Amazing book! The story at the center of this graphic novel was unique and the characters were very well planned out. My only wish is that we got to see more of a development of Maya, but given in the world that the characters live in, I can understand why the character development of Maya was only explored towards the end. Overall, a quick and beautiful read!

Stunning.
What a beautiful graphic novel.
A little dark, heartfelt, dystopian story.
The illustrations were gorgeous and the story was touching.
I don’t know how the story was simultaneously creepy and warming/ sad and joyful but it was.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins for an eARC of this stunning graphic novel.

Loved the weird idea and the art style. Pops of color made the pages dynamic and interesting. Quick read and I hope to see other graphic novels by the author in the future.

I had the opportunity to read an ARC of this graphic novel through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

It’s about a society in which people have through scientific research learned to remove their hearts and place them in a numbing solution in order to not feel pain anymore. We follow a young girl that still kept her heart on a journey to rekindle feeling in the people around her.

This story is heartwarming and relevant. Haven’t we all wondered at one point or another in our life’s how it would be without the pain?! But we never thought of the costs.
This novel really resonated with me and made me cry. I liked the characters and drawing style so much. Especially the way the author used color to express emotion.

Definitely a big recommendation from me!

This was an absolute stunner of a graphic novel. I loved the sparse use of color throughout to emphasize the theme of numbed feelings and missing hearts. The main character is desperate to connect with people in her world (especially her sister) after the heart removal procedure, but nobody is interested in anything that’s not related to productivity. I’m not articulate enough to draw the parallels with our present times, but I loved this concept. I think this will resonate with lots of people especially creative types that may already feel dismissed in our productivity obsessed world.

4.5 stars rounded up.

This graphic novel had a slow start for me but once I got into the story, it was great! Even though it's geared towards YA, I think adults can enjoy it too.

I loved the message that it conveys about experiencing emotions and pursuing the arts. There's a lot of pressure nowadays to focus on hard sciences that art, music, etc. gets put to the side and defunded, which is very unfortunate.

The art took me a while to get used to but in the end, I really liked the artist's style. I love the use of a black and white monochromatic palette while having one or two brighter colors pop out in each scene. It really emphasizes the dystopian world that the MC, June, lives in, and makes her stand out as the only person left with her heart still intact. She experiences colors and emotions while others are bereft of both. The contrast in colors works out really well.

The story itself is pretty simple and easy to follow along. Without saying any spoilers, I liked the twist near the ending and I liked how everything wrapped up on a hopeful note. This is a pretty creative graphic novel.

Thank you to Greenwillow Books and NetGalley for this arc.

This was a fascinating little comic felt with drawings and anatomical hearts and a changing world devoid of emotions. I loved the use of color to set apart the main character as different -- still having a heart and feelings -- and enjoyed this kind of wild story about what it'd be like if everyone got their hearts removed and numbed.

(Full disclosure: I received a free e-ARC for review through Netgalley.)

June lives in a gray and colorless world: most of the people around her, including her siblings and parents, have chosen to have their hearts removed and placed in a numbing agent. The Scientist who pioneered the method sought to help humanity by freeing it from negative emotions like anxiety, sadness, and fear; problem is, she also robbed her patients of joy, happiness, creativity, and wonder.

June and her older sister, Maya, used to be close; both artists, they bonded over sketchbooks and in greenhouses. But when Maya decided to undergo the procedure, June lost the one person in the world who truly understood her.

Now, with a wave of thefts rumored at the Tabularium - the massive building where the abandoned hearts are stored - and under increasing pressure at home to remove her own heart, June starts researching The Scientist to see if there's a way of reversing the procedure. June soon finds that she's not alone: a classmate named Max, suddenly plagued with phantom emotions, has been engaging in his own covert investigation. Can they find the mysterious doctor before Max succumbs to his pain?

THE FAINT OF HEART is a strange and wonderful creation. The synopsis was so weird that I had no idea what to expect, so it turned out to be a lovely surprise. Through contrasts in color, Wilson does an excellent job of building a gray and drab world, devoid of emotion or excitement - save for June, the seemingly one person who's resisted the procedure. Splashes of orange, red, blue, and yellow give life to June's "abnormal" sentiments. The ending is kind and compassionate - exactly what we need more of in these times.

THIS WAS SOO GOOD. 4,5 stars

In this book, there's a procedure to remove heart and put it in numbing solution so the heart owner can still live but won't feel emotions. June, the MC, refused to have her heart removed. But she felt so lonely since everyone around her has removed their heart, including her family. She wanted to find a way to put her sister's heart back. Unexpectedly, she met Max and apparently they kinda had the same goal. So they worked together to figure things out.

Even though scientifically it's a bit unrealistic, it's still a beautiful and heartfelt story. I love the sketch-style illustration with minimal use colors that fits the gloomy atmosphere well. I wished the conclusion to be more detailed and a bit longer but overall I love this.

When I saw this pop up in NetGalley I loved the cover and the story sounded intriguing, but I didn't go in expecting to be absolutely blown away. But once I started reading, I was utterly taken and had to drop everything I was doing and ended up reading this in one sitting. This was a beautiful story.
The illustrations were stunning and the author somehow manages to make the macabre warm and inviting and not as creepy. The sparing use of color throughout is fantastic and fit the story perfectly.
At it's heart, this story is dystopian science fiction. Hearts are removed and kept in jars, and most of the world is walking around living numb and with no feelings after the Scientist discovers that removing hearts can keep people from feeling pain. The main character, June, struggles with the idea of removing her heart and notices the changes in her family, and wants to find out what is really going on. She is so pure and caring, and the message of this story about living with emotions is so incredibly important.
I absolutely loved this and will be recommending it to everyone I know!

Thank you to NetGalley, HarperCollins Children's Books, and the author for an electronic advanced reader's copy.

A beautiful and tender story about what it means to have a heart and to embrace your emotions. What would you do if you were the last person with a heart and feelings? When a new procedure is introduced that allows people to remove their hearts and numb all their feelings, suddenly everyone is doing it. But June still has her heart. The pressure to remove it from everyone surrounds her everyday and the loneliness of being the only person to still feel their emotions is growing... yet when she finds an abandoned heart in a jar, the mystery begins for June. She is then lead to a classmate named Max who had his heart removed... but he has begun to feel again. Now Max and June embark on a journey to discover the weight of having a heart and truly embracing all of our emotions, both the good and bad. This was a truly touching and sweet story, the artwork was great and I found the message of the book and the overall journey to be just wonderful!

*Thanks Netgalley and HarperCollins Children's Books, Greenwillow Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*