A quirky, cute, and absolutely adorable graphic novel for the spooky season!

In this graphic novel, we follow a witch who has just moved to a haunted house. It needs to be cleared of ghosts. As she is not so good with witchcraft herself, she befriends some unique and funny town's people to help her and starts to get to know ghosts by learning more about their lives.

The story is charming and would definitely work for those that need a thematic read on Halloween but are afraid to read anything truly terrifying, and to a younger audience as well. I loved not only the story itself but also each drawing. Characters are so unique! Different sizes, shapes, and colors. I loved how each was detailed with some distinctive quirks.

I am so looking forward to the next part! 😍

I didn't really like this one at first...but it grew on me. Initially I was annoyed by several things: mostly the cheesy dialogue and the confusing characters (they are supposed to be teenagers but talk like little kids and one lives on her own?). The jokes aren't as funny as I think they are supposed to be, and I'm not sure who the target audience is, to be honest.

The artwork is adorable, though, and once we meet a couple more witches and see their friendships begin to form I started to enjoy the story.

It's a hugely popular webcomic, so I'm sure my students will be excited about it.

You know those Youtube channels that you don't subscribe to but end up appearing on your front page over and over so you get sucked into watching them? I have many, but one of them that I managed to forget about was LavenderTowne. I didn't subscribe because I didn't really want to fall down yet another Youtube wormhole, but LavenderTowne's art was charming.

When I first saw Unfamiliar by Haley Newsome something was actually quite familiar about the art style. Lo and behold, Haley Newsome is LavenderTowne. If nothing else, I knew I would enjoy the art. It turns out the story is just as cute and whimsical as the art.

Unfamiliar follows a young kitchen witch Planchette as she moves to a new house. Unfortunately for Planchette, the house is haunted and her area of expertise isn't exorcism. In town, Planchette is able to find help (and friends! Probably...) in Pinyon, Sun, and Babs.

Unfamiliar feels like it could be one of those childhood cartoons that seemed very lighthearted and episodic while also having a plot that snuck up on you. Or a webtoon. Which it was. Or is based on? ("Based on" is what the description says, but it doesn't specify whether it's just tightening up some little details here and there or major story details. I'd guess the former.) Unfamiliar started as a series on Tapas in 2016 and still has episodes coming out. For anyone that's already read the series, this means it might not be worth starting from the beginning. For big fans and collectors, this might be a nice holiday gift though!

Unfamiliar by Haley Newsome comes out December 6, 2022. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for an advance copy!

tl;dr
Bright charming artwork strikes an ideal balance between cute and spooky. Less a single story and more a series of vignettes at this point.

About
Planchette the kitchen witch moves into a magical town so she can finally fit in, but the house she thought she got a great deal on turns out to be haunted! The only way to exorcise the ghosts is to lay their spirits to rest, but that sort of work is far beyond a kitchen witch's capabilities. Good thing there are plenty of other residents in Planchette's new town who can help.

Thoughts
If you didn't tell me this was based on a webcomic, I think I would have figured it out at some point anyway. Chapters are easily digestible with a bit of plot conceit tying them together, and make for a very pleasant read. Everything also moves incredibly fast, with characters and backstory unfurling sometimes in a single panel. The blurb made me think we'd be following Planchette's storyline exorcising ghosts, but that's only one of the things going on here. There's also an incredibly endearing plot line about a siren and a cursed girl that feeds directly into my love for the opposites attract trope. And possibly a murder mystery? There are hints of a bigger plot at work that might eventually tie everyone together, but for now it's a very light affair. Heavier topics like unsolved murder or family trauma are not dwelt on for too long, but be advised that they are definitely in here. The art is bold, with distinct character designs and broad expressions. I think maybe some emotional nuances get lost in all of it, but overall it's a very fun look. A great read for anyone looking for witchy vibes and some strong artwork.

I absolutely adored this book! The characters and familiars are so cute and likeable. I love the combination of Planchette moving to a new place, trying to be independent, making new friends, and trying to cleanse her house of many ghosts. There is humor, wit, and empathetic moments within this story. I cannot wait to read more. I love the artwork and design styles as well.

I loved this from start to finish! A heartwarming and cozy read, I can’t recommend it enough. I only wish it’d been longer so I didn’t have to stop reading

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for dreamy artwork and a lovely story about friendship. I can't wait to read more about Planchette and her friends in the next volume!

An adorable story about young witches and finding friends. The art style took me a bit to get used to, but other than that I enjoyed it!

Many thanks to Netgalley & Publisher for providing me with this ARC in exchange of an honest review.

Unfamiliar is a fun little comic about Plachette, a kitchen witch, who moves into a brand new town and is faced with a few challenges, such as: making new friends and getting rid of the ghosts in her house.

It's a very sweet story, if a little fast paced. The art and character designs are very unique and I sense a few hints of inspiration taken from classic kid shows, like Adventure Time and Gravity Falls. The characters Sun and Babs, especifically, reminded me a lot of Marceline and Princess Bubblegum.

Needless to say, I loved it very much and I look forward for Volume 2.

THAT WAS SOOOO CUTE

low stakes fantasy graphic novel involving witches and ghosts. the dynamics were heartwarming and lovely. Can't wait for volume 2!!!

Thank you NetGalley for this Arc in exchange for an honest review. 💖

The art style of the this is ADORABLE. Super cute, cozy and comforting. I truly enjoyed reading this it was simply overly plain in its plot and story for my tastes and I was left wanting more. There is going to be a second volume that I will 100% be picking up!!

3.75*

Planchette got a great deal on her new house - probably because it’s extremely haunted. Being a kitchen witch doesn’t give her the set of skills she needs to fix it, and she soon assembles a group of friends and neighbours to help her.

This was so adorable! I loved the art style, and the colours. Planchette was so open and charming, and I loved her enthusiasm. Helping ghosts find peace and move on is such a sweet idea, and Sun and Babs working together to help each other is a fun dynamic too.

Even the little details were fantastic - the speech bubbles with bunny ears when you couldn’t see Winston in the frame so you know he’s the one talking was so stinkin cute.

I’m looking forward to the second volume of this series!

Thank you to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for an advanced copy of Unfamiliar in exchange for my honest review.

I was unfamiliar (no pun intended) with this web comic before picking up the graphic novel, but I loved meeting these characters and learning about their witchy world. A great quick read and I can't wait to read the next one!

Cozy, perfect for the Halloween season. The art style wasn't quite my taste, but still cute. The plot ended in an unsatisfying place and moved around a lot. The characters were intriguing, but there wasn't time to really develop them. I haven't read a lot of graphic novels yet to know if this is normal, however.

I enjoyed this regardless and recommend it.

*3.5

This was such a cute and quirky start to a series! I know that this is a web series which means there is a lot more story for these witches in the future. My favorite aspect was the ghosts and the witches trying to help them (in really cute ways). I think for me, my issue was that it felt really random at times and staccato, which I think was just the style of the comics, but the beginning felt more like a connective plot, then towards the end. It was still a really short and fun book to pick up!

Thank you to Andrew McMeel Publishing and Netgalley for gifting me a copy in exchange for my honest review!

This was fairly cute, though not my favorite art style - a bit frenetic for my tastes. It was a quick read but a little one-note. I can see the webcomic in it.

This was an adorable graphic novel! I like how there are different types of witches in this world and that they have different powers. The idea of a kitchen witch is brilliant! And incorporating a siren was cool too! I liked how there was a crime-solving and ghost aspect of the story. This seems like a good start to an adorable series.

This was a supercute witchy tale perfect for spooky season. A quick read with fun art style, it would be better for younger readers. A kitchen witch moves into a haunted house and makes friends and uncovers mysteries while helping the ghosts in her house find peace. This is only Vol. 1, so a good beginning to the series and I'm looking forward to more.

This is a cute story about witches, ghosts, and friendship. I like the art style overall, but on some of the zoomed-in shots it can be a little difficult to tell what's going on because of their weird eyes. I liked the story enough that I went to the author's website and read the rest of what's currently available. It's a great spooky season read for people who aren't too into the spook factor.

An utterly charming and captivating graphic novel: full to the brim of whimsy and wonder in its art, characters and settings.

What a cute and quaint graphic novel! Not only was the story sweet, the characters were intriguing and the art was STUNNING. Will definitely keep an eye on this author.