2.5

This graphic novel follows the artist Matisse on his trip to Tangier in 1912.
It's a slow paced slice of life historical graphic novel.
I liked the colour pallet used in this book. However unfortunately I didn't like the actual story as much as I expected to. Instead I found myself getting bored.
It was just an ok read for me.

I didn’t particularly enjoy this book, but it was a very speculative story trying to narrate Matisse’s life whilst in Morocco. Sadly, the illustrations were not my style nor was the story but nevertheless it is not a bad book.

"Tangier in the Rain" is a captivating and evocative graphic novel that weaves together elements of biographies, romance, and memoirs. The storytelling collaboration of Grolleau and de Bruxelles shines as they craft a tale of love, adventure, and the search for meaning. The book's atmospheric artwork and well-developed characters create an immersive reading experience that resonates with fans of biographies and graphic novels. The creative team skillfully captures the essence of a unique time and place, adding depth to the narrative. "Tangier in the Rain" is an emotive journey that invites readers to experience the complexities of human connection and the impact of life-changing experiences, leaving them with a sense of nostalgia and reflection as they follow the characters' personal and romantic evolution amidst the backdrop of Tangier.

This book is lovely to look at. The art is beautiful and I am impressed with the colours used in the book. The story is quite interesting for me, for I long to visit Tangier one day. It is different from what I usually read, and the first graphic novel I read in a long while. I want to research more about Henri Matisse after reading.

A strange one, this. A wholly speculative story, that does hit certain emotional notes and feels real enough. Some lovely art.

Que HQ linda, gente.
Os traços são bem feitos e a mensagem no livro é muito bonita. O final é como um soco no estômago.

Espero que vocês leiam e gostem. Agradeço, Netgalley, por disponibilizar a obra para leitura e ao autor também. A arte é incrível!

This was a fantastic graphic novel. The artwork was breathtaking. I immensely enjoyed the book would definitely recommend to all my friends.

Gorgeous graphic novel, thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for letting me access it in exchange for my feedback.

Tangier in the Rain is a rather strange book. Grolleau scripts dances between the artistic struggles of Matisse and the harsh difficulties of day to day life faced by his muse Zorah.

Matisse and Zorah are compelling protagonist. Matisse comes from a place of wealth and privilege, while Zorah lives a much harsher life and dreams of something more than scrubbing floors. Both are using each other to achieve something, and yet both are somewhat naive of the realities of their situation.

De Bruxelles art is wonderful. Capturing a real sense of time and place, you get real sense of how "exotic" Matisse must have found Morrocco. There is a simplicity to the character designs that allow for a great deal of nuanced expression on the face of his characters. The colours are lush.

A really good comic with an ending that is a gut punch.

Full of wonderful art and captivating plot. This graphic novel follows Henri Matisse as he travels from Paris to Tangier in search of a breath of fresh air and inspiration. The book is gorgeously illustrated and seems to be well researched - I confess I don't know much about Matisse. Overall, this was a very enjoyable graphic novel and I would highly recommend it, especially if you are a fan of his work.

Despite not knowing much about Henri Matisse, I found this to be a beautiful and accessible account of Matisse's time in Tangier, Morocco.

I am not a frequent reader of graphic novels, but I really enjoyed this one. The choice to present this story as a graphic novel worked well, given the focus on connecting the people and landscapes of Tangier to Matisse's style. I especially liked the calming blue tones throughout which helped set the thematic tone.

However, I found it hard to connect with the story and the characters. Something about the pacing and the dialogue didn't seem inspire any sort of emotion, and consequently I found it difficult to get invested. I think those with a strong interest in Art History/Matisse may not have this issue, however.

Ultimately, I would recommend this to readers who want a more relaxed read. Despite the downfalls with the story, the illustrations are truly gorgeous and very calming.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book :)

This graphic novel follows Henri Matisse as he travels from Paris to Tangier in search of a breath of fresh air and inspiration. The book is gorgeously illustrated and seems to be well researched - I confess I don't know much about Matisse. Overall, this was a very enjoyable graphic novel and I would highly recommend it, especially if you are a fan of his work.

I enjoyed this graphic novel. I was able to relate to the artist in some ways where he was desperately searching for the inspiration he needed. I really enjoyed Zorah. Her storytelling was my favorite part. I’m not knowledgeable on what this story was based on in regards to Henri Matisse and his journey in Tangier but I’d like to look into him more after reading this. The art style of this book was satisfying. It wasn’t completely neat or perfected but it was colorful and playful. Overall, this was a decent book and I’d recommend this to anyone who wants to read a short graphic novel based on an artist and their journey in another country.

Thank you to NetGalley and Europe Comics for providing an eARC for my honest review.

In 1912, the French painter Matisse went to Tangier, Morocco, a popular holiday spot for Europeans. He was inspired to go by the rhapsodies he had heard from fellow painters such as Delacroix, on the incredible light and the vibrancy of the colours. When Matisse first landed there, though, it rained throughout his stay. This inventive graphic novel is a fictionalisation of this incident. THe artwork is lovely, and it's quite illuminating about an instance in an artist's life that influenced his later work. The spectacular view of the Tangiers Bay, from instance, could be done because that's all Matisse could see of Tangiers during his first stay there, when he was confined to the room! I expected this to exoticise Tangiers, but the work is respectful of the place and the people, and even provides a very moving fictional backstory for the unnamed woman Matisse painted in his Tangiers paintings. THe novel includes her as a character in her own right and gives her agency and respect. It's cleverly done, to show you aspects of the place and the landscape that influenced his later artworks, and the artists don't merely imitate Matisse-the artwork is original, though an homage to his style. Lovely little work.

I enjoyed reading this one, mainly for the beautiful art. It didn't really have a strong plot, just Matisse being obsessed with painting a woman in Tangier, but it still worked somehow. I guess it might be of interest to readers interested in art history or admirers of Matisse, as the illustrations play into his distinctive style. It is cute, even if completely forgettable.

Thank you Netgalley UK for providing me with a copy of this book for an honest review.

As is stated in the foreword, the author and the illustrator of this book try to narrate painter Matisse's time in Tangier, Morocco between 1912-1913.

The artwork is incredible. For almost every page they use a different color palette. Apparently, there are many references to the Matisse painting style, but as someone with very limited art education, I could not catch them. Lettering is again hard to read for me. I wish the letters were a bit darker.

Of course, there is a story based on a real-life model called Zorah, who Henri Matisse painted when he was in Morocco. Thankfully, in this story, I get the reference to The Arabian Nights: Tales of 1001 Nights, but the story ended so abruptly, and the connection between the story and the painter's art was weak.

This book had so much potential to convey a beautiful story regarding art history, art in the east and west, how modern painters were influenced by other cultures, etc. It was not that disappointing, but it could be much more profound.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Europe Comics for providing the ARC of this book for the reviewers.

𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒌 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒐 𝑵𝒆𝒕𝑮𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒚 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒅𝒗𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒑𝒚.


First and foremost, I really like the color scheme and art of the comic; it's really catchy and has a compelling vibe to it.

As much as I enjoyed and liked the color scheme, I was underwhelmed by the storytelling. I would say I was completely sold on it, and I thought the execution could have been better.

Overall, I think it was mostly satisfactory.

2.5 stars

I wanted to preface this by saying that I went into this not knowing much about Matisse aside from the fact that he was an influential French artist. Of the modern painters, he was one of those which I knew the name but not much else so my review of this biographic comic is (excuse the pun) colored by that.

While I did enjoy the color palette and the art of the comic, I found the narrative to be a bit underwhelming as it felt incomplete. This served as a "what may have or could've been" type of historical narrative which served to fill in the blanks of Matisse's travels to Tangier, where the artist really did travel to twice between 1912 and 1913. The comic was a reimagining of sorts which meshed together fact and fiction.

But the plot felt almost superficial in its execution as there wasn't enough substance to make up for the modest page count. There was a lack of depth within the plot, which was hard to ignore and the brevity as well as the simplicity of the storytelling did the comic no favors. There was potential but I suppose I was left wanting... like a certain character at the end of the graphic novel.

Thank you Netgalley and Europe Comics for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Cant express how much I loved this book. Thé art. The colors. The plot. I will collect all the copies and put them on golden shelves. I will be writing a detailed review soon on Goodreads, because it needs a good setting

Comics / graphic novels about artists have been a recent favourite genre to read because it gives me an insight into what into their lives look like.

When I started this book, I had no idea what Matisse's life was like. Although this graphic novel talks only about Matisse's time in Tangier - over the period of one or two years - and is more of a slice of life. The characters in the book are Matisse, his wife and Moroccan locals. Since the book is about a white person (by a white person) in the early 20th century, the way Matisse views the locals and the culture is from a white man's perspective and is obviously problematic to read.

The book is mainly for the art and how beautifully they have imitated Matisse's style to narrate his story. The story is not extraordinary, apart from the way the Arabian Nights kind of storytelling hby Zorah, Matisse's model, has been incorporated within the book, and I would recommend reading it mainly for the artwork and colour work.

Thanks to Europe Comics and NetGalley for the ARC of this book,