A thoughtful and tender coming of age story about a talented musician from Brazil studying in Paris. The relationships between the characters are believable and engaging. It is a sweet story that demonstrates why some people love music and the transformative effect it can have on one's life.

This was a really lovely story of commitment to your craft, staying true to yourself, and overcoming adversity.

I don't think the subject matter would have grabbed me had it been a novel rather than a graphic novel. Something about that gorgeously brooding yet hopeful cover caught my attention, however, and I'm glad it did.

Flavia's story isn't completely original in terms of the bare bones of it - it's a fairly straightforward "escape your circumstances and make something of yourself" kind of tale - but I felt the author's love for her own character over each page. The almost unfinished and slightly scribbly style of the illustrations also worked for me - it added a kind of whimsy to what is, essentially, quite a serious story.

I especially appreciated the author's interplay between Flavia and her roommates - I think their interactions and lives are faithful representations of students like them in real life, and I would have loved to see even more of them. Another little plus was the nudity. I kind of felt the romantic tension coming on, and as I had wondered how it would be portrayed (I was expecting but not hoping for a movie-like "they fall on the bed kissing, and now you need to use your own imagination"), I was pleasantly surprised by the author and illustrator's choice to portray some skin. To me, this was fitting within the context of the story, and I'm glad for it.

Overall, I felt pretty swept up by the story, and I even got a little weepy during the Nocturne, but the kind of abrupt ending threw me off completely. This might be something that is unavoidable due to the medium (it would have worked perfectly if it were described in detail in a novel, for instance), but I think my lasting impression of the story would have been cemented a bit more had the ending been written with a little bit more finesse.

A huge thank you to the publisher and authors for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book.

Flavia Antunes grows up in a favela. Her father was a casualty of gang warfare after which her mother begins working as a cleaning lady to make ends meet. One day her mother takes her along to the house of her employer, Mr. Lima, a wealthy old man who introduces Flavia to her future: the piano. She then earns a prestigious music scholarship to study in France.

The story then follows her journey in France - struggle, love, friendship, and undreamt-of opportunities.

I really enjoyed reading this book and the message that it reiterates that talent, determination and hard work will ensure that you achieve success irrespective of your background. I however feel that it came to an abrupt end and wished that the ending was a little bit more better.

I'm not usually a huge fan of graphic novels, but this one just grabbed my attention. The art is gorgeous and the story will pull on your heartstrings. This is perfect for music lovers and dreamers alike!

Even though the copy was a little hard to read I stuck it through to the end because the story was so engaging. A romantic look at life in France as a music student. An engrossing story that takes you from pour South America to Europe. I usually don't connect with my roots and history as much as I did for this story. The graphic novel has soul, fire and guts. I couldn't put it down The ending was a bit abrupt for such a long build of this character's arch. Otherwise quite an engaging read.

Thank goodness for graphic novels when you haven’t got the headspace to focus on a full novel. So extra special thanks to NetGalley and Europe Books for the free review E-copy of Forte, a graphic novel by Manon Heugel (script) and Kim Consigny (art), translated from the original French by Edward Gauvin.

Forte is the story of Flavia; her young life in a favela in Brazil is marred by tragedy, but she goes on to study the piano at a prestigious conservatory in Paris. Her life did not start off easy and even with this new opportunity it remains hard. Along with Flavia, we meet a range of characters from different countries and backgrounds, each trying to find their place. They deal with the challenges brought on by the expectations and assumptions of others, of set backs, of love and heartache, and disappointment.

The beautiful storytelling does well at conveying the depth of relationships in a short amount of page, particularly early on between Flavia and her father, and then with the friendships she forms in Paris. However, although the story covers many different aspects it merely skims most of them and I was only left with a shallow impression.

I do love the title: Forte. Not only does it match Flavia’s initial playing style due to learning on an old upright piano, but it describes her exceptional gift for playing the piano, and it is her character: passionate, strong and determined.

I have seen reviews that say they felt it was a satisfying ending that allows the reader to ponder what happens next. I however feel it came to an abrupt end and I would have liked a little more to round off the story.

Ultimately I did enjoy this graphic novel. There are some wonderful, admirable characters and it was exactly what I needed to read at the moment.

The first half of this book is set in Belem, a Brazilian favela. Despite the poverty, there is a neighbourhood warmth as people pass each other on the wooden bridges between the stilt houses. Perhaps Flavia is typically Brazilian - outspoken but warm and emotional. A rags to riches story, she is given a scholarship to study the piano in Paris and perhaps it is in this setting that the illustrations in this graphic novel come to life even more. The Parisian architecture and sparse trees are a beautiful backdrop to Flavia's story as she grapples with how her personality and background shape her as a musician. With competing voices suggesting what kind of musician she should be, she has to bravely decide how to be true to her own identity. I enjoyed this story, the bond between a mother and her daughter, what friendship looks like far from home and the advocacy that one person can bring to another.
As an aside, I was not expecting to see nudity depicted and I think the book would have been just as enjoyable without it.

This book moved quickly and effortlessly like the notes in the music played. A young girl grows from the loss of a loved one while embarking on an adventure abroad to study piano. She meets friends from around the world and fights hard for her dreams, but never loses who she is. While there were character developments I wished to have seen delved into more deeply, I appreciated the bright colors and passionate expressions in their representation. Paris has never looked more beautiful, and now I want to travel to Brazil!

I am writing this through tears! This was an amazing story. Raw, wearing its emotions on its sleeve, this was a wonderful story of growing up, of working hard, of looking for balance.

I will look for it and get myself a physical copy asap.

I really like this graphic novel, i ended up giving it four out of five stars. I liked the art too, it was hard to read the text though.

Very likable characters and I loved the stick-like vaguely cubist art style. But while I'm a sucker for an overcoming adversity story, the plot was pretty cliched (this could have been any sports movie from the past 40 years) and I didn't feel like I got much more than a surface insight into what training a concert pianist goes through or why certain terms and techniques (rounded wrists?) were important.

This is an amazing Comic about Flavia Antunes, who grew up in a Favela. Her father dies because of some gang activity that is unfortunately very common where she lives.
Her mother is the only family she has left, so she goes with her to her new cleaning job at a nice old rich guy's house. She sees a piano there and plays on it. The old man is amazed and offers her lessons.
This is the beginning of a whole journey for Flavia, because she practises a lot and tries to get a scholarship for a prestigious music school in Paris.

This was amazing! The art style is nice.
It made me feel all the feels!
I got annoyed, happy, sad, everything.
I was really rooting for Flavia to get her scholarship and a nice degree so she can spend her life doing what she loves most.
The friendships that were portrayed in here were absolutely fantastic!
The min character had also some anger management issues I would say, they were totally understandable, but sometimes also a little bit annoying.
Definitely going to reread this!

Forte proves that I sing a lot of musics wrong, I always sang "brilhar" instead of "ladrilhar", and I loved the Gaby Amarantos' reference (could be Calypso btw).
Flavia being ignorant about Brazilian pop songs made me not liking her during my reading, besides I liked her journey to achieve her dreams.

Forte follows Flavia from her childhood in the favela in Belém, through discovering the piano at a house her mother cleans, to eventually winning a scholarship to study at a prestigious conservatory in France.

Starting with the stark blue-and-yellow cover, I really enjoyed the illustrations in this graphic novel. The colors were absolutely stunning, the lines clean, and I loved the way Consigny could capture different emotions in the characters' facial expressions, even in the smallest of frames. The illustrations I especially enjoyed were of the city nights in Paris (the combination of architecture and lovely blues and yellows!), as well as the various gorgeous concert halls Flavia and her friends perform in.

The story admittedly didn't grip me as much as the art style: there are two time jumps early on in the book (Flavia at 6 years old, Flavia at 12 years old, Flavia at college) and, while I understood their necessity to keep the story moving, it always took me a second to get my bearings in the new timeline. I did feel that, in the Paris part of the story, there was a fair bit of unnecessary drama that seemed somewhat immature, but, overall, it was an interesting story that rang true.

An extra shoutout is needed for Flavia's piano professor, whose work discipline and firm-but-kind approach to teaching reminded me of my beloved flute teacher from when I was younger.

Flavia, a poor girl from a favela in Belém, has lost her father to gang violence and her mother struggles to make ends meet. While her mom cleans the house of an upper class man, she tries to play the piano, and the old man decides to teach her. At 21, after years of practice, she is granted a scholarship to study at the prestigious École Normale de Musique in Paris, so Flavia must leave her mother behind and work hard to earn a living in an expensive city, learn the language, make new friends, and prove everyone she's as good as (if not better) the posh kids she studies with.

When I downloaded this comic, I didn't expect it to be so powerful and moving. The story is touching, Flavia is a loving character and so are the people around her. You can't help but root for her and her friends, be it a posh boy who wants to play jazz or a broke diva who hides her insecurities by being thoroughly unpleasant to everyone. The love stories are quite cute too.

The length seems quite spot on, any shorter wouldn't have been enough to tell this story. I wouldn't have minded if it had gone for a little longer, both romantic stories could have been a little longer, or the secondary characters could have gotten some more attention. But it's perfectly fine as it is.

The only aspect I didn't like as much was the art style. I don't mind simple, but sometimes, specially the first few pages, was very simplistic. Sometimes the characters seemed more like stick figures and it didn't really make you feel like looking at it. The colour, however, was quite nice.

All in all, it was an engrossing read, and one I will probably read again.

Following the death of her father, Flavia Antunes develops a passion for classical piano by chance and pursues it, in hopes of becoming a concert pianist to escape the favela she grew up in. With hard work and determination, she manages to secure a scholarship to a famous French music academy. This graphic novel follows Flavia's discovery and character growth through music as she pursues her dream despite setbacks and conflict. A lovely story with stunning artwork.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Europe Comics publishers for providing a free ARC

This was a gentle, hopeful graphic novel about a girl who grows up in the favela of Belem in Brazil and gets introduced to the piano by the guy her mum housekeeps for. Through hard work and talent she gets a scholarship to a prestigious music school in Paris.

The characters she meets are diverse in their backgrounds, but all have the same passion for music. Flavia works hard and has to sacrifice a lot and make difficult decisions to keep going with her studies.

I liked Flavia a lot - her determination was impressive and her temper made her more human. the art work was lovely too -- very clean lines which brought the characters to the fore ground.

I found the story really quite lovely. The only thing I would say is that it does paint Flavia's journey as quite simple. She does work hard, but she doesn't seem to come up against many obstacles. I really doubt that this is the kind of future that many kids from the favela can hope for.

This graphic novel was a beautifully written story about a young musical prodigy. The first half of the story was very emotional and sad in the best way. I began to lose interest a bit in the second half. There was almost a switch in the narration and it got a bit messy in my opinion. Relationships kind of popped up out of the middle of nowhere, and I overall just became detached from the story. Regardless, I did enjoy reading this story. I would recommend this to anyone that enjoys contemporary graphic novels and music.

Forte is a coming of age story of fighting for your dream, working hard to fight for hope and the love of music. The illustrations are absolutely beautiful and the story is so captivating. I had such a great time from beginning to end. Its such an inspiring story that it doesn't matter where you come from because having the motivation to continue your path to success is overall a delightful journey. Things may not be smooth sailing most of the time, it'll tumble you down from time to time but you'll realise just how worth it all are.

This is a beautiful coming of age story of Flavia and her talent for the piano. I loved the artwork. It held so many emotions of showing Flavia hard work and determination to go for her dreams.

Thank you #netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.