Reviews

Geis II: A Game Without Rules by Alexis Deacon

mkfreckles's review

adventurous emotional funny fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

mkhare's review

4.0

4.25 stars. Reading this quite a while after reading the first volume did mean that I wasn't quite as engaged with the story/characters as before, but there were some great moments. I'm sure that re-reading this volume directly after re-reading the first would only enhance the experience further.

I really loved the concepts explored here. Io tried her best to keep people out of danger, and the gentler characters obviously complied, but the lack of 'rules' meant that everything got out of control fast. I loved how the ending clicked into place the big, dark 'joke' of the contest - Artur was no longer considered part of the white team when he lost his clothes, and Nemas became part of the black team after taking his dead brother's black clothes... Perhaps, at any time, somebody could have written something that made everyone exempt from the contest, or that made everyone on the same team (thus ending everything) but no one had the time or the mind to think to try.

I love that Eloise is still here, and as a cat to boot, (we sure lost a lot of characters this volume, though perhaps they are not gone for good!) but I'm unsure as to what actually happened with the 'Sacrifice' spell. I continue to adore the art and the colour work (especially when it is used to differentiate between characters and locations). I will definitely be purchasing the next volume when it arrives!

thisisxtina's review

5.0

I don't know what it is but I just LOVE this series and find myself very invested in whats happening. I love the different challenges, I love Deacon's world-building, I love the characters, and I love the hazy art style. To me, this was stronger than the first book with some very impressive illustrations this time around. I have seen people say that they felt this volume was disjointed or confusing but I did not find it hard to follow. Hopefully it won't take as long for the next volume to be released!

buj's review

3.0

The second installment was generally better than the first. The paneling and pacing are still pretty jarring and can take you out of the story at times as you revisit panels to see if you missed something, but Deacon's art is just really soothing and, despite that, ripe for this chaotic, magical medieval setting. The characters had more personality (entertaining though superficial) and substance (though minimal), and the stakes are raising, which makes for a more promising finish. I'm also surprisingly interested in how things end for the antagonist featured on the cover (for the life of me, I can't recall his name). Hopefully Deacon's disjointed layouts and narrative clean up a bit more for the final installment.

lizziereads151's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

lainy122's review

4.0

This is such a cool story, I love the way it is unfolding. Completely different from anything else I've read, I can't wait to find out what happens next.

jilljemmett's review

4.0

The competition continues in this second book in the Geis series. Everyone in the kingdom is competing to become the leader. However, only a couple of people know that they will fight to the death. Anyone who doesn’t win the competition will be killed. In this story, everyone is divided into two teams, either black or white. Alliances are broken as the stakes keep getting higher.

This is a fast paced and action packed story. There was more tension in this story because the stakes of the competition were raised. The fact that only some of the characters know that the competitors are destined to be killed also increased the tension.

I love how each character has a distinct appearance and style. Sometimes when a graphic novel has an extensive cast, it can be difficult to differentiate between the characters. It’s easy to tell these characters apart in this graphic novel.

Geis II is a great graphic novel! I hope the story will continue because it ended on a cliffhanger.

Thank you Nobrow for providing a copy of this book.

shishirin's review

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

bluelibrarian's review

4.0

Holy sh*t. This is the stuff of psychological nightmares.