I adored this. The characters are raw and real and hurting, and their story is a beautiful reminder that we all mess up and life does not end with those mistakes!

Cute artwork but the plot did not make it for me. It lacked something deeper. Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the free eARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

How Could You ended up being a bit disappointing to me. I enjoyed the artwork and overall feel of the comic and will definitely check out other work by Ren Strapp in the future. I'm generally a fan of work that covers the young adulthood phase of life, especially relationships. But I found it frustrating to read a story where most of the characters were awful to each other. How Could You follows four college students, Molly and Lou who are attending Hillock College, and Olene and Yona who are studying abroad. They navigate a constantly changing arrangement of crushes, friendships, and relationships. They betrayed each other, lied to each other, cheated on each other, and (mostly) never owned up to their actions. And it felt like nothing much was resolved by the end. Although a lot of these things are realistic for young people, particularly college students, it wasn't the most enjoyable reading experience for me.

Summary:

Molly Song just had the biggest heartbreak of her life when her girlfriend broke up with her before traveling abroad. The good news is that she has friends willing to stay and support her through this.

The bad news is that Molly’s feelings are all messed up. Combine that with the freedom of freshman year, and Molly is poised to make a whole lot of mistakes in her life. Will she make it through, or must she learn how to grow and change?

Review:

I'll admit, this is probably the most conflicted I've felt about reviewing a book in a long, LONG time. On the one hand, I enjoyed the brutal reality that comes with relationship drama. On the other hand, it felt a little…forced and heavy-handed at times.

How Could You is a story about a group of four characters all dealing with a break-up (two initiating, two blind-sided). Naturally, that means we get to see very different reactions to said break-ups. Guilt, freedom, devastation, betrayal, the works.

I enjoyed how raw and emotional How Could You felt, even if most of the characters' actions took them out of the realm of relatability. Then again, we all messed up when we were young, right? So, sometimes, messiness comes with life.

Highlights:
Coming of Age
LGBTQ+ Romance
Finding Yourself
Chaos of Relationships

Thanks to Oni Press and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

What I loved: new adult sapphic/queer rep, gorgeous art, and a large cast of characters. What did not work for me: the characters themselves. I just could not get behind any of the characters and did not feel invested in them. The story was fine and I was interested enough but I was not really rooting for anyone. I would be interested in reading more from Ren Strapp, though. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

A beautiful graphic novel of the difficult emotional times of your early 20s.

Molly Song is spending the semester getting over her ex. She convinces her friend, Lou Kingston, that they should party and find new girlfriends. Their exes, Yona and Olene, are studying abroad in Marseille, France and experiencing everything there. As Molly (and other characters) make emotion-fueled choices without thinking about consequences, we see the outcomes and challenges.

Overall, this book definitely captures a lot of the emotions of being in your early 20s and dealing with heartbreak and life changes and friends going in different directions. The coloring and other elements are beautiful and really capture the emotion of the story very well. Although many of the characters make regrettable choices, you can still root for them to eventually be happy.

Overall, if you've enjoyed Heartstopper or Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me, you will also enjoy this book. It's a quick, but impactful, read that would be perfect for vacation or for a cozy afternoon.

Thank you Netgalley for an e-ARC of this book. In exchange, this is my honest review.

The arststyle is so good! From the bold colouring and lineart, to the 'messy artstyle', which I absolutely LOVE.
However the story itself didn't really do it for me. Almost all the characters were very mean, toxic or both towards each other. Their friendships and relationships were not healty at all. Also, I was often confused with all the characters.
So personally, the artstyle carried this book for me so hard that I would give this author definitely another chance!
I still read this book in 2 sittings.

This story was so lovely and complex at the same time, with so many interwoven characters that were beautifully designed and written. I struggled with the pacing occasionally but it was a good read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Oni Press for this ARC!

The art carried this book and it shows. The story feels hollow and uninspired yet is still something I’m glad exists because we do need more stories with characters like this.

This comic is about messy relationships and how figuring yourself out can lead to some sticky situations. I don’t blame the characters for the actions that they take. Love can be one of the most difficult things in life to try and figure out. None of them seemed to have people to talk to that knew what they were doing. They’re all college students that are still learning about the people they are and who they want to become.

There are parts in our lives that we are going to make mistakes and do something considered toxic. There are several instances in this comic where that happens, even if some of it was accidental. In life we are allowed to experiment and figure ourselves out. However, it is so important to be honest and communicate what you are doing and why to the people that you care about.

A lot of the messier situations in this novel could have been avoided by good communication. Characters get angry, they go with the flow on things they shouldn’t, and don’t properly communicate their boundaries. However, that’s the point of a comic like this. It’s the mistakes made and having to deal with the aftermath for better or worse.

I didn’t really love any of the couples together in this comic. I think that a majority of the relationships were too superficial. It was like watching a queer version of a teen drama where you watch with popcorn in your hands cause you know things are going to get spicy. It’s the situations you like to talk about and watch but don’t want to be a part of.

All in all, this comic was very well done. I enjoyed the art and the story. I enjoyed the message of it. All the characters were unique and had their own desires and agendas. It was a great read.

A brilliant graphic novel. I loved and hated how the characters were flawed. They made me mad because they were raw and made mistakes, but it made them real. Really recommend if you want a college version of Heartstopper.

Really enjoyed this. I like how messy and real this is. I think it’s an accurate representation of relationships in your late teens early twenties. It was really nice following queer women characters. I don’t think there are enough in the world currently. Thank you NetGalley for the arc.

⭐ Rating: 4/5 stars
🗓 Publish date: Dec 17, 2024
🌈 Representation: lesbian and queer MCs, trans woman SC, sapphic relationships

CW/TW:
Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Drug use, Alcohol


I had a fun time reading this graphic novel! It was very messy with a lot of college-age relationship drama and complex characters. The art was awesome, too!

I think if you want a very queer read with characters making mistakes and discovering themselves, you will enjoy this book.

Thank you to Oni Press and NetGalley for the early review copy. All thoughts expressed are my own.

"How Could You" centers on a group of women in their junior and senior years in college. Two couples break up as two of the group go to Europe for the semester. Their exes are back home, sad and pining. The women try navigating friendships, love, and hook ups, but feelings are hurt and trust betrayed. Can they change their ways before they lose each other forever?

How Could You is a heartwarming and heartbreaking graphic novel full of love, lust, friendship, finding yourself and so much more. It is relatable and flows beautifully. The art style is so comforting and feels warm, the colour analysis featured at the back gives amazing depth to the reasoning behind colour choices which I enjoyed.

Characters seemed realistic making mistakes all in the name of finding themselves and their true desires. Mistakes and misdirections in life are the reasons for character development and this graphic novel encapsulates this and the specific time period of your final years of college beautifully. I think there's very few pieces of media that focus on this time period and the feelings that go with it, so it was great to see. I can't wait to read the next installment.

4.25 stars

A great representation of what navigating relationships is like in college, especially queer ones! I love these characters and all of the drama that ensued but I absolutely LOVE the art in this comic! The colors were vibrant and reflected the mood of every scene so well.

This story reminded me a bit of The Sex Lives of College Girls show and I am absolutely here for it. There is not enough queer content out there for this stage of life.

Four college students are single, coming fresh out of relationships. Olene and Yona are studying abroad in France. Molly and Lou are on campus in the US. They all deal with their break-ups in their own, unique ways.

"I want to remember everything. Even the tough parts. We've gotta start romanticizing our lives while we're young."

How Could You is an important coming of age story with many diverse characters. Queer and questioning characters. Trans and non-binary characters. Characters with mobility aids.

This is all rendered in a gorgeous, colourful art style. A style that does not shy away from showing the realities of bra straps and body hair on page. A style that also features impactful full page renderings showing the inner world of the characters, and dynamic paneling to perfectly capture the vibe of scenes.

Strapp shows us the messy world of college dating and navigating this as a queer or questioning young adult in this graphic novel. From getting over break-ups, to secret crushes, to not being out to family, to different expectations and investment in relationships.

The only critique I have regarding this graphic novel is that the pacing could be better in places. The plot meanders at times, and doesn't feel as tight as it could. All the dialogue at the end with Molly felt like a lot all at once. However I still think this is a wonderful debut despite this.

How Could You is perfect for people wanting to read queer coming of age stories featuring diverse characters. The people we follow make mistakes and screw up. If you don't like books with unlikeable characters this graphic novel might not be for you. However I personally feel it's all in service to the overall message Strapp leaves us with.

I found this novel a little bit overwhelming. There are so many characters that I felt I didn't really get to know any of them all that well (and I really wanted to know them better!). I feel like the trip abroad would have been enough to cover in one book on it's own and allow the characters to develop a bit more.
I did really love Lou and I wish I'd seen more of her. She really does go through it though! I'd love to see what happens to her so if there was another novel in the series then I'd be interested to read it 😊

I had a good time with this one. This is really just a contemporary story that is following the love lives, and consequences of those romantic entanglements, of a handful of college students. The author took me out right from the gate with the dedication and then I had a blast reading through all the messy drama these characters were getting into. Despite how messy it was, it was able to remain relatable and I loved the author's choice to incorporate color into the narrative. It was such an interesting way to add significance to the art in the storytelling. I also really enjoyed the fact that the author chose not to allow all of the characters to be instantly forgiven or redeemed for their trespasses. The mistakes that were made, especially by Molly, were forgiven by those in her life but she was still required to put in work to try and mend the friendships and I feel like that is an element that is often missing in stories like these.

*reviewed from uncorrected eARC via netgalley *'* Pub Date Dec 17 2024

teen/adult graphic novel - 20 y.o. east coast college Junior Molly Song is in tears when this graphic novel begins. She grabs lunch with her nonbinary friend Lou (a senior who walks with a cane that you barely notice), and they commiserate over having been dumped by their girlfriends (Olene Reed and Yona Escobar, respectively) who are apparently studying abroad in Marseille, France, and EVERYBODY has a very emotionally-confusing semester. Author is a gender-nonconforming lesbian.

Ack, all the turbulent feels! and the way that having a crush on one's friends make a total mess out of everything! This is a super quick read, like the best kind of queer soap opera. So much to love (and be heartbroken over) in here!