Freaking Romance Volume 1 by Snailords. WEBTOON Unscrolled, 2023. 9781990778964. 354pp. Zylith just got kicked out by her parents. Her hunt for an apartment isn’t going well, which is why, when Landlady Howser shows her a cheap place that’s allegedly haunted, she signs the lease. (Also in the place’s favor is the handsome, green-eyed ghost she catches a glimpse of in the apartment’s bathroom mirror.) What follows is weird and not too creepy. She catches her cat, Mr. Purrfect, being held by the boy ghost while he naps on her couch. When she touches the ghost, he vanishes. But he reappears in her apartment over and over again, doing the things one does at home. Zylith’s tough best friend, Vera, thinks Zylith is nuts to stay. But Zylith is obviously taken with the ghost. And he’s not exactly what he first seems, as we find out when the story shifts to his point of view later in the book. This is a totally weird romance. I picked it up because “Snailords” is an epic pen name, but I stayed for the art and the story’s pacing. (Snailords thanks their main artists– Mariami, Akikakies, and Rav — along with others, including editor Paul Jun, in a detailed dedication.) Volume 2 has already been published. Or you can still read the story on Webtoons at https://www.webtoons.com/en/romance/freaking-romance/list?title_no=1467&page=2  

The Ghost of Wreckers Cove by Liniers (illustrations) and Angelica Del Campo (written by). Papercutz, 2025. 9781545821237.

Cristina, her dad (an illustrator), and her younger sister Martha move to a new house that’s next door to an old lighthouse. The lighthouse’s lens is missing, though; it disappeared during the night of a big storm long ago.

The sisters meet the ghost of a young girl, Ida, and then, during a visit to the library, find out that Ida may have been the lighthouse keeper. The sisters decide to form a secret society of detectives to solve the mystery of what happened the night of the storm so Ida can rest. (Ida doesn’t seem to be able to help with the mystery.)

This is as unspooky a ghost story as I’ve read. It’s also a fine little mystery that starts with research! Liniers’ illustrations are always worth checking out — see his Macanudo series, Written and Drawn by Henrietta, The Big Wet Balloon, and Good Night Planet — but this is the first graphic novel I’ve read by him. It’s worth reading for that reason alone.

 

The Hard Switch by Owen D. Pomery. Avery Hill, 2023. 9781910395707. 99pp.

“The Hard Switch is coming.” It’ll happen when alcanite, the mineral that makes jump navigation (think faster-than-light travel) possible, is gone.

Ada is dropped into a hidden wreck. She’s there with Mallic (the engineer) and Hiaka (the pilot) to salvage any alcanite on board. She ends up in a gunfight with hunters out for the same. The squatter she saves gives her an artifact in thanks.

And it’s curiosity about that artifact, and the possibility of some earlier, long-lost faster-than-light technology that leads the crew to their next job — transporting cargo — and eventually to confronting the person out to profit from that lost technology, if it exists.

The interplay between the crew is great; I can’t decide who I like more, Mallic or Ada. She’s very tough! He’s just completely unexpected. And all three seem like good “people.”

I’m hoping this is the first part of a much longer graphic novel series.

 

Nafu Wants Food by Subi Bosa. Graphic Universe, 2025. 9798765629963. 112pp.

Nafu is the gigantic, hungry creature on the cover, and as the title suggests, he’s hungry. In fact he eats all of Mongo Village’s food then drinks all of their water and still he wants more. The Chief says it’s okay because Nafu protects the village’s residents and its temple, but a young girl named Doya points out that Nafu is a greedy bully.

Nafu soon wanders off into the desert and literally begins to fall apart. Then this becomes a much stranger story. Nafu’s head wanders for 15 years and finds a new village where food is controlled by a single family. There, creatures race for a chance to eat dinner, and then (minor spoiler) Nafu’s head ends up on the menu.

I’d have loved this weird graphic novel as a kid! And I hope to have a chance to read more of South African Subi Bosa’s comics.

 

The Fire-Breathing Duckling by Frank Cammuso. TOON, 2025. 9781662665332. (Easy-To-Read Comics Level Two)

Cammuso (Max Hamm: Fairy Tale Detective, Otto’s Orange Day, Knights of the Lunch Table) has fun with an ugly duckling story about a “duckling” who is clearly not a duck. The animals are all cheerful and full of personality; the stand-out is the little blue bird, who helps the title character figure out what kind of duck he is .

    All The Hulk Feels by Dan Santat. Abrams Fanfare, 2025. 9781419776137.

When scientist Bruce Banner gets angry, he turns into the Hulk. Hulk thinks Banner is mad for the wrong reasons. And Hulk wishes he could feel something other than anger. Santat’s drawings of the Hulk and a few Marvel villains are incredibly fun, as is the fact that this is an epistolary picture book — the text is mostly notes between Hulk and Banner.

    Giant Baby! by Liz Rozenberg, illustrated by Eva Byrn. Marble Press, 2025. “9781958325247.

After his parents put him to bed, Ezra grows into a giant baby and heads out into the night. He towers over buildings! He uses real cars as toys! Will he make it back home before his parents find out he’s gone? I love Byrn’s drawings, particularly the cows at the end.

 

Here are two visually striking Batman graphic novels that have great stories, too.

Batman: City of Madness by Christian Ward. DC Black Label, 2024. 9781779527028. 160pp.  Contains #1 – #3. Publisher’s Rating: Ages 17+.

Ward (Invisible Kingdom, ODY-C, Blood Stained Teeth, more) produces art that absolutely wows me. He proves his bright, unexpected colors can even succeed in creating a dark Batman story. The story. It involves the Court of Owls, a mirror Gotham City, and a young man out for vengeance. It’s bloody. There are tentacles. My favorite part is the way Ward draws Two-Face.

 

The Boy Wonder: Book One by Juni Ba. DC Comics, 2024. 9781799500322. 184pp. Contains #1-#5. No publisher’s rating.

Ba (Monkey Meat, Djeliya, more) illustrates the hell out of the story of Damian Wayne as Robin as he works to overcome his childhood training as an assassin with the help of those who were Robin before him.

Ba’s storytelling reminds me of the best books by Mike Mignola and Darwyn Cooke, especially in terms of pacing, and his page layouts are inspired. (Chris O’Halloran’s colors are stunning and somehow make every page work better; he knows when to shift into overdrive and when to back off in a way that’s beautiful.) It ends, as all great stories do, with a sword fight.

   

Universe! by Albert Monteys. Image, 2021. 9781534318076. 196pp of story plus an afterward that includes sketches and other information on Monteys’ process, including one-panel gags. Contains Universe #1 – 5 originally published online at panelsyndicate.com where you can still name your price for this book and the rest of the issues of the series. The book opens with astronaut / chrononaut Thomas Marriot, an employee of Wortham Industries, and his digital assistant, Eye-3, in the whatever that preceded the Big Bang. With them is a strange device the purpose of which, if I explained it, would spoil the plot. But let’s say Wortham Industries decided the mission was a go even though this time jump consumed 23% of Earth’s resources. Does it have anything to do with the company’s undead CEO? Issue 2 involves a world in which people fall in love with their perfect robot companions, and of course they may be dangerous. #3 is about manned probes sent out to find intelligent life and report back to Earth. (The probe design is hilarious, as is the way the astronauts hibernate.) Issue 4 is too difficult to explain. #5 is another entertaining, unexpected story about time travel that unifies the book’s parts. My favorite part: the ants! Their story is wondrous and sad. Monteys adapted Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five into a graphic novel with Ryan North, and that book proved he’s brilliant. This one proves he’s both full of ideas of his own and hilarious.  

The Summer War by Naomi Novik. Del Rey, 2025. 9780593984703. 127pp.

“Celia was twelve years old when she cursed her brother.” Great opening line!

Celia’s brother, Argent, is the greatest knight and their father’s heir. On the day Argent renounces all of that and heads for the Summer Lands (think faerie) to become a hero, Celia accidentally curses him. Unfortunately, it’s also the day Celia comes into her power as a sorceress.

What follows is my favorite fantasy novella of 2025. Celia regrets her curse but has no way to undo it. Her father, a self-made man and cunning leader who “won” the Summer War for his King, falls apart at the loss of his son and loses focus. Her other brother, whom she has largely ignored, tries to get closer to her. And Celia is promised to a prince, which never goes well in these sorts of books.

If you’ve never read a book by Novik, this is a great place to start. Then read anything else she has ever written, you won’t be disappointed. (Personally, I recommend A Deadly Education and the books that follow, but that might be because I’m saving His Majesty’s Dragon and its sequels for a rainy season.)    

Lonergan (Hedra, All-Star, Arca, Man’s Best, Planet Paradise) creates an epic, mythic graphic novel about gods, heroes, elementals, the desire for power, and the dawn of civilization.

Blue is strong, tough, and seemingly immortal; it’s not long before all the people kneel to her. Red is a Hulk-like being who finds brotherhood in nature. His first meeting with Blue did not go the way I expected, and mankind demands justice for what he does. Together, they try to preserve civilization, though that proves difficult for several reasons, the least of which is a giant fire elemental.

Lonergan’s graphic novel remimds me of two others I loved: Jesse Moynihan’s Forming (new edition coming from Fantagraphics in 2026!) and Joseph Keatinge’s and Sophie Campbell’s Glory. It’s got a dash of superhero-ish style and a bit of Conan’s Hyperborea, plus a villainous human willing to do anything to get power and a creator who is less than kind.

My favorite parts: I was all-in as soon as I saw the battle with the giant crab, and I loved the layouts and art during the descent into the underworld that takes place later. Every page of this book is fantastic!

 

 

 

Cannon by Lee Lai. Drawn & Quarterly, 2025. 9781770468023. 304pp.

Cannon is everyone’s rock. She works in a kitchen that’s insane (her boss is truly the worst), and she’s taking care of her ailing Gung Gung, whose caregiver just resigned. Her mom, of course, won’t return her calls. Her best friend, Trish, never really listens to her, and even uses their friendship as fodder for her writing. (Trish is struggling with her own crap, plus she’s having an affair with a straight boy.)

The only thing that gets Cannon through it is running while listening to tapes about breathing and mindfulness. Her co-worker Benji’s support helps, too.

Lee Lai’s follow-up to Stone Fruit (2022) is just as amazing. Cannon’s characters navigate love, friendship, and family in ways that are both heartbreaking and uplifting. I’ve already read it twice.

My favorite parts: Trish coming to Cannon’s aid when a mean girl is trashing her at a party, back when they were in high school. Plus, the moment when Cannon finally explodes is epic, the more so because Trish is there to help.