I think everything I've read from Simon Roy has been a variation on the theme of humans surrounded by relics of a technology they no longer fully understand, but this is by far the gentlest iteration, with the human settlers on the world of Altamira leading what looks like a pleasant enough life in an Alpine sort of landscape, and the old robot resurrected by an archaeologist's meddling bringing not carnage but comic exasperation. The low-stakes ramble through a Ghibli-flavoured landscape of mountains, woods and overgrown buildings is interspersed with excerpts from a slightly hairier but still fundamentally kind-hearted story within the story, Altamira's best-loved book, a fantasy anti-epic in which the god of war is inadvertently summoned into the body of a goose.

(Netgalley ARC)

Unfortunately, this graphic novel was not for me.

I am always open to discovering new bookish talent, and my tastes within the fantasy and sci-fi genres are vast. I chose this graphic novel because it sounded fun and I like the cover art.

The art within quite good, and I loved the colouration. That said, the story was not for me. Jumping back and forth between two different stories isn't usually a problem for me - as long as there is some sort of thread that at least teases how they might be tied together. In this comic, however, the storyline and dialogue did absolutely nothing for me. I wasn't pulled in. I didn't feel for any of the characters. Even knowing that the two stories *must* somehow tie together before the end, did not alleviate the harsh jumps between the two. And honestly, I was just bored for most of these 200 pages.

I'm sorry. I don't enjoy writing bad reviews (unless an author has committed some terrible wrong, and then I truly relish throwing down some hate). But this kind of review just makes me feel bad. I hope that I am just not the target audience and that the author does well.

Huge gratitude to NetGalley and the publisher, Image Comics, for an ARC of this graphic novel, in exchange for my horribly honest review.

This was a fun and unique read with interesting artwork. I like the commentary about society and technology, and as other people have pointed out, the vibe is really cool. It did feel like there needed to be more story, but hopefully we'll get more. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

The story was ok. It had a lot of potential but I felt like it could have used more development. I felt like I was left hanging in a number of places.

The bonus art at the end of the book was excellent.

Unfortunately, my e-book was blurry and I’m not sure if that was a problem on my end or on the publisher’s end but it made reading the book a little difficult.

I feel like this book combined a lot of different mythological backgrounds in a way I hadn't really seen before. The story was interesting, I def get the recommendation for someone who enjoys Asterix, it feels the same tone and humor wise.

I found this really cute and charming but unfortunately I did not like most of the characters or the settings. The characters that I did like really made the reading experience more enjoyable than it would’ve been.

This was a charming read but one that was beautifully unique. This world that was created was fascinating!