Blackwater
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2.5 • 2 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
Riverdale meets Stranger Things in this debut queer YA graphic novel, developed from a hit webcomic. Set in the haunted town of Blackwater, Maine, two boys fall for each other as they dig for clues to a paranormal mystery.
"For fans of Heartstopper and Teen Wolf." —School Library Journal
Tony Price is a popular high school track star and occasional delinquent aching for his dad’s attention and approval. Eli Hirsch is a quiet boy with a chronic autoimmune disorder that has ravaged his health and social life. What happens when these two become unlikely friends (and a whole lot more . . .) in the spooky town of Blackwater, Maine? Werewolf curses, unsavory interactions with the quarterback of the football team, a ghostly fisherman haunting the harbor, and tons of high school drama.
Co-illustrated by Jeannette Arroyo and Ren Graham, who alternate drawing chapters in their own unique and dynamic styles, Blackwater combines the spookiness of Anya's Ghost with the irreverent humor of Nimona.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this tense, character-driven supernatural drama, originally a webcomic, high schoolers Tony Price and Eli Hirsch forge a tender romance while a creature terrorizes their town's woods. Puerto Rican–cued track star Tony, who hides his asthma from his peers, frequently butts heads with his inattentive father; meanwhile, trans, Jewish Eli, who has an undisclosed autoimmune disorder, struggles to make friends as his dismissive mother chips away at his self-esteem. When Eli catches Tony's eye, Tony starts defending him from bullies including Tony's childhood friend, and the two embark on an endearing courtship. Joined by cued-Black supernatural enthusiast Marcia, they investigate reports of something lurking in Blackwater's woods, and Eli reveals he can see and interact with ghosts—specifically, a fisherman who seems to know the forest's secrets. Arroyo and Graham alternate illustrating each chapter, rendered in grayscale with a small-town atmosphere. Arroyo portrays Tony's narrative with kinetic art and layered paneling, while Graham offers thicker brushwork that elegantly depicts Blackwater's landscapes through Eli's eyes. Together, the creators weave a compelling high school drama, begetting adolescent growth through a captivating occult lens. Ages 14–up. ■
