i received an e-ARC and will be giving an honest review

currently sitting in a fred meyer starbucks trying very hard not to start crying, haha. in a good way! this was a phenomenal read. i don’t quite have the religious trauma as deep as catherine does, but i went to a catholic school for a few years in middle school as someone who isn’t catholic and that sure killed a lot of my spirit. haven’t been to mass since, thank god, but reading this brought back a lot of memories and feelings id tried to just push back and never worry about. i’m obsessed with everything about this. the art is jaw dropping, i kept finding myself lingering on pages just looking at how stunning it is. once it’s published these will certainly be used as home and lock screens on my phone.
catherine’s guilt both around religion and her personal life was so well written. it both doesn’t immediately forgive her, leaving her w 0 repercussions on things that she did mess up, but it didn’t completely villainize her. it reminded the reader that she’s human and that she made a mistake and that has consequences, but it won’t destroy her life.
the side characters were also so well fleshed out!!! i loved how we got good chunks of their story without taking away from catherine at all.
i do also like how ambiguous it all is. how it can be a bit open ended if you think about it a bit.
the isolation that catherine put herself through is something very familiar to me and i really loved how it was written. you could understand catherine as she literally had demons in her mind but you also see how it’s affecting her friends and boyfriend. it really showed both sides just so, so well.
i think that the beauty of the art really tied everything together perfectly. it created an atmosphere of eye candy, in a way, so each page felt addicting to look at, to search the page and see all of the details. i’ve always been a huge fan of that aesthetic, pastel, one-hue type of digital art of messy bedrooms, and this totally fulfilled all of my hopes and dreams for that.
i’ve been talking a lot about the art and such and not about the plot and how personal it is, mainly as to not spoil much, but i just need to say how stunning this book was in every way. i just can’t get over the dialogue, the story, the characters, the relationships. i really and truly felt for catherine in a way that i don’t feel with characters often. a deep and personal thing that made my heart ache a bit. this was absolutely incredible. thank you to the author for this story

I don't think that it was quite as spooky as I expected based on it being tagged as horror, in fact there were times where the demon was even a little cute. But I really liked this. The art was great, especiality illustrations of the saints. I liked the characters and their relationships to each other felt very grounding, at times it almost felt like catching up with friends. The story moved quickly and was interesting. While not a completely new topic,Meyer's voice is so authentic that I didn't need it to be a fresh idea for it to be a great read!

Got an E-ARC from NetGalley. I didn’t grow up Catholic but I still really relate to the feelings of shame the main character felt about whether she was a good person or not. I really appreciate graphic novels that follow adult characters with complex relationships and the art style was very appealing. My only critique is that I felt a bit confused by the timeline and how long her possession lasted.

I received this copy of Saint Catherine from NetGalley. I really enjoyed this quick read, and will certainly return to do a more thorough reading. As someone who was not brought up with religion, I found Meyer's perspective on religious guilt and acceptance fascinating and tender. The illustrations are succinct and effective. I loved the beautiful queer love story the most!

It may come as a shock to all of you but I was raised Roman Catholic. Can you imagine that this heathen was baptized? Went to church every single Sunday. It didn’t matter if there was a foot of snow outside or if I was sick, there was no missing Sunday Mass. This graphic novel hit very close to home for me.

The instant I started to read this, there was an instant connection with the main character and myself. I saw a lot of myself in her and that was one of the main reasons why I enjoyed this. The story was unique. The entire idea about a demon haunting someone who missed mass was very entertaining and oh so bizarre (in the best way)

Saint Catherine was a great story that was very imaginative. The art was soft and beautiful. I really enjoyed everything about this. You’ll never guess how this one ends and it makes you enjoy this story a lot more.

Saint Catherine is a beautifully written & illustrated graphic novel dealing with religious trauma. This was such a creative approach to this topic. There is one question left unanswered, but other than that this was an enjoyable (although a bit heavy at times) read.

Saint Catherine brilliantly balances humor and heavy themes of religious trauma. The whimsical demons add a light touch amid serious subjects, while the art enhances emotional depth. I felt connected to the characters and having a similar religious upbringing I resonated with the author's end note.

I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of this and have read it three times since then. As with most graphic novels it is a quick read but one that has been sitting on my mind in the best way. As someone who grew up religious and feels very comfortable in my relation to it I truly appreciate how easily the author demonstrates religious trauma, How approachable the story and theme is doesn't take away from the impact at all though, instead adding to it. Anna does a fantastic job balancing the seriousness of the subject matter and Catherine's various failing relationships with a sort of tongue in cheek comedy from the demons that are possessing her. I also appreciated how she choose to make the demons usually small, cute, and quippy with them only occasionally becoming towering beasts that she fears. It helps paint the contract to how Catholicism was a byline constant in her life that she could roll with until it became a larger issue. The artwork complimented the story well and was visually engaging with background varying in level of details depending on where the attention should be drawn. Aside from the stories the characters were all believable and relatable if not as flushed out as the could have been, which is understandable in the restraints of a shorter graphic novel. Anna does a good job switching between Catharine's past and present without confusing the reader adding a dynamic level to the story telling as well. The ending is the only thing keeping me from giving the book a 5/5. While I do appreciate how it calls back to a scene early in the book it still felt slightly anti climatic and that it didn't quite fit into the dramatic build up that it was following. It wasn't a bad ending it just felt too convenient and easy for what the story deserved.

Saint Catherine by Anna Meyer was extremely interesting. In it (not a spoiler because it’s in the description), Catherine is possessed by a demon after not attending Sunday mass for the first time in her life. I really appreciated the humor that the demon provided. It reminded me of Luci in the Netflix series Disenchantment (complete with being all black, humorous, and having one eye). I was a bit disappointed with the ending, but that does not deter me from giving this book five stars. Highly recommend it! Especially for those who enjoy a bit of humor dealing with religion.

A girl who was raised as an Irish American Catholic finds her life turned upside down when she skips Sunday mass for the first time and begins to think she is possessed by a demon. When your entire life is spent revolved around the being Catholic, it can be hard to separate. After moving out of her family house and living alone, she still has one rule: always attend Sunday mass. Yet when her boyfriend convinces her to skip....things take a turn for the worst as she begins to see a demon, a demon that only appears and talks to her... and she begins to question whether or not she is a good person and why she is condemned to hell. This was a really interesting story about what faith can do to a person and how it can warp our sense of morality. I liked reading the author's explanation and discussion of why they wrote this story and how it was inspired by their own experiences. It's definitely a good read for anyone who is separating from their religious upbringing.

Release Date: April 29,2025

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and First Second Books | 23rd St. for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*