Thank you to DC for sending me a pdf of Swamp Thing for review. #inpartnershipwithdc

I don't think I've read anything by Maggie Stiefvater, but I've really been enjoying the new DC YA graphic novels. This wasn't my favorite, but I did end up liking it a lot and I'm curious to see what will happen in book two.

Walker and Alec are twins getting ready for college. They walk in on their dad cheating on their mom and decide to go spend the summer with their cousins. Walker is outgoing and popular. Alec isn't good with people and prefers to spend his time with his plant research. Alec also has diabetes and his blood sugar has been acting odd. A box of Alec's research fell out of the truck and his cousins's dogs got into the rest of it in the garage. They destroyed his plant, Boris. Alec is devastated. But now the dogs are starting to change. Alec is able to recover some of Boris's solution from them.

Alec meets one person that he seems to connect with, Abby. They hang out a bit and she has a local tree she loves. They're able to talk about plants and science even when it's still awkward. When something happens to the tree, Alec tries to help. Abby uses some of his solution and can see memories from the tree. The dogs have almost completely turned into plants.

We don't actually meet "swamp thing" until the end of the book. There's a lot of science and facts about plants throughout the book. I really enjoyed the art, too.

I gave this 4 stars. Thank you to DC for providing me with a review copy.

Warnings for needles, bullying, cheating. There is quite a bit of swearing in the book (which doesn't bother me, but I know it might bother others).

Only read this if you are okay with watching people be irresponsible with their research. I get that it's a catalyst of the story, but it still irked me to see dangerous solutions spilled everywhere and students testing things on themselves without knowing the full properties of what they were testing.
Overall, I did enjoy this though! Alec is smart, conducting research on plants, but he remains aloof from his socialite brother and the friends that he keeps. I loved the allusions to plants and the way that different plant facts are attributed to the different characters, and how plants and their thoughts are explained in a very believable way.
However, maybe it's just me and my inability to fully process graphic novels, but I felt like there were a lot of holes in the plot (like why are these people kissing now? is this the same party?) and kept on forgetting who the different characters were.
The artwork is chilling and beautiful though, and Maggie Stiefvater is a great writer, and I'm glad to have read this!

This exciting introductory book in the Swamp Thing series will keep readers wanting more! Stievater's modern adaptation of the Swamp Thing lore really connects it to present-day, making it relatable for new readers and old fans alike.

Thank you NetGalley and DC for the e-arc.

As much as I love Maggie Steifvater and DC's recent YA graphic novels, I have to say that I did not vibe with this one. The art was spectacular, but the plot felt convenient and somewhat jumbled at times. I'm an avid comic reader (not as avid as many, I'm aware) but some of the panels did not make a lot of sense to me as far as pacing. I think this comic would have made a better novel than a comic as there is so much going on that it's hard to grasp in such a short amount of time.

I liked the idea of sibling love, but it wasn't coming across that way until the very end. Neither seemed to care much about the other and were just immersed in their own lives. The romance was sweet. I liked that a lot.

Overall, I wasn't fully hooked. I wished I loved this more. It's not a terrible entrance into the comic world by Stiefvater, but it's not her best by far.

This Swamp Thing origin story focuses on Alec Holland (and to a lesser extent his twin brother Walker Holland). Alec feels much more comfortable among plants than he does around humans. When his botany experiment begins to cause strange reactions to anything it touches-- such as turning his cousins' dogs into dog-shaped plant creatures or abruptly changing Alec's blood sugar level (which he monitors due to his T1 Diabetes)-- Alec begins to detach himself more and more from humanity in favor of the plants he loves.

Twin Branches is lovely and creepy and weird. The story mostly feels like a typical YA drama about an anti-social teen with a popular brother, with just touches of speculative weirdness leading up to the fantastical finale. I do wish the story had touched a little more on the relationship between the brothers; though the synopsis and title make it seem like both Alec and Walker are MC's, it's really Alec's story. The character artwork wasn't my style, but the nature art was beautiful and haunting. I don't know anything about Swamp Thing, so I can't speak to that aspect, but Twin Branches seems a perfectly adequate origin story, if a bit constrained by page count.

TW: mild body horror (humans and other animals); parent adultery, bullying and assault

Please note: I was provided a copy of this book as an earc by the publisher and Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I’m not that into DC comics and admittedly have never heard of Swamp Thing, but as soon as I saw Maggie was to write a graphic novel, I knew I had to have it. Full disclosure Maggie is one of my all-time favorite authors, I was bound to enjoy this book.

I didn’t know what to expect going in, but I thoroughly enjoyed this! Not only was the story fun but the illustrations done by Morgan Beem were phenomenal. The lifelikeness of the plants and even just the characters were extremely well done.

This is definitely an origin story for Swamp Thing and I really hope we’ll get more books from Maggie and Morgan! By the end of the book I was fascinated with where it was headed and want more of this strange plant-based character!

This was a really fun graphic novel! The timeline was a little confusing, it switched to flashbacks and present day often and kind of jumped around a lot. Not everything was really well explained or gone to in depth, but overall it made sense.
After I got into the world of it, it was a really fun story, I liked Alec and Abby. For me, sometimes characters don't have much depth in graphic novels, but I think these characters were portrayed well and I felt like I connected with them. I liked Alec's diabetic rep, my best friend in school was diabetic, so I find it great when characters have real illnesses. It didn't take up a big portion of the book, but was portrayed accurately in my opinion. I also loved how Abby tried to get to know Alec even though he didn't want to reach out or talk to anyone.
The artwork was beautiful and amazingly colorful.
I really got into the story near the end. I'm really hoping that there is more to this story because I want to see what happens next!

I absolutely adore Maggie Stiefvater's books, Swamp Thing included! The story is exciting and gritty, paired with perfect illustrations. I love science experiments gone wrong, or maybe the results were exactly what Alec intended to achieve. Alec and Walker Holland are twins who have such a great dynamic and brotherly bond. I cannot wait to see what happens next in the second installment, this might just be my new favorite graphic novel series! I got major cult classic vibes with a little mix of Little Shop of Horrors, and just can't get enough.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book.

Rating: 2.5 stars

I seem to be in the minority here, but this graphic novel didn't work for me (but I definitely recommend checking out other reviews!)

The artwork is truly stunning, but the story and characters fell flat. I was pretty much confused throughout the whole thing, one scene would cut off, leaving me hanging, and then another scene would start with a massive time skip. The ending felt rushed and, again, super confusing to me. Literally nothing is explained in any depth whatsoever and I really didn't like any of the characters.

Overall, I would recommend checking this out if it sounds like something you would enjoy, unfortunately, it just wasn't my cup of tea.

The art of this graphic novel was different, great, very interesting. The plot, though, wasn't like I expected. I found myself often angry, at the "party twin", at the cousins, at the bullies. I hate bullies so much. Why couldn't his cousin stop the car for Alec to take his insulin? Why are people so mean? Why don't they care about others? So selfish and infuriating! I didn't like it at all. Oh, so this thing is making you feel sad, guess what I don't care I will keep doing it. Why??

The story was good, the characters made me shake my head multiple times. It was a bit weird at points. It's a weird graphic novel but the weird I'm referring to is the fact that nobody actually talked about things, always running to conclusions and always with the not caring attitude.

Will there be a next volume? I hope so, there's a lot of potential here!

As a huge fan of Maggie Stiefvater’s work I knew I had to check that one out.

This story about twin brothers who couldn’t be more different was gorgeous and unique. I loved the dynamics between the twins and how they cared so much about each other even though they are so different. I absolutely loved the artwork and the colour pallete they used. It just fits the mood and the whole story so well and all the shades of green that represent the plants is just fantastic. That eerie atmosphere created in this graphic novel was beyond beautiful. But I have to admit I loved the amazing art much more than the general story.

I also was a bit disappointed with the ending. It somehow felt incomplete or like this is only the beginning of a series? I wouldn’t be surprised if we get another book. I would definitely pick it up though!

This was so much fun to read! I loved getting a chance to see a new sort of story from Maggie Stiefvater, and this was both exactly what I expected of her and like nothing I've read before. The art was utterly gorgeous, the story gripping and enthralling. I flew right through it and immediately wanted to read it again.

A new origin story for Swamp Thing, this story follows twins, Alec and Walker Holland. Complete opposites but the brotherly connection and love for one another absolute. Both are willing to do whatever for the other and will never abandon the other. After catching Alec and Walker catch their father cheating on their mom, they leave to spend the summer with their cousins. Alec isn't great with people. He doesn't understand them much, but he does understand plants and loves to do research. But when his plants are destroyed when they arrive at the swamp, he is devastated but determined to start over and see if he can fix the damage. His experiments are basically trying to capture the memories of plants. And the more experiments done, the weirder things get. I really enjoyed this graphic novel. Especially that it wasn't too long ago that I watched the new DC show, Swamp Thing. Though very different from this novel, it was nice to see a different interpretation of these characters from the original comics. Great story!

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review

The art was interesting and different. The story panels can be a bit hard to follow at times, and the end felt incomplete. With more meat and potatoes, this plot could have made a great full length book. Overall entertaining, but I'm still not a fan of graphic novels.

Thank you to #NetGalley for providing a copy.

This new take on the Swamp Thing universe reflects the direction DC has taken in branching out with stories that speak to young adults in ways that expand fandom. The themes of self and identity echo in this book, and there is a grounded sense that isn’t disrupted by the moments of supernatural narrative.

The story is engaging, and the art is unique, organic, and attractive. These books belong in the hands of adolescent readers.

I cannot believe I’m rating a Maggie Stiefvater book two and a half stars. I just excepted more. The Art was really good, the plant life especially. The details were great. The story wasn’t terrible either, but I was expecting so much more. I was actually bored for almost the entire first half of the. Nothing exciting happened, well ever, but I was only mildly interested in the last half. .

I even liked the love interest and the dogs were pretty creepy, but I felt like that could have been condensed into 100 pages and been more concise and interesting. Ugh!!!!

I guess what I’m saying is that it wasn’t for me. It just fell flat when I really, really wanted this to be the best graphic novel. While I can’t recommend this myself, my advice is, if you’re going to read it, don’t expect it to be awesomeness.

Thank you to NetGalley and DC Comics for the opportunity to read this for my honest and unbiased opinion.

I requested this book because it looked worth the read and I LOVE Maggie Stiefvater. I’m not usually a big graphic novel or superhero person, but I decided to give it a shot. Overall, I wasn’t disappointed.
TWIN BRANCHES was the tiniest bit confusing, partially because I read it on such a small screen and couldn’t see some words, but otherwise really good. Stiefvater applies her familiar technique to all of the writing of the novel, and despite being different from her other books, TWIN BRANCHES still has the same Maggie Stiefvater glow.
The art in this book was really beautiful. It suited the story so well and in some times was so wonderfully intricate that all I could do with my eyes was follow the lines.
I haven’t read any other DC books or comics besides WONDER WOMAN: WARBRINGER by Leigh Bardugo, so I can’t say how much fans of other SWAMP THING installments would like this, but fans of Maggie Stiefvater will not be disappointed!

I have to start by saying that I am both a big fan of Maggie Stiefvater and of DC, and seeing both come together in Swamp Thing like this was equally unexpected and fantastic.

At first I thought the art style wouldn't be for me, but I was wrong. 10 pages or so in, and I was in love with Morgan Beem's work as well. Especially the color palette that was chosen for this graphic novel. It is STELLAR! So bright, downright trippy at times - it perfectly underlines the whimsical atmosphere of the story (and all the GREEN!)

It was great getting to know both Alec and Walker; two very different yet equally lovable twin brothers, in this unique origin story, and my only wish would be for the ending to be slightly slonger.
Maybe another 10 or 20 pages to wrap things up and I'd had zero complaints at all. But then again, I'd gladly take.a follow up to continue the story as well.

I had really high expectations for this one. I love graphic novels and I'm a huge Maggie Stiefvater fan. To my dismay this was only a 3 out of 5 stars for me. I liked it, but I didn't love it. I wanted a bit more from this. I found I never really got attached to the characters and didn't care all that much about them. I did like the artwork. There were some nice frames about plant science. But overall, this was underwhelming. I think this was a classic case of it's me not you scenario; my expectations were just too high.

I have been on a graphic novels kick lately, so I couldn't wait to pick this copy up. The artwork is AMAZING. Serious drool-worthy things happening here. The relationship between the brothers was amazing. I loved the science speak. The progression of the story was great. The writing was amazing.

Overall, I have very few complaints. I love it, pick it up, eat it up, and then give it to your friends so we can all drool over it together!

*Thanks to the folks at Netgalley for an eARC*