Cover Image: Project Nought

Project Nought

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Member Reviews

For some reason, every time I stopped reading this book, I had a hard time starting again, but once I got going I didn’t want to stop. It’s a good book. The story is engaging, and the characters are great. There’s a good diverse cast, and they’re all well developed. I definitely didn’t see the end coming until I was almost there. There were a couple of plot points that I thought were questionable, but overall it's worth the read.

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This book was one that I forgot to post the review for so… oops! It was a good book but I read it a while ago so I should probably reread it

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Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book, as this book has already been published, I will not share my review on Netgalley at this time.

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This was requested when I first found out about NetGalley and I had requested so many ARCs that I could not get to all of them before they were archived. I really wanted to get to this one, as it seemed interesting. If I can find this somewhere for a reasonable price, I will try to get it! I am giving this book three stars, as I don't want to give it a good or bad rating, since I did not get to it and we have to leave a star rating.

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Decent concept though the plot is kind of all over the place. Time travel is always going to introduce weird complexities. The beginning is sort of slow and meandering with a sudden tonal shift at about the mid point. This is where the book gets truly interesting and the tension hits the right notes. Its worth the read if you're patient through the slow start.

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"Project Nought" is a queer sci-fi graphic novel including time-travel, mystery, suspense, sweet romance and interesting, loveable characters!
While I was able to predict some of the plot twists, others caught me completely off-guard and the action didn't fail to keep me hooked all the way through.
I also really appreciated the nonbinary representation and the take on how gender might be viewed in the future!

Overall, I had a fun time reading this book and though, for some reason, it didn't quite have that five star spark for me, I'll still be getting my hands on a physical copy soon!

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The plot was and stakes were clear, but I wasn't blown away. I can see what people would like about it, but I wasn't huge on the art, and there were only two characters that I had even a passing interest in. This is nothing against the quality of the book but it's personally not for me.

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A sci-fi story set in a gendernormative future where a futuristic corporation may have more sinister plans than the characters suspect. Most characters are well fleshed-out and have clear and unique traits and goals that make the reader invested in their stories. The pacing and building mystery and final action scenes make it difficult for the reader to put down the book. Project Nought ends on a bitter-sweet note with a satisfying ending that wraps up the loose ends while also leaving room for the reader to form their own conclusions.

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This is a super fun graphic novel! It's an approachable sci-fi story with a fantastically diverse cast. There's some really fun twists and turns which keep the book really engaging. The art is really fun, and the setting of New Zealand provides some fun content but also isn't so rooted in New Zealand that it feels unrelatable to US teens.

Overall, a real fun romp!

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This was such a fun read! I love science fiction, and I thought the story had great twists and turns while still feeling believable. It also had so many loveable characters who I wish I could meet in real life!

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4.5 stars

Tldr: This is a great YA Sci-fi recommendation! It has time travel, a big secret, and queer representation. Think the '90's are nostalgic, how ancient is it in the year 2122?

Review: What would you do if you woke up over 100 years into the future? How would you feel if you were told that you were living history--a project for students of the future to learn history from a real person from that time, but at the end of it, you forget everything?

I really enjoyed this graphic novel! The story and the art went together beautifully. The big plot twist caught me by surprise, but it made perfect sense. I appreciated that this was a full story in one volume.

The pacing was a bit fast at some points, but perhaps I am being selfish wanting to spend more moments with these characters. I really wanted to *know* them. I do believe we get a good sense of who these characters are, but I suppose i just wanted to linger in this story for another 20-50 pages.

I appreciated the diversity and the queer representation!

I will certainly be recommending this graphic novel to anyone looking for something LGBTQ or sci-fi!

I was granted access to a digital ARC of this book and would definitely consider buying it to read it again!

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The art was fantastic, the characters were great, and the plot was compelling. It was paced perfectly. I loved the inclusivity in terms of characters of color and queer characters. The worldbuilding was also amazing.

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Ren Mittal is just living his life in 1996, running away from home to go see his pen pal when he wakes up in 2122... Turns out he is part of a project of a company/university where people get sent through time to show to 2122 youth what it was like then. But this corporation seems to be hiding things from everyone. Who knows what is actually going on??

This was quite original with twists I did not see coming and I had a good time reading it overall. I liked the characters, especially Syd and I enjoyed seeing all of them on their journey to the truth. However, the ending felt a bit rushed and bittersweet. Also, I felt like the romances were a bit too fast-paced.
Overall though, this was a good story, with great illustrations that I did enjoy quite a lot and it was just so Gay. That was beautiful. I can't wait to read more by Chelsey Furedi.

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Project Nought is just a lot of fun - plain and simple. As someone who is adamantly against any sort of time-travel media, I was genuinely surprised by how much I enjoyed this. It never felt bogged down by the science behind the program and I truly enjoyed the exploration of time travel ethics.

The illustrations and colorations are absolutely gorgeous and they’re the true highlights to this story. The characters absolutely popped off the page - they were all unique and expressive and just really lovely. Ren, Mars, Jia, and Phoebe were such a fun cast to follow around this world and they carried the story extremely well.

Mars’ droids were also an unexpected delight and they absolutely stole my heart. I was a little Phobos and Deimos. Tāne was another engaging side character - every time they were on the page, I couldn’t help but be captivated.

Another thing I loved about this was its queer normative world. There is some EXCELLENT representation in this story and they do a wonderful job explaining the acceptance, especially to this group of teens coming from 1996. It did not feel overdone in the slightest. 

My only compliant is that it felt like some times there were sections missing from the story - like a scene would end and I was missing a key detail that led to the next one. I know this was adapted from a Tapas WebComic, so I’m wondering if some items were cut upon publication.

This was a lot of fun and I could easily see myself purchasing a copy to reread in the future! Thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins for the advanced copy.

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A super interesting concept for a YA novel with a very sweet and unique love story. Lots to enjoy, and loved the art style.

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Thanks to Netgalley and Clarion books for the ARC of this!

This was a cute and fun read, with sci-fi vibes but not too much of the science-y stuff bogging it down. I loved the characters, art style and world a lot. This would be great for fans of Space Boy, A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet, and Always Human.

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Okay I wasn’t sure what to expect from this but I wound up really loving it! The art was lovely and paired well with the story.

It was interesting to read a story where there’s no longer homophobia or gendered bathrooms but large companies still want to profit off of people and they don’t care who they hurt.

I loved all of the characters, they had great personalities and I have a hard time saying who was my favorite (probably Phoebe because she was hilarious but I also really like Ren).

Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review.

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This book started off really throwing me for a loop, and I was SUPER confused, but I am SO GLAD I stuck with it. The plot is twisty, but so well thought out. And you get some great artwork paired with a great story. I stayed fully captivated until the final page.

If you're looking for a sci-fi graphic novel with queer rep, great characters, amazing art, and enough twists to make your head spin, you should definitely grab this book!

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I've waited over two years for this story. Project Nought first appeared on the webcomic app Tapas and I instantly fell in love with Mars and Ren. I've been using an image of Ren's face as my avatar on Tapas because it is such a mood! LOL

Look at that expression! We've all been there.
(image is in my review on I Smell Sheep review site)

Then Chelsey announced Project Nought would no longer post because it got picked up by a publisher! I was excited for her...but...I would have to wait two years to get the rest of the story!
*dramatic fall to the ground*

Was the wait worth it? Oh yeah. She changed the art style a little. It is now more polished than cartoony. I love Chelsey's art style because it is so expressive. You can't help but smile at Mars's infectious personality and feel for poor mopey Ren. Diversity is a big part of Chelsey's comics and something young adults have been craving...as well as some adults ;)

Project Nought has a cool premise. Imagine if your school could time-travel people from the past to spend a semester with your class so you can learn about history from their point of view. Brilliant! The corporation that owns the technology has a secret... it took me by surprise and that is hard to do, lol.

There is a sweet romance between Mars and Ren but the story focuses on the cast of friends coming together to right a wrong. The drama and heavy issues are balanced with lots of humor. There are many types of developing relationships woven into the complex plot giving the reader 336 pages of quality reading.

Project Nought would be a great addition to a middle school or high school library...and my own. I'm waiting for my pre-ordered hardback to arrive.

Take a look at some of the preview pages.
(my review on I Smell Sheep with have several preview images)

4.5 "time-traveling" Sheep

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The first thing you need to know about Project Nought is that the characters are all queer and diverse. I will never get tired of stories like this, where queer people are able to thrive in a queer-normative world. Where everything just fits. Project Nought is set 100 years in the future, and I hope we are headed towards a similar society. The world-building was incredible. The art felt futuristic, and I think the author did a great job making everything look as realistic as possible. I would love to take a step out of this timeline and jump into a new one, but based on everything that happened in Project Nought, I’m not sure if I really do.

The art was gorgeous, some of the best I’ve seen in a graphic novel. Mars came to life in the drawings. His joy and emotions were so infectious. I felt a little grumpy energy from Ren. They had a wonderful romance, and it was interesting following Ren’s journey from being a closeted kid from the 90s to suddenly living in a queer-normative society. It was brilliant to also see a good mix of sapphic and non-binary characters. The characters are what makes this graphic novel thrive, and I have a soft spot for Mars. He was utterly adorable.

Project Nought has a unique story and carves a path for itself in the YA market. I haven’t read many mysteries, especially with sci-fi elements, in graphic novel form. The twist at the end took me by surprise. This book reminded me of one of my favourite television shows of all time. If you haven’t watched Orphan Black, then you are a weirdo.

I am looking forward to reading more from the author, and I would love to revisit this world someday. I’d highly recommend this graphic novel to anyone who loves Heartstopper, Bloom, or Cosmoknights!

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