Kaya vol 1 by wes craig

Illustrated by Wes Craig, colored by Jason Wordie, lettered by Tom Napolitano
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After their village and civilization is destroyed, Kaya is tasked by her dying uncle to take her half-brother, Jin, across the world to Monk Islands. There, he will be safe and be able to communicate with the gods and gain his promised powers. Once he comes into his own, he will be powerful enough to destroy the evil Atrian Empire and restore humanity to glory. But along the way, Kaya reunites with a childhood friend and supposed betrothed, Seth of the Lizard Riders. They’ve been tasked with killing a fierce beast, the Magron, and could use Kaya’s strength and magical arm. Jin despises the detour, but the money could bring them much needed supplies, as long as they survive the fight and aren't betrayed along the way.

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Craig plops us down literally in the middle of the action as Kaya and Jin are being attacked by Atrians, but he provides enough information in flashbacks and snippets for readers to get a good sense of the world we’re in. The entire story is pretty fast-paced, so there’s not much time to question what’s happening — you just have to go along for the ride and trust that it’ll all fit together in the end. There is quite the suspension of disbelief in that Kaya's betrothed is a anthropomorphized lizard, and that somehow, these societies of bronze-aged humanoids and animals can come together to stave off advanced artificial intelligence. The cliffhanger on this one is fairly brutal, so readers who enjoy this first volume will be eagerly anticipating the second coming out in fall of 2023.

There is some violence and a bit of blood on the page, but otherwise, this volume would be fine for middle and high school readers.

​Sara's Rating: 7/10
Suitability Level: Grades 7-12

Publisher: Image Comics
Publication Date: March 28, 2023
ISBN: 97815343244824 (Paperback)

​This review was made possible with a digital reader copy from the publisher through Net Galley.

​Tags: Rating: 7/10, Suitability: Middle School, Suitability: High School, Comicbooks, Action Adventure, Survival, Magic, Family, Science Fiction, ​Image Comics