This graphic novel is absolutely wonderful in every way, but it shines the most with its layered, loveable characters and their interactions with each other. I couldn't have enjoyed this more.

I started smiling when I read the dedication and I didn’t stop until I’d finished the book! Super adorable romance that I will absolutely be recommending to patrons, especially those who’ve read and loved heartstopper. I’m so glad this book exists!

This book is absolutely adorable! It's amazing to see a cute, high school romance with 3 Sapphic girls who each have such distinct and interesting personalities, interests, strengths, and styles. Belle of the Ball is a romance, but it's also a story about the importance of friendship, having confidence in yourself, and prioritizing what makes you feel happy and fulfilled. It's a rare love triangle where you like all 3 people, and you're rooting for all 3 of them to end up in a good place (which they do!). The art style and color palette is adorable too! Belle of the Ball made me smile throughout, and I would recommend it wholeheartedly for school libraries. If my school wasn't an all-boys middle school and therefore not quite the target audience (although boys definitely can and should read it too!), I would buy it for the library in a heartbeat. I might buy it for myself regardless!

I’d like to thank netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. I really liked this story, when 3 female high school seniors, 2 of whom are dating and the other has feelings for one of them, but which one does she really want. I enjoyed the storyline and the art to go with it.

This was such a cute sapphic romance. At first I was a little hesitant because I thought they were using the MC Belle, but it did have such a nice twist to it. I really felt for Belle because she seems very shy and even mentioned not having many friends, but it was nice to see her grow into her self. When the one girl was talking about her 10 year plan, to graduate medical school at 22, it seemed a little off. I was pre-med in college, and you need a 4 year bachelor's degree before even applying to medical school. Plus medical school in itself is 4 years. But it was nice to see a girl who was interested in pre-med. We love to see women in stem. But overall this was a cute LGBTQ romance graphic novel. I wish Chloe wouldn't have bullied Belle at first though, it did seem a little harsh. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a cute graphic novel.

I don't normally read graphic novels, but I absolutely loved Heartstopper and this one caught my eye.
The story was super cute and the characters were loveable, not to mention the art style is adorable!
Ended up reading this in one sitting. Highly recommend.

This graphic novel was fun to read.
Really enjoy the colour of the comics.
A fun coming of age trope.

This was absolutely adorable! I loved every second of it. The story was so cute, and I really liked the characters personalities and how they evolved and we discovered more about each of them, even though graphic novels are so short.
The pink art all over the book is gorgeous, I always love when artists use monochrome colours in graphic novels.
I will definitely recommend this to people. Especially lovers of all LGBTQ+ fiction :)

It’s ADORABLE!

It’s a cute little high school romance. It reminds me of Scott Pilgrim, if that book was only about lesbians. The art is really cute. I read an ARC, so the lettering wasn’t finished yet, I can’t wait to see what it looks like as a finished product.

Hawkins plucks up her courage to remove her mascot mask, and ask out her long-time crush Regina. Unfortunately, Regina is already dating the star athlete Chloe. Regina plays on Hawkins' feelings and has her tutor Chloe for free. This leads to unexpected connections and growth for all three characters.

This is a super sweet, engaging coming-of-age graphic novel. The characters have their flaws and their strengths, and despite their occasionally conflicting positions, no one is demonised. There is an underlying theme of how to be the person you want to be when every one has already decided who they think you are.

I adored both the art style and the story of this graphic novel. I would not hesitate to recommend it widely.

*4.5 Stars*

Belle of the Ball is a graphic novel centering Belle Hawkins, a shy girl who's all about hunched shoulders and not getting noticed. You know, until she asks out the most popular girl in school, Regina Moreno. Star Quaterback Chloe Kitagawa and Regina's girlfriend is not a fan and she lets Belle know. But Regina wants to meddle and decides that Belle would make the perfect English tutor for Chloe since she would do it for free. And things get even messier...

This was really fun. And cute. I had a really good time from beginning to end and I really enjoyed getting to know these characters and living through their drama. I also really liked the art style and really found myself pulled into the story.
And if I'm being perfectly honest, I'm probably going to reread this before it comes out.

8/10
thanks to netgalley and first second books for the arc!

belle of the ball follows three characters: Belle Hawkins, a wallflower who is the school mascot and in love with Regina, Regina Moreno, who is an academic overachiever and popular girl, and Chloe Kitagawa, athletic all-star and Regina's girlfriend. when Hawkins confesses to Regina, Regina rejects her because she is dating Chloe. Regina later finds out that Chloe is failing english class and uses Hawkins's crush on her to get her to tutor Chloe for free. Chloe and Hawkins then start to fall for one another.

from the description of this book, i was really hoping it would be a polyamorous romance, but sadly it wasn't. i still enjoyed the book tho! i liked that each character was allowed to be flawed, and i adored the art style. i also really liked belle and chloe falling for one another, and the unlikely friendship between belle and regina. that being said, i did feel like a little of the story was rushed and was left with some questions. why did belle and chloe stop hanging out as little girls? what was making chloe stay with regina when they clearly weren't having a good time together? i also felt like the ending was a little rushed, and wished that chloe and regina broke it off a little earlier. that being said, i'm glad that all of the blame on the relationship between chloe and regina failing was not put onto one individual person, and was glad to see that they all took a prom picture together, indicating they are still on good terms. i really enjoyed reading this book and will absolutely recommend it to people when it comes out!

This was a super cute graphic novel romance that I know my students will love. My co-librarian was a big fan, but I was a little bit underwhelmed by this, particularly in the final 20% of the book. I even turned to my partner and lamented, "I'm only 20 pages from the end of this book and the original couple is still together. I'm stressed out by the fact that there is no way they can break up so the other two can finally get together!" The ending felt so incredibly rushed.

Overall, I think my struggles with this book were for two key reasons. First, everything felt rushed (with the exception of the chemistry between Belle and Chloe). Belle's friendship with Regina felt underdeveloped, a bit random, and rushed. The breakup between Chloe and Regina felt necessary (they didn't really like each other than much anyway), but also rushed at the end. And Belle and Chloe forgetting that they were childhood friends also seemed a little strange, though I think this was based on a real=life situation from the author's life so I will let that go?

The second reason this book didn't jive for me was that I didn't really connect with Chloe or Belle. I'm sure there are other folks out there who will feel seen in these characters, but it's hard for me to connect with a romance when I'm struggling with both of the characters who are trying to fall for each other. What can I say -- I'm a Regina in this book, and though Regina isn't the villain she also isn't the focus and I found her to be the most interesting character. I would love to read her story of finding new love at Harvard!

Even though this wasn't for me, I can still picture students who will absolutely love this book and I'm glad I'm familiar with the content so I can recommend it to them We can't get enough queer and racially diverse characters, especially in contemporary YA graphic novels, so we will definitely be buying this for our library in the spring!

Belle of the Ball is a sweet coming of age story about 3 girls about to graduate high school. Belle is in love with Regina, who is in a relationship with Chloe. When Chloe admits she's failing English, Regina takes advantage of Belle's infatuation to get her to tutor Chloe for free. But things don't go according to plan when Chloe and Belle have more in common than they think.

This is another digital ARC courtesy of NetGalley. Belle of the Ball is a graphic novel written and illustrated by Mari Costa due to be released on March 21, 2023.

The Good Stuff

I'm so glad I came across this book. It's really wonderful for a number of reasons, and I'm excited to tell you about them! I'm very much looking forward to sharing this with my patrons when it's released. Let's dive in below.

The Story

As mentioned in the summary above, this story focuses on three main characters: Hawkins, Regina, and Chloe. You might think that this is a typical love triangle, but Costa takes the trope and plays with it a bit to a delightful effect. It's important to state up front that perhaps one of the biggest reasons that this book is so cool is because all of our main characters are gay and present in different ways. That said, the book doesn't make a big deal about it! It simply tells the story of how friendship and romance blossom between the trio. I'm so excited by this kind of normalization of queer relationships!! This is going to be a great addition in terms of representation in our collection.

The story also features some enormously funny tropes. They're familiar but played effectively - I found myself verbally reacting numerous times when reading and rereading it. It reminds me of some of my favorite childhood/tweenhood movies in comforting ways. At the same time, there are moments as a queer former teenager that I cringed in recognition and remembering. These things are going to make this book enormously appealing to both youth and adults alike. Learning how to communicate in the middle of big feelings is a skill we're all constantly learning and refining, and Hawkins, Regina, and Chloe handle it with an undeniable charm.

The Art

Speaking of representation, the art in this book is GORGEOUS. I'm a huge fan of the shades of pink. It lends a fairy tale-like quality to the story that makes it all the more endearing (and is a lot of fun once you get into the main bits of the story. No spoilers!). Costa represents many different body types, ethnicities, and presentations in the story and I really appreciated it! Nothing is treated as bad or wrong - simply different. That's a really nice thing to not have to worry about when reading a romcom.

Yes, I'm side-eyeing a lot of those same childhood movies I mentioned earlier.

I also need to shoutout Costa's expressions here - telling a story with three different perspectives is difficult on the best of days, but each character's facial and bodily expressions are masterful and give us the entire picture of their thoughts and emotions in the moment. The linework in particular is a treat as well. I'll definitely be recommending this book to those of my patrons who are interested into getting into comics work themselves!

In Summary

This book was such a treat. The description on NetGalley pulled me in and I'm so glad I made the time to read it. I'm looking forward to buying it for my library but also buying a copy for myself! This book is highly recommended.

BELLE OF THE BALL does some really new and exciting things with some old, one might say classic, tropes. A love triangle between three queer teens, this story really expertly evokes the sometimes overwhelming experience of coming in age during high school. Not only is one navigating new feelings and new relationships, but one is pressured to begin making big decisions about the future: colleges, careers, and discovering who you are. Costa allows all of her characters to be messy and imperfect, but good at heart. There's so much empathy in this story, and so many touching depictions of navigating the desire to connect and how it conflicts with fear of that same connection. I really liked this and I think a broad array of readers will too.

This book is a rollercoaster of emotion that ends on such a sweet note. It portraits realistic problems that high school students face like college acceptance and relationships. It shows you that you should be true to yourself. The pink coloration of all the pages gives it a softened air.

I loved this graphic novel! It was swoony and romantic while also being incredibly funny. The relationships felt real and authentic. Highly recommended!

Cute YA Graphic Novel about navigating the waters of senior year, lost friendship and just finding your way. This was a different kind of YA trope, rediscovering your childhood best friend who was hiding in plain sight all along while trying to fit in with your family/friends expectations of you. This GN hits all the teen angst without getting too cheesy or stereotypical. I wonder if the illustrations will all stay pink or will there be additional colors added when the final book comes out. This is one for MS/HS libraries. Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

This was so incredibly cute! I really enjoyed the story and the artstyle/coloring. It was cute to see Hawkins and Chloe re-connect with each other. I find a few aspects of the story a bit odd with how a relationship ended so quickly and without consequence which is why it wasn't a 5 star rating from me. I think the ending may have been a bit rushed. All in all it was a really cute story and it sort of merged the enemies to lovers and friends to lovers trope.