Book Review: Bad Houses

I keep forgetting to add that NetGalley let me borrow a copy to review.

Book: Bad Houses by Sara Ryan and with illustrations by Carla Speed McNeil

Expected release date: November 12th

Rating: 4 stars

Review:

This is why I like to read independent comics because they can take more risk than the big two. There are no monsters, super villains or mad scientists in this book. Only everyday regular people dealing with life. At first glance, it may seem like a simple story but instead it's actually really deep.

I thought this was a funny yet heartbreakingly honest tale about six residents living in the small town of Failin, Oregon. The story focused mainly on teenagers Lewis Gilbert and Anne Cole but everyone in the story, lives connect throughout.

The story opens with Lewis helping his mother Catherine as they prepare for another estate sale. Lewis thinks of himself as his mother's business partner and would like more responsibility but his mother is a bit of a control freak and doesn't quite treat him as her business partner.

Catherine owns and runs a successful estate sales business called Cat's Matchless Estate Sales. Despite the hardships happening within the town, her business seems to be doing really well. Why not? People can't resist an estate sale, the chance to see how someone else lived. To see what stuff once filled their home and maybe see if they can perhaps find something amazing hidden in all the stuff.

Anne is a shy girl who is interested in photography and lives with her mother, Danica a nurse working at a senior living facility. Anne's home is anything but normal. Her mom is an extreme hoarder, the house is filled with everything imaginable. Things that her mother feels that they will somehow need or can use later. The only place in the house that Anne can go to for a little peace is her bedroom. It's the one place the clutter hasn't been able to get to. 

Despite living in the small town, Lewis and Anne first noticed each other at the estate sale. But it wasn't until the next estate sale that they actually meet. Things progress from there but not just with their story, with the rest of the characters as well. You get see how they all connect. The past and the present.

This is an interesting story about people and their relationships be it with people or stuff. The characters felt real, no one was perfect or had perfect lives. Just normal everyday stuff, some did bad things and treated people poorly while others were just trying to find something that made life worth living and trying to be happy. Each of the characters seem to be hiding something be it hoarding or family secrets.

I thought this was a good read. Although this is a comic, I wouldn't recommend it to younger readers, it's more for teens and adults. It was well-written and the artwork enhanced the story. I enjoyed reading this and I especially love the ending with Anne and Lewis, it felt like a new beginning for them.