This is a retelling of Persephone. I was really interested in the summary and the artwork is great. However, I really couldn't get into the story. I DNF'ed about halfway in because I was just very confused and unsure if it would all come together. We're tossed into the middle of a story and I assume more background information is revealed as the plot continues, but I just didn't have it in me to keep reading to find out. I think this series has potential, but it wasn't for me at this point. Maybe I'll try it again another time.

This was an interesting graphic novel with a cool art style. The story was a little difficult to follow at first, however, once you realise it's a loose retelling of Persephone's story, it makes much more sense.

Hunh, I didn't even realize this was a volume one until I went to catalog it on my Goodreads.

So this is a weird one for me. Sometimes, after reading a book, I'll go check out other reviewers' opinions on the afore-mentioned Goodreads because I feel like I should maybe be having a different reaction to the book than I'm currently experiencing. General consensus is useful for seeing whether I'm reacting from a very specific mental and emotional point or whether the book is just... like that. Two Graves Vol I falls, I'm afraid, into the latter category.

More specifically, it is a very odd book that has confused obfuscation with mystery and suspense. I didn't understand half of what was going on and why, and the few answers I did finally get in the narrative just felt anticlimactic. As of the time I'm writing this (October 1st; the book's publication date got pushed back, if you're seeing this review much later than that,) I'm going through a pretty bad emotional period, where an unexpected betrayal has caused me to constantly question my own judgment. Fortunately, the opinions of other reviewers assured me that I am far from alone in feeling mystified by the choices made in this book.

With that settled, I can actually talk about Two Graves without thinking I'm doing it a disservice by possibly being partial or obtuse. The story is about a young woman named Emilia who's gone on a road trip with Death. She can't die, at least not until she carries her mother's ashes from California to the Atlantic. But she can inflict pain and worse, not just on the wicked whose paths cross hers but also on Death himself. Through all this, the unlikely pair are being tracked by a trio of mysterious Hunters determined to stop them.

From doing what? I honestly couldn't tell you. We do learn a little bit about what Emilia can do, tho not really why. We also learn about the circumstances under which she and Death embarked on their mission. Tbh, I wasn't at all convinced by it. In terms of tone and clarity, this book very much reminded me of a gothic romance, where the emotions and scenes are what matter, the strikingly beautiful tableaux. Certainly not the motivations or explanations of any of it.

And that's fine, if you like that sort of thing. Ming Doyle and Annie Wu do a decent job of depicting the goings-on. I was actually most impressed by several of the interstitial chapters written by such luminaries in the sff world as N. K. Jemisin and Jennifer Margret Smith. In fact, N.K. Jemisin's short autobiographical piece about her battle with her mom over prom, and how that stood in for so much of what was contentious about their relationship, really resonated with me.

Maybe this book gets better in subsequent chapters. I will hardly be first in line to find out, but I wouldn't overlook it entirely either.

Two Graves, Vol. 1: Wish You Were Here by Genevieve Valentine, Ming Doyle & Annie Wu was published October 24 2023 and is available from all good booksellers, including <a href="https://bookshop.org/a/15382/9781534325975">Bookshop!</a>

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read a free copy of this title. I really, really enjoyed the beautiful art style for this graphic novel, as well as the premise. I would definitely enjoy reading further volumes of this title as the story was very intriguing.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It felt very much like this story started in the middle. It was a bit hard to follow along with what exactly was happening, but the further the story went, the more you learned.

This seems like the type of story that you appreciate more the second time you read it, but I really enjoyed the artwork!

This was not the book I was expecting. The premise sucked me in and I was ready for a dark twisty take. Which I did get— but felt it was bogged down with setting the stage for the rest of the series and just went on and on without holding my interest. I think if I had the entire series to burn through it would have been ok, but as a stand alone read I found it lacking in substance. Thank you NetGalley and Image Comics for providing me with an ARC.

Take a gothic Americana road trip with Death in this beautifully drawn and gorgeously written graphic novel.

I love graphic novels and am trying to read and promote graphic novels written by women (because we're tough to find in this genre). So when I saw that this was written by Genevieve Valentine, and illustrated by Annie Wu and Ming Doyle, I immediately wanted to read it.

The book is promoted as a Persephone/Hades retelling, which it lightly is, but I think that's a bit of a marketing spin takes away from the subtly and uniqueness of this story itself. In this volume, Death steals Emilia (a mortal woman) who is grieving the death of her mother. We sit with them in the car and in motels as they venture across the United States towards the ocean. The world-building is soft, and there are a lot of questions that go unanswered as we follow along - but that only adds to the mystery of our characters.

This is a slow moving, deep thoughts, vibe book. While there is an outside force hunting our duo, we spend much more time witnessing their conversations (and silences) around death, love, and life. The artwork is immediately compelling and clues us into the character's emotional states without them needing to say, "I feel XXX".

My favourite part of this volume is the bonus backmatter at the end of each issue from prominent women authors writing in this genre including bestselling Broken Earth trilogy author N.K. Jemisin, Veronica Schanoes (Shirley Jackson Award winner, Nebula, and World Fantasy nominee), and Stephanie Lai (Best New Talent Ditmar Award, 2018). The piece by Sarah McCarry had me floored. It asks, then attempts to answer the question, "Where do stars go when they die?" It's absolute poetry. I am going to advocate for every graphic novel to include these short stories/meditations at the end of each issue.

Thank you to NetGalley and Image Comics for this advanced reader copy.

This book is best read in the passenger seat of a car during a first date while driving to an abandoned cabin in the woods.

I loved the illustrations and the evolving relationship between Emilia and Death. There were moments where I was lost and the extra information made the story even more jarring.

I did enjoy reading it but I wish the plot was less confusing.

I really wished I enjoyed this more than I did.

The art is beautiful, I love the colors that were chosen.

the plot itself is where it lost me. I hardly had any idea what was happening from page 1.

the story did get a bit clearer by the end, but still not enough for me to enjoy it fully.

I feel like if this volume would have been split into 2 it could have explained the world a lot better, and flesh out the characters more.

it's not a bad graphic novel by any means and I know that it will find its proper audience unfortunately I was not one of them

Thanks to netgalley for the ARC!

I was intrigued by the idea of death hitting the road with a young lady and seeing what might become of their relationship.
While the art is very solid, the story is hard to follow at times. A lot of the dialogue doesn't flow right and I often found myself wondering if this was supposed to be read like a manga instead.
Due to this, I found myself bored most of the time. It felt aimless and I left with more questions than answers. An earnest attempt, but just didn't do much to hold my interest.

Actual Rating: 2.5 ★

Two Graves written by Genevieve Valentine and illustrated by Ming Doyle and Annie Wu tells the story of an immortal, Emilia, and a man with a veil of smoke for a face and a bloody handprint on his neck. Emilia pretty much has no clue what's going on for the majority of the graphic novel and to be quite honest, neither did I. I would've appreciated a synopsis that made sense too. This felt like I opened a movie midway and the characters already knew each other and already told their stories.

The art was lovely - it's in the style of superhero comics, more than other graphic novels, and there's a hint of dark romance to this narrative. I truly didn't like the encyclopedia-style essays that popped up after each section. I do not feel like it offered anything to the narrative. This really wasn't for me but the last couple of pages were really great.

Thank you to Image Comics and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Quality Rating: Three Stars
Enjoyment Rating: Three Stars

While a fascinating concept driven by very interesting characters, this graphic novel didn’t feel like it had much substance beyond the existential conversations about death. I actually found the plot and exposition really hard to follow and had to just let go of trying to understand how these characters had found themselves in this situation and just enjoy the ride. Ultimately, it’s a pretty insular story that moves dramatically fast to its resolution, but it’s fun enough as the pages turn.

Two Graves is an ambitious and very atmospheric book; it definitely succeeds in conveying its artistic vision and drawing the reader into the emotional storyline of the two main characters. While what's happening is occasionally unclear (at least to me), I found that needing to know everything was not required to enjoy the book. It is dark and philosophical, and the essays in between chapters ranged from really excellent to a bit of a bore, but that makes for a cool experience for the right kind of reader.

I really have no idea what this story is all about. At one point I had to come back to Net Galley to see if I accidentally requested a second or third book rather than a first since they dump you right in the middle of the story without much explanation throughout the story of how you got there.


I was really excited for a story I glued by Persephone and Hades, but it was extremely loosely based on them in my opinion. There was also some writing of scientific facts, history, and other stories in between states the MC’s we’re in. Those didn’t help in my opinion. Maybe future volume’s it’ll come together and make sense?

The artwork though was absolutely beautiful and reminiscent of Neil Gaiman’s Sandman. Even though I didn’t understand the plot, I spent time looking over the beautiful detail of everything, also thinking maybe it would help more. A clue in plain sight type of thing. And maybe there was, and I’m just blind, but I’m more confused at the end of the book than the beginning.

This was a unique take on the idea of Death and the grim reaper. Emilia needs to take her mother's ashes to the Atlantic Ocean, it's her final promise. Except as she keeps going, she begins to lose the ability to taste food and is tired all the time. She's also seeing ghosts and people's time throughout and wants to make changes, though never knows what touching each person actually does. Death is trying to help her, and three other reapers follow to stop them. In between each chapter there's a short essay from another author detailing some strange unique story about life. I'm not sure I understand the point of them, but they were interesting to read. I loved watching the change on the postcards at each chapter too. The art style, especially for Death, is beautiful and reminds me of something but I can't place it. I hope this story continues.

Thank you to the publishers for providing me with an eArc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

As a lover of mythology and graphic novels, I was immediately intrigued when I read the blurb for this book.

I thought the illustrations were beautiful and in-depth, but I felt confused when reading the book. It felt like I was missing something the entire time while reading.

I also love Persephoneas as a character and, seeing how this story changed her character was definitely new and something I'd never seen before but sadly it was not for me.

I couldn't connect or feel anything for any of the characters nor did I think any of the emotions the characters felt were real or held any meaning (including the slight romance plot, that is for what I can tell, barely there).

I understand that this is a first volume so I would be slightly interested to see where the story goes.

I love the art style and the premise of Death and the Maiden go on a road trip is right up my alley but I’ve finished it mostly confused. I feel like we got dropped off in the middle of the story and a lot of things never really get explained. I might read more if there will be more but I'm mostly feeling kind of meh.

Thank you to NetGalley and Image Comics for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Death and Emilia who apparently can't die go on a road trip. They stay in cheap motels while being pursued by some of Death's contempories. The storytelling in this is very vague. Little is explained. The best I can say about it is it's a thing I read.

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this book.

I thought I'd give this a try as I don't normally read graphic novels. While I think it was a good story, it just reaffirmed my issue with them- I just can't connect with the story in this form. Nothing wrong with this book, just me!

This graphic novel was very OK. The art was well done and it definitely had cool vibes, but the story felt kind of disjointed to me, like maybe there were sections missing throughout. I could see this being very Sandman-like if the story and characters were more fleshed out. Also, I understand that this is the first volume in a series, but this volume seemed to end fairly definitively. There's not a lot of incentive to find out what comes next.