Review to come to my blog/other places in February 2025.

I received this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange of an honest review.

I loved this one for the cover and then I saw the blurb and I was totally sold!

In this one we meet Maya a girl who is a comic book artist but not having the most fun life. She is constantly working, but so not satisfied with what she has to make. She struggles a lot, but I wonder if she was ready for what comes next! Because things go from 0 to 100 when Maya meets Soma, a small alien which looks like a blob with an eye and tentacles. Soma has big news, bad news even. His planet consists of warriors and they are in the need for water... and guess what? They are coming for Earth. I thought maybe we would have a bit more time to get to know Soma, but other than a few moments the invasion is HERE. And WOW, I have to say I was 100% in! From that point on there is no boring moments, everything is high tension and it was fantastic, though also shocking, given that I had expected (based on the cover/illustrations) that this invasion would be full of action but maybe not as much death. I will warn you, people will get shot, a car with people is volleyed into a building by two aliens playing tennis, and there is much more. There are a lot of desperate moments in which you wonder if maybe the city/the world is doomed.

I loved how Maya and Soma worked hard together to fix things and to make it better again. Soma cannot do much alone (again blob with tentacles) but with the help of Maya he may just reach the mothership and may just get things right. He has some deets on his kind (who he isn't a fan of) and well, remember snails? You can also use that for these aliens. Soma wasn't too entirely happy to share that nugget and we see that he was horrified when Maya, without any care which is logical as her world is being destroyed, used that against one of his own kind. But their teamwork is strong and I loved seeing their bond grow.

We also got a backstory on how Soma has arrived on Earth and how he was able to find help. This backstory broke my heart in two ways, that is all I will say.

Next to Maya we also follow her friend Juu/Juju whose design I wasn't entirely a fan off (the eyes). He is stuck in the midst of the invasion as well and makes quick friends (and maybe more) with a girl and her sibling. I loved following them and seeing what they experience. Because with Maya/Soma you follow them on their mission to save the world, whereas with Juju you see him try to survive and get to safety.

I am delighted that we got to have an epilogue and see how the city/world is doing now. That last page though was ominous.

The art was just FANTASTIC. Seriously, I love the style. It was so colourful, so cool, so energetic.

I would highly recommend this kick-ass graphic novel to all.

What if a burnt out comic artist was put in charge of saving humanity from an alien apocalypse? This book enchanted me immediately upon opening it. The manga-inspired art style, the vibrant colors and backgrounds, the charming characters- everything about Soma has made it a new favorite for me. I’m typically not much of a sci-fi reader, but I was HOOKED by the story and the incredibly relatable protagonist, not to mention all of the silly folks we meet throughout the journey! I loved every part of this book and genuinely cannot wait to recommend it to everyone who will listen.

It's a strange story, the drawings are really beautiful and the colors are wonderful and they also make you emotional. It was a really interesting read.

Some impressive artwork but the story and characters were not for me. Too much bam boom kablam kaboom. Perhaps I was looking for something deeper in meaning, perhaps I like a different type of funny.

Thanks to the publisher for the ARC over at Netgalley.

Thank you, Netgalley, the author, and Oni Press for the gifted e-book! ❤️ #gifted. My review is comprised of my honest thoughts.

I really liked this graphic novel. It was quirky and funny. The characters are great. I do feel like the translation was off at times, but hopefully it will get fixed before the release date. I recommend it!

Really great art style and story.
I t was very cute and wholesome and I had really fun with it.
I will definitely read more of this graphic novels.

Soma is really well written! I loved the illustrations, the details, the work gone into the story in general!

I love Juu and Maya!

The world goes under an alien attack, one of the aliens crashes into Maya's living room and she decides to look after it and heal it as it was injured. This comic has funny parts, such as the salt and some comical quips along the way.

An enjoyable read and will look for more by the same artist!

I loved this comic. Several story lines merge from low stakes to world ending in entertaining emotion filled art. I loved the explanations at the back and its cool that the artist is working on Cult of the Lamb and has a lil CotL beanie in the illustration of themself.

3.85 stars!!

Omg!! This is the first ever e-arc that I've received and I couldn't be happier. I've been a fan of Carles Dalmau for years now and and still remember reading Lucid Lucy as a teenager. So the fact that I was approved for this was really exciting and I got into it straight away. And it didn't disappoint!

This was so fun. I honestly liked all of the characters we met, the dialogue was relatable at times, the pacing was pretty fast but the book itself was long enough not to make it feel rushed, the plot was interesting and there was a lot of action. The art was fantastic, despite not being too big on sci-fi I found it to be quite enjoyable in a graphic novel/comic format, and I really really liked the ending and found it to be quite wholesome. I also really liked some of the commentary we got on human nature and the selfless kindness of others. And I liked the commentary on how life and working and relationships can be a drag and people need a break, or even to change the way they live to make their lives easier on themselves.

The biggest criticism that I have is that the translation was a bit off? Just in the sense that I could tell that it was kind if a *direct* translation or there were maybe a couple typos, so I just hope they'll fix that before the official release. There were also some scenes that I just didn't like and found to be a bit questionable (as in why did they decide to do this), and they just struck me personally as a bit offputing and took me out of it a little bit? Either way, I really enjoyed myself with this one. I would really really recommend this if you love alien sci-fi and graphic novels, or if you're just a fan of Dalmau I think you'll enjoy it too.

A Sci-Fi Adventure Bursting with Art and Emotion

Fernando Llor’s Soma combines creativity, companionship, and chaos in a visually stunning graphic novel. The story follows Maya, a comic artist battling burnout, whose life is upended by an alien crash-landing into her home. As Maya navigates this surreal adventure, the narrative cleverly weaves her internal struggles with the unfolding chaos.

The characters, especially the quirky Maya and the lovable alien Soma, shine through, but it’s Carles Dalmau’s artwork that steals the spotlight. With vivid colors and dynamic styles, the visuals enhance the story's humor and emotional depth. The story has great originality, even familiar sci-fi elements feel reinvigorated by its unique execution. Ideal for fans of innovative storytelling and stunning visual art.

Ok this book was something new, I really love the art in this story and the fact that the main character is a struggling Comic artist. Aliens come down to take over, and one just ends up in the main characters house. She almost kills it by accident and ends up forming a connection to it. They work together to save her world, and when you find out why they are helping out, its so sad. This is a great story that shows just because you think you are good and someone else is bad. Sometimes when you are put into a situation to get to know someone you were told was bad, you might find out that they arent so bad. But they also found out that their people whereat so good.

Soma tells the story of a burnt-out artist and a friendly alien teaming up to save the world from some unfriendly aliens. Until the end, I wasn't quite sure whether it was really happening or if it was a hallucination from stress. It was quite fun, and I really enjoyed the art style, but the story felt quite rushed. I didn't feel I knew much about any of the characters or their motivations.

I enjoyed this title a lot. The art is wonderful and I liked the humor in it as well. I am not sure it is school appropriate for my library but there really wasn't anything too graphic in it.

DNF at page 147.

Beautiful art that’s very expressive yet even though it was wonderful it wasn’t nearly enough to carry the below average story through.

Super adorable story and art. Was over too fast! I loved the the best friend character and that salt is such an important mineral!

Soma was a graphic novel that when I started reading I didn't really know what I was going to find. And as it progressed, the story completely absorbed me.

The story has a lot of dynamism, fun moments, others not so many and also causes the occasional tear.
I loved the characters, although I would have liked to see a little more depth and development in them.

Fun, agile, light, an entertaining read that leaves you wanting more. And when a story makes me want to know more and more... it's because it was worth it.

Thank you very much Oni Press for the ARC I read through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This graphic novel is definitely one you want to check out if you enjoy a story with tons of colour and interesting panels! I liked the story overall, it was confusing at some parts and seemed to wrap up a little too quickly and conveniently for me but it was a solid, quick read. It would have been fun if this had been stretched out over a couple of volumes though!

Check this one out if you enjoy aliens, a chaotic atmosphere and a comic artist!

3/5✨

A colorful, often enjoyably violent, comic about an artist finding a personal story to tell rather than the commercial art she is doing for paid gigs, told with the backdrop of an alien invasion.

Soma is the story following comic book artist, Maya during an atypical day in the life. When she gets an unexpected visitor that is more like something out of one of her comics, it is up to her and it to stop the impending alien invasion.

This was a quick and fast-paced graphic novel that doesn't allow you to take a break and let things absorb. The art style was cute, and honestly, the cover is the main thing that caught my eye. I'll likely check out future novels from Llor as this was enjoyable.

By far, my favourite thing about this was at the end of the book where there was a bit of insight/behind the scenes of the development of the book.

Estamos siguiendo a Maya, una artista que atraviesa una crisis creativa. Está sobrecargada de trabajo y no puede terminar ninguno de sus encargos.
Pero un día, una extraña criatura irrumpe por su ventana y se presenta como un alienígena, mostrándole que su mundo está a punto de terminar.
Me gusta que algunas páginas tengan un estilo artístico diferente; por ejemplo, la página 172 tiene un diseño que recuerda a un videojuego retro. Me acabo de dar cuenta de que el ilustrador también trabajó en los cómics de Cult of the Lamb.
Aunque la situación es dramática, el diseño hace que se sienta ligera, y Maya no lo toma en serio, incluso cuando la gente está muriendo. Eso crea una sensación de "esperanza"; básicamente, sabes que todo terminará bien.

De alguna manera, me recuerda a Maliki, un cómic que creo que leí a principios de los 2010's. El personaje de Maya incluso se parece a Maliki, y ambos son artistas.

Me gusta Juu y su reacción al tener que salir en otro momento. Se preparó, y ahora tiene que cambiar todo. Muy relatable.
Aunque su personaje está bastante vacío.

Soma fue lindo y tiene una historia interesante. El momento sobre su antigua familia humana fue realmente tierno, y cuando se reencontraron fue hermoso. Me gusta cuando pasan cosas así.
Mi único problema es que no sentí nada al leerlo, fue un buen rato, pero probablemente será un recuerdo que se desvanecerá.