It was very short, but didn't feel rushed either, so if you're looking for something quick, then this is for you. Art style really helped add to the ominous feeling and I was pleasantly surprised by the ending.

I had not realized that this was a graphic novel at first but hot dang that was a fun and scary read. The tension builds slowly but surely with a great ending I didn't see coming.

This was a whisper of a book.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc. In no way does this sway my personal opinion of the book.

I’ve always loved graphic novels as a kid and was so excited to receive this arc to jump back into them. The concept of this novel seemed so intriguing. We follow our main character Adam who goes to this supernatural forest in Romania where his friend went missing. He’s desperate to find his friends despite the local villagers telling him all the dangers of the forest, specifically the witch that haunts it. Sadly though this book let me down.

Reason why it let me down:
-This book is short! It is around 90 pages total. That being said you never get attached to the characters or get any world building.
- It felt rushed. Again since the book was so short I felt that we missed out on a lot of key details and parts of the story. I felt like I had missed some pages at times.
-The story overall just felt choppy.

Reasons why I liked it:
- The art style was pretty.

Honestly this would have been an interesting book if it had been longer. I really wanted to like this book and would look out for more stuff this author writes in the future. Just keep in mind as you read this review all readers have opinions and this is just mine. 🤍

Rating: ⭐️.5

CONTENT NOTE: Missing person, murder, brief nudity, some ableist language

Whisper of the Woods is a quick read riddled with folklore and horror elements about a young man desperate to find his friend, who is lost to a cursed wooded area in Romania, despite all the warnings against it.

What Worked for Me:
✦ I enjoyed the story! I like a bit of eerie mystery that taunts me as a reader, and this was interesting.
✦ I've read Ennun Ana Iurov's work before in Needle & Thread (also from Mad Cave Studios!), and I really enjoy their work! I love the subtle movement the looseness of his lines give the art work, making it feel sketchy and complete at the same time.
✦ I like the idea of doing a cautionary tale about foreigners going into local spaces and ignoring all the locals' warnings. I don't want to give away too much, but I like that the fairy tale element of "Consequences, meet Actions" in here very much.
✦ I really like Ennun Ana Iurov's way of drawing shaggy hair and facial hair lol. It may be because I was struggling with drawing that myself the day before reading this, but it stuck out in a positive way for me. Her way of drawing it makes it all wispy, lending their panels movement.
✦ I enjoyed being introduced to the Iele as Romanian folklore! Fairy tales and folklore are some of my favorite stories, and I liked how Ennun Ana Iurov tied this into his work. I think the looming threat of these beings was well done. I also always love a story about a dangerous feminine creature that you need to be wary of in order to keep all your body parts or even your life intact.
✦ The design for the witch in the story-- while brief-- was so beautiful. I especially loved the intricate embroidery on her top, and I enjoyed her direct and blunt manner.
✦ Ennun Ana Iurov's panels flowed really well and clearly.
✦ I liked the character of Carol, too-- I'm not a fan of him being described in the ableist ways used in the book, but I loved that he was doing his best to look out for a total stranger despite (well, probably because of) his own difficulties. I think this is a great way of showing how often disabled people are demonized (especially for surviving something horrific) even though they're more likely to be harmed than to be violent toward others.

What Didn't Work for Me:
✦ I felt the story ended too soon! I was looking forward to more exploration of encountering certain things (trying not to spoil!), so the ending left me a bit disappointed. I would love to see more exploration of this world.
✦ I didn't care for the ableist language used in the script.
✦ The lettering in the narration boxes was a little difficult to read; the font was white on colored backgrounds, and I felt it needed more contrast for the font to be more easily legible.
✦ I think the color palette could have used a little bit more cohesion. I think Ennun Ana Iurov does great work with muted colors, but I also think this one could have benefitted from a slightly more restricted palette.

Overall
I give Whisper of the Woods 3.5 out of 5 speech bubbles, rounding up to 4: The folklore aspects mixed with horror make this book a haunting and entertaining read, and I recommend checking it out!

How to Read It
Whisper of the Woods comes out on October 24, 2023, and you can pre-order a copy through Mad Cave Studios, Bookshop, or Barnes & Noble.

Read This Next
If you liked this, check out Squad by Lisa Sterle and Maggie Tokuda-Hall, Shades of Fear Horror Comics Anthology, and Darlin' and Her Other Names, Part 1: Marta by Olivia Stephens

If you enjoyed this review, I have a monthly comic review series called More Comics Please! on my website with interior page excerpts and additional information not shared here on NetGalley. You can sign up to receive them in your inbox by subscribing to my newsletter Into the Bramble at jbeoin.com/newsletter.

I received an ARC of this horror comic and I honestly liked it a lot! The art style was different from what I've seen, but that added an eerie quality to the story which I appreciated very much. There were even a few creepy scenes that made me gasp and a few parts that made me laugh. The only thing I didn't like about this story, was the fact that I had several unanswered questions. The ending almost felt like a cliffhanger and I wish it had been a longer story to tie up the loose ends. Overall, I had fun reading this!

This was such a good graphic novel! I only wish it was longer since the ending felt a little rushed and I wanted more! The art style is absolutely beautiful and creepy! Overall I did enjoy it! 3.5 stars

Thank you for the copy of this wonderful book in exchange for an honest review.


The art is fantastic and I love the horror mixed with fantasy that lures you in. I love this take on an evil forest where all men that go into it disappear or worse. The ending was not what I had expected but I loved it all the same.

For those that love a good dark and twisted tale that is light and easy to read with wonderful art, this one is for you.

While I was attracted to this story because of its eeriness it didn't perform how I hoped. It was rough...there wasn't enough information on, well, anything. I didn't feel connected or interested in anything. The dialogue and transitions were a bit disjointed and jarring as well. This definitely needed many more rounds of editing.

I appreciate having had an opportunity to read and review this book. The appeal of this particular book was not evident to me, and if I cannot file a generally positive review I prefer simply to advise the publisher to that effect and file no review at all.

A cool premise and a great effort, but overall this seems pretty rough around the edges. The dialogue and transitions were a bit disjointed. The story is short enough that I think some more added information to help us connect with that characters more would be a good thing. There were some creepy parts that I enjoyed. A good try, but nothing to write home about.

I received this as an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The artist (and author) Ennun Ana Iurov has a very nice drawing style and draws emotion well. I thought the story itself was a nice twist on Romanian folklore and the modern world.

Adam’s best friend Vlad goes missing in a haunted forest known as Hoia Baciu, and Adam being the nice friend he is sets out to find his best friend. It is a bit of a dark story.

I like when authors/artists use their own heritage in the stories/art they make, and this was no exception. Makes me want to learn more about Romanian folklore.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

3.5!
A very short horror story! This graphic novel is only roughly 74 pages long, so there isn't too much to it. It follows a young man following after his friend who has gone missing in a famous forest in Romania. The townspeople tell him it's futile, no one comes out after being "taken" but he still continues on. But the story doesn't have too much meat to it. It explains what Hoia Baciu is and what an iele is, and then the tale ends in a pretty scary scene. However, the way the plot was written, it feels like its meant to be the opening of a much longer story, but it just ends. I did like how each chapter was referred to as "Night [Number]"; it was a cool way to name chapters. I also really enjoyed the art! The horror scenes are bone-chillingly scary, and do an excellent job of making you feel unsettled. The art style making it that no one had a nose was a little weird, but it's easily overlooked. One minor thing that annoyed me was that none of the Romanian dialogue was translated anywhere. I guess there's not enough said in Romanian to justify it, but there was enough that it impacted my enjoyment of the story a little bit. A translation at the bottom of the page or under the panel would be simple and make the story a bit easier to understand.

I really quite enjoyed this, the art style was pretty good, the basis of the story was interesting, and there were some good creepy/scary parts too. Unfortunately I feel like there wasn't much of a conclusion, and it's quite short so everything happens so fast leaving little time for any real tension to build. With a bit more padding and a little polish this could have been a really great graphic novel.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley.

Whisper of the Woods is a foray into a dark and twisting forests with secrets waiting to be revealed around every turn.

This story follows Adam, our main character, who is searching for a lost friend. When he discovers a small town full of secrets and underlying motives, he doesn't heed their warnings and instead he tempts fate.

This story grabs you and pulls you deep into the heart of Hoia Baciu. It gave me chills and I found myself so beyond curious as to what was going to happen next. I think this story is going to be a hit and readers everywhere are going to love it!

3 out of 5 Stars

Whisper of the Woods is not my favorite art style but it's quick read that worth it.

In this short graphic novel, two friends from uni are to embark on a trip together, but before the trip even begins, one friend goes missing in “one of Romania’s most famous supernatural locations”.

From the very beginning, I was hooked. The plot was just creepy enough to keep me wanting more. If anything, I felt the graphic novel ended too soon, and I wish it had been longer with more character development. However, I enjoyed the illustrations, especially of the haunted forest and the strange village.

If the author turned this graphic novel into a series with new characters and their experiences in this haunted town, I would read each one.

Thank you Mad Cave Studios Inc. and NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review!

It was such a fun read and very intriguing… my first comic after at least 14 years… I’d give it a 4.75 only because some of the images depicted a bit confusion … it’s probably just me but the main character “ Adams friend” which I can’t recall the name whom I thought was female was male and I didn’t found out till one of the Romanians mentioned his gender .. those small details for me take away from a 5 star rating however a 4.75 is super high and I will highly recommend to anyone interested in dark comics with mystery and super chilling

This wasn't a win for me. Really disjointed and the story wasn't clearly told. The art itself was sloppy. The idea had potential, but the execution was messy which made it hard to enjoy.

This is such a good comic. It had me hooked the first few pages. I love the drawing style. The determination that he had to find is friend was very strong. I do believe it was a little too fast paced. I was confused on some parts and wish it was more elaborate. It was very interesting though and a quick read. If you are looking for a quick horror read join Adam on the journey of finding out what happened to his missing friend Val.

This was a fun and fast paced graphic novel. I enjoyed the premise and the illustrations were amazing! However, I do think this would have been better if it were longer because there were some confusing moments due to the pace and the ending felt very rushed.

Overall, I enjoyed this graphic novel and would recommend if you like:
- horror
- haunted forests
- short graphic novels
- supernatural folk stories