Price: $14.99 - $14.21 (as of Aug 13, 2024 14:06:32 UTC – Details)
By: Ethan Sacks (Author)
A Haunted Girl is a horror story that explores…
Reviews
Ashley –
Fantastic representation of mental health
A Haunted Girl is about a 16 year old girl who suffers from depression and anxiety, tried to end her life…survives, then finds out she is the chosen one to stop the apocalypse from happening. With the help and support of her family and friends, she learns she is not alone and can survive her darkest moments.Not only did this story have beautiful artwork, it was a beautiful story as well, despite the horror that is depression. The message was so extremely important as mental health is still not taken as seriously as it should be in today’s world. This was terrifying and hopeful at the same time. I felt Cleo’s journey and experiences to realize that she wanted to live and get better was so powerful for such a quick read. Highly recommend for everyone, whether you struggle with mental health or just want a better understanding of what someone with depression has to live with.
Matthias5 –
deeply personal tail of psychiatric illnesses and supernatural destiny
Christopher Cantwell’s “She Could Fly” by way of Jim Zubb’s “Wayward”, the Sacks’ weave a deeply personal tail of psychiatric illnesses and supernatural destiny. While teenage Cleo confronts her role preventing a spiritual apocalypse, the real heart of the story is her struggle to acclimate to daily life outside of her recent stint in an institution. The authors don’t bother trying to hide behind subtext and metaphor, everything is upfront raw and exposed, as is representation via co-author Naomi Sacks’ own struggle with mental health. The text is supplemented by an Author’s note, and inserts including “How to Manage Stress Effectively” by Dr. Jennifer Hartensein, and “Your Own Hero’s Journey…” from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
TH –
A story handled with sensitivity
I’m not too familiar with Ethan Sacks but in reading the story I, out of curiosity, looked into the writers. I found a YT video of Ethan and Naomi Sacks discussed A Haunted Girl and their reasons and aims for writing it. It also turns out they’re father/daughter!The story is heavily guided by Naomi Sacks lived experience with depression, while showing those struggles through the lens of familial legacy and supernatural mythology. The final issue gets cheesy at times but overall the series handles its themes with love and care, including multiple pages each issue dedicated to discussing mental health and available resources.As I’m sure is clear, this is a very personal story and I think it shows through the character interactions the most. Cleo’s struggles aren’t sugarcoated, nor are the struggles of those who love her and want to help and support her but are unsure how, while also hurting themselves. I get the idea of framing such a serious topic with the supernatural, even if I don’t think the story necessarily needed it, because as much as it makes it easier to read, I’m also sure it makes it easier to write. At least a little bit.Having suffered depression and all that comes with it myself, I choked more than once while reading A Haunted Girl.The artwork is good but doesn’t interfere with or take attention from the story. I liked some of the issue covers and alt-covers a lot, with artwork reminding me of Witchblade and The Darkness.Haunted and heart-warming, this is one of Image’s low-key hits. Great work.
Reedmore Books –
Nothing Works Like That
Girl with severe depression coincidentally is the one person in the world who can see ghosts in impending apocalypses and save the world. Am I getting this right?Extra point to Ethan Sacks for being involved in his daughter’s mental health struggles but as someone with mental health issues who isn’t his daughter….this ain’t it. There’s good intent at representation here, but it simply doesn’t work.Strictly as fiction, there’s little to no world building and certain characters (the bff) keep telling us why they’re there, but never show us. It’s disjointed and poorly paced.Lorenzana’s art, however, is a highlight throughout.
SomeOne –
Great Example of how to move forward after a Mental Health Crisis
Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy.This is a great example (even with supernatural influences) on how to move forward after a mental health crisis. Cleo has a great support system and it is shown very well. And so are all the stressors she encounters when she returns to school.100% was not a fan of the principle, but he was definitely the kind of ignorant you will encounter when trying to recover from any public display of crisis.I would recommend this book for anyone and everyone who is going through, or knows someone who is going through, a major depressive episode.
Steven Beltzer –
Good Read!
An interesting read but I was hoping the first issue was a little longer. I might read more issues at some point in the future. The artwork was really good, and creepy.
Ashley –
Fantastic representation of mental health
A Haunted Girl is about a 16 year old girl who suffers from depression and anxiety, tried to end her life…survives, then finds out she is the chosen one to stop the apocalypse from happening. With the help and support of her family and friends, she learns she is not alone and can survive her darkest moments.Not only did this story have beautiful artwork, it was a beautiful story as well, despite the horror that is depression. The message was so extremely important as mental health is still not taken as seriously as it should be in today’s world. This was terrifying and hopeful at the same time. I felt Cleo’s journey and experiences to realize that she wanted to live and get better was so powerful for such a quick read. Highly recommend for everyone, whether you struggle with mental health or just want a better understanding of what someone with depression has to live with.
Matthias5 –
deeply personal tail of psychiatric illnesses and supernatural destiny
Christopher Cantwell’s “She Could Fly” by way of Jim Zubb’s “Wayward”, the Sacks’ weave a deeply personal tail of psychiatric illnesses and supernatural destiny. While teenage Cleo confronts her role preventing a spiritual apocalypse, the real heart of the story is her struggle to acclimate to daily life outside of her recent stint in an institution. The authors don’t bother trying to hide behind subtext and metaphor, everything is upfront raw and exposed, as is representation via co-author Naomi Sacks’ own struggle with mental health. The text is supplemented by an Author’s note, and inserts including “How to Manage Stress Effectively” by Dr. Jennifer Hartensein, and “Your Own Hero’s Journey…” from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
TH –
A story handled with sensitivity
I’m not too familiar with Ethan Sacks but in reading the story I, out of curiosity, looked into the writers. I found a YT video of Ethan and Naomi Sacks discussed A Haunted Girl and their reasons and aims for writing it. It also turns out they’re father/daughter!The story is heavily guided by Naomi Sacks lived experience with depression, while showing those struggles through the lens of familial legacy and supernatural mythology. The final issue gets cheesy at times but overall the series handles its themes with love and care, including multiple pages each issue dedicated to discussing mental health and available resources.As I’m sure is clear, this is a very personal story and I think it shows through the character interactions the most. Cleo’s struggles aren’t sugarcoated, nor are the struggles of those who love her and want to help and support her but are unsure how, while also hurting themselves. I get the idea of framing such a serious topic with the supernatural, even if I don’t think the story necessarily needed it, because as much as it makes it easier to read, I’m also sure it makes it easier to write. At least a little bit.Having suffered depression and all that comes with it myself, I choked more than once while reading A Haunted Girl.The artwork is good but doesn’t interfere with or take attention from the story. I liked some of the issue covers and alt-covers a lot, with artwork reminding me of Witchblade and The Darkness.Haunted and heart-warming, this is one of Image’s low-key hits. Great work.
Reedmore Books –
Nothing Works Like That
Girl with severe depression coincidentally is the one person in the world who can see ghosts in impending apocalypses and save the world. Am I getting this right?Extra point to Ethan Sacks for being involved in his daughter’s mental health struggles but as someone with mental health issues who isn’t his daughter….this ain’t it. There’s good intent at representation here, but it simply doesn’t work.Strictly as fiction, there’s little to no world building and certain characters (the bff) keep telling us why they’re there, but never show us. It’s disjointed and poorly paced.Lorenzana’s art, however, is a highlight throughout.
SomeOne –
Great Example of how to move forward after a Mental Health Crisis
Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy.This is a great example (even with supernatural influences) on how to move forward after a mental health crisis. Cleo has a great support system and it is shown very well. And so are all the stressors she encounters when she returns to school.100% was not a fan of the principle, but he was definitely the kind of ignorant you will encounter when trying to recover from any public display of crisis.I would recommend this book for anyone and everyone who is going through, or knows someone who is going through, a major depressive episode.
Steven Beltzer –
Good Read!
An interesting read but I was hoping the first issue was a little longer. I might read more issues at some point in the future. The artwork was really good, and creepy.