Unholy Kinship [Paperback]

Naomi Nowak (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2006

Luca thinks she knows her sister, her history and her friends - but very few things are what they seem. What to do if your world falls apart when your only living relatives are mentally unstable and you’re a disaster in relationships? A story of confusion, love and the past. An exciting debut by an artist inspired by, but providing a next step from, manga.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Art history student Luca has an overly dramatic—yet somehow hollow—life. Her parents—prominent psychologists who did research on primates—are dead. Her sister is suffering from grave psychological problems that require round-the-clock care. And Luca is slowly but inexorably alienating her few remaining friends, leaving her ever more isolated. As she takes care of her sister, she begins to worry that she's losing her mind as well. Nowak is clearly a talent who will bear watching. She creates several interesting characters, knows how to establish a strong premise, and she's not afraid to follow a number of intersecting story lines. Most importantly, she is completely fearless about describing her character's difficult emotional states. Unfortunately, her ambition occasionally outstrips her storytelling abilities in this first effort. Payoffs frequently arrive too quickly after necessary information has been set up, and the revelations at the end of the story alternate between overly telegraphed and forced. Nowak's art, which has a soft, watercolor feel, shows flashes of talent, but bogs down in confusing layouts and awkward perspectives. Still, with its brave storytelling and painterly art, this should appeal to both small press fans and those who pride themselves on spotting talent "before they were stars." (Nov.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up—Luca tries to live a normal life with friends and boyfriends but nothing ever seems to turn out right. She is consumed with protecting her sister from a life in a mental institution, a fate that befell their mother. She is haunted by dreams of her father, a scientist who experimented with animals, and the creatures that were his subjects. This Swedish artist was obviously influenced by the manga style. Her art is haunting and vivid, with saturated colors and intricate details, but the plot is disjointed and seems unfinished.—Melissa T. Jenvey, New York Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 114 pages
• Publisher: NBM Publishing; illustrated edition edition (November 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1561634824
• ISBN-13: 978-1561634828
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5.8 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,340,471 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Besides drawing comics I enjoy painting, baking and sewing. In my spare time i work on cultivating the jungle of plants that live in our apartment... pretty soon my roommate and I will need machetes to make our way from the living room to the kitchen. That would be the goal, anyway (we both find plants inspiring). I also like long walks and admire the somewhat forgotten craft of gentleman's thievery.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Realistic characters and situations with fantastic elements, beautifully drawn, November 22, 2006

By 

D. Norder (Knoxville, TN, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Unholy Kinship (Paperback)

Naomi Nowak is a new talent from Sweden who illustrated and scripted this whole graphic novel. As a debut work this is really quite impressive. The characters have realistic personalities and act as you'd expect people really would in situations like those that occur in the story. The gritty realism and isolation of the main character enhances the sense of wonder when fantastic elements occur. The dreams and possible hallucinations (or is there something more going on?) have an internal logic and fairy tale style charm that draws you in.

As far as negatives go, the lettering could be more readable (the unfortunate space to the right of every instance of the letter F is the most noticeable problem). Occasionally some of the illustrations lack polish (the nurse character to me never seemed quite right, but then perhaps that was done purposefully to show her menacing qualities).

But overall the detailing and coloring is quite well handled, with little things tucked in various frames here and there that, if spotted, tie various parts of the story and visuals together.

This title is certainly well worth the money, and I look forward to seeing what else this artist comes out with in the future.

5.0 out of 5 stars unholy kinship review, November 27, 2011

By 

scott - See all my reviews

This review is from: Unholy Kinship (Paperback)

Naomi Nowak is a new talent from Sweden who illustrated and scripted this whole graphic novel. good book i love it

2.0 out of 5 stars Youthful angst, talking monkeys, mean clergy, pretty fashions, May 10, 2010

By 

Jill Monterey (california) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Unholy Kinship (Paperback)

Two stars for the evocative artwork and the atmospherics. "Unholy Kinship" is about two young sisters; one is sacrificing her social life to care for the other, who is sinking into madness. On the way, we get the items named in the title of this review (that was youthful angst, talking monkeys, mean clergy, and pretty fashions) along with a night of casual sex, some bizarre dreams that aren't that interesting to anyone except the person who had them, and some muddled cliches about scientific and religious orthodoxy vs. animal rights.

I would like to see Naomi Nowak collaborate with a writer of quality and leave her fictions for her diaries or blog. Her art is enjoyable, but this story line is thin and silly.