Reviews

Seconds by Bryan Lee O'Malley

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thechanelmuse's review

3.0

Love the illustrations and the choice of vibrant, bold colors. The story had its moments.

So good. I'm so glad I was able to find it yesterday. I've been waiting to read this book for a while and I can say I am not disappointed.

The artwork was fantastic. They story superb.

I love the "consequences" theme, it definitely makes you think about whether or not you would actually change anything if you had the chance...

This will definitely be one of my rereads.

egavett's review

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emotional funny mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

caedy's review

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adventurous emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

sarahsg's review

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adventurous hopeful mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

lisamchuk's review

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3.0

I read Scott Pilgrim and it was weird but ok, so I thought I'd try O'Malley's newest graphic novel (and the cover was cute and anime-ish, so there's that). It was a neat story idea, so that got me through. Katie is a chef who is opening a new restaurant. A few bad things happen in her life (as they do). She discovers a house spirit, named Lis, in her attic apartment. Lis tells her to write down a regret, then eat a special mushroom. When Katie wakes up, life is as if the regret never happened. Yay! But then Katie finds the mushroom patch and eats a whole bunch to fix a whole bunch of things that went wrong, and then everything goes wrong. And then there's a bad house spirit and the world is all screwed up and how will she ever get back to life before the mushrooms, oh no! Character crisis. And then it all works out. The end.

I was enjoying the story, but the climax was slightly unsatisfying, although I liked the ending, if that makes any sense at all. The art is cute and quirky and very visually appealing for the most part. I found the heroine to be more unlikeable than likeable (because she makes stupid decisions and is whiny but who doesn't/isn't?!) but she does redeem herself. It's definitely a weird story like Scott Pilgrim was, but seems like a more adult and refined plot line.

Though not a huge graphic novel fan, I'd recommend this one, especially to any woman who's ever wanted to change a decision made along the way (and who doesn't). The past is the past - you can't go back. Onwards and upwards everyone!