This graphic novel is so compelling, but I must confess that I have misgivings about it that have nothing to do with its quality. Indeed, that I feel so uncomfortable seeing a woman betray her fiance, unideal man though he is, and even if for the sake of true love, speaks to the emotional intensity of the story. And no wonder -- it's based on a story that has been with us for a long time, Tristan and Isolde. I don't know, though, if my discomfort arises from the situation itself or from a feeling that the book does not treat it as I feel is appropriate -- I'm not getting enough sense that there is an ethical framework that realizes, even if the Tristan and Isobel do not, that what they are doing is wrong, or at least that they're not going about it in the right way. Isobel and Tristan seem to regard their situation as difficult emotionally, but not morally. It's an interesting tension, but I think there's also some nuance that might be lost. It seems that in romances one of the guys the heroine has to choose between is clearly undeserving of her.

But the story's not done yet! This is only the first volume of two (I think two) -- so I am anxious to see what kind of repercussions Isobel and Tristan have to experience, and what they will learn from them. I really did enjoy this, and I'm enjoying reading the rest in the three-chapter-length books that Oni publishes.

Marc Ellerby's art is a quirky choice for a romance comic, but it works, adding to the hipness of the setting, the world of indie rock music.