Courtney Crumrin and the Coven of Mystics

Courtney Crumrin, that anti-social young would-be witch, whose adventures began in Courtney Crumrin and the Night Things, returns in this second installment of the series, which sees the narrative excitement of the story growing, and its emotional resonance deepening. Like the first title, Courtney Crumrin and the Coven of Mystics contains the four individual comics that made-up this mini sub-series in the wider Courtney Crumrin story arc. Here we see Courtney confronting the terrifying monster, Rawhead 'N Bloody Bones, accompanying cats Quick and Boo to a secret feline conclave in the woods, and attempting to save the life of her new friend Skarrow, a Night Thing falsely accused of a crime, by the Coven of Mystics.

I enjoyed this show more installment of Courtney's story immensely, racing through it on my train-ride last night! Entertaining, frightening (the scenes with Rawhead 'N Bloody Bones are simply terrifying), and sometimes moving, it deepened the appeal of Courtney as a heroine, setting out her simultaneous cynicism and vulnerability. The episode with the cats, in their woodland fastness, reminded me a bit of Erin Hunter's Warriors series, while the prejudice shown by the witches and warlocks toward the Night Things was reminiscent of some elements of the Harry Potter books. Taken all together, however, Courtney Crumrin is very much its own story - one I plan to continue reading! show less

More clever artwork and interesting storytelling from Naifeh, this time with a more coherent storyline than the previous volume (which was more episodic). Somehow, though, while Courtney's powers are growing and she is becoming more self-realized, she actually seems to be less likable. Naifeh's heroine is already brusque and sometimes less-than-lovable, but now the creator seems to be making Courtney less empathetic and more distant, rather than familiar and likable even in spite of her flaws. Courtney's actions at the end come off as more judgmental and self-righteous than heroic and impassioned.

Courtney is my favorite kind of hero: the reluctant, misanthropic kind; she doesn’t get nicer in the course of helping people, and that often interferes with her ability to help them. She’s a little girl just learning witchcraft, but a prodigious talent, a nose for trouble, and a powerful family behind her give her the ability to do a lot more than other kids might accomplish. It’s kind of funny that she’s the only one without a nose in the art, but I even like that as a symbol of her alienation.

Dark, beautiful stories about little Courtney who doesn't get on well with the rich kids from school but does scarily well with the things that go bump in the night. Rating them up with Neil Gaimen's Coraline and some of the creepier Roald Dahls. The illustrations are magical.

This is the second book in the Courney Crumrin series. I absolutely love this series. In this book Courtney has to face a darker foe than ever before and it was a fun and exciting read.

Courtney Crumrin is settling in to both her new house and new school. She is learning how to deal with the Night Things better, but when a new and more horrible Night Thing threatens their community the local Coven of Mystics blame it on a Night Thing named Skarrow. Both Courtney and her uncles suspect that Skarrow is innocent, but they need to both protect the village from the horrible new Night Thing and prove Skarrow's innocence before the Mystics find and take him into custody.

The story for this installment in the series was a lot more complicated show more than the last series. There were also a lot of fun things that happened. Courtney is a great character. She is tough and smart and sarcastic and funny. She grows a lot in this book too and finally starts to realize that it might be better to try and make some friends at school than always be by herself.

Her uncle tries to keep Courtney out of many of the conflicts, but Courtney is stubborn and always involves herself. In the end she usually does more good than bad so it is all good. I really enjoy the relationship she has with her uncle; they both help each other out and really seem to care about one another.

Uncle Aloysius is an awesome character. He has a good dry sense of humor, really cares about Courtney and can seriously kick butt with both his magic and his sword.

There is a lot of action in this series and I loved how each chapter had an independent story as well as building on a larger story arc. I enjoyed the new types of Night Things we meet, I enjoyed Courtney's stent as a cat, and I enjoyed when she wandered down into the realm of the Night Things.

The first book in the series I got as an ebook to review and that was in full color. This book was in black and white only and that made the illustration more lackluster than the full color version I had seen for the first book. Naifeh does an excellent job conveying facial expression and I never found the drawings or story confusing. The style of drawing is pretty cartoony for the characters' bodies, although the backgrounds are very detailed. In general the illustration did a good job of supporting the story; I just wish we could see this in full color like the first book.

Overall I really, really enjoyed this book. It has an interesting and fun story that is complex. Courtney grows a lot in this book and begins to come into her own as a witch. We get to see a lot more of Uncle Aloysius in action; he is an awesome character. I highly recommend this for fans of fantasy graphic novels; this book is appropriate for middle grade and older. If you liked this book I would also recommend checking out Kazu Kibuishi's Amulet series or Jeff Smith's Bone series. show less

I feel like Courtney has better morals than most children's books: terrible things happen sometimes, both by action and by inaction, and the best you can do is make sure that the people allow terrible things to happen are eaten by a grue.

Background: Courtney Crumrin Volume Two the Coven of Mystics, Special Edition follows Courtney though more of the strange life of her anti-social uncle A. Trouble arises and uncle A is always called upon by the coven to go the dirty work, but when something criminal happens they do not listen to anything he has to say. It is up to Courtney and her band of underworld friends to make it all right.

Review: I love this series, the first issue was intriguing but lacked character development, this one really focused on Courtney and the type person she is, creepy, strange, defiant, but also helpful to those she cares for. I really liked the progression of this story; characters from the last issue reappear and are here to help versus scare the show more crap out of her. Courtney as a character also grows, she is beginning to get the hang of this witch thing and the creatures that come with her new lifestyle. Wonderful read, Beautiful graphics. show less