Nicnevin and the Bloody Queen by Helen Mullane

Illustrated by Dom Reardon and Matthew Dow Smith

Rebellious Teen Nissy (nickname for Nicnevin) has her life in London uprooted by her mother after being expelled from her school for drugs.  Mom takes Nissy and her younger brother to a village in the North of England to detox from fast-paced city life.  The family is supposed to be cleaning up grandma's house, left derelict for many years, but Nissy and her brother have other plans, always absconding and leaving mom to do all the heavy lifting.  There, Nissy meets an interesting older man investigating the mysterious past of the village, including witches and druids.  Nissy reads some of the family history from her grandma’s diary, and finds out there is more to them than she first thought.

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The premise of this comic is great - modern-day tangling with folklore - but the fast-paced action in this volume actual leads to many major points being glossed over.  The ending is shocking, but we only get two pages worth to see how it all affects Nissy.  Her flat character arc and overly-annoying teenage angst makes her not a really sympathetic protagonist.  This story would have been more enjoyable if we had more time on the interesting pieces - the Fae world, the build-up to the murder-mystery (which is solved VERY early on by the careful reader), and Nissy's resolution that is cut way too short.  The illustrations capture the horror quite well, as there were several panels sure to give me nightmares.  Moments of peace for Nissy are calm and brightly colored.  

Humanoids rated this title for mature audiences.  There is some suggested adult situations, drug use (cigarettes), and cussing. 

Sara's Rating: 6/10
Suitability Level: Grades 10-12

Tags: Rating: 6/10, Suitability: High School, Comicbooks, Horror, Folklore