Reviewed this book for No Flying No Tights. A historical fantasy book that reads like a superhero story. It also takes place in the dark, snowy heart of a war.

In the muddle that is the Soviet Union, just after the Great War, two young kids see their village flattened, apart from themselves – and revenge, too late, in the form of a mahoosive ice giant Golem combination thing. In the pages to come the boy and girl will find out that, well, whaddaya know, they themselves have the power to summon or even be the Golem thing, and more – but even that might not be enough in the horrid warfare and side-taking of the twentieth century. This is alright, but the key word is 'muddle' – for anyone with a less than passing knowledge of the Soviet revolutions this is very awkward, and for those that do, the clunky "oh by the way, this is about Ukraine now" ending is a bit too blunt. In wanting to borrow Jewish lore I get the feeling it plays too fast and loose with it, and I think this will only justify itself if it proves it can go really all-in with the region's myth in further volumes; it needs to be richer, deeper and more authentic than the Judaica-by-numbers we have so far. Still, it certainly means well, and isn't exactly bad in going as far as it does – three and a half stars.

Two teenagers are caught between warring sides of the Russian civil war. Their parents have been murdered and they are trying to travel to their relatives in Ukraine, but soldiers are hunting them too and so they inadvertently summon the power of the golem.

The two of them realise that the golem isn’t just a Jewish folk tale, it is their heritage and it might save their lives. As they seek safety they have to learn who to trust and how to use these new powers.

I thought the artwork and colouring were great and gave the story the edgy graphics it needed. The story keeps the reader on edge with a frisson of suspense that runs through from beginning to end. Unfortunately this is just volume one and I wanted more.

A good start to a gripping story.

Copy provided via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

Alex and Yuli Lowes were on the run in the middle of a Ukrainian winter. A pogrom had hit their village, their parents were dead and Alex had used a golem to save them. Now they needed to find their way to relatives in Kyiv with out getting caught up in the Russian Civil War.. But they have a White unit of soldiers tracking them down. Will they escape or will they need to call on the golem again? Nicely done artwork helps create the proper feel for this story set in Ukraine in the throes of the Russian Civil War.

Thanks Netgalley and Mad Cave Studios for the opportunity to read this title!

While this is an important time period to tell stories about, I was unfortunately struggling to connect with the narrative. Having grown up in Eastern Europe, I felt like I was watching a Hollywood movie about an idea of the place I'm from rather than being transported back in time. It felt like the characters were Westerners in costume, delivering lines of dialogue, I wish I had enjoyed this more.

In Edenfrost, the Russian Civil War between the socialists and royalists is being brutally carried out. After their house is invaded and burned to the ground, two children run from the soldiers who killed their parents. The children are unarmed and the November night in Ukraine is cold. Groups of soldiers from both armies inhabit the woods in which they find themselves. Both sides hate the children because of their Jewish heritage. But the children have a hidden advantage, they can summon a golem. The golem is all powerful. But does he have a hidden agenda?

The artwork within Edenfrost is impressive. The story is one rarely told anywhere anymore and certainly not in a graphic novel format. However, this volume feels very short. I wanted more background on the children and what caused the golem to be attached to their family. Hopefully, future volumes will be released soon. Also, despite the main characters being young, the novel is extremely violent. It is best for teens and older readers. 4 stars!

Thanks to Mad Cave Studios and NetGalley for a digital review copy of the book.

"Edenfrost" is an enjoyable, fast paced, action-oriented graphic novel with compelling and likeable tween characters that manages to avoid significant historical inaccuracies and portrays much of the horror and complexity of the Russian Civil War while leveraging interesting elements of Ashkenazi Jewish folklore.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Mad Cow Studios, for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Amit Tishler tells a story that is haunting, historical, and fantasy-infused. The art is powerful and the issues keep you primed to read the next chapter.

There isn’t enough literature about the Russian Civil War, so I was excited to see this graphic novel. I’m a huge fan of historical fiction and was so excited about the plot right away. The art is beautiful. The story itself could be fleshed out more. It’s much shorter than I wanted. I wish we could have seen more of the children’s lives pre-inciting incident. The graphic novel is, well, graphic when it comes to violence and language. It didn’t bother me, but I could definitely see some unsuspecting person picking up a graphic novel where the main characters are kids and coming away shocked. The author doesn’t pull punches on the violent nature of revolution or the dangers of antisemitism. I hope the author continues the series and I’m excited to see what they come out with next.

This was excellent. It's about a young brother and sister who have to go on the run after their parents are killed. It's set in Ukraine after World War I. They are Jewish and being chased by some soldiers. What the soldiers don't know is that the kids can summon a golem. The art is outstanding. A love finding these kinds of gems in independent comics.

(Thank you to Amit Tishler, Mad Cave Studios and NetGalley for letting me read this ARC)

This graphic novel was so captivating! I’m usually not into anything horror-related but this graphic novel had me hooked and wanting to read the whole thing in one go (which I did).

Not only do we see alternate-historical events in the novel, we get to see cool mythical creatures and a protective sibling bond in a very fast paced manner.

On top of that a very good and captivating story with a lot of suspense that leaves the reader wanting more (even so with a cliffhanger at the end). And don’t get me started on the beautiful illustrations of the characters and everything else in the novel.

I was however a little bit confused by the timeline in the beginning of the novel but it did then make sense towards the end. I do wish that the story was a tiny bit longer and didn’t end on that type of cliffhanger but understand that it was needed for the plot and the reader’s attention.

Overall a great book but do look for trigger warnings before reading because there might be a few

I really wanted to like this more. If the volume had gone further into the story, perhaps that would have been enough. The art is good, the premise is interesting, the historical angle is from a time period I don't often encounter--I just wanted more.

I was interested in the comic because of its historical theme, and I was particularly glad that it focuses on a period I know little about, the events of the Russian Civil War. We follow the escape of a pair of siblings whose past we gradually learn about. Alongside the dialogue, we also actively see their thoughts, which makes the discovery even more exciting. In addition to the soldiers, we also get a badass lady around whom time seems to stand still. The fantasy line comes through the golems. It doesn't spare us the bloody details either, but all that being said, I really liked the drawing style.

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

This story honestly had some very interesting story concepts! I don't think I've ever read something that had a Judaism-based magic system. This volume mostly follows Alex and Uli trying to survive their escape to Kyiv. The pacing of this volume is a little off, at least to me. The action starts and stops suddenly, and it doesn't really feel like there is a cohesive plot flow. Alex trying to protect his sister while struggling to control the golem is an interesting plot line. The art is fantastic! I do love how well it was done, the pages have a great flow to them while also being easy to understand. This story does get gory at points, some moments a bit too gory for my liking.

Once again, Mad Cave Studios has given me an excellent and interesting graphic novel. I've really come to enjoy these stories that they are producing, as every time I think I have a handle on the story, it goes a different way, much to my delight. I'll be the first to admit that I am not 100% up with my Russian Civil War History, so it's entirely possible with more context, it would have been an even better read. The characters were incredibly compelling, and the art was beautiful. I'm very much looking forward to seeing where it goes from here.

Special Thanks to Mad Cave Studios and Netgalley for the digital ARC. This was given to me for an honest review.

Immediately after the brutal execution of their parents, siblings Alex and Yuli are on the run. Their Jewish heritage has provided them with a unique gift, the ability to call forth a powerful spiritual being called a Golem in times of peril. They would each be a powerful weapon if they fell into the wrong hands.
This tale takes place immediately following the Russian revolution that overthrew the Romanovs. The brutal and sometimes graphic art/dialogue illustrates the reality of the time period. You will be on the edge of your seat following the siblings escape but you won’t be able to shake the foreboding feeling that the worst is yet to come.

Recommend for Mature audiences.
TW: Death, Murder, Blood, Sexually Suggestive Material

An interesting story. The artwork is outstanding and the story is gripping. This is the first of several magna books in the series. I cannot wait for the next one.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I love a good golem story and I love a good Russian war story. This takes me back to the golden age of war time comics, commies and socialists! I look forward to the series continuing. The art, lettering and plot are well done. I ‘m not a huge fan of the fragmented internal dialogue. Give it a few panels of a flashback and be done with it. Excellent art pages included in this edition. Adding future issues to my pull list! Thanks to Mad Cave Studios and Net Galley for the ARC!