Soul Taker reminded me of nostalgic comic books and old cartoons.
I enjoyed the art and the plot. I really like Amara and that this comic is centered around an older queer woman in a retirement home. The art is so reminiscent of other comics like Marvel and DC.
I disliked the long expositions on each page. I would much rather have had the story be a bit longer with dialogue than constant expositions breaking up good dialogue. As a result, I'm not likely to read the second in the series.

Soul Taker es una novela gráfica que nos cuenta la historia de Amarantha, quien es la última de su raza, una especie antigua que ha vivido entre humanos durante milenios, alimentándose de su energía vital. Ahora disfrutando de una existencia pacífica en una comunidad de jubilados, consumiendo solo lo suficiente para sobrevivir. Pero Amarantha se ha ganado enemigos a lo largo de su larga vida y uno de ellos que creía haber derrotado hace mucho ha regresado para cazarla, mientras que una nueva amenaza busca capturarla para sus propios fines.

Me gustaron varios aspectos del cómic que se sintieron refrescantes, como el hecho de que Amarantha es una protagonista que se ve y se siente de su edad. La historia fluye entre el pasado y el presente logrando mantener el interés, aunque a veces se sentía que avanzaba demasiado rápido. Definitivamente me interesa continuar leyendo la historia en volúmenes subsiguientes para descubrir cómo se desarrolla.

Soul Taker by Jeannine Acheson and Thomas E. Sniegoski is a fast-paced graphic novel that follows Amarantha, an ancient soul-feeder who’s been living in hiding for centuries. Now settled in a retirement community, she’s trying to keep a low profile, only taking the energy she needs to survive. But when a secretive religious order and a powerful pharmaceutical company set their sights on her, she’s forced back into a dangerous game of survival. The premise immediately grabbed my attention—I loved the idea of an older female protagonist in a supernatural thriller—but while the book had some great moments, it didn’t fully deliver on its potential.

There’s a lot to like here. Amarantha is an intriguing lead, and I enjoyed seeing a protagonist who looks and feels her age, rather than some immortal who conveniently still acts like a 20-year-old. The action is relentless, which keeps the story moving, and the mix of ancient enemies and modern corporations makes for an interesting dynamic. But at times, it felt like too much was happening at once. With multiple antagonists vying for Amarantha’s life, the plot started to feel overcrowded, and I wished for more time spent fleshing out the world and characters. The pacing is so quick that there’s little room for emotional depth, which made it hard for me to fully connect with the stakes.

Visually, the art style leans heavily into classic American comics, which is fine but not particularly groundbreaking. It gets the job done, but I didn’t find myself wowed by it. The writing also follows a traditional comic-book style, relying a lot on captions to tell rather than show. While that might appeal to fans of old-school storytelling, I prefer a more immersive approach.

Overall, Soul Taker had a solid premise and kept me entertained, but it didn’t quite hook me enough to be a favorite. I give it 3 out of 5 stars—worth a read if you like action-packed supernatural stories with a noir feel, but not a must-read for me. I might check out a sequel if it dives deeper into character development, but for now, I’m on the fence.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Mad Cave Studios for granting me this ARC and reminding me that immortality might be cool - until you get stabbed in the heart by religious fanatics.

Soul Taker introduces readers to Amarantha, an immortal whose species has been living for millennia, navigating a dangerous existence as ancient enemies and new threats converge upon her. This fast-paced narrative, driven by relentless action and intriguing antagonists - particularly a fascinating religious order and its soldiers - sets the stage for what could be a promising series.

However, as someone who recently read Keanu Reeves' BRZRKR, the similarities between the two are hard to overlook. Like BRZRKR, Soul Taker touches on the protagonist’s long life yet falters in immersing readers in the various time periods she’s lived through. While there were attempts, they didn’t fully capture the potential richness of those eras. I’m hoping for future installments to explore this aspect more deeply, perhaps akin to BRZRKR’s spinoff series that finally got it right.

Visually, I must admit that the artwork didn’t entirely win me over. It felt reminiscent of a digital version of old-school US comics, a style I personally don’t connect with. That old-school vibe extended to the writing as well, which leaned heavily on captions that tell rather than show, dramatic dialogues, and other hallmarks of classic Marvel Essentials-type storytelling - modernized yet undeniably nostalgic.

Despite these shortcomings, the core concept was engaging, and the thrill of the hunt as antagonists close in kept me hooked. A slightly slower pacing could have benefited the story, allowing the world and characters to breathe more. Still, the story offers enough intrigue to warrant anticipation for future issues.

If you're a fan of action-packed, immortal-led narratives and enjoy a blend of old-school storytelling with a modern twist, Soul Taker might just capture your interest.

This story was incredibly fast-paced, and honestly had such interesting plot concepts! The last surviving member of an ancient species, an ancient Catholic order of crusaders, and an evil pharmacological company. The story has such interesting story concepts, and multiple characterizations I enjoyed. But...something about this story just fell flat for me. There were many individual concepts that were really cool to me, but when brought together, lessened their coolness. I think there was just too much going on at once? Having both the pharmacological company AND the Catholic crusaders trying to hunt her down at the same time made the story a bit hectic. This story also focused much harder on the Crusaders than the pharma company, so the evil company felt a bit like an afterthought. I feel like this story does have room to expand on itself, and maybe with another volume or two the plot will even out. The art was interesting, very American classic. I did really enjoy the fact the main character is an older woman and looks like one! You don't really get to see older women in stories do all kinds of cool adventure stuff like this story has.

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

"Soul Taker is a fast paced graphic novel, mysterious and gory, perfect for fans of "Castlevania". One thing I can say for sure is expect the unexpected. I liked the queer elements of the story quite a lot, and I think having a main character that is old as time itself look old was a great choice I havent had a chance of seeing before. Especially when the main character is a woman. Depiction of different time periods and recurring characters that all want something from our lead woman, Amara (cool name btw), was interesting. Amaras survivor guilt manifesting in a form of her dead lovers ghost (hallucination?) makes me wonder if there will be more to that particular story. Her brief romance with her neighbor was cute, I hope it doesnt end here.

It has some kick-ass lines like "Your God is more a monster than I!", and the SPOILER ALERT! the Venatori order doing all that fucked up shit, seeing nothing wrong in "becoming a monster to do Gods bidding", genetically engineering Hounds, thinking "an act of Penance" will make them remain "pure" despite all of their crimes, THE FIRST VENATORI SUFFERING A FATE OF THEIR OWN MAKING AS LIVING DEAD, and last but not least, preserving their soldiers so they can be reawakened to fight their battle again, AGAINST A SINGLE WOMAN. All of that makes for a compelling and cool story.

Theres a carnage at a bday party scene, which was such a vibe. The art is incredible, gory details well appreciated. My only complaint is that the writing feels a little dense and awkward at times.

Thanm you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC!

I’m not sure why this one did not line up for me. It had the makings of a great graphic novel. A woman that has survived for centuries due to her race. An ancient crusade led by the Catholic faith hunting after her for hundreds of years. There was even a robotic cat entwined into the story. However, it fell flat, and I found myself wishing that I cared more for the characters within the story but did not. Hopefully it hits differently for you.

#ThxNetGalley

I’m going to be honest and say that I didn’t really care for the artwork. I did, however, appreciate a character who is older — she’s living in a retirement home at the beginning of the story. The religious order is properly vile, and the hatred they have for Amara (beyond the bigotry and racism) is understandable. I, too, would be pissed off at whoever cursed me to live such a life … after I slaughtered their family, friends, and people leaving them the last of their kind.

There’s quite a bit of gore, violence and body horror, as well as medical augmentation, so if these things bother you, this isn’t the book for you. All in all, it’s an easy read and ends on a suitable cliffhanger; I think, if you enjoy the book, you’ll be motivated to get the next book in the series.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC!

I got this as an arc on Netgalley and it will come out in March. This was a very good queer and brutal comic. I enjoyed it a lot, with one exception. I regularly find myself struggling with the disability narrative in comics and this comic was no exception, luckily it wasn't too prevalent in this case.

Soul Taker is a beautifully illustrated comic about Amara, a woman who has lived for several lifetimes, being able to do so through feeding on life energy. She is just trying to live a normal life, but is being targeted by multiple large threats from her past that come back to haunt her. Amara has to fight to survive and thrive in a world that is out to get her.

I really enjoyed the art style, and especially the cover pages are gorgeously illustrated. The story is easy to follow, with an interesting cast of characters. I am rating it at three stars because the plot wasn't anything mind-blowing, but it was still a worthwhile read.

I'd recommend this comic book to anyone interested in superheroes and action stories and I can't wait to see where this story is heading in future volumes!

Thank you to NetGalley and Mad Cave Studios for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.