing.

*I was not delivered an ARC by the publisher through Netgalley but an excerpt though it said so nowhere on the page and I'm still salty about it*

That being said, I did found a way to read the whole story since this started as a webcomic and I found the Tumblr.

This graphic novel has an interesting concept. It was written and illustrated by two different artists and the chapters alternate between one and the other.

Tony Price is a popular high school track star with a bully of a best friend. Eli Hirsch is a quiet boy with a chronic autoimmune disorder that has ravaged his health and social life. The two have absolutely no reason to be friends but they somehow start talking and can't keep away from each other. But Tony's best friend Biff does not like Eli and lets him know every chance he gets. But that's not their only problem...

My first impression was not the best. I was looking at the main character and I thought he looked like a 25 yo so when I saw h was still in high school, I was aghast. But I got over this pretty quickly and got into the story. (and was truly getting into it when the excerpt ended)
I enjoyed the story overall and its characters. I felt like some things could have been a little more in depth but it was still a solid graphic novel. I especially liked one character (who I can't remember the name of right now) but sadly, she was only a secondary character.

I was also more into one of the drawing style than the other which made it a bit weird.
But this was a good time all in all, I would recommend this.

Thank you Jeannette Arroyo, Ren Graham, and Macmillan Children's Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

After reading the description for this series I knew this was my type of graphic novel! Both MMCs were really enjoyable to read about. Arroyo and Graham’s art was beautiful and matched the style of the story. I also wanted to say I really enjoyed all of the rep that was fit into the beginning of the story. It made Tony and Eli feel so authentic.

Without giving anything away, I can say I devoured this ARC in one sitting! It ends on a bit of a cliffhanger, but it left me feeling excited to read more.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I didn’t care for the overall story. It was described as two boys walking through the woods and discovering mysteries, but that’s not at all what I encountered.

The art was nice and descriptive and I liked how it changed based on the chapter’s artist.

The cast of characters were a little off to me. I’m not really sure about one of the friendships and I didn’t really care for one of the main boys.
I finished it, but not sure I’d get volume 2.

The perfect amount of mystery, horror, and romantic tension. The main characters are already becoming three-dimensional in a very short amount of time and I'm invested in what happens to them next. It's not as long as I hoped it would be, but that's a good thing. It keeps me wanting more. I'll definitely keep my eye out for the next volume.

I was not ready to dive head first into another world, but Arroyo threw me right into a fast paced story featuring two boys with an unexpected chemistry, one of whom is seemingly haunted and living with an autoimmune disorder. The first portion of the book was such a cliffhanger and I cannot wait to buy a copy and find out what happens next! Thanks to NetGalley and Henry Holt for an early read in exchange for an honest review.

4.25 Stars

Thank you to netgalley for an arc of this book and then to Henry, Holt, and Co for sending me a finished copy!

In the town of Blackwater, Tony is a popular track star with a crush on the quiet, nerdy Eli. But something is happening in the woods, and Eli might know what it is.

So, weirdly enough, the netgalley arc of this that I got only had half the book? Either that or it didn't download properly. So I read the e-arc and thought...what a terrible ending! It felt like it was the middle of the story. I was so disappointed because I felt like it had so much potential...Then, the publisher sent me a finished copy and I was like, "wow, this sure is bigger than it seemed." Cue me realizing I had only read half the book. So I read the second half, and my disappointment went away because this was fabulous!

Creepy and cute--I love the budding relationship between confident Tony and shy Eli. I love the chronic illness rep with Tony's asthma and Eli's autoimmune disease. I love the character development that happened in this book! The plot was interesting and I liked how it turned out. I wish the werewolf aspects had been developed a little more, but I did like that part overall!

The characters are really what made this book stand out to me!

Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Alcoholism, Animal death, and Bullying
Moderate: Chronic illness and Emotional abuse
Minor: Body horror, homophobia, and Animal cruelty

I really enjoyed this sample of Blackwater! It definitely left me wanting more of the story! I love the art style of this graphic novel and can't wait to learn more about these characters!

This graphic novel is a delightful surprise. Riverdale meets Stranger Things is the perfect summation for the start of this intriguing series. Introducing us to the cast of characters, we meet Tony and his friends and family along with his neighbor Eli and his mother. The two attend the same high school in a small town, but run in different circles. As the two grow closer, strange things start to happen around their town. I read this all in one sitting. I was immediately drawn in by the characters and the plot. It was a joy to watch both develop and see the characters interact. Tony and Eli are adorable and make for an endearing duo. I will definitely be picking up the second installment of this series when it comes out!

In this paranormal romance, a track star and immuno-comprised nerd fall in love. With the help of werewolves, ghosts, and hunting accidents, Tony and Eli are forced together by more than just the butterflies in their stomachs. This love story is a promising start to the world of Blackwater, Maine, which could definitely be further developed in future volumes to meet its premise of Riverdale and Stranger Things.

Blackwater by Jeannette Arroyo and Ren Graham is a fantastic graphic novel I Loved reading it, All the character's personalities bounce off incredibly off of each other with an amazing dynamic and I cant wait to see the romance evolve in the future books and I cant wait to recommend this book to my friends!

Blackwater is a joy to read. if you watched Teen Wolf and liked it even a little, check this one out! it's definitely pitched more towards teen audiences but I still genuinely enjoyed reading it. the art is lovely and really expressive; characters are super easy to identify, which I always appreciate in a graphic novel lmao

the rep is amazing and I'm really looking forward to the developing friend and relationships. I'm super invested in this story and hope there's a second volume asap!

p.s. the design of the 'mangy bear' is so spooky omg

thank you to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this arc!

We received this ARC from NetGalley and Henry Holt & Co for an honest review.

This is a YA graphic novel that is marketed as a Riverdale meets Stranger Things but makes it LGBTQ friendly. This novel is set in the haunted town of Blackwater, Maine, where Tony, a popular teenager, and Eli, a quiet teenage boy with health issues, become friends. Together they try to unravel the mystery that haunts their town.

It's tough to judge a graphic novel on the first volume in the series. That said, I feel like this was the perfect cozy mystery novel, and I can see a ton of potential for it.

The illustration for this novel came off feeling very retro. Not only were the clothes straight out of a grease movie, but the panels were in black and white, adding to the retro feeling. It was also nice that when we reached a new section of the book, we would get a small amount of color against the black and white world. The illustrator did a fantastic job of showing the characters' emotions without becoming overboard.

The supernatural part of the book wasn't well developed and left us with more questions than answers. I assume this is because this is only the first volume in the book.

Regardless, we loved this book and talked about it on our podcast, Just One More Page. This episode is coming out on 7/24!
You can listen to our podcast here: https://open.spotify.com/show/2oBOvaVW6owJvi9zY38hhB?si=fcf8517105f34e67

Thank you Netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

"Blackwater" by Jeannette Arroyo and Ren Graham is, about two boys Tony and Eli become friends who a spooky town.

I would give "Blackwater" by Jeannette Arroyo and Ren Graham a one-star review because, `1; while the premise sounded interesting the story fell short 2; the characters looked like more adults than teens 3; the story and characters was boring and 3; I honestly hated this book.

Loved the art style and the overall story -- excited to see how it develops! The vibe is very much as the copy suggests: Stranger Things meets Riverdale with a healthy dose of queerness and chronic illness rep, too!

Blackwater is meant to be a combination of many teenage favorites: werewolves, romance, high school, nerds and jocks. The two art styles lend themselves to the setting and characters well, and though I wish the entirety would be in full color, there is an old scary movie vibe about it being primarily black and white. While the copy provided through NetGalley is only a sample (and ends on a major cliffhanger!), it was enough for me to gather that this will be a graphic novel to look for, and one that I will be anxious to finish when it's released.

Thank you to Macmillan Children's and NetGalley for providing a sample for review.

From what I could tell, this looks like a fun, supernatural, queer read. I’m not sure if it was a download issue or if it’s just how samples work but many of the pages were distorted and I couldn’t read them. It really hindered the reading experience so I can’t rate it too accurately. But I liked what I saw and will check it out when it is published.

mysterious slow-paced
Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75 stars

I feel like this would have been better released in full, rather than this shorter arc that just seems to.... not go much of anywhere. I don't really get what's going on with the two main characters - there's this unexplained animosity (could just be bullying) but there's also a friendship? maybe more? but the two don't really seem to have much of a history that would indicate that. I'm interested in the next book but as of right now I don't have much investment in the storyline since the characters feel so vague.

This comic was described as Riverdale meets Stranger Things and I'd definitely agree. We get ghosts, high school drama, and a mysterious creature in the woods all in one! The comic starts off a little clunky with personalities and pacing, but about halfway through the story starts to take off. Tony is the high school's track superstar while Eli is just a quiet loner. The comic starts off like any other high school drama, until a hunting trip goes awry. This is just the first in (what will hopefully be a series) and I'm excited to see where it goes!

As a side note: It was also nice to see some disability representation with Tony's asthma and Eli's autoimmune disorder, and adds an extra dimension to the story and their characters.

Thank you so much to the publisher and Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!