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Keeper of the Lost Cities: The Graphic Novels #1
Les Gardiens des Cités perdues, le Roman Graphique, Partie 1: Volume 1
The first book in the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling Keeper of the Lost Cities series is being reimagined as a graphic novel with the first half of the epic novel adapted to this new format with beautiful artwork!
Twelve-year-old Sophie Foster has never quite fit into her life. She’s skipped multiple grades and doesn’t really connect with the older kids at school, but she’s not comfortable with her family, either. The reason? Sophie’s a Telepath, someone who can read minds. No one knows her secret—at least, that’s what she thinks…
But the day Sophie meets Fitz, a mysterious (and adorable) boy, she learns she’s not alone. He’s a Telepath too, and it turns out the reason she has never felt at home is that, well…she isn’t. Fitz opens Sophie’s eyes to a shocking truth, and she is forced to leave behind her family for a new life in a place that is vastly different from what she has ever known.
This stunning graphic novel retelling of the first half of the thrilling first novel comes to life with all the adventure and epic worldbuilding the Keeper of the Lost Cities series is known for.
Twelve-year-old Sophie Foster has never quite fit into her life. She’s skipped multiple grades and doesn’t really connect with the older kids at school, but she’s not comfortable with her family, either. The reason? Sophie’s a Telepath, someone who can read minds. No one knows her secret—at least, that’s what she thinks…
But the day Sophie meets Fitz, a mysterious (and adorable) boy, she learns she’s not alone. He’s a Telepath too, and it turns out the reason she has never felt at home is that, well…she isn’t. Fitz opens Sophie’s eyes to a shocking truth, and she is forced to leave behind her family for a new life in a place that is vastly different from what she has ever known.
This stunning graphic novel retelling of the first half of the thrilling first novel comes to life with all the adventure and epic worldbuilding the Keeper of the Lost Cities series is known for.
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First published November 7, 2023
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6549 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 543 reviews
November 18, 2023
3.5 ⭐
When I was but a wee child, I spit upon the idea of graphic novels. They were not real books. They did not count. I read the biggest, fattest books you could find in the little middle grade section of my library. I basked in the attention of adults who said how smart and mature I was. I probably annoyed the heck out of all of my peers.
And the biggest, fattest, most impressive books I read? The Keeper of the Lost Cities series. Those monsters would earn comments everywhere I took them.
And now, here I am. Having read a Keeper of the Lost Cities graphic novel.
We have come to a full circle, and my younger self would be ashamed of me.
Although I still have an aversion to graphic novels, I did enjoy this one. The art style was pretty cute, though sometimes the artist's interpretation of the characters annoyed me. And I know, the cover is horrifying, but the rest of the book was much better.
The whole world and scenes and plot just hold so much nostalgia for me, so it was a ton of fun reading it with a different perspective. The dialogue was pretty much word-for-word, with a couple minor scenes cut, so I don't think there's a ton to complain about.
Overall, although this felt a little bit like a money grab, it was a fun read and I know Keeper fans will enjoy it 😊
(also, seeing all of Keefe's posture and mannerisms while talking to Sophie gave me LIFE. When he was introduced, I shrieked.)
Shoutout to one of my besties Izzy for letting me borrow her copy!<333
☀️ tbr review ☀️
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO A COVER
oh my gosh if that's F*tz he got his hair dyed and it looks terrible-
edit 11/8/23
oh it's out lol
When I was but a wee child, I spit upon the idea of graphic novels. They were not real books. They did not count. I read the biggest, fattest books you could find in the little middle grade section of my library. I basked in the attention of adults who said how smart and mature I was. I probably annoyed the heck out of all of my peers.
And the biggest, fattest, most impressive books I read? The Keeper of the Lost Cities series. Those monsters would earn comments everywhere I took them.
And now, here I am. Having read a Keeper of the Lost Cities graphic novel.
We have come to a full circle, and my younger self would be ashamed of me.
Although I still have an aversion to graphic novels, I did enjoy this one. The art style was pretty cute, though sometimes the artist's interpretation of the characters annoyed me. And I know, the cover is horrifying, but the rest of the book was much better.
The whole world and scenes and plot just hold so much nostalgia for me, so it was a ton of fun reading it with a different perspective. The dialogue was pretty much word-for-word, with a couple minor scenes cut, so I don't think there's a ton to complain about.
Overall, although this felt a little bit like a money grab, it was a fun read and I know Keeper fans will enjoy it 😊
(also, seeing all of Keefe's posture and mannerisms while talking to Sophie gave me LIFE. When he was introduced, I shrieked.)
Shoutout to one of my besties Izzy for letting me borrow her copy!<333
☀️ tbr review ☀️
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO A COVER
oh my gosh if that's F*tz he got his hair dyed and it looks terrible-
edit 11/8/23
oh it's out lol
November 22, 2023
I remember the first time I picked up a Keeper of the Lost Cities book. I must have been nine or ten, wandering around my local library. I came across the shelf where they kept the KOTLC books. My eyes landed on Neverseen, which is the fourth book in the series. The cover was my favorite color, so naturally I checked it out, brought it home, and proceeded to read the entire thing without knowing wth was going on. After that, KOTLC became my new favorite middle grade series. I was obsessed.
I can’t believe that’s there’s only one book left in the series, and the first one is now graphic novel! I don’t think I’ve read a graphic novel until now lol. But it was so much fun! And the the drawings were awesome hehe. F*tz looked awful, obviously, but everyone else looked amazing 😍
Can’t waited for the final book in the series. Shannon it better be worth the wait 🙏🏻
Happy reading! <3
pre review
SAY WHAT-
Edit:
OMW THE COVER... Fitz that is NOT your look my dude 🫣
I can’t believe that’s there’s only one book left in the series, and the first one is now graphic novel! I don’t think I’ve read a graphic novel until now lol. But it was so much fun! And the the drawings were awesome hehe. F*tz looked awful, obviously, but everyone else looked amazing 😍
Can’t waited for the final book in the series. Shannon it better be worth the wait 🙏🏻
Happy reading! <3
pre review
SAY WHAT-
Edit:
OMW THE COVER... Fitz that is NOT your look my dude 🫣
September 6, 2024
Hmm. I didn’t plan on reading this one, but when I saw it come through my library app with no wait, I decided to check it out. Overall? Not bad, but not completely necessary either.
This isn't a word-for-word adaptation. The author says at the beginning that this is what makes this version even more exciting, that there has been a team of people who have worked hard “to ensure that everything we love about Sophie’s story is captured within these pages exactly as it should be.”
While reading this graphic novel, I followed along with my copy of the written book one of the series and conversations were pretty similar (I would say about 80% of the conversations were word-for-word when comparing them to the written book, but probably only 50% of all the conversations were in this graphic novel and can feel a bit jumpy because of it—this is probably because of the first half of this written book is about double the length of this graphic novel—166 pages vs the 266 pages of the written book). This graphic novel only covers chapter one through twenty-seven on the written book (about half of the first book of the series). The events in each chapter lined up with the main events in the written book until it got to the last couple of chapters, which is when some things were combined.
Personal thoughts:
Personally, when I saw all the teasers for this graphic novel, I didn’t really like the illustration style. It did grow on me by the end of this book, but it’s still not one I really like. Plus a lot of things, places, and characters weren’t how I had pictured them while reading the series (I had this problem with the art in book 8.5 as well). Little details were changed such as Sophie eating a certain food for the first time not at the time the book said she did, or things being explained to her by characters that did not explain it to her in the book (such as Della explaining in the about about birth funds and in this graphic novel, Edaline explains it). One random thing that I picked up on that personally bothered me in terms of little details not being accurate to the written book, would be about Elwin’s pet banshee going to Keefe and Keefe holding him, when in the book the banshee only went to someone who was in serious medical trouble.
I was so looking forward to the splotching match between Sophie and Fitz, but I don’t know if it was the art style or the expressions, but it just did not hit how it did in the written book.
I will admit it was fun to read this, especially as someone who read all the other books in the series (in a very short amount of time over the summer), so it was really neat to pick-up on different hints of events that would come in the future and seeing different characters again, that kind of thing. Even so, while I personally enjoyed most of this, I don’t feel like it’s completely necessary to read. It almost felt like a money grab. Major fans of the series will want to read it, I’m sure, and those who are intimidated by the length of the physical book, may prefer this version as well. (I do feel like this is geared more towards those who really love the series, because certain things aren’t really explained. I feel like if you had read this book first, you would have been a little lost about different concepts and items.) But it didn’t impress me that much. I’m glad I read and reviewed it because of content concerns, but I personally wouldn’t buy a physical copy of it.
Main Content:
Very similar content to the actual books, but for later books, seeing certain events may be too much for sensitive readers; we’ll just have to see as they come out. This first book is pretty tame compared to the rest of the series anyway.
There’s some name calling like “freak”, “superfreak”, “losers”, & “wimp” are used; A couple mentions of kicking someone’s butt in a game; There’s rivalries, a mean girl, and prejudice comments from side characters to others (just like in the written book).
Like the written book, the opening chapter is set at a museum with dinosaurs and talks about them (with no evolution/“millions of years old” comments): A few mentions of mammoths and saber-tooth tigers; A mention of aliens.
A flashback to a hospital scene (including Sophie’s dad thinking about how much this will set them back which is not mentioned in the actual book); A mention of body functions (needing to pee from a child).
Sophie blushes when seeing Fitz and Keefe (multiple times) and calls them cute & good looking (hearts are also added when she looks at Fitz once and when holding his hand); Keefe says a teacher/mentor has a crush on him (like in the written book, Sophie thinks he’s teasing); Blushes and calling others cute or pretty by other characters; Mentions of liking someone & crushes.
At the end of this book there is bonus pages with a special behind the scenes look at how this graphic novel came to be and a section teaching how to draw some of these characters.
(See my reviews with content details of the rest of this series: Book #1, Book #2, Book #3, Book #4, Book #5, Book #6, Book #7, Book #8, Book #8.5, Book #9, Book #9.5, Book #10, Graphic Novel)
This isn't a word-for-word adaptation. The author says at the beginning that this is what makes this version even more exciting, that there has been a team of people who have worked hard “to ensure that everything we love about Sophie’s story is captured within these pages exactly as it should be.”
While reading this graphic novel, I followed along with my copy of the written book one of the series and conversations were pretty similar (I would say about 80% of the conversations were word-for-word when comparing them to the written book, but probably only 50% of all the conversations were in this graphic novel and can feel a bit jumpy because of it—this is probably because of the first half of this written book is about double the length of this graphic novel—166 pages vs the 266 pages of the written book). This graphic novel only covers chapter one through twenty-seven on the written book (about half of the first book of the series). The events in each chapter lined up with the main events in the written book until it got to the last couple of chapters, which is when some things were combined.
Personal thoughts:
Personally, when I saw all the teasers for this graphic novel, I didn’t really like the illustration style. It did grow on me by the end of this book, but it’s still not one I really like. Plus a lot of things, places, and characters weren’t how I had pictured them while reading the series (I had this problem with the art in book 8.5 as well). Little details were changed such as Sophie eating a certain food for the first time not at the time the book said she did, or things being explained to her by characters that did not explain it to her in the book (such as Della explaining in the about about birth funds and in this graphic novel, Edaline explains it). One random thing that I picked up on that personally bothered me in terms of little details not being accurate to the written book, would be about Elwin’s pet banshee going to Keefe and Keefe holding him, when in the book the banshee only went to someone who was in serious medical trouble.
I was so looking forward to the splotching match between Sophie and Fitz, but I don’t know if it was the art style or the expressions, but it just did not hit how it did in the written book.
I will admit it was fun to read this, especially as someone who read all the other books in the series (in a very short amount of time over the summer), so it was really neat to pick-up on different hints of events that would come in the future and seeing different characters again, that kind of thing. Even so, while I personally enjoyed most of this, I don’t feel like it’s completely necessary to read. It almost felt like a money grab. Major fans of the series will want to read it, I’m sure, and those who are intimidated by the length of the physical book, may prefer this version as well. (I do feel like this is geared more towards those who really love the series, because certain things aren’t really explained. I feel like if you had read this book first, you would have been a little lost about different concepts and items.) But it didn’t impress me that much. I’m glad I read and reviewed it because of content concerns, but I personally wouldn’t buy a physical copy of it.
Main Content:
Very similar content to the actual books, but for later books, seeing certain events may be too much for sensitive readers; we’ll just have to see as they come out. This first book is pretty tame compared to the rest of the series anyway.
There’s some name calling like “freak”, “superfreak”, “losers”, & “wimp” are used; A couple mentions of kicking someone’s butt in a game; There’s rivalries, a mean girl, and prejudice comments from side characters to others (just like in the written book).
Like the written book, the opening chapter is set at a museum with dinosaurs and talks about them (with no evolution/“millions of years old” comments): A few mentions of mammoths and saber-tooth tigers; A mention of aliens.
A flashback to a hospital scene (including Sophie’s dad thinking about how much this will set them back which is not mentioned in the actual book); A mention of body functions (needing to pee from a child).
Sophie blushes when seeing Fitz and Keefe (multiple times) and calls them cute & good looking (hearts are also added when she looks at Fitz once and when holding his hand); Keefe says a teacher/mentor has a crush on him (like in the written book, Sophie thinks he’s teasing); Blushes and calling others cute or pretty by other characters; Mentions of liking someone & crushes.
At the end of this book there is bonus pages with a special behind the scenes look at how this graphic novel came to be and a section teaching how to draw some of these characters.
(See my reviews with content details of the rest of this series: Book #1, Book #2, Book #3, Book #4, Book #5, Book #6, Book #7, Book #8, Book #8.5, Book #9, Book #9.5, Book #10, Graphic Novel)
Want to read
June 28, 2023*positively screaming and squealing inside*
THIS IS REALLY HAPPENING, OMG OMG OMG YES YES YES 😃😃😃
SHANNON IS MAKING A GRAPHIC NOVEL, LIKE WHATTTT???!!!
*starting to reach almost ballistic levels*
🤩🤩😁🥳💟👏🏻
~update~ 3/12/23
umm......
I don't want to be a downer, but the cover is already making me a little uneasy about the graphic novel. POOR DEX GOT REPLACED FOR THE MILLIONTH TIME 😭 And I don't really care about the Part 1 thing because he NEEDS to be on his own cover, and what did Shannon do? Yea forget him 💔
And why does Fitz's hair look like that?? 🤢 He's not a blond, he has DARK BROWN hair. DARK BROWN. That is sooo not a good look for him
THIS IS REALLY HAPPENING, OMG OMG OMG YES YES YES 😃😃😃
SHANNON IS MAKING A GRAPHIC NOVEL, LIKE WHATTTT???!!!
*starting to reach almost ballistic levels*
🤩🤩😁🥳💟👏🏻
~update~ 3/12/23
umm......
I don't want to be a downer, but the cover is already making me a little uneasy about the graphic novel. POOR DEX GOT REPLACED FOR THE MILLIONTH TIME 😭 And I don't really care about the Part 1 thing because he NEEDS to be on his own cover, and what did Shannon do? Yea forget him 💔
And why does Fitz's hair look like that?? 🤢 He's not a blond, he has DARK BROWN hair. DARK BROWN. That is sooo not a good look for him
December 21, 2023
this didn't get good until keefe showed up!
it was cool seeing everything brought to life but i didn't really like the art style. i thought it was kind of silly but the sokeefe scenes made it ALL worth it. i'll read the next one when it comes out, i do think they did a pretty good job with it.
3.5/5 ⭐️ (rounded up)
it was cool seeing everything brought to life but i didn't really like the art style. i thought it was kind of silly but the sokeefe scenes made it ALL worth it. i'll read the next one when it comes out, i do think they did a pretty good job with it.
3.5/5 ⭐️ (rounded up)
Want to read
March 8, 2023WAITTTTT!! OH MY GOSHHHHH YES!! PLEASE, OH MY GOSHHHHH!! GRAPHIC NOVEL KOTLCCCCC!!! EEEEEEEE I CANT WAITTTTTTTTTT 💙💙💙💙😂😂🥰🤭🥳🥳🥳💙💙💙💙
March 7th🎶🎶
WE HAVE A COVER! I REPEAT, WE HAVE A COVER!!!!!🔥🔥🔥
It'd be a lot better if Ritz (Stupid Ritz 😤)wasn't on it but hey it's still pretty stinking nice!!
I do kinda hope the next book looks sorta like the first KotLC book but it makes sense this one doesn't cuz that doesn't happen till the second half of the book if that makes any sense 😂😂
But yessss I'm super excited and I can't wait for it to come out🥰💕✨
March 7th🎶🎶
WE HAVE A COVER! I REPEAT, WE HAVE A COVER!!!!!🔥🔥🔥
It'd be a lot better if Ritz (Stupid Ritz 😤)wasn't on it but hey it's still pretty stinking nice!!
I do kinda hope the next book looks sorta like the first KotLC book but it makes sense this one doesn't cuz that doesn't happen till the second half of the book if that makes any sense 😂😂
But yessss I'm super excited and I can't wait for it to come out🥰💕✨
Want to read
March 8, 2023NO WAY. THIS IS GOING TO BE AMAZING 😆
update
WE HAVE A COVER😍🤩😆 am I the only one who thought that was keefe? and not Ritz Savory Cracker😖
update
WE HAVE A COVER😍🤩😆 am I the only one who thought that was keefe? and not Ritz Savory Cracker😖
November 22, 2023
that was actually super cute and fun to read! 🤭💌
Want to read
November 12, 2023AHHHHH THIS IS LEGIT I'M SO HYYYYPED
March 8, 2023
WE GOT A COVER! Sadly Fitz is on it though. Hopefully we get Dex for part 2! 🤞
11/12/23
IT'S OUT! I'm going to get it from the library
March 8, 2023
WE GOT A COVER! Sadly Fitz is on it though. Hopefully we get Dex for part 2! 🤞
11/12/23
IT'S OUT! I'm going to get it from the library
November 8, 2023
I think the drawing style could have been better but it was good overall👍
June 7, 2024
IT WAS SO GOOD!! THE ART WAS A LITTLE GOOFY BUT I STILL LOVED IT!! F*TZ LOOKED OFF BUT WHO CARES ABOUT HIM? DELLA LITERALLY LOOKED LIKE A GREEK GODDESS FR! KEEFE LOOKS OK BUT I THINK THAT HE DESERVES A LITTLE BETTER!! IT FOLLOWS THE EXACT SAME STORYLINE AS IN THE OG BOOK!! THANKS DOR READING THIS 👀✨
~2 Months Later~
*Me marking the exact page that Keefe comes in*
TW: ~F*tz~
Genre: Fiction, Fantasy
Age: 10+
🌶️: 0/5
🔫: 1/5
🤬: 0/5
⭐️: 5/5
~2 Months Later~
*Me marking the exact page that Keefe comes in*
TW: ~F*tz~
Genre: Fiction, Fantasy
Age: 10+
🌶️: 0/5
🔫: 1/5
🤬: 0/5
⭐️: 5/5
Want to read
August 22, 2023WHY DID NO ONE TELL ME THIS WAS A THING?!?!
March 24, 2023
Oh this book guys. I can’t 🥹 it was so good!!! Fitz dyed his hair…🤨 not sure about that yet! But the story was so fun because you already know what happens but there are pictures!!! I think that is so fun!! Please read this if you have read Keeper of the Lost Cities!
December 30, 2025
Did I finish this in one day? Yes. Yes, I did.
Is this as good as the novels? No, but the art style really grew on me, and I loved seeing the locations depicted in art.
Also: KEEFE! KEEFE! KEEFE! KEEFE! KEEFE!
Is this as good as the novels? No, but the art style really grew on me, and I loved seeing the locations depicted in art.
Also: KEEFE! KEEFE! KEEFE! KEEFE! KEEFE!
Read
December 28, 2023hold up hold up WHAT?? SO FREAKING EXCITED!!!! Keefe in pictures…😃😃
March 8
Why am I just seeing this cover at 8pm
After reading:
Yalll this made me want to reread the whole kotlc series again🥲🥲
March 8
Why am I just seeing this cover at 8pm
After reading:
Yalll this made me want to reread the whole kotlc series again🥲🥲
November 15, 2023
Well well well. it is indeed November, and there is indeed a new Kotlc book (despite the fact that we're actually going backwards this time instead of FINALLY filling up some huge plot holes...)
Anyways, I'm splitting this up into 2, one for the adaption of KOTLC, and one as a standalone graphic novel.
!!!!!!!!!PART 1!!!!!!!
- Pretty similar to KOTLC, actually most of the dialogues were "copy paste" "copy paste" except for some parts that obviously weren't and you could tell because there were quick jumps from one thing to another
- The plot was the exact same but I'm confused on whether we wanted that or not....
-Here's a list of irregularities that I found, though most of them, let's be honest, is me being picky:
~Chapter 5: Sophie's human house does have a backyard??? And like it's actually pretty big.
~Idk where this was but Tiergan in the book is described as "olive-skinned"(which is a weird description on its own) but he was preeety white in this book. also, like the lack of diversity too(?) i do realize that they can't just change a character right now but they could have added more characters?
~Gethen looks like a teenager that still lives in his mom's basement
~Dex inviting himself over. I do understand that they needed to shorten the pages but it felt awkward
~An abundance of time skips and cutting out scenes or rushing through them...(cutting the ballroom dancing during detention)
~SINCE WHEN DOES FOXFIRE HAVE A FREAKING AMPHITEATHER????
~The characters were all a little off...I don't know why but like for example Biana on page 264 because in the book she never audibly said anything bad about Sophie...also they made her a bigger jerk than she was in the books. Keefe was stale and boring. I didn't even feel anything. He was reduced to a flat whiny character as the graphic novel seemed to swallow up all of his complexity and layers. Pfffff.
!!!!!!!!!PART 2!!!!!!!
- I didn't love the art style okay? It felt too kid-like, too simple, meh, eh. BUT when i saw the sketches at the end of what Sophie could have looked like??? That would have been beautiful with her long layered hair but no, they had to make her unflattering.
also like i mean, the cover in itself deserved to come with a trigger warning. fitz looks...ugly. sophie looks....ugly. oh god.
- the plot was, as mentioned before, blotchy at parts.
-here's the big thing that bothered me : the descriptive frames. The lost cities are supposed to be OMG SO PRETTY and LOOK AT THAT and PANG and PONG but here are some victims of the lack of pages (which I don't understand because they did slice the og kotlc in half):
~Atlantis: they were like oh this is so pretty and thennnn back to plot. this is a graphic novel, the main focus should NOT be quinlin and stuff. I thought there were supposed to be huge skycrapers and signs and lights and people. we got a single shot of a city niiiice.
(this could also be related to any of the other cities they visited like Eternalia and Lumenaria)
~Havenfield ma boy they did you dirty. iVE NEVER SEEN SUCH A SMALL HOUSE WHAT WAS IT. FOR THE GNOMES??? SOPHIE WAS LIVING ON THE FIRST FREAKING FLOOR. IT LOOKED NOTHING LIKE THE OFFICIAL ART AND IT WAS TINY AND SMALL AND GAVE ME ANXIETY. (everglen also looked more like a fort than a fairytale castle) disappointed.
~on the same subject, SOPHIE' S ROOM LOOKED LIKE IT HAD BEEN SKETCHED IN A RUSH. the flower carpet's gone missing you guys, send love <333. it was plain. it was boring. it made me yawn. if the point of the graphic novel is to show things more visually, MAKE IT VISUALL!!!!!
~foxfire, again, IT IS NOT DEVELOPED TO ITS' FULLEST POTENTIAL and don't even get me started on that so called "cafeteria"! why do they have a whole amphitheater but have like a single tray of mashed beans and a pitcher of water??? and btw, that frame was used SEVERAL times.
CONCLUSION
maybe i shouldn't have read this. to me, it feels useless, and boring and suuuuper typical. no wow factor, no additional value to the og series. the art wasn't, in my opinion, great. ah.
maybe it's better for younger fans??
anyways, i doubt ill read the following sequels and stuff that are FOR SURE going to come
Shannon, PLEASE finish this series before we all die of old age.
thanks for listening to my rant <3
EDIT: guys i completely forgot about how they sped thru those midterms. i mean, weren't they supposed to be a HUUUUGE obstacle for sophie. ugh. maybe not, never mind.
Anyways, I'm splitting this up into 2, one for the adaption of KOTLC, and one as a standalone graphic novel.
!!!!!!!!!PART 1!!!!!!!
- Pretty similar to KOTLC, actually most of the dialogues were "copy paste" "copy paste" except for some parts that obviously weren't and you could tell because there were quick jumps from one thing to another
- The plot was the exact same but I'm confused on whether we wanted that or not....
-Here's a list of irregularities that I found, though most of them, let's be honest, is me being picky:
~Chapter 5: Sophie's human house does have a backyard??? And like it's actually pretty big.
~Idk where this was but Tiergan in the book is described as "olive-skinned"(which is a weird description on its own) but he was preeety white in this book. also, like the lack of diversity too(?) i do realize that they can't just change a character right now but they could have added more characters?
~Gethen looks like a teenager that still lives in his mom's basement
~Dex inviting himself over. I do understand that they needed to shorten the pages but it felt awkward
~An abundance of time skips and cutting out scenes or rushing through them...(cutting the ballroom dancing during detention)
~SINCE WHEN DOES FOXFIRE HAVE A FREAKING AMPHITEATHER????
~The characters were all a little off...I don't know why but like for example Biana on page 264 because in the book she never audibly said anything bad about Sophie...also they made her a bigger jerk than she was in the books. Keefe was stale and boring. I didn't even feel anything. He was reduced to a flat whiny character as the graphic novel seemed to swallow up all of his complexity and layers. Pfffff.
!!!!!!!!!PART 2!!!!!!!
- I didn't love the art style okay? It felt too kid-like, too simple, meh, eh. BUT when i saw the sketches at the end of what Sophie could have looked like??? That would have been beautiful with her long layered hair but no, they had to make her unflattering.
also like i mean, the cover in itself deserved to come with a trigger warning. fitz looks...ugly. sophie looks....ugly. oh god.
- the plot was, as mentioned before, blotchy at parts.
-here's the big thing that bothered me : the descriptive frames. The lost cities are supposed to be OMG SO PRETTY and LOOK AT THAT and PANG and PONG but here are some victims of the lack of pages (which I don't understand because they did slice the og kotlc in half):
~Atlantis: they were like oh this is so pretty and thennnn back to plot. this is a graphic novel, the main focus should NOT be quinlin and stuff. I thought there were supposed to be huge skycrapers and signs and lights and people. we got a single shot of a city niiiice.
(this could also be related to any of the other cities they visited like Eternalia and Lumenaria)
~Havenfield ma boy they did you dirty. iVE NEVER SEEN SUCH A SMALL HOUSE WHAT WAS IT. FOR THE GNOMES??? SOPHIE WAS LIVING ON THE FIRST FREAKING FLOOR. IT LOOKED NOTHING LIKE THE OFFICIAL ART AND IT WAS TINY AND SMALL AND GAVE ME ANXIETY. (everglen also looked more like a fort than a fairytale castle) disappointed.
~on the same subject, SOPHIE' S ROOM LOOKED LIKE IT HAD BEEN SKETCHED IN A RUSH. the flower carpet's gone missing you guys, send love <333. it was plain. it was boring. it made me yawn. if the point of the graphic novel is to show things more visually, MAKE IT VISUALL!!!!!
~foxfire, again, IT IS NOT DEVELOPED TO ITS' FULLEST POTENTIAL and don't even get me started on that so called "cafeteria"! why do they have a whole amphitheater but have like a single tray of mashed beans and a pitcher of water??? and btw, that frame was used SEVERAL times.
CONCLUSION
maybe i shouldn't have read this. to me, it feels useless, and boring and suuuuper typical. no wow factor, no additional value to the og series. the art wasn't, in my opinion, great. ah.
maybe it's better for younger fans??
anyways, i doubt ill read the following sequels and stuff that are FOR SURE going to come
Shannon, PLEASE finish this series before we all die of old age.
thanks for listening to my rant <3
EDIT: guys i completely forgot about how they sped thru those midterms. i mean, weren't they supposed to be a HUUUUGE obstacle for sophie. ugh. maybe not, never mind.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 18, 2023
I read these books for the first time in 6th grade, and I was instantly hooked. I loved everything, the characters, the fantasy world, the special abilities, all of it. So, this graphic novel made me want to jump up and scream of joy every two pages. Seeing all the characters I would hide away with on the pages in front of me, seeing them act out the story, made me so happy I can’t describe it! I can’t wait for part 2, and I really hope they turn the other books into graphic novels, also!
Want to read
March 30, 2023HOW DID I NOT KNOW ABOUT THIS UNTIL NOW
that cover is NOT doing it for me
why does the ritz cracker and sophie look like super heroes 😭😭
WAIT WHAT HAPPENED TO HIS HAIR AND WHY IS SHE SO MAD
IS THIS JUST IMAGINATION HELP PLEASE
that cover is NOT doing it for me
why does the ritz cracker and sophie look like super heroes 😭😭
WAIT WHAT HAPPENED TO HIS HAIR AND WHY IS SHE SO MAD
IS THIS JUST IMAGINATION HELP PLEASE
December 15, 2023
2.5 ⭐️
i just had to see what keefe looked like 🤭
i just had to see what keefe looked like 🤭
June 10, 2025
The illustrations were really bad, in my opinion.
January 7, 2026
Because KotLC is my childhood favorite, I felt an obligation to read this graphic novel adaptation of the first half of the first book.
Why did this need to exist? I've already answered my own question: it's another money grab to keep profits up while Shannon Messenger's writing is slow. No shade or anything, but it would have been better had this book not been created.
The art style was poor, and the content was, quite frankly, presented in an uninteresting way. The characters all were drawn strangely, and there was a lack of attention to the locations, settings, and background characters that made the Lost Cities feel empty. Most of the plot was infodumping about the world and there was not really any excitement or intrigue.
Another gripe: why was the first book split into two graphic novels? This one is only a little over a hundred pages, so it could have easily been the whole book without adding up to an excessive page count.
I know it's silly that I'm an almost-college student complaining about a middle grade book, but hey, someone's got to. ;)
Why did this need to exist? I've already answered my own question: it's another money grab to keep profits up while Shannon Messenger's writing is slow. No shade or anything, but it would have been better had this book not been created.
The art style was poor, and the content was, quite frankly, presented in an uninteresting way. The characters all were drawn strangely, and there was a lack of attention to the locations, settings, and background characters that made the Lost Cities feel empty. Most of the plot was infodumping about the world and there was not really any excitement or intrigue.
Another gripe: why was the first book split into two graphic novels? This one is only a little over a hundred pages, so it could have easily been the whole book without adding up to an excessive page count.
I know it's silly that I'm an almost-college student complaining about a middle grade book, but hey, someone's got to. ;)
December 9, 2023
I have NEVER given a book written by Shanon Messenger a rating this low but it needed to be done in my opinion. I am not giving Shannon a one star rating personally but the rating is meant for how the book was constructed, not the original storyline because I loved that. I personally did not like the art style from the book and I was greatly offended by how Grady, Keefe, Elwin, Dex, and Sophie looked. Fitz looked way too much like Keefe on the cover and I hated that Fitz was one of the only decent looking characters because I don’t like him. I didn’t like how much of the storyline was changed or removed from the book, I know Shannon gave us a warning about it but for me it was just too much. I also think a part of the reason why I didn’t like this book was because I was so excited for book ten that I didn’t really want to except anything else. Overall I feel like a series as long as KotLC just doesn’t have the right layout for a graphic novel style.
Totally a personal opinion but this just wasn’t for me🤷🏼♀️
Totally a personal opinion but this just wasn’t for me🤷🏼♀️
January 26, 2024
I absolutely love and obsessed over these books when I was younger, so when I saw that the graphic novel edition was coming out, I knew I needed to give it a try. The drawings were good and really brought the world of the elves to life, along with the characters.
However, it was a big reminder of how painfully boring the dialogue of these books can be. It is so bland and lacking colour and creativity, that I can't believe I was able to pay attention to these books and not just skin through the hundreds of pages. Even with the colourful and engaging drawings, I was ultimately bored and wanted to finish the book as quickly as possible. There is just way too much unnecessary information and unimportant happenings.
However, it was a big reminder of how painfully boring the dialogue of these books can be. It is so bland and lacking colour and creativity, that I can't believe I was able to pay attention to these books and not just skin through the hundreds of pages. Even with the colourful and engaging drawings, I was ultimately bored and wanted to finish the book as quickly as possible. There is just way too much unnecessary information and unimportant happenings.
November 11, 2023
Because I love this series so much, I feel like I can’t really rate this anything other than five stars. It was such a sweet, adorable adaptation of the first book, with a drawing style that really grew on me as I read. I can’t wait for part two, and am excited to see where this graphic novel adaptation series goes- it could so easily be such a great way for new fans to enjoy the series, and I hope it goes on long enough that I get to see some of my favorite scenes in this new style! This whole book felt like a warm hug and I will be counting down the days until part two <3
November 8, 2023
I was expecting a lot more from this graphic novel. It's super short (it ends after Sophie and Della go shopping) and the characters looked too different from their portraits in my opinion.
Also, SoFitz is sickeningly depicted. It might just be me. Keefe is wayyyy better in the actual books.
Also, SoFitz is sickeningly depicted. It might just be me. Keefe is wayyyy better in the actual books.
March 8, 2024
I’m not really sure they got the right idea or they really didn’t capture the right style for this graphic novel. It always seems better in your head. 🙃
December 26, 2023
finally, i got to read it! there isn't much else to say here that wasn't already said for the original book, as this is just a graphic novel style retelling of the first half of the first book, but it was really great to see everything in drawing form, especially characters that we actually haven't seen official designs for such as jensi and dame alina. really cute, and i do think it would be a great jumping point for anyone who hasn't read the original series, too.
5/5!
5/5!
November 22, 2023
Ritz Savory Cracker is not looking his best tbh...BUT WHEN IS HE EVER AMIRIGHT?!?!!? 😂
This was very good, although the art style wasn't my favorite at some points. I love how this was brought to life and I can't wait for part 2!
This was very good, although the art style wasn't my favorite at some points. I love how this was brought to life and I can't wait for part 2!
November 13, 2023
Lol I got so caught up in finishing Six of Crows I almost forgot to mark this as finished
Anyway I’m still mad a couple minor changes so I’m taking away a star (😅😅😅😏😏😏)
I am evil. Deal with it.
*hides away with my sanity torn apart by books*
Anyway I’m still mad a couple minor changes so I’m taking away a star (😅😅😅😏😏😏)
I am evil. Deal with it.
*hides away with my sanity torn apart by books*
November 8, 2023
Amazing!!
I've been following this series for over five years at this point and I love it with all of my heart. I was a little nervous as first, as I think a vast majority of the Keeper Fandom was, about the art and seeing the interpretation. However, as I read it, I really found myself enjoying it.
As someone who's read book one at least four times, I swear I noticed just about every difference, but like I've mentioned, I loved the fresh view on the series!
Seeing the graphic novel version of this was a cool experience too. It was fun to finally see a "real" view on these places that I've been reading about for half a decade. I will say, I don't think I saw anything the same as was shown in the book, but everyone envisions things differently.
Once again, this was incredibly enjoyable and I finished it in under two hours.
Can't wait for Part 2 and Book 10!
I've been following this series for over five years at this point and I love it with all of my heart. I was a little nervous as first, as I think a vast majority of the Keeper Fandom was, about the art and seeing the interpretation. However, as I read it, I really found myself enjoying it.
As someone who's read book one at least four times, I swear I noticed just about every difference, but like I've mentioned, I loved the fresh view on the series!
Seeing the graphic novel version of this was a cool experience too. It was fun to finally see a "real" view on these places that I've been reading about for half a decade. I will say, I don't think I saw anything the same as was shown in the book, but everyone envisions things differently.
Once again, this was incredibly enjoyable and I finished it in under two hours.
Can't wait for Part 2 and Book 10!
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