3.5 stars ⭐


This book is about:

A young witch named Nyneve who lives in the Hyalin kingdom where the strength of your magic is determined by the length of your hair. Those who are strong enough are chosen to become part of the Witch Guard, whereas those with hair judged too long are annihilated. 

Nyneve has been haunted by the death of her father ever since she was a young child and when conscription for the Witch Guard rolls around, she has to choose between joining the institution which played a role in her father's death or stand up for her own ideals.


Pros:

I love how original this story is: this is the first time I've heard about a magic system like this and I found it to be fascinating. There is also a bit of world building which I feel is nicely executed.

Another aspect I enjoyed was how brave and strong Nyneve is, despite her perceiving herself as the opposite of that.

In addition, I really appreciated the mother-daughter bond the protagonist has with her mother and well as the inclusion of LGBTQ+ characters.


Cons:

First, although I found the characters to be likeable, I didn't particularly connect with any of them.

Also, the art style is not exactly my favourite, not to say the illustrations aren't well done, it is just my personal preference.


Final thoughts:

In conclusion, Witchy is an engaging graphic novel, perfect for those who are looking for fantasy stories starring witches with intriguing and unique magical abilities wrapped in a captivating plot and colourful art.

My Rating : 4🌟

This story definitely intrigued me with it's unique plot and the amazing artwork! The entire plot was easy to grasp and it definitely has some very interesting character additions in the middle that I am not really sure of, but it held a certain charm to it so I am happy. To be honest, I was a little skeptical about the storyline with the introduction and the character potrayal. But it definitely is worth the read and I definitely recommend you guys give it a try!

Witchy follows the story of Nyneve, a witch who is hiding some truth of herself in an attempt to keep herself and her family safe.

This books takes place in a fantasy world where a witch's magical ability is judged by the length of their hair. However, if a witch's hair is too long they are viewed as a threat to the kingdom and therefore burned. This is what happened to Nyneve's father. We meet Nyneve as she is about to take place in trials for conscription. But, of course, things don't always run smoothly for witches with secrets.

I wish the world-building had been stronger. I don't think I have come across this concept in a graphic novel - witches, conscription, a possibly corrupt army, the chance for resilience and revolution. The concept is fascinating and exciting to me and yet Ries didn't make use of this world-building potential enough.

In addition, the ending was very abrupt. As I understand, this is an ongoing series adapted from a web-comic. So sure, there is more to come. But there was no conclusion or nice rounding out at the end of the story. Please note, this could also be due to my ARC copy as well. I would love to know if the finished publication provides a more rounded out ending.

And I really loved the art style - it was whimsical yet could portray a dark and serious setting. It really tied in well with the story and the plot's tone.

Overall, I enjoyed Witchy but was left a little wanting in the end.

A very atmospheric, engaging book about a strong witch and her will to stay free and true to herself. The plot and the characters are strong, the story is nice and compelling, but at the end of the book it hasn't got very far. It is hard to judge a long and well-thought, complex webcomic just by the first volume. One can sense that the story is to be developped, so as the characters, and the reader is not satisfied with this read alone - i wasn't. But that's not a bad thing : i just want more of the story and characters to judge. As a whole, the book is very nice, it's a quick read and very enjoyable.

Based on a webcomic that i had heard about but never read. After finishing this book, i went online and got caught up on the story. Takes place in a magical world where the length of your hair influences your power. People with too long hair may be killed.

No raiting or thoughts or anything on this book never got a chance to download the book before the due date. This book is out in September but got archived back in July

An interesting opener, although not really my jam personally. If you're the kind of person who wants to pick apart the logic behind worldbuilding, you may find this a frustrating read (magic is stored in your HAIR??? so like does the thickness count for anything, or just length? is shaving your legs as heretical as cutting the hair on your head? if it's against the local religion to cut your hair does nobody ever get theirs trimmed, and they're all just walking around with three feet of split ends? as a person with very long hair, I feel like hair would be an incredibly dumb place to store your magic, although I guess the concept may be based on cultures where long hair on people of all genders is expected) but if you're willing to roll with it, it's fast-paced and entertaining. The world itself appears to be based on a grab-bag of influences from Asia and indigenous Oceanic people. (I really can't tell from the author bio if they are Asian or indigenous or if this is Faith Erin Hicks and The Nameless City Part 2: Electric Bugaloo.) The protagonist's mean-girl frenemy from school is trans, and may play a bigger part of the story in future volumes, although the first book is mostly Nyneve's adventure. The art is eye-catching, although again not to my personal taste.

The artwork of this graphic novel is beautiful. It was a fun enjoyable read. I loved the fact that the characters were diverse. Looking forward to the next volume!

Too many important words blanked out. The concept of magic based on hair length is absurd and does not follow the rules of life. Hair grows. There were interesting things about transgenderism in this fantastical world, but as mentioned above the words were blanked out in my galley. I did not find myself liking any of the characters, and to be honest it reminded me a bit of Children of Blood and Bone for the way the teacher was illustrated, but there were also hints of Mortal Engines, etc. This was not for me. I tried, but it failed.

Thank you for the book, but sadly, due to vacation, I haven't been able to read this book and now I can't even read it as it is archived. :|

I have to give a rating, and since I don't know the book I have to give it 1 star. Sorry!

This was a fun graphic novel. I knew with in a few pages this graphic novel was for me! I loved the world building and the magic is so cool!

This was a really cute read. Who doesn't enjoy witches and magic. I really enjoyed the graphics, they were awesome, and the story line was easy to follow, however it is a little leghthy with over 300pgs.

Rating 3

Nice middle grade/YA graphic novel. Great graphics. Story isn't unique for a fantasy book- special young person needs to save her people from an evil ruler. At almost 300 pages, this is just a prequel to the actions.

I loved everything about Witchy. The artwork is beautiful and eye catching all the way through. Nyneve is a character that readers will instantly root for and deeply care about. Her family's tragedy is all too relatable in today's political climate. The main friend group forms in an honest way with all the complications of group dynamics and the friends she makes along the way react to her in very realistic ways. Overall, Nyneve's journey is scary, exciting, and worth reading in one sitting. I look forward to reading this again and eagerly await future graphic novels in this series.

*thank you to Netgalley, Diamond Book Distributors and Ariel Slamet Ries for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

3 stars.

This was good but it wasn't amazing for me. The storyline was pretty good but it felt a bit slow for me. I liked the main character, Nyneve, and that in her world, it's the length of your hair that determines how good of a witch you are. Quite an interesting idea for a story and yeah it worked but overall it just wasn't for me. The illustration style was alright, I could give or take it. It wasn't my favourite but it wasn't bad either. 

If you are in the mood for a fantasy story about witches then I reckon that this book will be right for you. I do have to add that I really like the cover. The colours grabbed my attention and the layout is really well done too.

Such a lovely graphic novel with witches. I've loved the worldbuilding and the characters! The plot was intriguing and I'm so happy I got to read it!

Sooo I'm probably gonna be yelling about this for the rest of my life, but it's fine. It's fiiiiiine.

In a world where your magic is determined by the length of your hair, Nyneve is desperately trying to hide her own, which, due to family history, she knows makes her entirely too powerful. Things get a bit out of hand when her diligent hair-do is forced out of its confines during the yearly conscription process and from there it gets a bit dark and a bit existential. Also, here's a crow named Banana. It's so much better than I'm making it sound, I promise.

The art is a story all on it's own (the author and artist is not afraid of colour and I <i>love</i> it) and while I love the story itself, I could just look at the illustrations and be satisfied. I gather they're not to everybody's taste, and that's fine, it's not a style I've seen a lot and it did take a moment to get used to it, but don't let it discourage you from reading this gift. It's worth it.

I'm currently on a graphic novel roller coaster and this so far is my favorite! The world setting and magic system are always something I focus on in these kind of plots and I love the one in this book! The art style is spectacular especially the backgrounds and the coloring of the whole novel! I also love how the population/cultures are mixed and the way it feels natural.

In this book, the length of your hair is what decides how much magic you have. But if your hair is deemed too long, then you can be seen as a potential threat to the kingdom and will be witch burned. Nyneve, our main character, witnesses the burning of her father and since then have hated the system and fears she might end up dying too. During the conscription which is where they choose who's joining the Royal Guards, she tried to sabotage her team so that she wouldn't be chosen but in the end, she was. What she does next is what makes the novel so much better and jumps the plot further. I can't wait to read more of this!

I found out that there are some trigger warnings in the website so check it out if you want but everything is mostly mild.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with the digital copy for an honest review.

THIS 👏 IS 👏 SO 👏 FREAKING 👏 GOOD 👏

With that being said, it's safe to say that Witchy is one of my favorite comics this year! The story started with a pretty intense scene. It's definitely a great way to lure you in and make you sympathize with the main character, Nyneve. I think I'm in love with almost every aspect of this book. The plot was intriguing, the world-building was amazing, and the characters were charming (even Banana the Crow has so much personalities!).

This comic reminds me so much of many things that I loved! Nyneve reminds me of Harry Potter, of course, who tried her best to stay grounded even though she's (most likely) the chosen one. The 'longer hair = greater power' bit reminds me of Khal Drogo in Game of Thrones. The witch's assessment reminds me of American Horror Story: Coven. That one scene where Nyneve released her braid to show Batu and Prill that she doesn't want to join the assessment not because she's afraid she will lose, but because she knows that she will win, reminds me of Luna from The 100 where she's basically saying the same thing, and I swear, I got massive goosebumps.

Thank you Lion Forge and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Final Rating — 5/5

A nice discovery!
In this universe, the magic power is determined by the length of the hair. The most powerful are enlisted in the guard of the kingdom but those with too long hair are killed because considered dangerous for society.

This was the case of Nyneve's father, whose death pushed her to hide her long hair.
But when her secret is up-to-date, Nyneve must choose: join the guard who killed her father or flee?
I enjoyed discovering this plot, and especially this magic, rather original.
The characters are endearing and this famous crow and it's banana's history intrigue me a lot ... To see later! ^^