First off, the art in this is gorgeous. The artist is so expressive with the characters faces, like they're feeling everything so viscerally. The main character Cade is relatable in so many ways, from the difficult balance of queer fear and hope to the adoration of horror as a parallel to personal experience. This graphic novel is an eerie but overall sweet delight to read.

I haven't read a great graphic novel in a while so this was a real treat. Northranger is modern, gay retelling of Northanger Abbey that takes place during a hot, sticky summer in the American south. The writer sets the tone beautifully, by introducing to our horror-movie loving main character Cade, and his blended, and messy, family. Cade and his step-father are sent to work on a ranch to make some desperately needed cash, and its here that that the mystery and romance start.

Rey Terciero balances the heat and humidity of summer in the south with the darkness that comes with being a closeted teen living in possibly haunted house in Texas. There are characters that are likable, some that are despicable and some that are so messy and fall directly in between. Cade is easy to root for, even when he begins to believe ridiculous things, because as gay, non-white, kid, the reasons to be scared are plentiful. This book makes us afraid of things that go bump in the night and of the hate that is often spewed loudly in broad daylight. That being said, it is sweet and hopeful and there are many characters that grow and learn. Its a very honest depiction of the queer experience.

I recommend this to older teens, and maybe some of my middle schoolers. The author provides a great list of triggers at the beginning, which is super helpful. This gets very heavy at points and will not be right for all readers, but if you can handle heavy stuff, check this graphic novel out. You will swoon and cry.

As someone who has read most of Jane Austen's novels, I've gotten used to seeing retellings of Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility and Emma - but haven't really seen anyone take on Northanger Abbey. I felt this was a spot on retelling with enough new elements that it felt fresh and unique. If you haven't read Northanger Abbey the reading experience wouldn't be diminished at all, but having read it makes it fun to see all of the mirrored events and themes.

That being said, I thought Cade's story was compelling and felt authentic. Terciero obviously drew on his personal experience growing up, as he explained in the author's note. Sadly what Cade and other characters experienced is still all too common an occurrence and I really appreciated Cade getting to speak his truth in the story and really dive deep into not just what may be experienced on the outside as a queer teenager, but also some of the internal struggles that are faced on an everyday basis. Trigger warnings for homophobic and racist language (though it is challenged).

I really enjoyed the overall story and loved the correlating points to Northanger Abbey. Though it was a story with a lot of heavy topics, it was still heartfelt and entertaining.

cute!! i love how this story handled being gay in a potentially hostile environment, and i loved loved loved the solidarity that henry and his sister had. i know this is based off of a jane austen book and the ending is basically the same as that novel, but i couldn't help wishing this had been a true horror story. still, i loved cade and henry and how sweet their romance was!

Really like this take on a classic and the artwork was right up my alley. Perfect for YA graphic novel fans.

Thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins for the ARC of this!

I loved the art style so much, it was really cool. The characters all worked so well together. The main plot of a character getting so frightened and misunderstanding secrets went a little beyond what felt believable, but overall I loved the whole story.

This is really good! I honestly had no idea how things would turn out! I won't say anything about the ending, though I will admit I might have had more of a clue if I had read Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey, the inspiration behind this graphic novel. (I can't believe, 10+ years post college, that I'm now considering reading more Austen just because I enjoyed this graphic novel so much!) I love the characters, they're well rounded and realistic. Cade is living a life many queer people can relate to, feeling afraid to come out, especially while in a hostile rural area. Cade's uneasiness and the constant strain of keeping his sexuality a secret leads him to be wary of others and question their motivations. Henry is likewise dealing with a host of issues, ones that affect his life and relationships, but that he doesn't want to talk about. Despite the increasingly fraught tone of the novel, the boys do carve out moments of happiness. I love the progression of their friendship and romance, and how things get resolved!

While this graphic novel addresses racism, homophobia, and other tough topics, it also has a wealth of positivity, character growth, and joy. The art is lovely! I especially love all the character designs and expressions, looking at them I could really feel the emotional impact of the scenes. Complex, emotional, and mysterious, this is a graphic novel I could not put down!

This was an interesting take on a queer kid, Cade, growing up in Texas. During summer vacation he and his stepfather go to work on a ranch in order to make some money for the family since they've been having a bit of a hard time financially. While there, a couple of mysteries come to the fore as Cade tries to figure out why Henry and the rest of his family is secretive about what happened to his mother and the ranch foreman last summer.

Both fans of horror movies, Cade and Henry bond but Henry still holds back on a lot of his past, leading Cade to believe various stories about the family. Misunderstandings occur but not before some feelings are hurt. There are some important issues dealt with here, including homophobia, racism, and mental health, and they're dealt with quite well for the most part. If anything, I felt that there might have been a little too much going on and that a bit more focus would have served the story better.

I particularly liked the metaphor of horror films as an escape for queer kids, who often recognize themselves as being outside of society and punished for their "transgressions". And the illustrations served the story well, adding to the occasional horror film feel of the story. It's a creative and well done story for young adults that I'd recommend.

A YA graphic novel, set at a ranch and inspired by Northanger Abbey. Our hero in this is led astray by his love of horror movies, while in the origial Austen the heroine is influenced by too many gothic novels. This version has a lot more legitimately quite upsetting situations, rather than the several ridiculous misunderstandings I recall from the original satire.

Loosely inspired by Northanger Abbey, the new graphic novel release written by Rey Terciero and illustrated by Bre Indigo, Northranger follows teen, Cade Munoz as he finds himself working at a ranch during his summer vacation. While there, Cade begins to fall for the owner’s son, but realizes his new crush may be hiding a dark secret.

This graphic novel is a great choice for anyone in a slump or who is just looking for a nice and quick read. It was a great option to ease into a reading month, but I have to admit I thought this would be much spookier than it ended up being. And while I thought the two love interests had decent chemistry, I did find the progression of their relationship a bit underdeveloped. It may be more of a personal pet peeve, but I never enjoy when characters are seemingly thrown into a love plot for the sake of the storyline without it feeling natural.

A longer page count and tighter editing would have dramatically improved Northranger for me, but all in all, this is a title I’d suggest for readers wanting something a little cozy spooky involving a budding romance. Thanks so much to HarperAlley and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for review. Northranger is out today!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I need to start off this review by stating that Northanger Abbey is my favorite Jane Austen novel of all time (and I love Jane Austen), so when I saw a modern, queer, graphic novel retelling of it? I had high hopes. And my hopes were met! The story is easily adapted to modern times- a horror movie obsession takes the place of the original heroine's gothic novel obsession, and the queer allegories in horror movies are the perfect fit for this modernization. The art style is lovely, the lines are clean, and the characters are expressive. I'm excited to pick up a finished copy!

Really great graphic novel about two queer boys in Texas. I love the horror movie references and how one character describes being gay as like being a character in a horror movie. I love the diversity, the family relationships, the characters, and how it talks about what it’s like to be queer in rural America. The ending did wrap up neatly but I personally enjoyed that. I loved it.

Northranger was definitely an interesting read, but I can’t quite decide if I loved it or not. I’m sitting somewhere in the middle, just like my rating.

It was absolutely way too long and some of the filler content didn’t feel necessary. Especially when there wasn’t any character development. The plot also moves pretty slowly and too much time was spent on the day-to-day chores at the Ranch. This time could have been used to develop Cade and Henry’s relationship, but instead, it goes from zero to one hundred in no time at all. I mean, I kind of get why because graphic novels aren’t long, but more build-up would have been nice.

There is a lot of homophobia in Northranger and honestly, I’m getting a little tired of LGBTQIA+ stories being rife with it. Is it so bad to want a queer story that doesn’t come with the usual homophobia? I understand why it’s used as a plot point here, but I’m desperate to read a queer story where people don’t question other people's romantic choices.

I really liked Northranger (the house) as a setting. It had major creepy vibes and I enjoyed the moments spent there.

The art style was really nice and I liked the character designs. It does remind me a lot of Heartstopper though, Cade felt like Charlie but in a different font/ethnicity. It must have been an inspiration for Northranger because both Cade and Henry had Nick and Charlie vibes (appearance-wise). I may be wrong, this is just my opinion.

The style definitely has character though, the facial expressions were really well done and the settings were very detailed.

Northranger is an emotional story with a great art style. Some areas of the story were too drawn out and others didn’t get enough time. The ending seemed a little rushed but, overall, I had fun reading it.

Read For:
Hurt/Comfort
Happy Ending
Graphic Novel
Sunshine x Grumpy
Horror Movie References

This was such a lovely little story. The art style was so beautiful from the pages to the cover.

I really enjoyed this graphic novel. The characters were detailed and complex, the setting was done well, the drama/plot twist was entertaining, and I am really happy with how it ended.

Cade's comments were a mood the entire time. He kinda reminded me of a latinx Nico di Angelo. His family was really wholesome at the end, I was so happy with the way his parents acted—and I loved how his abuelita knew his secret probably before he even knew.


(First Person POV)
Spice: (n/a, just kisses)

Rep: Gay, Latinx MC, POC SCs

⚠️Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Homophobia, and Racism
Moderate: Outing, Sexism, Death, Animal death, Misogyny, Mental illness, and Grief
Minor: Cancer, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Murder, and Racial slurs

This was such a fun and emotional graphic novel about finding yourself and coming to terms with how difficult life can be in the face of adversity. I loved the references to horror movies since I myself am a huge horror fan. Seeing our main characters bond over their love of horror and slowly seeing their growing feelings for each other was very sweet.

I also love that I immediately saw the references to Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen. That is such an underrated and different Austen novel, that I'm so happy it was heavily incorporated into this graphic novel with a LGBTQ+ romance.

It does lose a star because Cade definitely reminded me of the main character in Northanger Abbey and they both annoyed me in the same way with their imaginations running rampant a little too much. It got a tiny bit annoying, but it did make sense for the overall story and following closely to the original material.

Overall this was such an emotional and coming of age story that I feel like fans of Heartstopper will really enjoy.


Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced e-copy of the book in exchange for my honest review!

Loved it. I've never read Northanger Abbey so I have no comparison to that but reading this and knowing the basis was Northanger Abbey makes me want to read it!

A really beautiful and cute graphic novel! I recommend for a quick interesting read. I loved the mistery and the romance.

Trigger Warnings: theft, financial struggles, military, homophobia, racism, dead animals, past death of a parent, cursing, misogyny, domestic violence, alcohol, violence, animal cruelty, cancer, coming out, depression, anxiety, grief, past suicide attempt

Representation: Latino, Twins, Gay

Northranger is a queer graphic novel set on a horse ranch in rural Texas. Sixteen-year-old Cade Muñoz finds himself falling for the ranch owner's mysterious and handsome son, only to discover that he may be harboring a dangerous secret.

Cade has always loved to escape into the world of a good horror movie. After all, horror movies are scary--but to Cade, a closeted queer Latino teen growing up in rural Texas--real life can be way scarier. When he is sent to spend the summer working as a ranch hand to help earn extra money for his family, Cade is horrified. Cade hates everything about the ranch, from the early mornings to the mountains of horse poop he has to clean up. The only silver lining is the company of the two teens who live there--in particular, the ruggedly handsome and enigmatic Henry. As unexpected sparks begin to fly between Cade and Henry, things get... complicated. Henry is reluctant to share the details of his mother's death, and Cade begins to wonder what else he might be hiding.

I was very concerned this graphic novel was going to be scary!! I’m a huge baby so the main character loving scary movies and the location being a “haunted” ranch gave me the heebie jeebies! Luckily this was not actually the case! This story has some eerie moments but it’s not really “scary.” Plus having the love story go along with it, is a always a plus! There are definitely both light and heavy moments but the author does a great job balancing them. I really loved everything about it and am so happy to have found another queer graphic novel to recommend!

I really enjoyed this! I loved the art style of this so much-- it really fits the way the story is told well. I've definitely read graphic novels where it felt like there was a lot of dissonance between the art and the story, but this was very harmonious. If you're interested in a coming-out-meet-cute, with talk of horror and and gay cowboys (and much, much more awesome stuff) then look no further!

I must fall in the minority with this one…because while the illustrations were pretty, the story was too PC for me.

So this prided itself on being a coming of age, mm, mystery graphic novel and it was for a good part of it.

BUT…

I couldn’t enjoy any of it because of so many negative overtones from racial slurs to white men shaming. Yes, the way they depicted the white characters was stereotypical. The general was rude, homophobic, and hurtful. The other prominent male was a drunk. The random males in town were all homophobic and “typical males.”

I’m sorry, but that doesn’t sit well with me. And the way the author uses Hispanic slurs and the person they were towards had zero reactions? Like what?

I’m not gonna say too much more. I just didn’t enjoy this one. I’m a firm supporter of LGBTQ rights. MM is my favorite genre. But when I read I don’t want to be bombarded by such heavy hatred in a seemingly cute YA story. Again, THIS IS A ME THING. Don’t hate.