Supernatural

Queen Kodiak / Christopher Greenslate, Riccardo Faccini (Illustrator), Dearbhla Kelly (Colorist), Justin Birch (Letterer)

/ Alisha Helms / Leave a comment 
Queen Kodiak
By: Christopher Greenslate, Riccardo Faccini (Illustrator), Dearbhla Kelly (Colorist), Justin Birch (Letterer)
Genre: Graphic Novel, Young Adult
Number of Pages: 168
Published: January 26, 2026
Publisher: Maverick
Dates Read: March 15, 2025
Format: Library Book / Paperback	ISBN:9781545821015

After the death of her mother, seventeen-year-old Joey moves to Alaska’s Kodiak island with her absent dad. There, she befriends a giant bear she names Little Bear. However, hunters discover Little Bear’s existence and kill him. When they do, they awaken his mother, Queen Kodiak, a colossal, super-charged Kodiak grizzly bear, who is now on a rampage. Can they save Seattle before Queen Kodiak gets there?

I enjoyed the art of this novel and the fact that this was a quick read, but there were parts of this graphic novel that I felt could have had better transitions from one part to the next instead of otherwise feeling like a giant jump was being made – I would flip pages back and forth to make sure the numbers were in order. There was also some unexplained stuff too – like why can Joey see auras around some people?! Maybe this will be a series, or at least have another book since it ended with “The End?”

Overall, I enjoyed the fast paced story and if I come across a sequel, I’d be sure to pick it up, but I don’t think I’ll be actively searching for it though.

Funeral Songs for Dying Girls / Cherie Dimaline

/ Alisha Helms / Leave a comment 
Funeral Songs for Dying Girls
By: Cherie Dimaline
Genre: YA, Fantasy
Number of Pages: 280
Published: April 4, 2023
Publisher: Tundra Books
Dates Read: September 11, 2023 - September 14, 2023
Format: Hardcover

Winifred has lived in the apartment above the cemetery office with her father, who works for the crematorium, all her life. She loves to spend her time wandering around the graveyard, but because she does this at all hours of the day and night, a rumor has started that Winterson Cemetery is haunted. It’s great news, because Winifred’s dad is on the verge of having his job outsourced. Now, Winifred needs to keep the ruse of a haunted cemetery up with the help of her con-artist cousin. But, when Phil, an actual ghost of a teenage girl starts showing up, it makes Winifred question everything.

I had a hard time caring about the characters in this one. I understood that Winifred was a loner and didn’t have many friends, but then she had a falling out with a guy who didn’t really seem to be her friend anyway, made it hard for me to care that it happened? And then the random sex talks would throw me off…

The nonlinear writing would get me mixed up as well. I wasn’t sure if it was something happening in the past or the present because scenes were never clearly ended, they would just blend into one another.

Overall, I still liked the story for the family element of it, but it wasn’t something I absolutely loved. It was a coming of age, slow burn (if that makes sense).

*Thank you Tundra Books and LibraryThing for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review