Strange Bedfellows is a beautifully illustrated and engaging graphic novel that immediately pulls you into its world and main Character Oberon! Ariel Slamet Ries has a unique and captivating art style that brings the characters and setting to life, making every panel a visual treat. The story is compelling and the graphics bring it life in a way I enjoyed. The color pallette was beautiful.

That being said, I found myself wishing for more action, self-discovery of the main character by herself, and deeper exploration of the main characters future. While the narrative is strong, I felt that expanding on these aspects could have made the story even more immersive and impactful. I want to know what Oberon is planning to do next!

Overall, Strange Bedfellows is a fantastic read with stunning artwork and a strong foundation. I’d love to see more from this world, especially if it dives further into its themes and characters. I recommend reading!

I loved the art work, but the story itself didn't grasp my attention. Sometimes there was just too much going on or sometimes it felt like it was everywhere. I enjoyed looking at the art. The illustrations are pretty!

A captivating read for young adult readers who crave stories of self-discovery, queer love, and the blurred lines between reality and fantasy, making it a perfect fit for fans of character-driven narratives and coming-of-age tales with a touch of magic and adventure.

The artwork was stunning here. The concept was hard to follow at points, but it was so cool overall. I found it charming with great leads. The message was done quite nicely.

I really enjoyed this graphic novel. I was hooked with the art style and intrigued by the storyline. Strange Bedfellows take place in the not-so-distant future (at the rate we're going). Earth was completely razed of resources and so a group of people chose to embark on a one-way trip to settle on a new planet. Here people lived alongside nature and only used what resources they needed, cutting out overindulgence and waste. everything seemed to be going smoothly, that is until settlers started having children. This new generation of citizens were being born with special abilities, deemed "ghosts" most were discovered to be harmless for the most part. This brings us to one of our MC's, Oberon. Oberon is the only non-ghost child in his family, that is until he wakes up next to an apparition of his long-lost school crush, Kon. This is not the real Kon, however, no Oberon has suddenly developed the ability to pull things from his dream into reality. Kon tries to help Oberon master his new powers all the while the two continue to grow closer, but you can't fall in love with a figment of your imagination, right?
Strange Bedfellows was a sweet, queer romance that also touched on some deeper topics and had an interesting twist towards the end of the story. I did struggle at times following some of the dialogue in the panels, but otherwise I thoroughly enjoyed reading this graphic novel.

It took me a bit to get into this, as the dreamscape logic is always a struggle for me. I want reasons for magical things to be happening, and at times the logic of the story (and the magical imagery) was hard to follow.

But dangit, I LOVE the parts of this story that center on burnout, decolonization, and the value of rest. I liked exploring the various interpersonal relationships, though I couldn't keep the members of the friend-group straight. And the central relationship, which is an exploration of both romance and friendship, developed in a way that got more interesting as the story unfolded.

I'm still not entirely sure I understand the magical component of this book, and the end was so abrupt that I did three consecutive double-takes. ("Are you sure that's the last page? But are you SURE? *How* sure??") I don't know that I'm the target audience for this particular project given the overly dreamy nature of some of its elements, but the themes and utopian-adjacent space culture reminded me a bit of Blue Delliquanti's "Across a Field of Starlight." I liked enough of the components that I eventually fell into the dream logic of Obi's Ghost abilities. If you like fantastical imagery mixed with real-world concerns of belonging, pressure to perform, and the promise of a gender-inclusive, multicultural future society, have at ye. :)

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. In case you missed the memo, this GN was created by the author of "Witchy," which is also pretty great!

The illustrations here were beautiful, and the story seemed super interesting, but I was unable to get half the words to load on the page in the NetGalley Reader so I didn't get the full scope of it.

This was a phenomenal graphic novel by the creator of Witchy about a planet where the children of recent refugees sometimes develop powers. After the stress of deferring college, Oberon's dreams start coming to life--literally, the things he dreams manifest in the real world. One frequent player in his dreams? His high school crush. But is Kon just a manifestation of Oberon's desires or part of a deeper problem? I occasionally had trouble following the dream illustrations, but the artwork was so gorgeous it made up for it. I'd definitely recommend this graphic novel to anyone who enjoys YA / New Adult SFF graphic novels, especially when they mix sci-fi and a dash of romance.

{ Strange Bedfellows }
by Ariel Slamet Ries

★ ★ ★ ★
Length: 288p
Source: ARC - NetGalley, HarperAlley
Release Date: March 4, 2025

•••••••
So Oberon’s life is spinning out of control until one day he wakes up and he now has the ability to conjure his dreams into reality. It turns out, he’s a late bloomer and a Ghost! Naturally, Oberon conjures his old crush, Kon, who disappeared 3 years before. As unbelievable as it all is, Oberon must navigate nightmarish creatures while finding his way back to the reality he once knew.

This was a surprisingly HEAVY graphic novel. Full of every member of the LGBTQ+ community, it’s a story of grief, peer pressure, depression, anxiety, and above all hope. Oberon was a complex, brutally sad character. Multi-faceted and flawed until the end, I really adored his development.

And when we learn the truth of Kon? Wow. WOW. Such a spectacular twist that kept me glued to the pages. Add in the gorgeous COLOR artistry and I’m leaving this one feeling drained but happy.

𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩:
🌙 queer ya fantasy
💤 color graphic novel
🌙 mental health rep
💤 twists galore
🌙 lgbtq+ rep

{I received a complimentary copy of this book. All reviews are my own.}
•
•
•
I will also be posting on StoryGraph and Amazon.

Strange Bedfellows by Ariel Slamet Ries is a graphic novel set to release March 4, 2025. NetGalley was kind enough to provide me with an eARC for an honest review. I would rate this 4.75 stars out of five because at some points it was hard to follow the panels, but other than that the plot, art, and character development were solid. I fell in love Obi (the main character) and felt seen as he experienced panic attacks and struggled to open up to people in his life. Then add developing new powers at a fast rate and conjuring up his old high school crush, Kon, into that mix further complicates things for him. The twist at the end was spectacularly done! I was NOT expecting that and the slow build had me lowering my defenses along with Obi. I would definitely recommend checking this graphic novel out when it releases.

It's the not-too-distant future, a utopia where humanity lives after escaping a dying Earth. Here is where we meet Oberon Afolayan, who had a very public panic attack and has been hiding from the world ever since. After years of living under the pressure of being more because he's the only non-skilled or Ghost in the family, he one day wakes up to realize that he can manifest his dreams. Primarily in the form of his former crush, Kon, whom he hasn't seen in years. It's Kon's mission to help Oberon figure out his powers and his life, but will doing that mean giving up those dreams? And what is Kon not telling Oberon?

It's a very deep story wrapped up in pastel swirls and a nearly perfect society. People are mostly free to be themselves and find what makes them tick without the pressures of money and the typical rat race. There are still things everyone has to face, but it feels manageable. Dropping Oberon into this world with all his anxiety and worrywart personality makes for an interesting contrast, especially when flashbacks reveal that he's actually a super positive and cheerful guy. I'm impressed with how well the difficult topics of mental health, pressure to succeed, family obligations, and just all-around figuring out life translate into a story that's cozy and sweet even while dealing with everything.

Loved the art! The color palette is so pretty and works wonders when we're inside Oberon's dream world. I also really like how there's a play on light and darkness for the more emotional moments.

Overall, it's a great read that gets better by the page. My one tiny complaint would be that the lettering is too small for my old eyes at times.

I'd also love to read just a history of how things got to be how they are in that world because what little we get is fascinating.

Delighted thanks to NetGalley and HarperAlley for the wonderful early read!

Strange Bedfellows follows Oberon, a normal person who develops powers after a mental health crisis. And he might end up in love with one of the musings his newfound powers conjure up.

I loved the summary and the queer aspect of this sci-fi/fantasy graphic novel. The art was by far the most outstanding part. If it's beautiful in its digital form, you know it is going to be stunning in the print copy.

The reader is quickly overwhelmed by the story. So many names, unneeded world-building, unexplained back story, and confusing dynamics. There are confusing expositions that aren't needed or plot points that are not fully vetted. Speech bubbles were hard to follow. Which leads to a disconnect between the reader and the characters. Which was disappointing, but I was impressed by how beautifully this was illustrated.

I wish this had been a short book instead of a graphic novel, just to let Ries's world shine.

DNF at about 40%, unfortunately while the concept of this book was intriguing it did not pull me into the story as I was expecting

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins/HarperAlley for the e-arc!

Strange Bedfellows is about Oberon who must choose between fantasy and reality when he develops the ability to conjure his dreams in real life—including the facsimile of the boy who got away. The artwork in this graphic novel was stunning and I found myself staring at different pages to notice the little details. I do think the story in some ways matches this artwork but at times it felt it was a bit confusing to stick with. I liked following Oberon and his journey with Kon. I think if the latter half was a bit stronger I would have enjoyed this way more but for what it is it is still worth the read.

Strange Bedfellows is gorgeous to look at. The art style is so ethereal, and it fit the emotional and mental magic that it focuses on. It fit the vibe of the story and may single handedly convince me to read more from the author.

The first 50% of the book gripped me, and I found myself so connect to Oberon and Kon. All the little hints dropped by Kon didn't slip by me, but also didn't interrupt the narrative to ensure I knew it was significant, and I like when the author is able to trust the readers like that.

The ending lost me just a bit. Visually I think it would have made more sense if I held a physical copy where I could see the whole page spread instead of having it divided in an Ebook. The final antagonist (if you can call it that?) also lost me just a bit, because I couldn't see the connection to the first half of the book, and where it actually came from.

If you're looking for a quick queer read with a focus on family dynamic, anxiety, and forgiving yourself, Strange Bedfellows is the book to pick up.

This is super cute! The art is an absolutely gorgeous watercolory style and each page is bursting with color. A real feast for the eyes. The story takes place the future on a planet (or maybe moon?) called Meridian, which is 2 generations removed from humans living on earth. We follow Oberon, a trans teen who has recently dropped out of university, as he is learning how to harness his latent superpower, which is the ability to manifest in reality things he has seen in his dreams. The other MC is Kon, the one who got away, who Oberon hasn't seen since he moved schools several years ago.

The story has slice of life, coming of age vibes but also discusses a number of serious issues including blended families, generational trauma, mental health, coming out, and a number of -isms, all thoughtfully discussed and presented in relevant situations. The story evolves in a way I wasn't expecting and I loved the ending.

The only reason I'm not giving it 5 stars is because a number of the comic panels were designed in a way that was somewhat unclear, and I wasn't sure what the author / artist was trying to convey. It didn't take away from the overall understanding of the story, but it did happen a number of times. Still though, a very heartwarming and enjoyable read. If you like Heartstopper and superhero stories, you will probably like this too.

It took me a while to get into it, but I ended up really liking this graphic novel. I found the first half kind of a drag and would have to force myself to sit down and read, but the story really started to pick up at around the 50% mark. The artwork was gorgeous. It was just so trippy and I especially loved the color palette. As for the characters, I thought Oberon was fine. While I liked his overall story and narrative, I just never really developed a connection with him. I did end up really liking Kon though. At the start, he wasn't really so much of a character as a sounding board for Oberon. This begins to change though around the 50% mark, which is also probably why I started to find the story more interesting.

I adore this graphic novel, and these characters. The artwork and illustrations are stunning. The story was captivating.

The last third of this graphic novel was more emotional than I was expecting, and I loved it. I was very invested in these characters.

There’s trans representation in this graphic novel! Our MMC Oberon is a complex character to follow, and I loved how developed he was. Normally, I feel like graphic novels have a hard time fully developing characters because they’re shorter than a full length novel. But I felt these characters were perfectly developed and written for this story. Kon is such an interesting character too! I was so curious what would happen with him.

The development of their relationship was cute and also complex. I definitely found their dynamic interesting, and I loved their interactions.

Would recommend this graphic novel for sure!!

I really wanted to like this, but I had a hard time following the plot a times. I'd be reading the text bubbles then I'd be confused how we got from point B to point A. If your graphic novel does this to me multiple times I just have dnf.

3.5 stars

Thank you HarperCollins Children’s and Netgalley for providing me with an e-ARC of this one in exchange for an honest review.

This was a lot heavier than I was expecting, and honestly, it was the heavy parts that were my favourite. I felt like I really got to know Obi and Kon during those moments.

I loved the messy buildup of their relationship, all their ups and downs.

The magic was really interesting and I kind of wish we got a bit more info on how it all works. I also would have loved a bit more history on humans leaving Earth and how they got to where they are.

I found the art style and the dialogue a bit busy sometimes? It was a lot for my brain to take in all at once. Not really a style I enjoyed, unfortunately. I also found the speech bubbles a little hard to follow at times, too, when there were a lot of them.