Violent, gory, dark all my favorite things. Especially in a graphic novel which is hard to find. Although that is true the illustrations made it hard for me to love it.

The sexualized nature of parts of this comic were really strange and out of place. Overall the comic was interesting and held my interest. I'm not entirely sure I understood what was happening in the plot but I think despite it not being clear I understood the gist.

This was a dark and intriguing tale, although it was at times too gratuitous and violent for my taste.

My goodness, I’m not even sure what to think after all that.

<i>Mercy</i> is perhaps the most wild ride of a graphic novel that I’ve ever had the pleasure and, let’s be honest, horror of reading. I have to give Mirka Andolfo credit—she definitely knows how to keep you engaged.

And truly, this is the sort of book that keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire time. You’re desperate to know more, to see what happens next, to find out the secrets the story has been hiding from you…even as you grow more and more disgusted with each page turn. Truth be told, I had gotten pretty sold on this story as a whole the farther I got into it.

Then one event kind of just blew it all to smithereens and left me feeling rather empty. Everything from there was honestly just kind of downhill, but it felt salvageable several times. But then you reach that final battle at the end and it’s once again kind of just blasted apart and I was just left once again wondering what was the point of even getting invested in anything if that’s all the story was going to lead to.

Now, the true ending was…different. I don’t think I can say I feel pleased or satisfied with it, but I can sort of see where the author’s decision came from? I dunno, this was a weird one. And while I’m mildly curious to know what happens in the sequel that is clearly coming, I am not entirely sure that I’m fully up for another roller coaster.

Thank you to NetGalley for this opportunity. Comics is now available.

This was a fun feminist Victorian horror read with beautiful art work and a captivating story.

The story starts with a mine infestation, a mine infestation of monsters. A lady enters the little town. It is a horrifying yet exhilarating novel. A perfect binge read

Thank you to Image Comics and Netgalley for the digital book.

The art style of Mirka Andolfo's Mercy is vibrant and gorey. It's beautiful and grotesque. I enjoyed the art immensely. It defiently has that otherworldy terror element that comes with cosmic horror and the Edwardian time period setting. I really loved the historical clothing design for the characters. However, the over all story left me wanting more. I wanted to know more about these characters and I feel like I didn't get enough time for all the twists to fully spin out.

I liked this graphic novel and highly suggest it to anyone interested in penny dreadfuls or the venom comics.

An interesting plot and storyline. The graphics were well done and exciting. The story was well-done.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

My rating is purely for the art/coloring as that is absolutely gorgeous but the story itself was so confusing and all over the place that I could just not get into it at all. I usually like horror/gory comics but the plot was all over the place here and so confusing that I just didn’t care for it. I feel like it had potential and had the story been presented differently then I probably would have liked it cuz the art was so good.

Mirka Andolfo's Mercy: The Fair Lady, The Frost, and The Fiend is full of betrayal, mystery, and cosmic horror.

This is a story of a found family (of sorts). But before all of that, the mysterious lady comes to town and with her brings attention to a host of terrifying slayings that are happening all across the city. Who is involved and who is behind all of these devastating losses? This is answered with gusto in this graphic novel that I flew through and fell in love with.

I enjoyed the twists and turns that this story took. Not only was it full of beautiful illustrations that immediately grabbed my attention, but these illustrations made me FEEL the connections between these characters. I think it portrayed the emotional impact of this story. I was taken aback at how much fun this story was to go through. Not only is it full of action sequences and mysteries that need to be solved, but it also has a host of loveable characters that you will grow to love (or hate).

The tagline says you'll like this if you enjoyed Penny Dreadful and that is absolutely true. I am a massive fan of that series and this story brought me right back to why I love these period pieces so much. I think you will enjoy this as much as I did, so check it out!

I loved the art! It was visually so stunning. I actually really enjoyed the story. I wasn't sure where they were going to go with it at first. I would say it was more horror than gothic in my opinion.

The art is gorgeous, particularly when the parasites take center stage, but most of the character development is rather lacking. The sheer number of “infected” people felt like a gimmick to add a few unexpected panels when the core of the story should have been Hellaine, Rory, and Goodwill. Instead we were sort of distracted by these side plots that are only (partially) explained after the fact.

Will I still read the sequel series, Merciless, when it gets a nice bind-up like this? Maybe. I think we left things off in a potentially interesting place, which could lead to developments I’d be curious about.

In the end, this story was definitely not for me. When the summary said Victorian inspired, I thought the horror aspect was going to be more Gothic and atmospheric. Instead, it's much more bloody and trending towards body horror than I was prepared for. The art is a highlight of this book, the figures are gorgeous and the use of color and panels was fantastic. The art alone was enough for me to want to give it a try. However, I found the story confusing, made more confusing by the fact that the main character herself seemed to not really know what was going on, and I didn't feel like I made much sense of it by the end of the book. There was a lot of elements thrown in that I felt needed more attention or explanation in order to make the story easier to follow along. That being said, I can see readers who are in to this type of story really loving this one.

An excellent gothic horror read! Mirka Andolfo brings his classic sense of twisted horror to the comic page again. And in classic Andolfo style, nothing is quite as it may seem, twice over. The twists and turns in this story (and that the characters have) are all well done and lead the reader to a place of realizing that no one is really good or bad. We’re all just trying to exist in the happiest way possible. Even if that’s at the expense of others.
There’s also a cleverly veiled warning about taking too many drugs; and putting your faith in people you don’t really know well.
Overall I adored this. Not only the wonderful comic illustrations; but how clever the writing is. And you can’t go wrong with the variant covers for the individual comics. Each one of them is an absolute gem of art.

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘤𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘳𝘤 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸

"ᴡʜᴏ ᴄᴀɴ ʙᴇʟɪᴇᴠᴇ ɪɴ ꜱᴏᴍᴇᴛʜɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇʏ'ᴠᴇ ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ ꜱᴇᴇɴ ᴏʀ ꜰᴇʟᴛ? ʏᴇᴛ ᴇᴠᴇɴ ꜱᴏ, ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴛʜɪɴɢ..."

Mercy: The Fair Lady, The Frost, and The Fiend was written and illustrated by Mirka Andolfo. I absolutely want to praise this graphic novel first and foremost for the art throughout, which was truly stunning. A few design aspects stuck out to me in particular, the first of which was Lady Hellaine's character design; she is so unique and gorgeous! I also was really struck by a few of the full-page spreads, they really had a lot of impact.

Mercy is a horror, gothic tale centered around a parasitic disease that can take on the appearance of a person. It takes place in a town that has already once been struck by grief and is now being haunted by those same monsters again.

The story has good creeping tension that is complemented well by the unnerving art, and the payoff is creepy body horror that really cements the power of the monster throughout the story. There were some genuine moments of interesting internal, moral struggles involving the monsters and the characters, and I really appreciated some of the interesting story beats.

A few things missed the mark from making this super impactful for me:

1. The voice writing for the children was a bit off and took me a bit out of interactions with those characters. For example, a child saying "sadistic" didn't fit my expectations for a young vocabulary.

2. There were a few plot moments where things felt jumped over - almost to the extent that I thought I had missed some significant chunks of the story. The pacing and background needed to make some of the payoff moments impactful just needed a little bit more time and finesse to really hit hard, but instead, I sometimes was left a bit lost and confused. I think this could easily have been resolved by chunking this one story into a few volumes or cutting some of the less critical plot moments to build up just one or two of the more crucial threads.

Overall, if you are a huge fan of Mirka Andolfo's art, I do recommend picking this up. It really does a lot of the heavy lifting for this comic, and I enjoyed even the moments I was less fond of due to the art!

TW: Child Abuse, Child Death, Body Horror, Gore, Disease, Nudity

Quotes:

"ᴇᴠɪʟ ᴄᴀɴ ʜɪᴅᴇ ᴇᴠᴇɴ ᴀᴍᴏɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏꜱᴛ ɪɴɴᴏᴄᴇɴᴛ ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛᴜʀᴇꜱ ᴏꜰ ɢᴏᴅ"


Rating: ⭐⭐⭐/5

Wickedly beautiful artwork and a captivating story! I had to read this twice. If you love graphic novels, you will not want to pass up on this one. I did not know what to expect because this was my first graphic novel read in a long time. I am HOOKED! I don’t want to give anything away but somehow it captures so much on every page with the artwork. I cannot imagine what it would be to hold this artwork in your hand because the screen doesn’t do it justice.

"Mercy" by Mirka Andolfo offers a captivating blend of gothic atmosphere, historical setting, and horror elements, all wrapped up in stunning artwork. Set in the late 19th century in the mining town of Woodsburgh, the story revolves around a series of brutal killings by a mysterious monster coinciding with the arrival of a striking stranger.

One of the undeniable strengths of "Mercy" lies in its artwork. Andolfo's illustrations are undeniably breathtaking, capturing the eerie ambiance of the setting and the haunting presence of the titular character. The attention to detail and the atmospheric use of color contribute significantly to the immersive experience of the narrative.

In terms of storytelling, "Mercy" initially grips the reader with its compelling premise and mysterious atmosphere. The tension builds steadily as the townspeople grapple with the escalating violence and the enigmatic arrival of the stranger. However, as the narrative progresses towards its conclusion, some aspects of the story begin to falter.

One notable issue is the perceived lack of mystery towards the latter half of the volume. What starts as a promisingly enigmatic tale gradually loses its sense of intrigue, leaving the reader with unanswered questions and a feeling of dissatisfaction. Additionally, the story feels somewhat unfinished, as though certain plot threads are left unresolved or hastily tied up.

Another challenge while reading was the occasional difficulty in following the narrative. Despite the initial engagement, the storytelling can become disjointed at times, making it hard to fully immerse oneself in the unfolding events.

"Mercy" offers a visually stunning and initially compelling gothic horror experience set in a richly atmospheric historical backdrop. However, the story's descent into predictability and its unresolved plot elements detract from its overall impact. While the artwork alone may be enough to entice some readers, those seeking a tightly woven narrative may find themselves disappointed by the uneven execution.

Thanks to NetGalley and Image Comics for a copy of Mercy.

3.5 rounded up to 4.

Mercy is a gothic historical horror, set in the late 19th century in the small town of Woodsburgh, which is a mining town. In the town, a monster is brutally killing people; around the same time, a gorgeous stranger arrives. Is there a connection, and can the people stop the creature from killing more of the townsfolk?

I really thought the artwork for this graphic novel was stunning. The story was interesting too - creature features are always fun, and with a little bit of revenge mixed in, it was definitely an intriguing concept. The story did kind of fall flat for me; I just thought parts were a little disjointed and hard to follow. There were also a lot of characters and their connections weren't made super clear, so it was difficult to keep a lot of them straight. I also would have liked to know more back story for the main character. We get pieces by the end of the novel, but I feel like it wasn't fully fleshed out the way I would have hoped for.

Overall, this was a decent story, but the artwork was definitely the best part in all of it.

Penny Dreadful meets Monstress in this gothic victorian monster series featuring a mysterious woman who has just moved into a struggling mining town... where dead bodies seem to drop constantly and a deadly monster is eating away at people... and the town's own secrets are deadly. When Lady Hellaine arrives into town with her butler Goodwill, things shake up in this small mining town. Hellaine's beauty, her wealth... is all picture perfect but she's hiding something... the fact that she is a monster who consumes people and so is her butler. Her arrival is not smooth sailing though as it arises suspicion from Lady Swanson, widow of the late owner of the mine and a leading figure of the local bourgeoisie. It doesn't help that Hellaine's not the only monster in this town... there are other monsters ready to eat and monster hunters on the loose too... bodies are dropping and blood is being shed, the question is, who is the true monster and can any of them be redeemed? This was definitely an interesting one, it's. a bit scattered, but the artwork is phenomenal, absolutely stunning. I love love love the art in this series and would recommend it for the art alone. The story has a interesting monster/gothic tone to it too.

*Thanks Netgalley and Image Comics for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*