Family, magic, and monsters. Based on a Breton folktale, it is sometimes interesting and sometimes plods on a bit. Teens may enjoy the darkness and intrigue.

This one was visually stunning. I was unfamiliar with this Breton tale of an Atlantis like city but it had all sorts of intrigue and kept me turning the pages until, in one sitting, I was finally done.

meeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh didn't finish reading it since it didn't capture my attention.
meeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh didn't finish reading it since it didn't capture my attention.
meeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh didn't finish reading it since it didn't capture my attention.

3.5 Stars

This would have been deeply satisfying to my teen/young adult self who devoured all things King Arthur, and read The Fall of Atlantis by Marion Zimmer Bradley many times, in which I think the lost city of Ys may have been mentioned. The sisters at odds, the darkly sexual magic of one sister contrasted with the more rooted and natural magic of the other, the weak and pathetic king. All of this would have appealed to me greatly then, and I still enjoyed it now. There's also a little bit of an Anna and Elsa dynamic between the sisters -- one who embraces her royal role and the other who tends to hide away.

The visuals lend themselves well to the story.

Thank you to NetGalley for a digital ARC.

This book made me want to read the folktale it was based on!
The art was awesome and I loved the creation of 2 daughters for this story.
I definitely will recommend to our library patrons.

I wanted to love this but something about it didn't quite work for me. However, I'm excited that such a great author is contributing to the world of Graphic Novels and am sure that my students will love having this added to our classroom library.

The Daughters of Ys is a compelling, complex story of a well protected island country and the two daughters who each rule an aspect of it. The characters are interesting if somewhat archetypal. The art is unique and marvelous and suits the story.

Many thanks to Netgalley for providing me an e-copy of this book for my review. The Daughters of Ys is a beautiful fantasy graphic novel that brings the Breton folktale to life.

I always enjoy reading graphic novels that have an aura of magic and mystery to it. The highlight of the story is the characters. I loved both the sisters and felt they both brought their own uniqueness to the story. Personally, I loved Dahut more than the others, as she was very complex. Even though Rozenn is pleasant, I felt Dahut consistently fought her emotional demons for her consciousness. Also, I liked Corentin and his conversation with Rozenn. Moreover, I loved the illustrations and colors. The artwork feels simplistic, but each panel explains the story really well with its beautiful graphics. Some parts are gruesome and dark but add well to the plot.

However, my only problem with the story was the lack of information. There is not enough history provided for the characters. For instance, why does the villain (who appears in the second half) want to end the contract? Why do Rozenn and Dahut suddenly have a change of heart? How does the family suddenly prosper after all the events with nothing of value? I enjoy stories where some parts are left for readers to interpret. However, this story felt like there were many elements unexplained. It would have been nice if more details were provided.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this graphic novel but would have loved it had it been longer with more details. But, it is still worth reading just for its beautiful imagery and illustrations.

Ys is an island of Celtic legend that is defended by a magical wall built by the late queen. Now it is up to the Malgven and Rozenn, daughters of Queen Malgven. As different as these sisters are, they must protect the city from prowling monsters and their own expectations. Torn apart by their own grief and reactions to their mother’s death… the ultimate solution is both liberating and disquieting.

Every time I pick up a retelling of an ancient story like this, I am reminded that they have lasted for hundreds of years on their own by word of mouth. These stories provided lessons for the Celtic people and they can still be entertainment and give insight into the human condition for people today. Having read several of Anderson’s past stories, I know he has a great ability to pace his stories so well and add those little details that make characters come alive.

And the graphic part of this graphic novel… Outstanding. Watch the video below to see Rioux in action. The lines provide the effect of constant movement and has a ethereal, fairy tale quality. The backgrounds of the sea and changing sky blew me away. They paired beautifully with the internal conflicts of the characters.

Two videos to take a look at when considering this book:


The trailer from FirstSecond.

Sketch School with Jo Rioux


I would recommend this book for upper grades (11/12) and any adult interested in fairy tales because of some bloody gore and references to sex. Beautiful artwork and a compelling story of strength and resiliency make this an excellent read.

4.5 out of 5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, FirstSecond, and the authors for a copy for review.

The mysterious city of Ys is created when Queen Malgven marries King Gradlon as a reward for helping her kill her first husband. They live in peace for years and have two daughters: Rozenn and Dahut. The story opens, after a brief prologue, with the death of Queen Malgven (potentially due to the King's greed). Everyone is sad, at least for a week. The events that transpire only a week after her death lead to the daughters growing distant from each other.

There's more but that's when the story start to ramp up. Be warned, this review will likely include spoilers, so if you have plans to read it, skip down to where I gush about the art because first, let's talk about the story itself. Also, if you like M. T. Anderson, you probably just want to skip to the art section.

I was intrigued by this story. Enchantments? A sea monster? Two opposing sisters? Let's read it! I went into this story expecting an intriguing mystery and the magic found in legends. Unfortunately, when I finished it, I was very disappointed. This book needs to have 100 more pages. I especially  want more of this art, but also some key plot points were missing.

There were too many things thrown into the story without explanation. For example, there is a specific sea monster that appears in the story (ok, maybe I can skip over that) or Rozenn is surrounded by ghosts at one point. Who were they?

The main issue comes when the villain arrives. Here, I was at a complete loss. Obviously there is some connection to the men Dahut sleeps with, beheads and feeds to...something. But who was the villain exactly? What was the bargain that was broken? Who made it: mother or daughter? What exactly is going on? I skimmed the story, looking to find what I missed. What exactly WAS the villain? I found nothing and I still don't understand why things ended the way they did except to make it a story about how greed is bad.

The last page explains that the story of Ys is inspired by an ancient Breton folktale and the following versions were used (and are available publicly): a painting, an opera, and two versions of the story (all with French titles). The note says they are online, but my guess is in French (I found one resource here, in French). In the end, I feel like I needed more knowledge of the legend to better understand this story. This should have been longer.

Are you skipping to the art? This is your section! Jo Rioux does a fantastic job on the art. It's flowing. It's magical. I absolutely loved the way the sisters parting ways was portrayed. The panels paralleled so symmetrically for those few pages. Rioux manages to bring the ocean and weather alive on each page. The wordless panels do such a fantastic job of conveying what is happening. There are no borders and Rioux uses various boxes to enhance the story. Basically, if the story didn't lack what it lacked, I enjoyed perusing the colorful artwork that greatly evoked the legend itself.

Overall, skip this (unless you have a large budget, then go for it) but watch for more Jo Rioux art. The story is just way too uneven for this to take hold. The only reason I keep picking up the library copy while I have it is because of the art. If it keeps circulating, it'll be for the artwork and and those who want to draw it. If you want creepy legends with mystery, go for By Chance or Providence by Becky Cloonan (which I keep thinking did a better job with stories like this than this book). In her work, the missing plot points actually enhance the story and do not leave the reader wanting more.

An old story Celtic story retold as a graphic novel. I had high hopes for this retelling and sadly it wasn’t quite as I hoped.
The art is mediocre and didn’t capture my attention. I can’t figure out why the sea monster looks like the main character in Where the Wild Things Are. The girls faces are shaped very asymmetrically and just don’t do it for me. The colours are nice and overall the look and feel is good but the actual art details felt off.

The story was very good but as it’s a legend that isn’t really the authors creativity at play so much as it already exists in story format. I do like that they acknowledged each of the girls fairly equally throughout; and that the promiscuous one is certainly shown to have questionable morals. However amoungst all that; I think there is more complexity that this story needed. It’s clearly not as simple as one is right and the honourable, where the other sister is less so. Stories of this nature, meant for older teens, should really address why the one sister chose as she did. Although this is a legend and so I suppose excusable for being so black and white.

Note: This is definitely a teen or older graphic novel. It has multiple references to people having sex or shown in bed. And of course the story itself is about the promiscuity of one of the daughters.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

The Daughters of Ys is an interesting adaptation of a classic tale. The illustrations and color scheme reflected the tone of the narrative perfectly. I loved the two main characters, although I wish I knew more about the magic and the deal that was made to allow Ys to become powerful. I am also curious about the mother- there was never any closure.

Thank you Netgalley for the arc. I don't know how to rate this. I guess 2 stars. My copy the pages were all out of order which made it extremely hard to follow. I won't count it lower than that but there was no way I could follow the story.

I tried to read this on my Kindle but the pages were all out of order :( From what I can see, I do really enjoy the art so I will be picking this up from my local library so I can read and review it on Good Reads!

3 stars

A story which follows 2 sisters who were the king and queens daughters. Once their mother passed away they were left alone fighting against each other over some things which were dumb. There was no story line and it moved on to few years ;after which got me thinking how and why there was no explanation of the fantasy world honestly was hoping for more,,,


Thank you for the lovely advance copy Netgallery !

Again, as most graphic novels I've read from NetGalley so far, the illustrations are to die for. The book is pretty dark, which I think can be pretty hard to sell unfortunately. The story is a pretty basic, common type of fantasy story with magic and sisters and a mom who dies. We don't really feel any kind of bond between the sisters. The writing is so-so. The plot does go fast and keep you intrigued, but then it's over and it doesn't feel like much.

The story was so intriguing. I loved the illustrations and the plot was really intense. I finished the book in one setting; I just could not put it down. I knew something major was going to happen but I could not put my finger on it until it actually happened.

I would have loved an introduction to the folklore on which this graphic novel is based as an introduction rather than an (incredibly brief) afterward - the story-telling certainly feels like folklore or fairytale, but depicts much darker themes and images than I had anticipated. The illustration style is stunning and engaging, and my enjoyment in the series of panels without text may have exceeded the prose storytelling elements.

Hauntingly atmospheric, The Daughters of Ys is the story of two princess sisters, rife with Celtic/Breton myth, magic, power, and betrayal.

One could infer from its book trailer that this mythical graphic novel promises a dark and lovely story of loss, secrecy, and wonder. It’s exactly what it delivers, albeit with a tone at times too familiar.

Written by M. T. Anderson and illustrated by Jo Rioux, The Daughters of Ys is not only the fateful tale of a doomed city of legend, but the journey of two sisters who could not be less alike. Despite their glaring differences, both are princesses born of magic and their lives are deeply influenced by it, and their mother’s decision to create the city of Ys.

Rozenn represents a softer side to our humanity, a kind woman who loves animals and the wilderness. Dahut is truly her counterpart, more content at the mercy of the eccentric court of Ys (or perhaps it at her mercy, as we soon learn) than in its peaceful forest. She embodies the brutal tendencies of someone faced with the cruelty of her world, whereas Rozenn’s inherent innocence reveals the beauty in it.

By giving us two main characters who are polar opposites, as so often happens in ancient folktales, Anderson not only evokes the tone of these traditional stories, but also allows us to experience this new world through two completely different perspectives.

I later researched more about the original source, the legend of Ys and King Gradlon. In the most ancient version of this legend, Gradlon has but one daughter, Dahut, who is faithfully alike the one we find in Anderson and Rioux’s adaptation. Because of that, Anderson’s decision to make this a tale of sisterhood and highlighting a duality between the two princesses felt especially clever to me and bore witness to the author’s storytelling skills and the remnants of folktale tradition. Although sometimes I did feel as if both sisters were a bit too much like stock characters, devoid of the inventive individuality that the story itself possessed.

Still, when it comes to adaptations, I love discovering how they differ and meet the source, and in this I thought The Daughters of Ys took incredible inspiration from the original Breton folktale while still adding a splash of individuality and colour to an otherwise completely bleak narrative.

Moments of suspense are plentiful, and though it starts colourful and gentle, it soon demonstrates its true course. As the two sisters grow and entangle themselves into this world of hidden faces, court interests, and a city of dark magic, they grow further apart and that’s when the narrative begins to sing its ode to the grimness of its inspirations.

Rioux’s artistic style certainly aids in this. Her adroit, absorbing, and almost lyrical illustrations add to the haunting atmosphere that permeates the pages of this dark, bloody, and unforgiving journey.

It’s nothing short of stunning how these different forms of storytelling—written and visual—collide and unite to create harmony between worlds.

The Daughters of Ys was a much darker story than I thought it would be, from the synopsis and cover. Both the content and the atmosphere are on the darker side and I must say that I enjoyed that a lot. The illustrations in this graphic novel are wonderful, the writing not so much.

There was basically no world-building and many questions regarding the magic were left unanswered. I was interested in the overall story and I couldn’t stop reading The Daughters of Ys, despite not getting all the answers that I wanted. The only character that I liked is Rozenn, all of the other ones annoyed me in some way. The relationship between the sisters wasn’t well developed, or rather none of the relationships were well developed. I think it would have worked better if we got to see the sisters grow up together through the years, instead of flashing forward to when they were young adults.

Overall, I enjoyed reading The Daughters of Ys. I did have some problems with this graphic novel, but despite that I was immersed in the atmosphere and I couldn’t stop reading it. I would recommend this graphic novel if you enjoy mythology and folktales, and don’t mind darker themes.