"Dryad Vol. 1" by Kurtis Wiebe is a captivating graphic novel that seamlessly blends fantasy, family, and adventure. Wiebe's storytelling unfolds with a perfect balance of intrigue and emotional depth, drawing readers into a richly imagined world. The first volume introduces us to a unique and enthralling family, navigating both the challenges of their fantastical surroundings and the complexities of their relationships. With a compelling narrative and visually stunning artwork, "Dryad" offers readers an immersive experience that leaves them eagerly anticipating the next installment. This graphic novel is a testament to Wiebe's storytelling prowess and the potential for magic within the everyday moments of family life.

As someone who absolutely adored Rat Queens, I was very intrigued by Dryad and it somewhat met up to the expectations. A mix of high fantasy and steam punk and Sci fi, Dryad has an intriguing concept, but unfortunately I found the story incredibly hard to follow. There needed to be a little slower introduction to all of the exposition.

The Glass family have hidden in the forest settlement of Frostbrook for 13 years, but that peaceful time ends when agents of Muse come calling. Now the family is dragged to Silver's Bay to repay some old debts of the parents. But everything goes sideways when their arrival is ambushed. Know they are on the run and not knowing who to trust. Will they survive or will they succumb to old debts and new threats? An interesting mashup of urban fantasy and science fiction.

The art was interesting, the pastoral magic community was well created, the post plot twist arc was exciting and the world and characters well drawn, but somehow it didn't come together for me. Maybe because we don't spend enough time with the main characters to really care about the twist and its implications and we don't know enough about the new world yet to understand the players and steaks? I understand this is volume one but it just didn't stand on it's own enough for me.

I absolutely adored this graphic novel so much. I wasn’t expecting a lot of the things that happened and it was refreshing to see a graphic novel that reminded me a lot of a D&D as well as diving into a good fantasy series. I enjoyed it so much I went and got the graphic novel from the library and the book store. I look forward to reading more of the series in the future.

I’m not a big lover of graphic novels but this one did keep my gripped enough to keep reading and enjoy

A rather interesting take on magic and technology fusing together, in a sort of futuristic D&D setting.

I thought the plot looked interesting - I'm never one to turn down elves and tech stuff mixing as it's rare - and I enjoyed this book a lot. The concept is that a family is hiding from a powerful but terrible guild, away from modern civilization - though without the kids knowing that. Turns out, their little secret refuge is discovered, and they're needed back home to fight some kind of... evil, and now they have many people after them, particularly the twins.

I can't say I didn't find this journey fun, and it's definitely not a book for kids, even with blood and gore being masked with lighter colors and avoided close-ups. It was a page-turner, for sure, although I do believe that's also because of the genre of the book and the fact it's a graphic novel/comic.

What I found a bit irksome was how many questions I had concerning the universe and other things, yet was left hanging. I hope they get answered as the story progresses - there were plot-related questions I had, too, but I do understand how it's necessary for them to exist so the story can go on, thus I didn't have an issue with that.

***I was given an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinion stated in this review is solely mine, and no compensation was given or taken to alter it.***

Fun graphic novel with a really gorgeous art style and great characters! I'm really excited topic up the next volume!

Kurtis Wiebe of Rat Queens fame does his best Saga impression and it turned out really good. I loved how this started out as high fantasy before becoming...something more. I was completely fooled. Justin Osterling's art was very good too. Loved the character designs.

Unfortunately this book expired before I had the chance to fully read it and therefore cannot give a full review.

ARC supplied by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

From the beginning scene where a nasty diaper change is taking place in the middle of a forest, this graphic novel gave me major Saga vibes. I have not picked up Rat Queens, but I adore Saga and am I’m a huge fan of fantasy/cyber punk worlds. I was initially drawn to this graphic novel because of the cool cover and artwork and was very excited to dive in! The gorgeous and colorful art did not disappoint and suited the tone of the story perfectly. It really pulled me into the world.

I had a difficult time becoming invested in the character and stories – the high level of mystery of the characters backstories was clearly supposed to lead readers into the next volumes, but it made the story feel a little choppy and confusing.

Still, I really enjoyed the plot, world building, and family dynamics. I am intrigued to see where the story goes and will be reading the next volumes

A mix of fantasy and science fiction done really great, all in an action packed comic with cool illustrations and characters.

Perfect for fans of Rat Queens and Saga.

Liked the artwork in this but found the story but slow to get into at first. It took a while to get to know the characters.

A bit chaotic

In this first installment of the Dryad-series we get to know Morgan and Yale Glass who moved to the little forest town of Frostbrook to build a new life far from the city to keep their children Rana and Griffon safe.

Telling more about the plot would not only give away spoilers, but it would sound rather confusing as well.
The variety of ideas makes it clear that the author has a whole worldbuilding in mind.
But by introducing too many different trails too quickly, some readers will feel a bit lost sometimes.
Furthermore there are some very strange trains of thoughts and unnecessary tangents which only add to the chaotic impression.
The artwork is good at depicting both action scenes and more quiet ones. But it doesn't bring the whole to a higher level and sometimes reflects the aforementiond chaos too.

Overall this comic book is entertaining enough to keep you reading and thus is worth 2,5*. But as it doesn't excel on any level this is rounded down.
The expected publication of the next installment is July 6th of this year. If the sequel succeeds in fleshing out the worldbuilding and in getting the story less chaotic, this could be an interesting series that's worth following.

Dryad is written by Kurtis Wiebe, a name that will ring a bell with some comic book readers, as in 2014 his comic series 'Rat Queens' was nominated for the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards in the category 'Best new series'.
This Swedish author - who lives and works in Stockholm - does not only write comic book stories, but also games and podcasts bear his interest.


*Thanks to NetGalley and Oni Press for providing a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was an amazing debut by Kurtis Webe. I really enjoyed the art style, and the story itself kept me interested page after page. Can't wait to see where Vol.2 goes!

Thank you Netgalley for letting me read this book in return for an honest review.

Rating: 3⭐

I thought that the volume started off a little slow but when I got into it, I started to enjoy it. The art and colours are really nice and visually pleasing and helped me get wrapped into the world that Dryad is set in. Dryad features a great family dynamic and the cast of characters are very interesting!

Filled with beautiful art depicting beautiful people, this book starts out with a nasty diaper change in the middle of a forest. Who could have guessed? Not me, that's for sure. After a long hard journey, Yale and Morgan find themselves and their twins in a beautiful green village. But things can't stay peaceful forever, can they? This story is a great tale of doing what you have to do to protect the ones you love.

After a class trip to a local ruin outside their peaceful town, Yale and Morgan's twins can't get them out of their heads. They just have a feeling about them, and they're determined to figure out what exactly that feeling is. But after making it back to there, their group is viciously attacked and kidnapped by guards from the city that their parents escaped from with only their lives and the clothes on their back. And after the guards realize that one of the teens is missing, they go on a savage hunt for them through the town. But after finding them, they realize that they don't just want the twins, they want Yale and Morgan as well. And this leads them to a forced adventure back into the city, where they're left fighting for their families lives against soldiers.

This story was really fun to read. The art style is almost relaxing, even though it's depicting a lot of fighting and monsters and even switches at one point to super futuristic tech in the city. It's books like these that are getting me more and more into the fantasy side of things, and I'm glad I got the chance to check it out. I'd definitely recommend looking into it yourself, if you think it would be something you'd like. I'll for sure keep an eye out for the second volume!

(Radioactivebookreviews.wordpress.com)

Thank you Oni Press, Kurtis Wieber, and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review

I loved this. I bloody loved it, because a) it was giving a lot of Saga vibes, mixed with Rat Queens energy (these two are my favourite comics of all time!), and b) we need more comics about loving parents who would do anything to protect their children.

The story starts with Morgen and Yale on the run, accompanied by their twins, Griffon and Rana, until they find a heaven on earth called Frostbrooks, a small sleepy village hidden from the world, and vowed to protect their children from the past. But the past came knocking on their doorsteps when the twins are about to be thrown into a world they can't understand.

The art of this comic is great, so smooth and so pleasing to the eye, and I love how the colours change gradually from the serenity and the peacefulness of Forstbrooks to the city of Silver Bay, which is giving me major Paper Girls flashback.

The cliffhanger, man! It's killing me.

honestly i loved it a lot

•Character development- 5☆
• Story Plot- 5☆
• Side characters- 4.5☆
• Flow of the story- 4.5☆
• Overall - 5☆

thanks to netgalley for giving me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

this was a fun read and i can't wait for later volumes.

I wasn't sure what to expect but ended up really enjoying it and I'm looking forward to more volumes. It was a great scifi graphic novel which mixed machines and magic really well.