This graphic novel was odd but enjoyable. A man and his family have been cursed and they each month fight a dragon and eventually died from the fight. Something odd is going on with Sigurd. Ever since his fight with the dragon he has a new voice in his head and a temperature problem: he's hot. He burns and feels a fire inside him. He's joined a new guard with Freya to fight for the people of his land. But the fight is more than a war between clans; it's a war between want-to-be gods. This graphic novel or collection of comics was interesting and I liked it. But the story isn't finished and I want more. It was left completely in the air and even as you’re reading you feel like the world building is not quite there. You want to know more, so I'm giving this a so so and maybe with future books it will gain the popularity of series like Game of Thrones.

'Dragonsblood: The Legend of Sigurd' by Nick Bermel with art by Jason Muhr is based on Norse legend, then wildly veers away from that.

Sigurd goes to battle Fafnir to avenge his family members that had previously fallen. As Fafnir dies, Sigurd is bathed in his blood which bestows odd powers. He is then coerced in to fighting with Freya, against family friend Regin's advice. With Sigurd barely holding his power back, he eventually learns he has been but a pawn of the gods.

I love the source material quite a bit and this was a weird morph of it. The art was fine, although in typical Zenescope style, everyone is overly pretty. If that's your thing, then you will like this. I wasn't a fan.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Zenescope, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

Zenescope is one of my favorite publishers. In fact I automatically get all their single issues from my local comic shop. This trade is no different. Absolutely great. Great art work, and a great story leaving there room for much much more. Can’t wait to see what comes next.

If there is any comic that you should want to read in a setting that has a history and fantasy combined, then it is this one. It is rarely common to read historical comics, and this is a great treat.

This is a story well illustrated, well designed, and well explained. It has the usual story narrative of Gods using mortals to help fight each other. This was very similar to the video-game Shadow of Mordor’s story. Where Celebrimbor uses a mortal to fight Sauron. When you realise that most conflicts in history have been using one another to fight against each other.

Siguard’s story is a tale of tragedy. And triumph and loss. I loved the Dwarf character in this book because it reminded me that Sigurd had a male father figure. When he lost the ones dear to me, it was that part. If you are someone that likes to listen to music, search the God of War Soundtrack, or Wardruna. It is immersive for reading a comic like this.

Freya and Loki were two of the most interesting characters in this comic. I wanted to see Loki doing more manipulation from his end, and I wanted to see Freya using more of her cunning to persuade and convince more people to join her. Freya is the Goddess of War. Sometimes I wanted the authors of the comic, Nick and Jason to give us more of an insight into the Gods. Does Freya really think war is everything for her? Does she not want to take a break from consistently warring? Most of the Gods of the Aztecs, the Mayans, the Babylonians all possessed habits that were similar to humans. They were jealous, angry, and happy. Their emotions changed quickly just as we do. I like to call this comic historical fantasy. I am very lucky to have stumbled upon this amazing comic.

After reading all four of the comics, I was not convinced that there was a central villain behind this. Sure, there is Loki, there are dragons, but I wanted another character that was playing a bigger game in this. I cannot wait to see a series on the different Gods of the World. Imagine if we had a Babylonian comic in this fashion? It would be so epic. The Aztecs? The Celtic Gods? The Romans? Heck, Ancient Egypt would be on the top of my list.

To conclude, this is an amazing comic, and I think you should give it a go. It is a historical fantasy, so the authors have given their own interpretation of events. Diamond Books are my favorite publishers for historical content. Go read it now!

Rating: 8/10

Sigurd is the last in a family line that has been tasked (some might say cursed) with slaying a legendary dragon. All the others have failed. Now it's Sigurd's turn to do what he has been training for his entire life... But he finds that the end of one curse may lead to the beginning of another.

This volume contains the four chapters or individual stories that make up the entirety of Dragonsblood: The Legend of Sigurd. It finishes the overall arc of the story while leaving an openended teaser for future stories. There are unanswered questions but the main story gets more or less resolved.

It was okay. Not bad, not outstanding, just a middle of the road Sword & Sorcery tale.

***Thanks to NetGalley, Diamond Book Distributors, and Zenescope for providing me with a free digital copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

Moderately interesting revisit of Norse myth, with Sigurd having to slay Fafnir the dragon just in the opening issue. Beyond that he gains some semblance of mystical, magical power, which isn't really explained either before or during what comes next, which is a further, longer fight of vengeance – although one that isn't really what it seems. It's not dreadful, it's not great, and narratively it's a bit of a muddle, speeding through some things but then realising that making a boring dwarf character just vanish while things heat up would actually be a good thing. It also reads, with the help of jumping in at such a key moment, that it's very much a sequel to a book you've never read before – although with such tokenistic characters (ooh, get you, Mr Baddy with Eye-Patch) that's practically inevitable.