4.5 rounded up
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an arc of this title! I really enjoyed this witchy comic! There seemed to be some definite nods to Harry Potter but the school within this book has enough individuality to make it stand apart from Hogwarts. The story was well written and the twists weren't easily predicted. The artwork is nice, with a few panels I'd describe as gorgeous. This is a must read for anyone into witchy things and graphic novels!

3.5☆ I love witchy reads. I enjoyed SB's graphic novel EAT - and I also enjoyed this. A simple witchy graphic. The art was super cute - reminds me a little of an adultier HP.

Visually beautiful with vivid oranges, reds, and blacks and appealing and fun panel layouts. The story is a mystery set in a witch boarding school. It's not that deep, but the magic system is interesting and the relationships are appealing. I can't stop raving about how good it is!

One of my favorite settings for any type of media is magic schools. Maybe it's because I grew up a Harry Potter nerd and I've recently started rereading them, but there's something about the idea of young people learning how to use magic that's just absolutely irresistable and this graphic novel is no exception. We have magical school filled with young witches, a dangerous magical forest filled with demons, and a student that's gone missing. Obviously, this is a recipe for success.

The plot doesn't disappoint, but the main sell of this one is the art. Sweeney Boo is incredibly talented and the illustrations are absolutely to die for. I'm eagerly anticipating her future works because I absolutely could not get enough of the gorgeous art. Even the way she styled the checkered patterns on the skirts was so cool and I absolutely loved it.

5 stars for sure.

A quick read graphic novel. Beautiful illustrations, a story of witches and trying to “Find your family” & friendship. A little choppy here and there, kind of hard to follow along and wrapped up too quickly for my taste. Should be 3.5 stars

This book was beautiful! I loved the artwork and the story was phenomenal. The characters were all complex and interesting. A queer Harry Potter.

Magic school graphic novel! Let's be fair, it's hard to get into this genre without echoes of THAT series, and there's a bit of that here. A lot of British/New England vibes in the clothing and architectural design, but thank goodness the CHARACTERS have wider representation. The plot and schemes are also a fair bit more...bloody. This MIGHT be because you can see everything, instead of just reading about injuries, but there's a higher sense of peril in this comic.

Abby is our focus of the story, as she investigates the disappearance of her best friend and fellow orphan. In the course of her search, Abby learns about a much older disappearance at the school, and begins to connect the teachers of the present to those students involved in the past.

The artwork is where this book really excels. Not to say the plot isn't great, but WOW. There's so much DETAIL. Backgrounds are never glossed over, with the school in particular full of ornate windows, fancy furniture, and textured/molded walls everywhere. This castle's interior designer must be on-site CONSTANTLY, because the Aesthetic is paramount. Sweeney Boo also put a lot of effort into maintaining perspective, so the backgrounds always look in place and sized right.

The hair. Oof, the effort put into that hair. Especially near the end of the book, when everyone is frazzled and the fancier styles are just in ruins. That must have taken ages.

Boo had to have poured several thousand hours into this book, and while I could READ it in under an hour, I'm interested into returning to Younwity for any sequels!

Advanced reader copy provided by the publisher.

I loved Over My Dead Body! The art - outstanding, and probably one of the best illustrations I've seen in a graphic novel. The story - amazing, magical, and mysterious. I loved the whole dark academia vibe, and I know many people will agree with me.

Very excited to recommend this one! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read this early!

I overall enjoyed the graphic novel and think it will appeal to fans who enjoy magical academia. The art was quite impressive and one of the reasons the book is a joy to read. Best read during the month of October to get into the spirit of things.

Does this stand out from the countless other witch stories I’ve read this year? Not really. Is it still a delightful and spooky graphic novel that I recommend? Yes. Over My Dead Body takes place at a school for witches, and follows Abigail., who is trying to solve the mystery of two girls who went missing years apart from each other.

This story isn’t particularly new and exciting, but Sweeney Boo makes it up for with her beautiful art and likable characters. Every character is drawn to be so lively and special, and they are easy too root for. I wanted them to solve the mystery and have their own happy endings. I loved the cozy vibes of the art, and think this is a perfect fall read. It fully transported me.

Overall, this wasn’t my favorite but I really enjoyed and think the art was great. I will suggesting we add it to our library collection and think this is the perfect Halloween recommendation. Read if you want some witchy, spooky fun!

Sweeney Boo weaves together a fascinating story featuring beautiful illustrations. A tale for any fan of horror or paranormal graphic novels, it goes much deeper than a missing friend. It’s a tale about found families, friendships, and finding yourself. Couldn’t put it down and already strongly pushed for purchase at our local library.

A missing witch, a magic school, a mystery and a demon monster?
A classic witch boarding school mystery. The art is AMAZING. The characters were a little two dimensional, and overall the story didn't super flow for me. I found myself just ready for it to be over by the end. It felt like not enough happened, and also maybe I needed less? It weirdly was in the middle. The pacing was off.
But I think it had enough interesting elements going on that I was okay powering through.

A great YA graphic novel that deals my favorite subject, witches. This is a fast paced magic mystery. The illustrations were amazing and middle school students would love to read this.

If you are looking for a dark paranormal book, look no further. Abby’s friend Noreen goes missing in the woods around the Witch Institute. Addy worried about her friend tries to unravel a mystery. With beautiful imagery and interesting characters, you will be sucked into this story from the beginning.

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read this book.

When I grabbed this I didn't realize it was a graphic novel. But I was not disappointed. I need this as a movie ASAP!! This was so good and I could not put it down. I loved every page and could not put this down. It was kind of predictable but that was ok. If you love witches check this one out.

This comic? Was just So. Good. I knew I was going to enjoy the gothic at atmosphere. I was not expecting it to blow me away the way I thought it would. For numberous reasons, this had me skipping to the next page again and again, eager to see and find out what was going to happen next. I was not disappointed and cannot wait to read more from this author in the future!

When Abby's friend and mentee, Noreen, goes missing, she takes it upon herself to look for her--despite teachers telling her not to, and despite her meddlesome roommate. This is a story of friendship and found family with beautiful illustrations and a cozy setting at a magical school (with requisite forbidden forest). I'd read a million other stories just for the setting, but the characters are also compelling, and I'd love to see more of them, too. This is a great option for fans of Harry Potter.

This book was good overall. The art was excellent, and the story was compelling. I didn't love it but I'm not sure what would've changed that.

4.5/5
It’s the days leading up to Samhain and a student at Younwity Institute of Magic goes missing. Most of the students are fairly certain that Noreen, the missing student, will show up eventually. Abby, her friend and mentor, isn’t so sure. She decides to investigate, which leads to trouble and mayhem. Abby discovers how Noreen’s disappearance might be linked to a similar disappearance of another student over a century ago.

First and foremost, I adored the art style and use of color in this graphic novel. The atmosphere of the school reminded me a lot of another series I’m not going to name for obvious reasons, but it actually has openly LGBTQIA+ characters, so that’s a major plus. I also loved that the characters had familiars. I haven’t read many witchy books where that’s a thing. The characters all felt distinct, which is hard to accomplish in a graphic novel under 250 pages. Also, I absolutely loved Seymour. More talking cats in books, please!

My only complaint is that it felt like things wrapped up a little too quickly, but maybe that’s just a gripe because I was enjoying the story and artwork so much. I want more! I’m not sure if this is intended to be a standalone, but it seems like it’s open to the possibility of a sequel, which I would gladly welcome.

I highly recommend Over My Dead Body to anyone who wants a witchy graphic novel with a mystery at the center of it.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children’s Books (Harperalley) for allowing me to have an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was absolutely the queer, sweet, beautiful found family of witchy students I needed in my life, and I loved every page of this story. The characters are so lovable and the plot was interesting and suspenseful, all set in a magical world that I wanted so much more time in!

I loved the Younwity school setting, and most of all, I adored the familiars — especially Seymour, the nervous, kindly little cat that accompanies Abby, the protagonist. And then that ending, too?

Truly, everything about this graphic novel made my witchy little heart sing and I can't recommend it highly enough! ♥

✨ Representation: Goldie is Black and queer; Goldie's father is Black; Violet is queer (and Asian?); Enver uses they/them pronouns