"Heartstopper" by Alice Oseman meets Studio Ghibli.

"Taproot" is an adorable and yet creepy short graphic novel featuring a paranormal queer romance between Hamal, a young gardener, who is able to interact with spirits and Blue, a ghost. It manages to be intriguing and incredibly sweet at the same time, making the reader feel all cozy whilst also wondering what will happen next. I loved the drawing style and how all the characters are so unique, it's so important for graphic novels to be diverse. It gave me major cottage core vibes and made me feel all gooey on the inside.

I wish we got more of the story though, it would be so nice to read about all of Hamal's and Blue's adventures and their relationship; it almost felt a little rushed, but I understand this can often be the case with graphic novels. I would love to read more about the original story or even spin off stories of the other ghosts since we only got a little glimpse of them.

What a fun and whimsical graphic novel!

The art style and the storyline really hooked me and I adored the colour palette that was used. This was such a wonderful story to read and I love how well Hamal and Blue compliment each other and the way their relationship developed.

This story had a little bit of everything, and a lot of things I loved. There was spooky ghostie moments combined with a soft and wholesome romance that was beautifully queer, and all around was just stunning to read!

(Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.)

Thank you so much to Oni Press and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC; it is greatly appreciated.

I am quite confused by this graphic novel. Upon finishing it I really felt like my copy was missing pages. Looking at some of the other reviews on NetGalley, it seems a few others felt the same, so I'm not sure if there's an actual issue here, or if that's how it's meant to be. This was super quick to get through, even for a graphic novel, which contributes to me wondering if there was something wrong here.

This story moves incredibley fast, and with no buildup. I often found myself confused when the scene would switch, because it felt like I missed something really important. The relationship is instant, we aren't given much background, and the problems are also resolved instantly, which just gives us nothing to look forward too.

The art style suits the story well, and I love all the drawings of the plants. The color palate is vibrant and interesting to look at. If the story was more fleshed out I feel like the art would really bring the story to life, and they would be good compliments to each other.

Unfortunately, when I finished this my first thought was, "Wait, that's it !?" It honestly feels like the most important parts of the story are skipped over, which just gives this book a feeling of nothing actually happening.

A really sweet queer graphic novel. The art work and pallet used for the art is really pleasing to the eye and well thought out, dialogue is easy to follow and clearly shows who is speaking or thinking.

The story lends well for a good series but in this issue I found the story telling a little jilted and jumpy, it seems to stop and start, things happen quickly them come to a sudden stop so there doesn't seem to be enough time to build tension or relationships and the story becomes a lacking of dept and emotion.
I really enjoyed the premise of the story and it has a lot of potential, particularly enjoying the connection to nature and how the author deals with grief but I think an extended version would lend to some good developments and depth.

Thank you to the publishers and neutrally for granting me an advanced copy to review

This was such a wholesome, enjoyable read! Loved the connection of earth and plants and flowers and bees in the world of the living as a reflection of a larger cycle of life and death in this realm and beyond. Loved the depiction of queer joy and learning about the author’s intentions in writing this included at the end. The artwork was beautiful too, enjoyed the art style and colour palette as well as the neat arrangement of text. Thank you for the reading copy!

Wholesome & unique 5 ⭐️

Captivating graphic novel. I adored the style of the artwork in this one—warm & cozy mostly but those spooky drawings gave me the chills! The queer m/m romance was sweet, first book I’ve read with a ghost / human relationship & loved how fresh this was! Was a bit choppy at times but honestly—the overall story & artwork made up for it.

Cant wait to share with students in our LGBTQ+ mini library & read more from the author! Thank you to the publisher & NetGalley for the ARC!

*Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the ARC of this book*

Cute graphic novel about a gardener who can see ghosts and how his ability to understand the importance of death for life to bloom makes him a good candidate to help ghosts move on.

The artwork has its charm, the color palette fits the theme perfectly.

This vibrant graphic novel is abundantly heartwarming despite two of the main characters being a ghost, & a reaper.
An unlikely longing forms between kindhearted necromancer Hamal & handsome ghost Blue. When a repear comes looking for Hamal, who has ended up entangled in an otherworldly mess, thing’s only get more unusual.
If the immediately striking colour palette doesn’t draw you in, the unorthodox line-up of characters certainly will. Filled with warmth & naturalistic beauty, this is a lovely fast-paced read. Although the narrative takes a hit due to pacing issues, the impressive array of lively art will leave you satisfied. Keezy Young dives visually into both creepy, gritty environments & comforting greenery. They notably excell at both, but the darker scenes are a lovely standout in their art style. The dialogue is uncomplicated & the world building isn’t really there, but I don’t particularly think it needs to be.
A sweet queer tale, with an unconventional story & a warm, fuzzy feeling left behind.

This was so cute!! The art was very pretty, I loved the colors and the vibes. It was very wholesome, a quick read that leaves you feeling happy inside!

Such a cute and comfy graphic novel. A romance about a necromancer and a ghost. By the synopsis, the book makes you think that this romance is gonna end up in tragedy. But nooooo, when I see the ghost come back to the living world, OMG this make me soooo happy, that I jumped for joy... This is a Graphic novel to read when u just want something to rest , something cute and comfy, and this book delivery EVERYTHING.

I am big fan of books that deal with grief and this graphic novel does it so beautifully as it shows that death is a part of life and finds a kind of joy in amongst the sadness. I absolutely adored the relationship between Blue and Hamal and the ending was utter perfection. I am not sure if we will ever get more from these characters in the future but I certainly wouldn't be mad to see more or even if we got to see what the other ghosts got up to.

This is the kind of story that is likely to appeal to a very wide variety of readers but I would particularly recommend it to fans of Tillie Walden as the artwork reminded me so much of Walden's work throughout.

rating: 3.5

this was so cute aaaaah, the art is so precious and it gives off that homey vibe i love!!

This was pretty cute. I enjoyed the second half of the book far more than the first, so if you're struggling with the first bit, keep going. The first part was pretty basic, and I've read plenty of other new graphic novels with a gardener as one of the main characters. I would be interested in reading more of their adventures in this side business. Especially since the grim reaper is such a fun character.

The drawings are good, but I was surprised at how sketchy they feel. Maybe it was the ebook, but I tried zooming in and out to see if the outlines would sharpen at all, but they didn't. Gave it kind of an unfinished feel.

More of a 3.5 from me, but I'll knock it up to a 4.

A very cute paranormal queer romance! I definitely enjoyed this quite a bit, the art was lovely and the story all together was very sweet, it was a bit spooky at times as well. I thought it was a bit stilted at points, a bit jumpy and that it ended quiet abruptly, but those are things i see in a lot of graphic novels so i wasn’t too surprised. All in all, a very cute read, I think it’s worth your time.

Aaah, that was one of the most wholesome little love stories I've ever read! Creepy but cute AND queer! What more could we ask for? I don't want to reveal too much in this review because I don't want to spoil anyone but if you love paranormal, queer romance, and beautiful, soothing art, this one is for you!

My only complaint is I would have loved for it to be longer / more detailed maybe? I had a little bit of trouble with the pace overall.

Taproot is very beautiful to look at as the illustrations and color scheme are top-notch. The story itself though is a bit disjointed and I felt like it ended quite abruptly. The stakes just seem high but then everything is magically solved in a matter of couple of pages. So even though I really like the characters introduced, the story and the narration, I didn't have time to get really invested. Overall though, I'd say this is worth reading anyways because not just because of the artwork but also because of the variety of characters from different backgrounds portrayed.

My first impression on this graphic novel was that is has a beautiful art style and some very pretty and vibrant use of colors.

I also liked that there were a vast of different characters and body types, so they didn’t all look the same, or looked remotely similar, which sometimes happens.

I love how they are quite awkward with each other, and subtle about actually loving each other. I also think that it was so sweet that Blue helped Hamal become happier and more confident, because he doesn’t see himself as such a freak, or at least don’t see it as only a bad thing, like he did before.

I was sad and heartbreaking to see that there were so many people, kids especially that had died and just wandered around, without being able to talk to their families and so on. I would be devasted to be the one that was dead and could see my family suffer and never being able to talk to them again.

It was so beautiful how Blue ended up ‘sacrificing’ himself, and The Reaper was so sweet, I liked how he started out being the bad guy and really seemed scary, but ended up just being a soft, sarcastic guy.

I really liked this short graphic novel, the main characters, Blue and Hamal was the sweetest, and I could easily have read a 100 more pages about them and their little ghost adventures.

…was I missing pages in my PDF or something? The art style was absolutely beautiful, but everything was incredibly under developed, disjointed, and honestly just confusing? Thanks to NetGalley and Oni Press for the digital review copy.

Taproot was just really delightful. I loved the art style, and ghost stories are my jam. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a queer story that does not center on abuse or homophobia. It is a light and short read.

I read an earlier version of this book last year, but jumped at the opportunity to read the updated version when I saw it was available on NetGalley. This is such a sweet graphic novel about love, grief, hope, and the balance between them. I love that the main characters are queer but in a matter of fact way. That is to say - this isn't a story dealing with homophobia or queer trauma, it just is a story where being queer is unquestionably what is. The artwork is beautiful and the color scheme is dramatic and absolutely perfect. 10/10 would read again.

**Received an eARC via NetGalley**