Espada: The Will of the Blade is a charming graphic novel about fighting evil even if it means becoming our enemy. Although the story may not be entirely original, it conveys a powerful message to remind people that with every great power comes a greater responsibility.

I enjoy this graphic novel because of its creepy, bright atmosphere. It's vibrant and combines modern and Eastern/Mediterranean styles to depict the story's setting, but it also conveys the sense that something is off—and has been for a very long time. To avoid missing it, you simply need to pay serious attention to this type of visual storytelling.

The characters, however, seem a little flat and have one-note characterization, which irritates me because I think more might be done to explore their histories, motivations, and personalities. Nevertheless, for a light reading and fans of fantasy graphic novels, Espada is definitely for you.

The highlight of this intriguing graphic novel is the beautiful, stand-out art style. Each page glitters and gleams with saturation. The unique and gorgeous art makes this book worth the read. The plot and dialogue itself is interesting but meanders a bit. There is a lot of plot narration that relies of “telling” instead of “showing” the reader what is going on. The ending came up quickly as well, and I was left still curious about the fantasy world within the story. Character development is also scant. Overall, this was a treat moreso for the eyes while the plot left me wanting more. Fantasy genre-loving teens will still get a level of enjoyment from this. At my library I would recommend this novel to artistic types who are eager to see unique art styles.

Espada is a translation from Spanish of a gorgeous graphic novel, following a young princess, heir to the throne. She is the only one of the queen's descendants who is able to use magic -- but, instead of bending to the will of her family when sent on a quest, she rebels against her society's norms.

I'm.... mixed on this one. I really liked the art. The colors lent themselves so well to the fantastical setting, and I think the drawings helped really immerse you in the world -- which I appreciated, because otherwise I honestly didn't find too much about this one to draw me in. The relationship between the princess and the healer was the other part I wanted to hear more on. Their ending was sweet but I wished for more closure.

As far as the story goes, I found it intriguing, but at times quite flat. I honestly think I'll be seeking out the original Spanish because the tone of this translation didn't really help pull me in... I'm curious whether that was an effect of the translation process. I find often translation can smooth out the more compelling "vibes" of the story if not done extremely well, so I'd love to read the original and see if the same tone is present there too. It wouldn't surprise me: I would be 100% unsurprised to find out the tone is intentionally literary and aloof. It came off almost archaic to me. I think it works with the setting, but it's not for me.

I'd recommend to fantasy fans, folks looking for a subtle WLW story in an unfamiliar but fun setting, and fans of beautiful, fresh art who can let that carry them through a less compelling story.

2.5 rounded down.

A magical fantasy tale in graphic novel form.
The positives for me were the background/ landscape artwork was gorgeous, with the most fabulous colour choices.
The negatives were that I didn't really understand what was happening a lot of the time, and for a short book I was often bored.

Unfortunately I just got bored. I wasn’t really sure what was going on or why. I liked the art style a lot but it didn’t carry the story.

this felt like an Adventure Time episode featuring Prism where like they're speaking facts even if you can't totally connect where the story is trying to go and the art style was so funky which I thought worked really well for the setting but not for the character designs. I also felt this moved suuuuuuper slowly which didn't help with trying to understand the story