Unfamiliar, Vol. 1
by Haley Newsome
Summary
Young kitchen witch Planchette gets an incredible deal on a new house in a magical town. Turns out, there’s a reason: it’s haunted! After unsuccessfully attempting to get these unwanted ghosts to leave, she realizes the only thing to do is to help them with their problems. Along the way, she befriends a shy siren who hates being popular, a girl battling a curse, and a magically-challenged witch from a powerful coven.
My Review
4.5 stars
I really, really enjoyed this graphic novel. It wasn’t quite a five-star for me, but it was very, very close. First off, I adore the illustrations. It may be a turnoff for some people, but I love this art style. It’s so cute and adorable, but also mixed with a bit of spooky, so perfect for this time of year. I couldn’t get enough of this world and its characters. The illustrations felt original and unique. It has a soft, subtle pastel color palette to it, which is cute and visually appealing.
I enjoyed meeting all the witchy, supernatural characters and their pets or familiars. However, there was a lot going on once we met them all and learned about each girl’s problem or issue going on with them. It crams a lot into this short book, and I would’ve loved to just follow one or two characters at a time instead of four, so we could connect with them even more. But the story is fun and whimsical with some great messages. The characters are likable and relatable. I also loved the friendship dynamics and kind of a found family element to it. It felt very warm and cozy while reading it.
It does end on a somewhat cliffhanger, so there is no resolution, and it comes abruptly to a stop. I didn’t care for that. So if you want to find out what happens, then you have to pick up book two.
It felt like some queer pining between a possible gay couple and possibly some queer coding between some of the main characters, but it’s not spelled out if they are truly gay or not. In some scenes, it feels like it alludes to it, but it could also just be how the characters are in their friendships. It definitely feels like there are some feminist and queer undertones to the story, which I personally don’t care for, and it made me take my rating down a bit.
But overall, I highly recommend it because it’s very imaginative and entertaining. The artwork is stunning. And the characters are just adorable. It’s a quick, easy read when you want to snuggle under your cozy blanket and read something light and funny. The humor had me laughing out loud throughout the whole story.