Description (from Goodreads): Aliera Carstairs is back. This time she's got her cousin—and best friend—Caroline in tow, and the stakes are higher than ever. The realm of Seelie, the fairy kingdom of which Aliera is the hereditary defender, is under attack, and only Aliera and Caroline can set things right. Caroline, fragile and wheelchair-bound, may seem like more of a liability than an asset, but Aliera knows there's more to her quiet cousin than meets the eye.Review: Curses! Foiled Again is a follow up to the delightful graphic novel, Foiled. It starts right where the first book ended, but there is also a great recap of what previously happened in the introduction. This volume had a grown up vibe to it. Aliera is still a really enjoyable character. She is snarky, intelligent, but as this volume shows she doesn't have all the answers. Curses! Foiled Again goes a little deeper to the fantasy realm that it briefly touched upon in the first volume. We are introduced to new characters, some which are unexpectedly helpful while others deceived and betrayed our heroine.
I also loved that we got a chance to see how the Aliera and Avery relationship steadily develop. There are some hurt feelings between the two after Avery's real identity came out and I'm glad that Aliera took the time to see if she could trust him again. The banter between these two characters were fantastic and had me grinning throughout the entire time they appeared on the page.
For the most part, there is enough action and humor to keep the reader occupied but there is a small lull in the middle of the book which I thought could get shorten and tightened up. The panels are very easy to read and follow. The monochromatic art style with a few bursts of color that distinguishes between the fantasy and real world that Mike Cavallaro used in the first book is continued and well used.
Though the bigger story arc is solved and wrapped nicely in this book, the ending is open to another volume which I would gladly read since it features Aliera's sweet and mysterious cousin Caroline. I'm curious to see what Caroline's story line is and I really hope the publishers will encourage Yolen to release a third volume. I would definitely recommend this graphic novel series for those readers who want to read a graphic novel but are a bit hesitant because of its format.
Rating: 4 stars
Words of Caution: There is minor language and some fantasy violence. Recommended for Grades 7 and up.
If you like this book try: Legends of Zita the Spacegirl by Ben Hatke, Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword by Barry Deutsch, Ghostopolis by Doug TenNapel
I think I would want to flip through this one just to check out the use of color on the panels! I love when pops of color are used intelligently to convey meaning, makes things so much more interesting:) Yes, I'm an art nerd:)
ReplyDeleteI don't read graphic novels, they just don't seem to be my thing, but my daughter loves them. Obviously just the younger ones so far since she's only 8.
ReplyDeleteBut this sounds like one that would maybe be a good place for me to start if I decided to give them another shot.
So how do you read an e-arc, what kid of device are you using? I always wondered about that because I don't think my black and white kindle would really format it right. I'd like to know that. I think I remember the first one of these though I've been so spotty lately I don't remember much. But faeries??? You have piqued my interest as I await Nana volumes to discuss with you. Since you read the ARC of this one, I guess Caroline's story won't be out for awhile. I swear I'm going to find a series readily available we can discuss!
ReplyDeleteHeather
I'm not too big on faerie novels but I think it would be interesting to give them a try with the format of a graphic novel. And you recommended this for people who want to try reading graphic novels so I'm going to see if it's available at my library, Rummanah. Thanks for the recommendation.
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