I want a fan of this. I feel the story had way too many plot holes. The fight just stopped and nothing is explained. Becca was a character completely unnecessary and brought nothing to the story. Wasn’t a fan, but enjoyed the illustrations

Things that are my fault: assuming, based on the cover art, this is a vampire story. (It’s a golem story — not that knowing it would’ve stopped me from reading and enjoying this graphic novel; just an fyi remark.)

Things that aren’t my fault: all the developmental deficiencies it suffers from. I’d have proposed going back to the board, but in all honesty I have a hard time believing this is the whole story and not the storyboard itself.

Don’t get me wrong, the book starts great … because it starts with the graphics. Their colouring is captivating, and their grain/texture gives them a found footage-ish appearance. With the excitement built, you’re unfortunately set up for harsher disappointment.

I know this is wild to say of a graphic novel (a visual medium!) but it’s all tell and no show. When the text isn’t busy with info-dumping, it restates what you can already see in the illustrations.

But the bigger issue is the frankly insane pace. The story and characters are left with no time to steep, so we get Mark relapsing without witnessing the inner conflict that brought him to it (which means it’s entirely out of the blue and does not make sense within the story itself either), we get every character immediately accepting with utter indifference that there are golems and zombies (not a single instance of surprise or disbelief, let alone panic and confusion), and we get the most abrupt ending imaginable.

While the story does not live up to the atmosphere created by the illustrations, they take a bit of a nosedive themselves too, becoming truly comical (and as such ruining the story further) in the action sequences.

I’m assuming this is a standalone volume, because the story does not lend itself to any continuation. It’s rather sad that the single shot it had to be told, the story’s impact was sacrificed in favour of a low page count. The premise was promising, but its fruits were wilted.

[DRC provided by NetGalley and IDW Publishing.]

I received a free ARC, and this review is voluntary.

In an effort to a fresh start, Mark Turner returns to his childhood locale to renovate a dilapidated church. Between dealing with the hostility of certain folks in the area, Mark stumbles upon an item in the church's basement, that doesn't have a clear answer as to what it is. Seemingly out of place among the traditional relics found elsewhere in this structure of the holy. Contained within is a significance, and terror, that reaches beyond Mark's own understanding.

Right off the bat, what I noticed and then appreciated, is how the color scheme built atmosphere to each scene within the panels. It's been said that when we're angry, "we see red," and that same underlying vibe was utilized in-approach to how each color highlighted the event, or action taking place.

There was never a lull in the plot, or a dull moment. It was as it should be, which is to say, a story that knows what's it after, and it takes with full-force. Finding more curiosity with each turn of the page, we learn more about Mark, and the motions he's taking to rebuild his life, but also the long-forgotten secrets of his hometown that have reverberating consequences.

This is my first book with Damien Worm's art, but I am a huge fan of Taylor Esposito's letters and really enjoyed 30 Days of Night by Steve Niles. This did not disappoint. The story was creepy and well written. The art style really compliments it. I could not put it down.

5 stars.

Wow, what a mess. This is incredibly flat zombie story, where characters don’t display an ounce of emotion when a real apocalypse starts. Full of mundane tropes, characters appearing from nowhere and suddenly becoming crucial in the plot for no reason (the protagonist daughter speaks like two words once she arrives, but somehow we’re supposed to care). It seems like the writer took a whole 15 minutes to come up with this story, but the execution is so bad it’s almost laughable. Ending and art with no emotions whatsoever.

Thanks to NetGalley and IDW publishing for the ARC.

Visually, this artwork was fantastic. The illustrations were vivid, stimulating and very creepy. The story was a little too flat for me, and I was left wanting more. I wanted to know more about the character of Brynmore, perhaps more is to come?

3/5 stars for an okay story and fabulous illustrations.

I read the first issue a while back and it seemed promising,so when I saw all them put into one volume I knew I should give it a read.
Unfortunately this wasn’t what I expected or hoped for. I was looking for a good spooky story and this fell very flat for me,the story itself was interesting but the delivery was sudden and short. There wasn’t enough build up for me to even get excited and then just as quickly as it began it was over.

The story portrayed here is one of struggles that have carried on through one generation to the next. The hostility to which the main character is met upon arriving can be felt from page to page. The aspect of generational trauma is hinted at throughout this graphic novel. The imagery has been quite dark and chilling, matching the mood of the overall story thats being told. With vivid scenes and terror that matches the haunting history of this family, it results in an addictive read.

Thank you to NetGalley and IDW publishing for a copy of this ARC. All thoughts are my own.

Brynmore tells the story of a man returning to the island where he grew up, in an effort to pick up the pieces of his life. He is confronted by locals who don't want him back, and a dark secret linked to his family.

I found myself tearing through this story, wanting to see where it was going. The art was fantastic, and built the creepy atmosphere. I enjoyed watching the story unfold.

The downside was that it felt extremely short/quick. Issues were raised and resolved in short order.

Overall I enjoyed it, and would read more from this team.

Brynmore is a vampire zombie story. The art is great, and I love the digitally painted backgrounds. The story was a little too simple, the premise is kept vague until issue three. Brynmore seems like a villain, but (twist maybe?) he's not. He beats up the zombie hordes easily. The characters were generic, and the ending was very troupey. I didn't enjoy this one that much and wouldn't recommend it.

I can tell this series is going to be so good. Already I adore one of the characters and absolutely love the town vibes. I also love the art style and color palette.

80/100 or 4.00 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was entertaining! The artwork was beautifully done. This would be a great first in a series, if that is what the author is planning. I would be interested to see where the story goes after this! If I can find a reasonably priced physical copy when this comes out, I will be getting it!

BRYNMORE is the first in an excellently written and illustrated graphic novel series. I don't often have occasion to read Graphic Novels, but this one is so engaging that I plan to continue the Series. The characters, settings, backstory, and plot are both enticing and thrilling (not to mention scary), and I really liked the premise and origin story, and the feckless hero but well-meaning protagonist, who in despair opens a metaphorical Pandora's Box and then has to endeavor to fix it and end the Supernatural-caused fatalities. I think the author has a good grasp of human nature, which makes the tale even more appealing, as are the illustrations.

This was a really interesting concept. I love anything dealing with old family curses and modern problems colliding. The art was absolutely stunning. I LOVED the atmosphere that was built. The only thing I wanted more of was a little more time with the characters besides mark.

Review to come closer to the release day on blog/other places.

I received this one from Netgalley/publisher in exchange of an honest review.

A guy who returns to his hometown, or well, home island given that the place is named after his family, finds out that sometimes you should just leave mysterious things to their own, haha. I did like Mark Turner though, he did some dumb things, but I did like that he was trying to make his place on this island despite the hostility from the people living there (later we learn why everyone seems to hate the Turners so much, which I really liked that we got that backstory). I was a bit on the fence about him turning a church into a home though, but I was still curious what he would make of it. He was quite resilient (or is it stubborn?). A lot of people would just have said fuck it to the home feeling and left to other better places. 

But during a drunk stupor (which I didn't blame him for at all, I mean, if that happened and all the pent up stuff as well) he opens something horrific. Or well, what comes out of the box is not really the one they should fear I guess, but along with that monster (named Brynmore) comes something full of curse. Something deadly. Something will rise from the ground and the water and it will take whatever comes in their path. It was totally epic to see several town's folk I didn't like get their dues. I am sorry, not the good thoughts, but I was just so pissed at how the people treated Turner. Yes, his ancestors sucked, but Mark seems to be a nice guy. Come on. It was gruesome to see what happened to the people out on the streets, and how more and more dead just seemed to come to earth to do some murder. And it was epic to see Turner, his daughter, and new friends try to fix the problem. Try to make sure that everything is safe again. 

But the ending just felt kinda sudden. [spoiler]We went from murderous spree and danger and OMG we are all dying to OK, case is closed. Done. Hop. It just felt very anticlimactic. I would have just liked a bit more to it. See how the town is doing. See who is still alive and who is dead. See them build up again. That kind of stuff.[/spoiler]

I also found it odd that our MC just let his teen daughter come to live with him. I mean, I get it, her mom isn't the best apparently and she needed her dad, but he had ZERO living space + a dead demon wandering around. WTF?

The art was pretty good though, the monsters/demons/dead peeps were well drawn. The illustrator sure got the right atmosphere!

All in all, despite being disappointed at some points, I am still very happy I read this one because it was quite the ride.

Brynmore is a story about an old family curse affecting not only the last of the bloodline but a whole island. Mark tries to escape his messed up, ruined family life and distract himself by returning to his Turner island. The inhabitants though barely welcome him. Instead they want him to disappear and threaten him. Nonetheless, he takes on himself the task of renovating an old church, finding a secret passage and a tombstone with secretive signs...

The graphic novel carefully sets up the setting and its interesting backstory. It was easy for me to sympathize with Mark although we are highly distinct in our life situations. The illustrations enable us to feel with him though and draw us into his new environment. The island comes alive in beautiful images that stick in our head. The illustrators surely put effort into details, the atmosphere, and the characters' facial expressions.

The story is dark and gory, abundant on death and destruction. I wished there would have been more time for a counter-feeling, especially with Sophie, Mark's daughter joining later, and Becca, his new acquaintance. Unfortunately, the second part of the story is rather anti-climactic and ends too smoothly to be extended in another volume. I enjoyed the style and the atmosphere of the graphic novel but would have wished for a bit more depth besides the ancestral sins affecting later generations.

Loved the artwork and the story! Although I felt as if it was more geared towards a YA audience. The artwork was amazing but I didn’t get when Brynmore powered up he had plants and leaves hanging off of him. It reminded me of groot from guardians of the galaxy.

Recently divorced and sober, Mark Turner has returned to his hometown looking for a second chance. He’ll rebuild the old church into a new home…if the locals let him

This reminded me a bit of Mike Flanagan's Midnight Mass (in a good way). Well-written and the art was great. Lots of spooky vibes. I dug it.

I absolutely love 30 days of night. It’s my favorite vampire movie. I did enjoy the comic books as well, but personally enjoyed the movies more. So, this story was AND was not what I was expecting from Steve Niles. I don’t want to divulge the plot of this comic because it’s better left as a surprise. The story started off really strong but started to taper off towards the end. The ending itself felt very rushed but I believe this is supposed to be part of a series. So maybe the sequels will make up for this? Otherwise I enjoyed the story, the characters, the artwork, and most of all Brynmore.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I was kinda looking forward to a good spooky book. The art was a little cartoony which didn't help the atmosphere and I didn't think the book had enough room to breathe.