Creative Staff:
Story: Marco Rocchi
Art: Francesa Carita
Translator: Jamie Richards
What They Say:
This timely tale of an endless war between humans and nature follows young orphan Gert, whose land is shrouded in a thick fog hiding ferocious, fantastical animals that besiege her village. Gert sets out to make sure no one else suffers what she has as a result of the war, but to do this she’ll have to do what is forbidden of young women like her: become a warrior. Unfazed, Gert sneaks into the initiation test, beginning an adventure that will prove to be about much more than revenge. Gert’s journey will teach her to accept hard truths, rethink the glorification of war and violence, and prove if she can be the unlikely hero to reimagine her people’s future.
From the acclaimed Italian comics team of Marco Rocchi and Francesca Carita!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Humanity’s worst enemy is ignorance. They fear that which they don’t understand. In this case, it happens to be mystical animals. They hunt down some of these animals as part of their misguided fear. But all it takes to make a difference is one person stepping out to the unknown. Bia seeks to break the wall separating human and beast and create a method to calm the beast. The men in her village are hunters and see the beasts as nothing more than prey and see her work as absurd. But tragedy strikes as mistakes are made and a family has been torn apart. Her daughter, Gert, must pick up the pieces. She has to decide if she wants to continue her mother’s work or live up to her village’s legacy.
Life always has different plans than what we envision for ourselves. Gert represents the common person who wants nothing more than to find conformity with her fellow peers. The one aspect that will cause her an endless amount of grief is that she is a girl in a male-dominated society. She can do anything that others can do but her efforts are never going to be enough to satisfy her peers. Being assigned the outcast, she has no other option but to leave and find her path.
Her path is exquisite as learns of the majestic workings of how the world can be. Havings friends are something that has never come easily to her. What begins as a tumultuous battle with one of her tribe enemies, Atheis, a beast from the Molhogs. Both have common roots as they are both deemed outcasts. But Atheis has more experienced dealing with the cruel world. But he doesn’t let this stop him as he continues taking small steps to a better future. Their relationship grows at a steady pace as they learn to rely on each other and grow individually.
What stands out the most is how this world is so vivid because of Francesa Carita’s style. Each creature has a fascinating design to stand out in this world. Each panel has the perfect color to set the mood. Every single little detail feels like it strongly belongs and contributes to what is happening around Gert.
In Summary:
Gert and the Sacred Stones is a fantastic journey of acceptance beyond one tragic past. What makes this journey fantastic is that there is magic in the ordinary. I mean sure this is a magical world but it takes the hard road to make it mundane special. Part of that specialty comes from having Gert and Atheis’s friendship slowly build on its own. Nothing is as simple as it seems and this graphic novel takes the road less taken to demonstrate this meaning.
Grade: B
Age Rating: 12
Released By: Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: March 17, 2021
MSRP: $14.99
