Ashley Woods

First of all, this story didn’t establish the story or the passing of time AT ALL. We’re just told by everyone that Niobe is a killer. Okay. The pacing is just off though the artwork suffices. I think the worldbuilding here could have been really fun. You see magical creatures and different species just roaming around, but we don’t have enough time to digest it.

You also get characters magically in love because they said so. When did this happen? I could see maybe a love triangle show more starting up, but there was NO development for either party, including the love rival. Even the platonic characters are barely introduced. No time to build an attachment to anyone.

The "half-blood" distaste is a little banal, and it’s not delved into fully; for this world, why is race-mixing (or interspecies relationships i.e orcs and elves) looked down upon?

Overall, with more planning, this could have been a fun series. There are some interesting lines in the dialogue (I am Esufey. I do not make mistakes. You are macgrom. You blunder when you are born; You are legend, my king. But you are not he prize; home is where the hatred hurts most), but it needed to be held together by a more in-tact story.

SN: I find the cover of Amandla’s face here very unsettling. I understand they were the character inspiration, but no. It feels creepy. show less

Natasha Alterici had do give up drawing Heathen due to carpal tunnel syndrome issues, and while the new artist is fine, the book loses energy, drive, spirit, and appeal. It's a fine ending, but it seems premature and doesn't feel organic with what has come before.

Regardless, I'm grateful for the magic found in the first two volumes.

I wanted to like this more, but it was a bit too vague and the dialogue was a bit too confusing for a first issue to feel terribly compelled to continue on. We'll see.