Estranged by Ethan M. Aldridge (review)
Buy Issue for $25 at JHUP- Estranged by Ethan M. Aldridge
Trade ed. ISBN 978-0-06-265387-1 $21.99
Paper ed. ISBN 978-0-06-265386-4 $12.99
E-book ed. ISBN 978-0-06-265388-8 $9.99
Reviewed from galleys Ad Gr. 5-8
When the king and queen of the Fay are attacked, their “Childe,” the human boy they swapped for one of their own, ventures into the mortal realm to seek help from his changeling counterpart in this graphic novel. Edmund, the Fay boy who replaced him in the human world, resists taking the Childe home to the parents he considers his own. However, the boys’ disagreements about who belongs where are quickly put aside when the new Fay queen sends her minions to assassinate Edmund, and the changelings must defeat her to restore order to the fairy kingdom. Edmund and the Childe (who isn’t given a name until the very end) aren’t particularly memorable, but their arguments over who has the right to live in the safety of Edmund’s home provide interesting food for thought about what constitutes a family and how responsible one is for the well-being of another person (human or fairy). The art builds the world of the Fay enticingly, with intricately designed backgrounds filled with a variety of strange creatures and full-page spreads offering sweeping views of bustling cities, eerie forests, and ornate structures. The Fay themselves are eye catching, with dramatic angular features that hover between ethereal and demonic. Unfortunately, text bubbles of expositional dialogue sometimes overwhelm panels and the action scenes are too few and far between those parts to keep an even pace. [End Page 460] Still, the appeal of the changeling story and the intriguing art offer a next step up for readers of Scott’s The City on the Other Side (BCCB 4/18).
