I have chosen not to rate this book because I do not feel my rating would properly reflect the story, as I don't think I'm the target audience for this work. The artwork throughout this graphic novel is beautiful and compelling, but the story itself is reminiscent of the short stories I'd sometimes read in random old SciFi anthologies as a teen, where it felt like I only got a glimpse of the full story through the couple dozen pages provided.

The plot of this novel swirls around Ella, the central character, in a way that evokes many questions while answering very few. Though she herself tries to seek out some of those answers, Ella mostly finds herself dragged along by various supporting characters, her questions largely unanswered, until she is given an impossible choice by beings she can't even be sure she can trust.

Readers who enjoy open-ended stories inspired by conspiracy theories and the unknown may enjoy this graphic novel.

Thank you to Netgalley, Mad Cave Studios and Nakama Press for this ARC.

2,5 stars

The concept of the story was very interesting, but I don't think I fully understood the storyline. It all felt too rushed. I'm not sure if I read it too quickly or if the book lacked explanations. I do believe the story had potential, and maybe a second book could expand on it. The art was amazing, though. I didn't dislike it, but I think it could have been better.

Bueno, el dibujo era abastante bueno, me hizo acordar a los animes de los 90s/2000, pero no se entendia la trama. Me daba dolor de cabeza de tan solo intentar conectar los hilos.

Thank you netgalley for an ARC of this beautiful graphic novel. This graphic novel is very pretty. I can tell a lot of care went into this. The art is gorgeous. The plot may be just a tad too metaphysical for me. Within 200 pages, the author covering the unveiling of a mystery that results in the renewal of an intergalactic peace treaty. The author in a post script asks readers to enjoy the adventure and not dwell too much on the finer details. And that's what I decided to do. If you enjoy fast paced story telling that allows for a little interpretation and doesn't spoon feed you, then you may love this. I definitely enjoyed my time with this graphic novel. Thanks again netgalley!!

It was an interesting one, very artsy. The art style was also very interesting. It wasn't a normal comic or manga style but I was nice. I guess it was very confusing at times because of how fast-pace it was but not in an entirely bad way. It reminded me of "Children of the Sea" a bit but with conspiracy theories twist?

I'd like to send my thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for providing a free pdf version of this illustration book in exchange for an honest review.

Kwong is a very talented artist, but this book felt too rushed and jumbled. I think the concept could be a very interesting series, but throwing everything in one quick story just made it feel confusing. I never felt connected to any characters or particularly interested in what was happening.

Ouf, I don’t even know where to start. Halfway through this, I was so confused by the plot that I thought this must be a volume 2 or 3 in the story and that is why I was confused, but it was not. A quote from the main character perfectly summarizes my reading experience: "I have so many questions! I don't know who to ask, everything is happening so fast."

I feel like I know nothing more about the story after reading it than before I started. The only thing that made this readable was the great art.

"I have so many questions! I don't know who to ask, everything is happening so fast."

The above quote pretty much summarises my thoughts on this manhua. It just feels like a whole lot of nothing.

We follow Ella Summers, a "indigo child", who works for a newspaper who looks into the occult and conspiracy theories. Her old professor is murdered and she gets drawn into a plot where she needs to sign a galactic treaty.

I have read this book and if you are reading this review and haven't read the book you know exactly the same that I do about the plot. What's an indigo child, you ask? Good question.

The plot lacks the basics and that is structure and satisfactory development. This was a bunch of ideas mashed together unsuccessfully.

Thank you to NetGalley and Mad Cave studios for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

2.5
First thing, I realized the copy that I was sent was formatted backward. You have to start at the "last" page and swipe backward, but you're actually starting at the beginning and going "forwards". This story had some potential, but it was overall a confusing mess. Ella apparently has the ability to hear others' thoughts, but you only see her use this power maybe once or twice and for non-persons. This story focuses on making several urban legends be true but handles it in such a harebrained way. I also REALLY didn't like that they made Indigo children an actual thing. The story even mentioned in a single line, that Indigo children could just be Autistic. In reality, a lot of "Indigo Child" and "Starseed" kids are just neurodivergent children whose parents would rather think their children are aliens than admit they're Autistic, ADHD, or AuDHD. It's honestly a stupid conspiracy theory that has led to a lot of harm to neurodivergent children. The rest of the story is alright? It goes so quickly, you're left spinning and never fully understanding. I did actually like the art, the art style is very pretty.

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

all I gathered from this is the main character's name is Ella Summers because it was said 46 times in 200 pages and that there is a treaty renewal because that was mentioned 24 times in the last 80 pages. Also the cover gave me way too high of expectations for the art style

What if all the occult conspiracies you’ve ever known were real? Ella Summer works for a magazine that reports an all things revolved around the occult. When she learns that her old professor dies, it leads her on a path of self-discovery and danger. It’s worth the read.

#ThxNetGalley #Chi-HoKwong #Indigo

"Indigo" follows the story of Ella Summer, a reporter at a magazine that chases urban legends and conspiracy theories; with the suspicious death of her university professor, Ella's life is suddenly turned upside down, as things she thought were outlandish turn out to be very real after all.

If you're interested in conspiracy theories, this graphic novel is perfect for you. The story is very fast-paced and action-packed, occasionally bordering on being a bit confusing. There is some build-up towards the big reveal, however I think it would have been better if we had been kept in suspense a little while longer. Ultimately, the plot felt rushed, and it's because of that that I can't give "Indigo" a higher rating. That, and the fact that it leans quite heavily into a particularly outlandish conspiracy theory that I personally don't buy.

On the flip side, the art is magnificent. The first few pages are in full color, and the artwork is simply dreamy, and the art style translates really well into the black-and-white pages of the story proper.

Thank you netGalley and Mad Cave Studios for the eARC!

Indigo is a sci-fi manhua about Ella, a seemingly normal girl interested in the paranormal that unravels to a larger truth when she investigates the mysterious death of one of her professors.
For a single volume, the pacing of this is pretty fast and I think you need to read between the lines a bit otherwise this book will go over your head pretty quickly.
I appreciate Kwong not wasting time to do any handholding in this graphic novel, and the theme of personal choice making or breaking the entire world was honestly pretty breathtaking. The visuals were gorgeous, and although we don’t spend a lot of time watching Ella change, we can come to understand her and her destiny in this world that brings her to her most pivotal moment.

I have a lot of problems with this story. Since the very beginning I had this feeling I was missing big parts of the story, like this was a second issue rather than a first.

The story at some points felt chaotic, and I didn’t enjoy the info dump. It felt erratic, and it lacked a huge component: I could not feel empathy for Ella, our FMC.

The art on this one, is stunning. I really enjoyed the incredible amount of details.

I believe if you enjoy conspiracy theories, you could really enjoy this. I recommend you to give it a try, while this story wasn’t for me, I am sure some of you could really enjoy it.

Thank you Netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐆𝐎 𝐛𝐲 𝐂𝐇𝐈-𝐇𝐎 𝐊𝐖𝐎𝐍𝐆 releases this May!
If you like conspiracy theories then this is the perfect read for you! I really enjoyed the visuals along with the storyline. The illustrations were top tier. This story is a wild, mind-bending adventure! Ella is a reporter with a knack for picking up on people's thoughts and even communicating with plants and animals.
When her old professor dies in a super weird way-starving himself for no clear reason— she dives into the mystery. What starts as a simple investigation turns into a journey through portals, multiverses, and secretive reptilian elites. It's a fun, unpredictable ride that keeps you hooked as Ella races to uncover the truth and figure out her role in saving, well. pretty much everything.

Thanks netgalley and publisher for allowing me to read this manga.

I was super confused man like I didn’t know wtf was going on with Ella Summers here. She’s meeting such random characters without proper intros and she’s going to places more than me but to what purpose?! It’s just massively unclear what’s going on. I mean the art is pretty good, it’s not fantastic but it’s easy on my blind eyes so I’m not complaining about it. Yep another wasted potential but there ya go…….

2.5 stars rounded up. Thank you NetGalley for the e-arc of this graphic novel in exchange for an honest review.
There was honestly so much smashed together in this novel I had an extremely hard time following the plot. I also don't love a grapic novel that's in black and white. The colors are so brilliant on the cover. They draw you in. Then, disappointment from page 1. At least, that's how I feel about b&w graphic novel. I immediately start struggling to pay attention. So, Indigo having a confusing, hard to follow plot plus it was in black and white made damn near impossible for me to read.

Indigo opens on a galactic background with a being asking our main character Ella Summer to make a choice. After this we go back in time to Ella researching the murder of a college professor.

"I have so many questions! I don't know who to ask, everything is happening so fast."

The quote above, from the manhua itself, pretty much encapsulates my experience with Indigo. Sadly this was not for me. It felt like an idea for a story instead of a story in and of itself. It felt like different concepts and plot points were smashed together without much cohesion, worldbuilding, or character development. All told at a breakneck speed. It's possible I just didn't 'get' this. In the end I was mostly left thinking: What did I just read?

While there were some interesting ideas here, the execution was were this story mostly lacked. This was a story that needed a lot more time to be told properly in my opinion. This could have and should have easily been told over multiple volumes.

"Most indigo children are from far away stars... Old souls sent to earth to help in some way."

Story aside, I did really enjoy Kwong's art style. It is unique and evocative, and the colour use is brilliant. It suits and contributes to the vibe of it all.

Indigo might be for you if you enjoy fast-paced stories, that focus mostly on an overarching plot. This is accompanied by beautiful science fiction art.