This was such a cute graphic novel. I loved every second of it. It was well paced and the characters made it very easy to want them to come out on top.

**Disclaimer: I recieved a free eARC of this through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this opportunity.  I had so much fun reading this book.  It was well-written and I really enjoyed the art style.  I liked the dynamic between the two main characters.  I also really liked the radish spirit that travelled with them.  It was super cute and unique.  I definitely want to read more of this series and world.  It was very cute.

Two not-so-human teenagers and a friendly ghost radish face the fantasy adventure of a lifetime in this captivating graphic novel, featuring exclusive behind-the-scenes material, from the inimitable Katie Cook.

Well-written, well-illustrated, well-done!

I LOVED THIS SO MUCH.
So much fun, I loved learning about the world and spending time with these characters. I wish I had my own lil radish spirit to keep me company, which is a sentence I never thought I’d say.

3.5/5. To make it clear early on I am biased as I devoured season one and most of season two of this webtoon back in high school. I am very excited this got a physical printing! Its a wonderful story. It is decidedly an adventure story and not an action story. It might lack a lot of friction with its main conflict being very distant for much of its length but the focus is put on the fun character dynamics of Callie, Declan, Lasser, and Radish. Their dynamics carry the story and I'm so glad Katie Cook oriented the story structure around that.
The art is nice but a bit acquired. It gives a bit of "How to Draw Manga" vibes. While some snuff their nose at that style I see it as a style with merit. Katie also admits to enjoying having her characters blush with them doing so in nearly all the panels. Its just a fun adventure romp with clean and crisp emotive art (albeit with some slightly awkward mannequin-esque posing). I will say I dislike how the panels are handled. They feel too loose with too much white space. It's an issue for many printed webtoons but it's especially harsh here at times.

This. Was. Adorable!!! I loved the story and of course the gorgeous artwork. I also have a new favorite character in Radish (yes, the spirit of an actual radish). The “montages” were especially funny. I love forward to reading more of this story!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an arc of this book.

Great graphic novel, easy to follow, amazing graphics, really good story and loads of great characters throughout. Was a really fun read and great after finishing a longer book, finished it in so time!
Will definitely read the next volume.

I was surprised by the length of this graphic novel, but even if it's 400 pages, it feels light. I really appreciated how the story wrapped within the volume.

It's a very nice, fun and fantastic middle-grade story, full of magic and adventure. It also incorporates some comedy and romance, but everything was balanced very well. The story in itself was intriguing, and I liked it from the beginning, when we find out about Callie's father's shop, since it's based both in the real world and fantasy world, which I wanted to explore. I was curious about Callie's identity, since she is half human, half something else, but, to be honest, I was in it for the adventure!

This is a very charming, easy to follow middle=grade comic book, a fantasy adventure told with plenty of humor. The characters seem to both know and not know they are oddballs (affectionate) and seem to take things in stride. I quite liked how well-balanced the quest for adventure formula was with additions of romance, and some tongue-in-cheek fourth wall breaking. It would definitely make for a good present for a younger reader, especially if they love games and graphic novels.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an early copy.

Callie comes from another place, a magical place, but the only magical thing about her, is that she can see plant spirits. A dandelion dies, she can see the spirit. A radish dies, there is the spirit. So one day, while she is sketching one of these spirits a boy, Declan, says “Oh, you see them too?” Turns out he is part (or all) fae, and just started seeing them.

And then Callie’s father gets kidnapped, and she and Declan and a radish spirit that happens to like her, go off into the magical realm to save him. Along the way they meet a demon, Lasser the lesser, who wants to join them.

Apparently this is the first volume of more adventures, which will be fun. Callie is very determined. Declan is more than willing to help, and the demon tends to be a little clueless.

A fun sort of romp. Full of jokes, and veggie spirits, and creatures both good and bad.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review. This book will come out from Ten Speed Press the 5th of March 2024.

OMG!!! Thank you so much to netgalley and Ten Speed Press for an arc of "Nothing Special Volume 1".

This graphic novel was outstanding! The artwork=chefs kiss! The storyline=chef's kiss!

Callie is part human part mythical creature. Her dad owns a shop that is half in the real world and half in a fantasy world; his only rule has ever been DO NOT GO PAST THE GATE in the fantasy world. When Callie's father get in trouble on one of his jobs in the fantasy world, Callie and her new friend Declan adventure off past the gate to try and save her father.

This book had everything I could ever want in a book; amazing, super cute and well drawn artwork. An intriguing story. A fantasy world. A bit of romance. A ton of humor. I loved how cute the characters were drawn. I thought the radish had a great sense of humor. Declan was a great romantic interest, and I like how Lasser also really tried despite being ridiculously out of touch. Everything about this book was so sweet and wholesome.

Another thing I liked about this graphic novel is that the story made complete sense and the story arc was completed by the end of the volume. You can tell the illustrator put a lot of time into making sure they didn't skimp on details; in fact the novel is over 400 pages! The story was well fleshed out and it was so interesting that I read in one sitting.

It seems like there are going to be more installments in this series-yay! I loved reading this and I can't wait to go on another adventure with Callie and friends!!! I think you would absolutely love this if you are into fantasy, wholesome romance, and humor. A great age range for this would be teens and adults.

5/5 Stars

While there are elements of insta-love, Nothing Special is a sweet, coming-of-age story. Spoiler alert - the main character winds up having to completely sever a relationship with the mother figure she never knew. However, the main character's father is very supportive and welcoming to everyone in Callie's life, so the book includes a positive role-model figure. Declan was slightly one-dimensional, but given that the book is marketed as Volume One, his character journey may come later in the series. I would recommend this for middle-grade and young adult readers who appreciate an element of fantasy with a bit of escapism.