monstress vol 7 by majorie liu

Vol 7: Devourer, illustrated by Sana Takeda
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Maika has been captured by the Dusk Court, and the Baroness is bringing her back in a magic-and medically-induced coma. Through wrestling with her guilt, we learn more about the background of the Baroness and why she has had to do the things she's done to her friend. Inside Maika's mind, she and Zinn relive some of Maika's memories that have been trapped away, including what happened to her mother. Kippa continues to fight as staunchly as ever, even trying to gain some allies among the witches and Dawn Court nobility, in order to save Miss Maika from what the Dusk Court plans to do. The intrigues of the past, including the efforts of Maika's father to harness the power of the Old Gods, continue to come to light and make everything in the present much more complicated.

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There is so much darkness that the characters are wrestling with in this volume, and the art shows it. Not only are the individual pages more muted and filled with shadows, the chapter pages (and original floppy covers) showcase characters covered in blackness with hints of them struggling to shine through. None feel this more so than Maika, who is wrestling with her inner darkness and confronting some demons of her past. There are a lot of layers to this world that Liu and Takeda have built, so this is definitely one of those stories I and other readers will be glad to re-read all together when all of the volumes are out.

Sara's Rating: 10/10
Suitability Level: Grades 11-12

Reviews of previous volumes in this series: vols 1-4, vol 5, vol 6

Publisher: Image
Publication Date: September 13, 2022
ISBN: 9781534323193 (Paperback)

​Tags: Rating: 10/10, Suitability: High School, Comicbooks, ​Fantasy, Magic, LGBTQ+, Image Comics