Stage Dreams

Featuring two queer heroines forging their own paths in the Old West, this graphic novel is a fun and thoughtful adventure romance. Grace is a trans Georgian belle (sans money) escaping service in the Confederate army when she meets Flor, a queer Latinx lady bandit. It's a meet-disaster that turns into a working relationship when Flor realizes that she can't ransom Grace. Then as the two of them work together to uncover a Confederate plot, their relationship turns into something more romantic. The whole thing is adorable.

Gillman's signature colored pencil artwork is perfect for the setting, rich in dusty desert hues and bright pops of color on clothing and blushing cheeks. The characters themselves are rendered with honesty and care, show more with Grace's soft, sweet face sometimes sporting a bit of a 5 o'clock shadow and Flor's propensity for wearing men's clothing matching her prominent nose and devilish grin. Annotations at the back of the book provide historical details and context, as well as insight into why Gillman made certain narrative choices.

What makes this book an absolute keeper, however, is the way that queerness both drives and doesn't drive the story. Grace's flight is why the two women meet and comes into play when she's seen by her father at the Confederate gala, but her gender is accepted by everyone as fact, especially by Flor. There's no lengthy angst-filled coming out, but we do get a gentle and funny scene in which both women are being fitted for formal gowns. (Flor tries to keep her falconry glove on while wearing a fancy dress.)

Overall, this is a fun, action-filled western adventure with a strong romantic plot and a big middle finger to the Confederate cause.


Suzanne received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. show less

Queer. Western. Graphic Novel.... Have I drawn you in yet? Relatively short for a graphic novel; Stage Dreams tells the story of a trans deserter who is kidnapped by an indigenous woman and her hawk. When Ghost Hawk realizes that Grace is trans, she isn't upset; in fact the two start to work together to steal maps and gold along their way to California. What neither of them expected was to start falling for each other. A super short, charming story that looks wonderful in colored pencil rather than the usual color of graphic novels.

This graphic novel wasn't on my radar until I got the digital galley from NetGalley (by the way, it's currently under the "Read Now" section), but I am so glad I picked it up!

Stage Dreams tells the story of a Latinx outlaw, Flor to her friends and The Ghost Hawk to her foes, and her friend (and former captive) Grace, a trans girl who has run away from home to escape enlistment into the Confederate army, as they attempt a heist at a Confederate ball.

This story has everything you could want in a short and sweet western graphic novel with an explicitly queer element:

The illustrations are beautifully done, all hand-drawn and colored gorgeously with colored pencil; Gillman's style is very unique and lends itself well to the genre.

The show more representation is well done (as far as I can tell, as I am not Latinx or a trans woman, but I am queer); it is wonderful to see such a visibly trans character on the page, and I enjoyed how Flor's character is so brazen, especially about her womanhood, which contrasted nicely to the more subdued Grace. My personal favorite character is Luis, the tailor who helps Grace and Flor dress for the heist, and whose specialty is tailoring clothes for trans people (as implied in the story). Each of the main characters was precious, and I enjoyed seeing their growth in the book. I would like to see a sequel, especially so I could see if the relationship between Grace and her father improves, and I would also like to see if she ever gets to pursue her acting dream in California.

The only criticism I can find of this book is that at times it felt like it was a little too fast-paced. Things wrapped up fairly quickly at the end, but there were a few loose ends that didn't get tied, so I am curious to see how those are handled if there is a sequel. Otherwise, I will be disappointed because I won't find out what happens!

Overall this was a precious queer western that was fluffy and sweet, but still had enough action to keep me on my toes.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review! show less

The Ghost Hawk, a noted highway robber, attacks a stage coach in the New Mexico territory and takes what she think is a high-bred lady for ransom. However, the lady in question is actual a trans teen on the run from her family in Georgia so she isn't drafted into the Confederate army. The pair concoct a plan to go incognito to a party where they can spy on Confederate plans.

This book had some many things going for it -- LGBTQIA representation, a queer romance that isn't overly sentimental in its depiction, action/adventure, accurate historical fiction (complete with factual notes at the back of the book), and beautiful illustrations in a muted palette. In fact, the only thing I didn't like about it was how slim it was. It doesn't state show more anything about a sequel or a series, but I hope there is more. It felt like we were just getting to know these characters and their dreams, so the ending was a bit unsatisfactory if that's all there is to it. show less

I was a big fan of Melanie Gillman's collection of short stories "Other Ever Afters" but didn't enjoy this as much. I love the idea of exploring queer stories in history, but I always find myself getting distracted with historical queer romances especially when they have happy endings because I *know* that in reality it must have been incredibly difficult and most likely their happy ending wouldn't exist or wouldn't be that simple. Even when the homophobia and transphobia is discussed or it comes up, it doesn't feel... as significant? I can appreciate wanting to focus on the joy and the love in these queer stories, but I just find it difficult to dispel from my mind (personally). Especially with the American Civil War background in this show more story...

Besides that, this was also a bit too short for me. I wish it had been longer because I liked the characters but I would have liked to know more about the bandit in particular. All that being said, I would still recommend this to anybody looking for a cute queer graphic novel because it is a nice story and the art is very cute. show less

Pretty darn good LGBTQ+ western, but it seemed to introduce more concepts and potential storylines than this slight volume was able to pull off. Since it cannot be magically twice as long as it already is, I'd definitely like to see a sequel that could more fully address all the stuff Gillman brings up in their endnotes.

a quick, queer delight of a thing!! I woulld have loved if the story was longer and more built out, it really was 0 to 100 insta-love, which I am ususally dead against, but the book was so full of joy that I didn't mind