Starred Review ALA Booklist (Fri Sep 16 00:00:00 CDT 2022)

Starred Review Emsy's happy life in California vanishes when her parents announce that, due to an "incident," they will all be moving to upstate New York. Tomorrow. To rejoin their coven. This sort of news would send any teen reeling, but Emsy faces the double whammy of leaving behind everything she loves (surfing, her girlfriend, and her bestie) and plunging into a world of witchcraft world from which Emsy has been deliberately shielded, until now. The incident behind this seismic change in circumstance is the brutal murder of a family ve for their teenage son, Ben at belonged to her mother's coven. Dugan nails adolescent emotions without letting them crowd out the story's action, and Emsy's status as a newbie witch allows for the smooth incorporation of this magical world's history and mechanics. The realistic artwork ramps up the impact of the story's fantasy elements, as their unexpected appearance jolts Emsy and readers alike. Fire plays a key role in the narrative, and Seaton uses it to its full advantage, sending orange and gold flames cascading across panels and throwing figures into dramatic silhouette. As the mystery of what happened to Ben's family lurks, Emsy works to control her power and reconcile her old life with the new (and all the friendships therein). Queer witchy teens, murder, and a homecoming dance at more could you want? Only a sequel (please!).

Kirkus Reviews (Mon Feb 06 00:00:00 CST 2023)

A teenage witch is torn between the life she's built and the bonds of a coven she barely knows.Emsy's life is mostly that of an ordinary California teen, except for some occasional pyrokinesis. Magic and ritual are her parents' things-Emsy would rather be surfing. So when her mother tells her that a family of witches has been brutally murdered and they must move back to upstate New York to rejoin their coven for safety, Emsy's world comes to a shattering halt. Leaving her friends and girlfriend is bad enough, but Emsy soon realizes just how little her parents told her about witches and magic as she suddenly finds herself training to wield a power she's never embraced. Desperate to undo it all and return to normal, Emsy agrees to help another teen coven member who is even more devastated than she is to bring his family back from the dead. But every choice in the world of magic comes with a cost, and Emsy's involve the very highest of stakes and direst of consequences. Seaton's richly colored illustrations are dynamic, adding to the atmosphere. The multiracial, intergenerational ensemble cast of queer witches facing a deadly, unknown magical threat forms a strong narrative foundation, enhanced by intense character conflict and action. The neatly wrapped-up conclusion doesn't deliver on such compelling tension, however, and despite some remaining questions leaving room for a sequel, the ending may leave readers deflated.Not a must-read but a solid, witchy story. (Graphic fantasy. 14-18)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Hoping to provide a life free from magic and danger, white-presenting Emsy Covington’s parents left their coven in Derryville, N.Y., for California. Now 16, Emsy spends her days surfing and hanging out with her Asian-cued girlfriend, Joss. Everything’s perfect until an incident orphans fellow coven member, white-cued Ben. Worried for their friends and fearing for their own safety, Emsy’s parents uproot her back to New York, where she struggles to fit in, get along with grief-stricken Ben, and hone her fire magic. But when Ben proposes a risky plan that could give them both their old lives back, the duo endeavor to perform ancient magic beyond their skill levels, heedless of the looming witch war. Coupled with fluidly drawn elemental magic portrayed in haunting reds, blacks, and purples, Seaton’s (Wonder Woman: Warbringer) easy-to-follow paneling elevates this straightforward fantasy adventure. While the coven’s secrecy, even among members, provides tension, it also often impedes character growth and sometimes causes narrative confusion. Nevertheless, Dugan’s (Melt with You) empathetic cast, whose interpersonal challenges and endearing romances flourish amid supernatural conflict, feel solidly teen, buoying this vividly illustrated graphic novel adventure. Ages 12–up. Agent: (for Dugan) Sara Crowe, Pippin Properties; (for Seaton) Ben Grange, L. Perkins. (Sept.)

School Library Journal (Tue Nov 01 00:00:00 CDT 2022)

Gr 9 Up —Sixteen-year-old Emsy's whole life—school, surfing, her girlfriend, Joss—is in California. So when her parents move her back to their New York state witch coven after 12 years, Em is far from happy. But something, or someone, has killed the family protecting the grimoire (a sacred tome of the coven's secrets and spells), leaving only one member behind. Sole survivor Ben is resentful of Emsy, whose mother passed the guardian role to his family when she left. Em and Ben form a prickly friendship, with easygoing coven member Ash rounding out the teenagers of the dwindling community. As Em struggles mightily to reconcile the pieces of her old life (where she considered her fire manipulation powers "party tricks") with her new one (daily elemental magic training and illicit study of a necromancy spell book), tragedy befalls her mother, leading Ben and Emsy to embark on the riskiest of plans to resurrect those they've lost with dark magic. This graphic novel moves slowly at first, then picks up to an exciting, twisty conclusion rich with possibilities for a sequel. Em is sharp in her frustration, embodying relatable feelings of teen powerlessness and rebellion in the face of enormous change. Seaton's art augments the plot and converses seamlessly with the text, though it doesn't take many risks—fairly uniform panel size and typography evoke the style of vintage superhero comics. The illustrations liven up as conflict rises to a visually stunning climax, with arresting images of death witches, dark spirits, and zombified visages. Emsy and Ben are cued as white; Ash and his family have brown skin and black hair. VERDICT An engaging queer teen witch story that doesn't shy away from the realistic tensions of loss and uncertainty among the supernatural action. Recommended for teen graphic novel collections.—Ashleigh Williams