Cover Image: Graveneye

Graveneye

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Member Reviews

Thank you to NetGalley an TKO Studios for a free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Bowles and Leong explore the extremes of human emotion in Graveneye, a story told by a sentient house about its inhabitants—both welcomed and unwelcomed. Bowles and Leong's work mesh well together, and I especially enjoyed Bowles' cartooning for its beautiful textures and vivid portrayals of horror. It's definitely a story that kept me on my toes and invested.

Art and Lettering: Anna Bowles
Story: Sloane Leong

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If you think a horror story about a killer told both affectionately and distantly by her house sounds good, then you'll enjoy this. This isn't for anyone who is triggered by common horror themes, especially any kind of abuse or animal killing.

I loved the perspective of the house, naturally distant because it is not human and does not feel human emotions, but also loving in that it feels strongly for what lives within it. The perspective made the story for me, and turned what could have been a typical horror story into something new. It was fittingly told through an art style that was both beautiful and eery and that really pulled everything together.

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Netgalley freebie.

I loved the monochrome style of art with the occasional flash of red. A slow burn of a story encompassing horror, folklore, shapeshifting and femininity. With only three characters this tale packs a lot of story with little dialogue relying more on the artwork. Interestingly told from the perspective of the house where Isla lives, took me a bit of getting used to imagining the house narrating!

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Me gusta que el narrador sea distinto, en este caso la casa. Sin embargo, la narración es bastante lenta y aburrida; me costó mucho seguir la historia, a pesar de ser una historia visual con textos cortos. También fue bastante confuso; que intenta ser una historia más profunda pero me cuesta llegar al mensaje.

I like the narrator it's different, in this case the house. However, the narration is quite slow and boring; I had a hard time following the story, despite being a visual story with short texts. It was also quite confusing; which tries to be a deeper story but it is difficult for me to get to the message.

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With thanks to Sloane Leong and TKO Studios for an advanced readers copy of this graphic novel.

2.5*

Good Points;
- Very unique POV
_ Stunning artwork, that contrast of the muted colours and the vibrant red really add to the atmosphere.
- It gives off a very uncomfortable aurora, adding to the atmosphere of this horror.

Less Good Points;
- I don't get it... and that's probably just me. It's a very artsy feeling in the storyline, and therefore I'm not sure if a lot is up for interpretation but I couldn't follow the point of the story.

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this was really interesting! I think this story had a lot of potential, but it didn't quite pull me in. the art style was absolutely gorgeous, and the general premise of the book was, too.

the only thing that bothered me is that some things might have been explained clearer, cause, even though I knew what was happening most of the time, sometimes I felt lost.

secondly, I know this is horror, so this is my fault and not the authors', but there was <i>SO</i> much gore in here- animal gore, to be exact, that I felt like I was going to throw up. which, don't get me wrong, I enjoy gore most of the time, but this felt like it was a little bit too much.

in conclusion, this wasn't my favorite, but it was still very stunning (graphics-wise) and I still enjoyed it! so, if it sounds like your kind of thing, definitely give it a try!

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Haunting, macabre, surprising, and thoroughly enchanting. Fans of Emily Carroll’s “Through the Woods” will enjoy this long-form tale of cursed terror and ever-evolving strangeness.

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Graveneye is a really interesting graphic novel.

Okay so firstly, I really like TKO as a publishing company because they tend to publish concise series that are released all around the same time so there is no waiting for the next issue or whatever, that I really like. So when I saw this on Netgalley I was intrigued. It is after all, the post-spooky season and I am always ready for a horror graphic novel. The first thing that struck me as interesting about this book was the art. The vibrant red on the cover is carried throughout this book. The art is mostly black and white, yet there are these vibrant splashes of red that give the book an incredibly ominous feeling. Blood and eerieness are pinpointed in this juxtaposition between the black, white, grey and then RED. It does definitely add to the gory, horror feel of the book.

It took me a couple of pages to realise just who exactly was narrating this book and then I realised it was the house? This story is basically about a house narrating the goings on with it's owner Isla who lives alone and has lived in the house her whole life, her secret cellar where she stores her deepest, darkest secrets and her timid new maid, Marie, who is in an abusive marriage and develops a fascination with her employer and her job. The house being almost sentient in this book makes it seem like you're watching something that will ultimately end negatively. The hints at Isla's secret hobbies (spoiler: she basically bare knuckle fights animals in the woods, sometimes naked and skins them, it's a whole thing), Marie's growing bruises, the house sees it all.

Overall, I liked this book. It's definitely not something I would've initially picked up in my LCS but I'm glad I read it. I'm always down for a horror graphic.

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2.5 rounded up to 3.
This was a wild ride. From one page to the next I never really knew what was going to happen although it wasn’t enough to keep me 100% focused. Still I enjoyed the art style and the crazy story. (Received a free ecopy of comic for review from NetGalley.)

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I absolutely loved that this story is told from the POV of the house. There was something very unsettling about reading this from such a detailed, omnipresent viewpoint.

Recommended for: horror graphic novel enthusiasts

Content warning: domestic abuse, murder/violence, gore, nudity, animal hunting/skinning

I received a digital ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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Told from the perspective of a sentient house, Graveneye was a quick, gruesome, and tragic read. The story follows the owner of the house, Isla, and the new caretaker, Marie. Isla has some... Animalistic tendencies that complicates the relationship between the two.

With the exception of splashes of red, the art is black and white. As the story progresses, more and more red fills the pages, which adds to the sense of descending into the same violence and despair that the house witnesses.

The story fell somewhat flat for me, maybe because it is told entirely from the perspective of the house. The ending could have been far more tragic and affecting, but instead the sparse character development made it feel more like a shock tactic.

Still, the length of the book makes it an easy read. If you're a fan of dark graphic fiction who is looking for a bit of a gruesome thrill, Graveneye might be for you.

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I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for the book.

I thought this book would be the perfect short read just in time for Halloween. But, unfortunately, life came in the way, and I ended up not finishing it until way later.
However, here we are, and the novel has been read.

I thought the graphic novel's premise sounded great, but I'm afraid it didn't quite do it for me.
The text is a narration by a house. The house tells the story of its owner and this lady who was hired to clean the house.
While the house tells its story in a super poetic way, the pictures show the brutal reality of the owner's nature.

The art in the book is excellent, very graphic and really shows the gory details. I also like how the book is told, where pictures and words combined tell the real story and work together to show the complete picture. While pictures and words separately tell two different stories - it is quite unique and a fun way to tell the story.
But, unfortunately, the story just isn't really for me.
I never really got that feeling of wanting to keep reading. Despite it being a graphic novel, it just took me forever to finish it.
I can see the appeal, and I enjoy the artistic work, but besides that, it just wasn't for me.
It is worth checking out if you want a new graphic experience, though.

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This was received as an ARC from Netgalley.

This intriguing narrative is told from the perspective of the house, and the house sees all. It tells us the condensed story of its master, Isla, and the new maid she has hired to care for the home.

Full of vivid images, this is a solid graphic novel. If you're a fan of Junji Ito and the like, then this is a book for you! My only criticism is that it is quite short even for graphic novel standards, but a great story nonetheless.

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Ep 4 of my reading slump series.

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Trigger Warning: Abuse, Blood, Death, Cannibalism

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This is an unusual read, I would say I was confused at first when I realised that the story is narrated by the house itself, which somehow served as a spectator of the events that had happened.

I first thought that this was somehow a kind of paranormal or a werewold kind of story but it wasn't at all.

The storyteling at most is tricky and at the same time interesting since it helped set the eerie, mystery-thriller feel to it that compelled me.

There are hint of mental illness and abuses that I noticed in the story that I hoped had been more delved so that I could see what led them to the situation now as well as their background stories, which I really think that would hae helped me understand the story more.

Overall, it was interesting, I just hoped that the story had been more expanded to what the graphic novel currently is

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To say that this graphic novel shocked me is an understatement, but not because of the gruesome content. I’ll be honest that I didn’t enjoy the early parts of the story when I first started reading. I had put it down and didn’t feel the drive to pick it up for a few weeks after. I was initially put off mainly by the art style, it was too gritty for my liking. The choice of narrator was also initially strange, as the story is told from the point of view of a sentient mansion.

I’m glad that I sat down and gave this another shot with an open and fresh mind after a reading slump. Graveneye is a perfect example of the monstrous feminine in literature, of two women twisted and shaped by hunger. Lovingly told from the perspective of a crumbling mansion, the prose was beautiful and sets the mood. The greatest criticism I’ve seen of this work has been the choice of narrator, but I found that I actually enjoyed the story from the view of a quiet observer. Both characters were equally important, and I feel that a story told from either of their points of view wouldn’t have been any more engaging.

The choice of font while fitting, I did find difficult to read at times. The art at least was striking and dark, with neutral monochrome splashed with brilliant red. The monster in this story is feral but not quite a werewolf. The story embraces the seductive nature of violence while also condemning it which was a fine line to creep along. As someone that consumes a lot of horror media, this graphic novel stood out for the aspects that make it unique. I enjoyed it and would certainly pick it up to read again.

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Graveneye is an interesting graphic novel about a house bearing witness to a lot of bloodshed. The art in this graphic novel is fantastic and adds enough to the limited text. This had a spooky atmosphere and a change of narrative style within a graphic novel. Unfortunately, due to the lack of character dialogue, I was lost on the plot of this graphic novel. This would be more for readers that are more into the abstract rather than cut and dry graphic novels. I am still not too sure about what I just read because I don't think there was an actual plot. We were introduced to some characters but we never get enough background on them to really become attached to any of them.

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My last few reads have been huge disappointments, so I'm so glad I clicked to read this next. The story + artwork are a perfect marriage. This graphic novel is wonderfully creepy and weird and I loved every panel of it. I had no idea where the story was headed and what was going to happen next so I devoured the whole thing in one sitting. I definitely want to read more of Sloane Leong's work and look forward to seeing more work by Anna Bowles.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher/creators for providing me with an ARC of this graphic novel.

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The art in this graphic novel is stunning. It is so rich with detail and the greyscale color palette with the splashes of red was striking and really drew your eye to the blood and gore. It was a short, fun spooky read but it just leaves you wanting a bit more detail in the dialogue and plot.

The narration style was super cool and new to me. The story is told to you from the POV of the house. Which could link to why the level of detail in the story was only what the house itself could observe.

Overall it was enjoyable and an amazing fall/spooky season read.

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4.75/5
That was amazing! I can't get over how incredible that was. It reminded me of Hannibal (the TV show) and of Will and Hannibal's relationship so much. Where to begin?
I didn't know what to expect at the start, but what a pleasant surprise.
I loved that the story was written from the perspective of the house; it was really unique and the language that was used to reflect the house's point of view was very clever and intriguing.
The characters were great. The unique twistedness of their desires elevated this story so much and I simply adored it all. I don't know if this is how it was written, but I definitely viewed the main character's connection as a romantic/sexual one--not necessarily of love either, but definitely obsession.
I thought the ending was perfect, I thought all of it was perfect, and I am absolutely in love (and obsessed) with this story!

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So I looked up the definition of Snuff, just to make sure I understood what it was more closer to the definition and not just what I had come to know it as through the inference.

While I'm not sure this fully meets the definition of it. This feels like a Snuff fic, and to make it worse a Snuff Fic that makes itself seem Gay.

Like in retrospect I could see some parallels to Little Red Riding Hood. but overall it wasn't fun to read and was quite graphic over all.

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