I'm finding it difficult to review this one because it was really just an introduction. I wish it was paced a little bit slower - even though it's an intro A LOT happened, but it all happened very quickly. However, I was intrigued to read more and I enjoyed the artwork.

Thank you to NetGalley and Legendary Comics for allowing me to read this book.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing the e-arc in change of an honest review

This graphic is about, lupa, who is named after the Moon Goddess Lupina. After tragedy strikes and Lupa finds herself all alone, she finds herself under the guidance of a wolf called Coras.

The art and illustrations are very important to me in a graphic novel. The art style was very pleasant and they cleverly used colour in this novel. Unfortunately I felt a bit confused and lost while reading the story, as things are not explained a lot. Which is why I sadly can't rate this higher, but it was still a pleasant read!

One of the reasons why I love to read graphic novels/comics/manga is due to the art style and coloring. Illustrations really help bring fantasy elements to life in a way that just words cannot always do. That being said. I thought the art style was pretty cool with the way that most of the colors were muted and dark. Graphic novels are almost always hard to rate out of the gate because I feel like one book rarely establishes enough plot line and character development for me to feel comfortable rating a book. This was such a short read and maybe if I read the next books in the series I'll get a better sense of the story.There are plenty that successfully do this, but this book was definitely not one of them. It felt more like disgruntled stories thrown together instead of a strong coherent plot line, most likely due to not really understanding why anything was happening.

If you're looking for a quick graphic novel to get through with a cool art style. I'd suggest giving this a try since it will be a super quick read.

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for an ARC.

Lupa is named after the Moon Goddess, Lupina. Her sister bickers with her, tells her she was found on her parents doorstep as a baby, that her name means outsider, alien, monster. But her mother tells her not to listen, tells her her name means change. That they knew her arrival would change all of their lives.

Tragedy strikes, and suddenly 4-year-old Lupa finds herself alone in a new world, alone until she’s found by the she-wolf, Coras. Guided by the Goddess Lupina, we follow their journey.


“Hush, little one. Sleep… And when you awake… There will be a new world waiting for you…”


A lot of the storytelling in this novel is told through it’s art. There were some incredibly powerful panels in here. Lupa’s new world is dark and brutal. We see her grow, learn and change to adapt to this new, harsh life of hers, and it’s represented really well on the page over time. I liked the addition of a new colour (representing one of the eight aspects of the Goddess Lupina) with each phase of the story. I also loved the alternate cover included in the back of the novel!

Unfortunately I felt a little lost during most of the story, as things were happening with little explanation, but upon finishing it, reading the afterword and the pages covering the eight aspects of the Goddess Lupina, things made a lot more sense and I started piecing together parts of the story that had initially gone over my head.
I wish there was a little more world building at the beginning of the novel, maybe more about the Goddess Lupina, or the fantastical aspects of this world. I think I would have understood the story better had I known more going in.

There are still plenty of unanswered questions, and the novel left off on a cliffhanger that I really want to see the other side of. I’ll definitely give the next one a read.


Thank you to Netgalley and Legendary Comics for providing this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Lupina Book One: Wax
by James Wright
Review

This was a very enjoyable read! 3.5 stars!

The story starts at the fringe of an ever-expanding empire, in a small coastal town called Kote. The people in the town have taken to the streets for the Black Moon Eve Festival, under the watchful guard of their keepers, the Addalians. We meet our main character, Lupa, at 4 years old, in the lap of an obviously doting father, looking through a telescope at the heavens above, and also being needled by her sister, Amana.

Amana whispers cruel things, but what sticks out the most is — is that Lupa was a child found on their doorstep. And that her name means monster.

Lupa runs through the town to her safe place, her mother. Who explains that she was instead named after the moon goddess, Lupina and change. In the next breath, change comes to Lupa’s life in a striking red!

“Hush, little one, sleep….and when you awake, there will be a new world waiting for you.’’

Her world is indeed changed, awaking in the arms of the cold body of her mother, a wolf standing guard, walking on a path laid out by the goddess, so many changes happen all at once!

There’s a lot to like about this story! Wolves, literal goddesses, mystery, murder and a strangely fierce, violent and hunted Lupa. The aesthetics and creative direction are eye catching as well! The story is initially told in black, red and shades of gray, but with every wax of the moon, another colour would be added. This story doesn’t stray away from blood and a bit of gore, and I fear that it has quite a bit more of the same before the end of this story!

I’m aching to know more, so I’ll certainly be keeping my out for book two!

Would I read this book again!
-I already have!

Would I recommend this ?
-Yes! Definitely for teens 14+ but cw for character death, violence, eye gouging.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Legendary Comics for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thanks to Netgalley for a digital copy in exchange for an honest review :)

In the coastal town of Kote, recently brought under the yoke of the Addalian Empire, four-year-old Lupa spends her days getting bullied by her older sister and hiding behind her mother's skirts. But when tragedy strikes, Lupa finds herself alone in a new world... alone until she's found by the she-wolf, Coras, and sets off on a journey of discovery... and revenge.

The story is just the start of this journey Lupa is going through. I wished there was a bit more about her family (especially her mother). The world is interesting and the aspects of the Lunar Goddess are very interesting. I want to know more about Coras and the other wolves that appear.

This was a good graphic novel . I enjoyed the adding of new colours while getting further into the novel. I can't wait to read the sequel.

A must-read if you enjoy graphic novels!!!

oh, what can I say about this amazing book? The journey young Lupa goes on is enchanting and for a brief time you are transported to another universe I am very excited for the next edition to come out and I am sure I will buy it when it does.

Young Lupa goes on an adventurous journey of discovering her abilities, guided by the goddess Lupina, she finds out how to fend for herself and hold her ground.

* A big thank you to Netgalley and to the Publisher for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review*

This is a young adult graphic novel. It is less than 100 pages so its length and format would appeal to most reluctant readers.

I enjoyed this comic.
Lupina's story was easy to follow and the concept was unique (to me it was anyway). The artwork was wonderful and very clever with the incorporation of colour for the various influences in Lupina's life.

I think the additional volumes/books will be brilliant too and I may have to dive into book 2!

I really enjoyed this comic! Absolutely adored the artwork and thought it very clever to encompass a colour for each of the eight aspects of Lupina (Goddess of the moon) and add one colour with each phase of the story! I did get lost in the plot a couple of times but it all made sense in the end and I cannot wait for the next installment!

Ohhh! I really liked it and can’t wait for part two. I mean can it be any better? There were some download problems with Digital Editions and some pages were cut off (happens a lot) but, I got the gist of the story and was able to follow very well. This was very good storyline and character development, the diverse characters and the outro was amazing as well. You get a peek at the characters background, the side characters, and the artists as well. Since I love comics I’m adding this to my must have. Can’t wait till it comes out. Great work.

Well this had the tendency to get a little weird at times, but it certainly had the chutzpah and conviction to paper over all that. It had enough conviction, and class too, to almost convince us from the start that it offered something totally new – the story, of girl finds wolf companion, gains heavenly protection from a goddess whose eight aspects all influence her life, and travels the world trying to avenge her family and put things to rights, is certainly built of generic fantasy/folk tale elements. The visuals bring a lot of that class to the page – starting with red the only non-grey-scale colour, and adding in extra shades and tones as we go along, also ties in with the different aspects of the goddess looking over everything. This is definitely only the beginning, and it's poised at a place where the book could go any direction it likes. So while ratings of future arcs just could not be predicted, what I saw here for this starter, introductory volume was certainly four stars.

NetGalley ARC Educator 550974

An amazing tale of one girl's fight to survive. The land is overrun by zealots. She befriends the aspects, goddesses, and her wolf, Coras. The story and art were absolutely amazing. I look forward to reading the rest of her tale. Lupina will be a beacon for people everywhere.