The cover is so vibrant that I was really excited about delving in to this story.
It was an imaginative & interesting read focusing around a World Tree that is dying and how it affects the inhabitants of this fantastical environment.

As an adaptation of a French novel, this comic book did have some 'lost in translation' issues.
For example some aspects (i.e. creatures) were introduced but then were glossed over quickly, leaving me feel like I missed out on some extra details that could have made the story more fleshed out.

The art is visually appealing which made it enjoyable and a pleasure to read.

I absolutely love the world that is presented on Sap Hunters. It has a lot of the things I love to read on this type of stories but, I would like to know a little more about the context or the life of the characters. Maybe we can have that on future stories? It was a great world, I would like to come back to it.

Wanting to come on like Aldiss' Hothouse, perhaps, this has a few odd human characters of diverging religions explore the mahoosive tree that makes up their world. Some revere this part of it, some that, and they all think they know best, so this wordy book gets bogged down by a heck of a lot of bickering. Indeed there's far too much yack even when one of them goes solo. Add in copious amounts of technobabble and in-world terms we have to adjust to (and too fast for my liking), and the ending nobody would ever ask for, and we've got an an easily ignorable effort.

Thanks NetGalley and Humanoids Inc foe access to this beautiful but boring arc, lol

2/5 stars

Visually, this is a fantastic graphic novel. The backgrounds, animals, bugs, etc are all portrayed in such vivid detail, I absolutely loved that.

The storyline and characters? Not so much. I didn't really connect with anyone and the storyline was bleak, bland, and a little confusing. Maybe I'd be more into it if there weren't just a bunch of forest fires in May in my province as we have unseasonably warm weather, but the whole "everything is dying" plotline hits too close ro home rn lol 😅😅😅

I'd like to see this in print to see the illustrations on paper.

The cover of Sap Hunters is beautiful like no other. The whole idea is surely interesting. The World Tree is dying and people live in it and need to find a way to save it. Many different clans live in the tree and sadly so fight one another. The Chasm Strider clan’s diviner, Pierig, finds the infection. Soon he is captured by a different clan, the Sap Hunters, since they need him to find the corruption and help stop it. The plot doesn't work fully as so much more would need to be explained and the clans just keep attacking for no good reason. I still don't know what the outcome really was and that's something. Toward the end it was hard to keep track of anything and the mystery was left there (partly at least).

The art is good and then not fully. The landscapes and nature look amazing with all the details and vibrant colors. The people then are simpler and look detached from the world, which is a shame. The line art is too thick when portraying the people and leaves them smudgy. The colors are great though and I wanted even more depth to it! It would've looked awesome.

An imaginative eco-scifi graphic novel with questionable take on feminism.

We're dropped into a world where all living beings live on a giant tree of life. Some people are born with a special skill to feel the health of the tree they live in, these are Diviners. We're following one diviner, who's arrives back home just as his clan is being attacked by another and he is taken prisoner for his skill. The tree of live is dying and it's sap is turning poisonous. The Diviner is placed with a team of fighters and told to find out what's happening to the tree of live and fix it.

I like the art style. I believe this world exists and the unique monsters/creatures that are created were fun to see. The art added a layer of storytelling that I appreciated.

There's an stilted theme around women's roles, which made me roll my eyes. "Women can't be Diviners, only men", says our protagonist, to a woman who tells him she is the Diviner. Additionally there's a scene, which for no reason I can figure out, this female Diviner is practically naked with a robe barely draped over her. while she's about to start a fight. I'm not sure what the writer is trying to do here with gender politics, but I'm not on board.

Thank you to NetGalley and Humanoids Inc, for the advanced reader copy.

Sap Hunters is the story of people living on the World Tree and what happens when they find that the tree is infected. It is a stunning book the art is beautiful. But the type of story you will want to read more than once. I look forward to see where it is going.

4 stars

This was a pretty cool story with great artwork centered around an issue with their sacred tree. I found the different tribes fascinating and the creatures were interesting. I did find it hard to get hooked on the main character.

Sap Hunters April 25, 2023
Laurent Genefort and Alexandre Ristorcelli Graphic Novel
The inhabitants of the Worldtree have noticed that it’s dying. Sap has become toxic and the tree has become home to harmful insects. In this world there are people who have become revered by their clans to diagnose and treat the Worldtree called Diviners. One of these Diviners, named Pierig gets kidnapped by the Sap Hunter clan after they decimated his home and clan. The Sap Hunters, led by Reva, the daughter of the chief, embark on a quest to find out what’s going on with and to fix the Worldtree.
This graphic novel is based on Genefort’s novel, though I couldn’t find anything about the original book, and is a new translation. The story follows the classic apocalyptic story of a resource becoming scarce. Think Mad Max, Tank Girl, and (one of the worst movies ever IMO) Waterworld. The art is very monotone, greens and browns, even though this was described as a story like Avatar (and Mad Max). There’s so much goop, green goop. Sometimes it’s dangerous, sometimes helpful, but there’s a TON of it. Green is definitely the prime color in the book.
You barely get to know Pierig’s clan before they get destroyed and the story starts with a wordy crash course of the world so I felt a bit frustrated with it. Once Pierig gets kidnapped, the exposition slows down, it doesn’t seem forced anymore. One thing that it glosses over is information about the animals/insects in the biome. It wasn’t until the last half of the book where we see how bad they can be. I felt a tad lost.
Near the end the story goes off into a brand new sci-fi track and finally brings up a mystery that intrigued me. Without spoilers the story expands in the world beyond the Worldtree. By the end of the book I was hanging on every panel. I’ll be picking up the second book to see what happens next. For apocalyptic story fans this is right up your alley, if you’re myxophobic (fear of slime) you might want to skip it.

My thanks to NetGalley and Humaniods Inc. for an eARC copy of this book to read and review.

Ok, ummmm....I didn't HATE it, but I really didn't LIKE it very much...

I didn't like the characters, I didn't like the world, I didn't like the plot and the ending was just...really bleak.

The artwork, when it wasn't something gross like bugs or blood/other body fluids, was actually nice to look at and I love the color green. When green was present, it was lush and bright and I liked that.

Unfortunately, the characters were not the best examples of humankind (though to be fair, most aren't) and when a character was finally starting to grow on me a little, they were offed. There were also characters that you knew would be throw-aways because they had like MAYBE two lines in the entire thing, so no way to really get to know or care about them.

This seems very...French to me and I just checked and yes, this was translated and it seems that the author is French, so that would explain the beauty being constantly overtaken by sadness, despair and decay, with little to no hope for the future.

This wasn't my cup of tea, YMMV.

2, this wasn't fantastic but it wasn't nearly as bad as The Adoption by Zidrou, stars.

Plot: Pierig is a Diviner (someone who can understand trees) in the Chasm Strider clan. They’re not so important as the Sap Hunters kill them all just to take Pierig in and ask him to help figure out what is poisoning the World Tree. Apparently the Sap Hunters tried a peaceful approach, but they “died” (Not explained clearly). As their prisoner, Pierig and three others journey to the Bowels of the World Tree to figure out what is causing the infection and why a word is inscribed on the trees. There is:

-Askel of the Sap Hunters is the first person he meets who treats him decently. There’s not much about him other than he was ordered to stay behind and not murder Pierig’s clan, but if was ordered to kill, he would have, “but taken no pleasure in it.” Like, bruh, let’s not be too honest.
-Juse is… well, he plays the flute and is defaulted to being Askel’s friend while Pierig and Reva bicker.
-Reva is the Guardian of Truth for the expedition. She’s already angry at Pierig because her brother was part of the delegation to seek help from the Chasm Strider clan. Pierig’s clan was patriarchal, meaning women weren’t Diviners or warriors, and left to be domesticated, so Reva has another reason to hate him. She portrays the average stubborn fighter, but as the only female in the story with more than five lines, it’s quick to see her relevance goes.


Storyboard/Art: Because it’s a graphic adaptation of a French novel, I understand why some parts seem choppy. There were times I had to re-read because it was unclear of how the story was progressing. Deaths actually happened so suddenly, I didn’t realize it. If there were chapters or some type of dividers, it would have helped with the time skips.

My biggest problem was the inconsistency with the story and drawing. For example, our characters are walking in an acid-dripping forest and wearing specially coated ponchos. One is struggling through, so another character reassures him by putting his hand on his back. Like isn’t his poncho covered in acid?!

Best part about the art was when it came to lore about the deities. Yeis was a cosmic tree that created gods, but when dying out, it created humans. That type of lore was really clever! The comparison to Avatar is perfect.


Overall: Thank you to #NetGalley and Humanoids INC for the eARC of #SapHunters in exchange for an honest review. 3.5/5
The art style was amazing and the color schemes aesthetically pleasing. However, the art suffered because the storyboard went too fast and the dialogue was heavy. As a reminder again, this is an adaptation and translated, so it is choppy. Little details like (spoiler) a bug infection kept me wanting to read more. Because I didn’t read the novel, I wasn’t invested in the characters and there was nothing to like about them. It made the ending pretty bland.

Sap Hunters, written by Laurent Genefort, is a gripping science fiction comic that tells the story of a team of hunters tasked with extracting a rare and valuable substance called sap from a dangerous planet. The story is set in a distant future where humanity has spread across the galaxy, encountering new and exotic life forms.

The comic is beautifully illustrated, with detailed and colorful images that bring the alien landscapes and creatures to life. The characters are well fleshed out and each has their own personality and backstory, making you root for them.

The plot is fast-paced and action-packed. On their mission to collect the sap hunters must overcome numerous challenges and obstacles. From deadly predators to hostile locals, the team must work together and use their skills and ingenuity to survive.

What sets Sap Hunters apart from other science fiction comics is the depth of the world-building. The planet that the hunters explore is richly imagined, with its own ecosystem and culture. The author has clearly put a lot of thought into creating a believable and immersive environment, which adds to the overall enjoyment of the story.

Overall, Sap Hunters is an excellent comic that will appeal to fans of science fiction, action, and adventure. With its engaging characters, stunning artwork, and exciting story, it's a must-read for anyone looking for an immersive and thrilling comic book experience.

Is it sci-fi? Is it fantasy? It's fantasy, but for the longest time I expected it to be both, thinking it would be another space-ark-gone-wrong story, but it's not! Even after not I couldn't shake the feeling that's is also a bit sci-fi.

People (and semi-people or non-people) live on an huuuuge tree, and the tree is not doing well, which means the people (and semi-people or non-people) are feeling the negative effects. And so a group of people are sent down down down, to see what is going on and hopefully fixing it.

Of course the expedition is composed of characters who literally are enemies and have to work together against all odds, etc.

Yes, this is very European, and I have a soft spot for this kind of storytelling (possibly because I am also very European). Yes, there is also too much dialogue, with characters constantly explaining the world they live in to eachother. But the art is pretty great, with some wonderful world and creature design.

This is a great story. Imaginative and complex world building, a quest, a hero, weird lands, weird peoples and dangers along the way. The story drew me in right from the beginning and the story was well paced with excellent art work and great characters. Definitely a good one if you like sci fi graphic novels.

Copy provided via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

The art is gorgeous and the world building is so unique and detailed. Unfortunately the story was somehow so oversimplified and confusing. Most of the journey was boring and didn't feel like any progress was being made. I felt like most of the plot progression only happened in the beginning and right at the end. It felt a bit jarring and sudden. The character development and relationships that developed didn't seem earned? Maybe because there was no moment which felt pivotal which showed the characters were changing or made them change their opinions of each other. It kind of felt like it came out of nowhere?
I feel the author wanted to share the world they created but couldn't quite make a great story to do it naturally. It felt like it was all just an excuse to do more work building than to actually tell an interesting story about fleshed out characters. The characters don't change until they suddenly do? Their actions seem strange and out of character? Maybe it is due to the limitations of the medium and the limits on the length of pages available, but I feel there was stuff happening but nothing much happening at all at the same time.
Not a satisfying reading experience. Maybe buy it just for the art. The art of the trees and background is full of detail and each panel is a masterpiece. Unfortunately the story is lacking.

I loved the drawing style in this graphic novel. The pictures were breathtaking.

I didn't like the characters too much but I was invested in trying to figure out the cause of the poisoning of the world tree.

The ending is interesting.

Thank you to NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy.

I was very intrigued by the premise, I definitely like eco-fantasy/SF and when it's all wrapped up in some kind of mystery-solving, how can anyone resist? The illustrations are very detailed and are classic euro-comic style. Personally they're not what I like, but I appreciate all the skill that went into it, the time it took, and thought and I usually am ok with it if I enjoy the story... sadly I can't say that I did.
I'm very character-driven, and I need to like the people I read about and "live" an adventure with, not just find them interesting. And in this case, I absolutely hated everyone. There was not a single person to redeem the other. I didn't like what happened, I didn't like the take on clan cultures, I hated the relationships between the people and I wished all of them would die and their whole way of life with it... not great when you're supposed to root for a doomed civilization survival.
Lots of interesting ideas were peppered into a rather classic storyline that reminded me of 60 SF books and 80s comics. This was not for me, but will probably appeal to baby-boomers and give them a sense of nostalgia as they reminisce about what they used to read as late teens.

This was a confusing journey.
I learned from a review here that is based on a novel so probably there is some more explanation on what's is happening.

The art is beautiful and the concept was there, what I didn't feel was the story itself.
While I was reading, I was very confused and most of the time I didn't know the main couse of all of this. The journey itself is enjoyable, there is a sort of start and finish, but with so little backgroud that we get it wasn't easy to fully appreciate it.

It took a bit longer to read Sap Hunters by Laurent Genefort than I expected. That isn't the fault of the author, but my own planning. I think it did dappen my immersion into the first half of the story. I had a good time exploring the world that Genefort thought up. My only issue was that the character fell a little flat for me. There wasn't much for me to get attached to as a reader. As the story went on I found that I was only growing attached to the world itself and not any individual character. The characters felt flat, and I only had either dislike or mild interest in any of them. If this continued I would continue reading but this is where I am now.

I was provided with a free copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I received an advanced copy through NetGalley in exchange of my honest review.

3 stars
"Sap Hunters” is a graphic novel with marvellous, very detailed illustrations, but when it comes to the story, I found it a little too confusing. It only made me curious to read the original novel.