This was SO GOOD! The artwork is beautiful (gory- but fantastic). I love how Horvath contrasts the cute, quaint village of animal people with the gruesome nature of serial killers. The plot surprised and captured me and I finished this in a single sitting. I can’t wait to see what this author creates next.

This is a review I am not sure how to write. The description on Amazon says it best: “Richard Scarry's Busy Town meets Dexter”. Thanks to NetGalley and IDW Publishing for an arc of this graphic novel. This is a dark and somewhat graphic comic, so read with that awareness, but it was one I enjoyed as someone who likes mysteries and thrillers. It’s a great mashup of genres with such detail in the illustrations.

An interesting enough plot, but really wasn't what I was expecting. All the characters being animals was kind of weird, and it's never really explained why "real" animals exist at the same time. It's also really boring when the "baddie" end up being someone you've not even met in the series before.

Just wasn't a big fan, and I didn't enjoy the art style at all.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley.

Disney meets serial killers in this cute but creepy story about a serial killer bear who is on the hunt for a different killer who's murdering people in his hometown.

I gave this volume 5 stars. The art style is amazing. The story is creepy and intriguing. I'm very excited to read more from this author and see more from the artist. My husband's really enjoying it, too.

What if a Richard Scarry book met the TV show Dexter? This is the vibes that this graphic novel gave me. I loved it! What's better than a peaceful town with humanoid animals suddenly struck by gruesome murders? The pacing was done well and the illustrations were gripping. I loved that any time we are seeing Sam's thoughts they are written on what appears to be torn notebook paper. This was just really well done. More of this please!

Samantha Strong an adorable brown bear has one rule, don't murder the locals only city folks. So when people in her town start dying gruesome deaths she panics, she needs to find the killer before the police discover her secret.

"This town's not big enough for two psychopaths, not to mention one so reckless.”

A serial killer bear? LET’S GOOOOO!
This was so good,I really enjoyed the art it was super cozy and the fact that the story was dark and graphic just made it that much more perfect!

I do wish this was a little longer, I wanted more details about Samantha. Overall this was super fun to read and I’m definitely going to be buying this when it’s released!

Thank you to NetGalley and to IDW publishing for giving me this arc in exchange for my honest review!

Sam is a small town upstanding citizen and serial killer
But has a very specific rule, never kill in town, always in the forest between the town and city.
During the towns 200 year anniversary parade, the body of a citizen is revealed and the town is sent into a panic.
Sam must now uncover the killer all while trying to hide her own crimes.
Described as a Dexter x Richard Scarry, i 100% agree!
It was gorey, captivating, jaw dropping, murder mystery!
With beautifully creepy artwork and an amazing storyline, you wont be able to stop reading!

Disclaimer: ARC via Netgalley.
This graphic novel has been described as Richard Scary meets Dexter. Which is pretty accurate, though there is no worm in an apple car.
Just saying.
It seems that Patrick Horvath was chilling on day with his beverage of choice and then thought “what if Dexter was really a bear named Samantha”. Or maybe, like with Jim C. Hines’ story of a werewolf, he had been watching too much kids’ programs.
Either way, this was really good.
It is too Horvath’s credit that he does not make Samantha good, and in fact, the beginning of the book, it becomes quite clear that she is not a good serial killer. And that makes the graphic novel a bit better. You are rooting for Samantha, as far as you can, because she is the lesser of two evils.
But Samantha is also self-aware, which makes her interesting. The stakes are real, and the plot is tight. The book works, and because it does not soften Samantha or saddle her with a family, it works better for me than the Dexter Showtime series did (sorry, didn’t read the books).
What also works is the Richard Scary type atmosphere because the graphic novel does raise some questions that will get a reader to think about issues surrounding civilization and the wild. In this sense, Horvath makes good use of the animal fable idea.
If you like mysteries, serial killers, or want a Redwall that is more adult and lacks the food, this is the book for you.

What a wild mix of Dexter and Happy Tree Friends. I’ve never read a horror graphic novel before and this one did not disappoint. The juxtaposition of the adorable characters and illustrations with the murder scenes was really creative. I did find it confounding that there were pets and wild animals in this world when all of the characters were animals. It felt a little like Cars in the sense that racing in Cars world is the equivalent of running track in the human world. But other than that, this was a gruesome quick read with some very adorable characters. I loved the mole family and the turtle so much.

"Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees" is a psychological horror/thriller graphic novel. What happens when two serial killers collide in a sweet, picturesque small town? It gets messy. I was wondering if the art style would out me off, but actually it helps to create a darker atmosphere by juxtaposing cute animals with a bloody, gruesome tale. Very impressed. Some scenes left me truly chilled.

This is a chilling insight into the mind of a serial killer, dressed up in wonderfully colourfully art. I enjoyed the brutality and violence, cleverly juxtaposed with small town charm and adorable characters. The story is well-paced, with moments of calm and introspection interspersed with suspense and action. Sam, the main character, is a scary villain and I liked the rest of the characters too. I find myself drawn to colourful comics, and the artworks in this book are stunningly vibrant, with plenty of small detail for a closer look. Definitely recommend this graphic novel.

My one criticism is, I just don't understand why everyone was animals. Maybe a Disney vibe to contrast the violence even more?

A unqiue and dark tale featuring a serial killer bear who finds murder relaxing. When another serial killer appears in town, she's in a rush to find the killer before anyone suspects her.

I wasn't expecting to be so invested in this book! I felt conflicted because I was rooting for Sam to not be convicted of the crimes she committed, but what about the crimes she already committed? Patrick does a great job of making us feel at home in this small cosy town and making us care for the characters. The illustrations are cute and something you'd find in a children's book, but the content is far from that. I'd recommend this book to adults or older young adults who love a good psychological thriller and mysteries

I really didn't expect to go into this rooting for a serial killer bear, but here we are! Hannibal meets Zootopia in this cosy but gory tale. A quaint town is hit by a murder and it's longterm resident serial killer suddenly has a problem. She needs to find the murderer before anyone looks too closely.

The contrast of the art style, colours, character design and the subject matter is fantastic. Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees is a must-read this autumn.

Thanks to Netgalley & IDW Publishing for this arc!

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher IDW Publishing for an advance copy of one of the most creative and disturbing graphic novels I have read, one that preys on that love of a small hometown, and yet acknowledges the evil that many of our neighbors harbor.

I live in a small town, but unlike the song I really can't breath in a small town, though it is convenient. I'm an hour from New York City by car, a little bit more by train. The bigger city next door has lots of supermarkets so price shopping is a savings, a cool comic shop, and a record store, so I can't complain. Commute time is in the less than half hours, so that's a good thing too. Many of the people I know here can't imagine what life is like in bigger areas, though almost all of them commute hours to jobs far away. They like the feeling of security, safety of knowing people, and the fact that bad things don't really happen here. So this graphic novel about a murder in a small town speaks to something I know about. Though I will be looking at my neighbors a little differently after reading this. Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees by Patrick Horvath with lettering by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou, is the story of a series of savage crimes that rip a small town apart and one sleuth who defies her own instincts to solve the case, for her own particular reasons.

Samantha Strong has traveled the world, but has come home to the small town of Woodbrook to take over the family business. Samantha Strong is also a bear, as the inhabitants of this world are anthropomorphic creatures, who live busy lives, but full of small town love. Strong has friends, a good customer base, employees Strong cares about, but also a need to get out of the small town once in awhile. Strong travels to the big city, when the feeling strikes finds another animal and kills them, without pain. Strong than chops them up in the woods and buries them deep in the ground. Strong does not hunt in town, that would bring too much unwarranted attention. Strong has rules. However some other inhabitant does not, ruining a parade with a graphic death. And soon more follow. Strong needs to find the killer, not only to help her town, but to stop the attention all these bodies are getting. For the woods are lovely dark and deep, and loaded with cut up body parts.

The book asks the age old question: Does a bear go to the bathroom in the woods? The answer is of course no, the bear has indoor plumbing, but the bear also does not kill where the bear lives. This is a wonderful graphic novel, original in thought and execution, a good mystery with beautiful art. Also this leaves the reader slightly confused as one is rooting for one serial killer over another, with the hero, anti-hero having a truly staggering body count. The set up is good, the characters are well done, and everything makes sense. Also this is a brutal tale, a mix of Richard Scarrey, David Lynch and the fashion sense of Wes Anderson. Now I need to see a stop-action animated movie of this. The art is really good, and fits the story perfectly. I do have a few questions about the world, if the animals are in chare, what are the animals they have as pets? However these are minor quibbles about such a different kind of story.

A mix of children's whimsy, with Blue Velvet makes for a unique kind of story. Comic people should really enjoy this, horror fans, crime fans, people who just love beautiful art. I really enjoyed this and can't wait to read more by the author. Or see the movie.

I knew this was going to be dark but I was not prepared for how dark it really was. Our main character Sam lives in a small town and has a secret. She goes into the city, adduces strangers to kill them and burry them in the forest. Though one day there is a series of murders in her small town because there is not room for two killers in this small town. So Sam is on the path to find the other killer.

The story was very dark and very graphic.... It reminded me of Dexter, but in a fairy tale universe. Loved the art style, like Frog and Toad. The main character wasn't too deep, wanted more backstory.

Like Dexter x Care Bears.

Sam the bear is a serial killer who likes to slice and dice dem city folk. But when another serial killer starts picking off people in her small town she decides to find them before the police do.

The illustrations are gorgeous but I am not the audience for this (I’m a wimp when it comes to violence and graphic depictions)

But if you like slasher books and cuddly animals, this is for you.

There wasn't much tension in this, but it's gorey and it is quite creepy. The idea of someone seeming so normal and lovely but secretly being a psychopath and cold-blooded killer will never not be creepy. This book is what you get if you take that idea and instead of people, you make it illustrated animals with a pastel color palette. This is a solid comic with a dark theme and gore, but it's not gross because it's illustrated in such a soft way haha. The contrast is pretty cool, I enjoyed this one.

What a creepy, cozily illustrated story! I genuinely have no idea what my thoughts are on this one. The illustrations were delightful - as adorable as they could be macabre. It added an extra dose of disturbing to the story of a bear who also happened to be a serial killer.

The story itself was quick and easy to follow. I got sucked in quickly and read it in one sitting. (Admittedly, given its short length it would be hard not to.) The ending wrapped things up in a dark yet efficient way.

All in all it’s a fun read, in a very weird and dark way!

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC copy of this title.

This cute on the outside, gory on the inside is about a serial killer living in plain sight. Problems arise when another killer reveals themselves in town, putting the spotlight on every living in the small town.

Fans of Dexter will draw some connections between these killers. The story felt rushed and could have benefitted from longer chapters.