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Snitchland: The Graphic Novel review by RabbitFolkReviews | LitPick Book Reviews
Snitchland: The Graphic Novel review by RabbitFolk...
Age Range - Mature Young Adult
Genre - Manga/Graphic Novel

LitPick Review

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Age at time of review - 17
Reviewer's Location - SOMD, Maryland, United States
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Snitchland is the second novel in Tim Mulligan’s Richland trilogy, meaning that this review contains spoilers for Witchland: The Graphic Novel. If you have yet to read Witchland, you may consult my previous LitPick review (and the other lovely ones.)

As we return to Richland (the sterile, cookie-cutter town around a nuclear facility) Ali, Von, and Jared have just begun to settle into their new home after going head-to-head against a murderous witch, with the help of Shannon and Brett, two Richland locals. At long last and post-witch, the crew treats themselves to a (much needed) victory dinner, in celebration of Ali, Brett, and Shannon graduating high school. Miles away, Miss Judith sics her final kill, and — seemingly in response — Jared begins to violently cough, spattering his loved ones with his blood. In a final image, we see the nuclear plant announcing a nuclear breach, as bats fly overhead. Cut to a funeral, where yet another nuclear plant employee has succumbed to “the cancer.” After Von chokes through a eulogy, he is met by an unfamiliar figure, shrouded by loose-fitting clothing and shades: a snitch. She shakily informs Von that this death was entirely avoidable, much like the rest, then vanishes. Prompted by her warning, the gang sets out to dig deeper to discover why exactly are the “snitches” so wary of speaking out. Though, when company secrets are involved, it turns out some dead men can tell tales. But remember that, during times of grief, in Richland, you’ll never be truly alone.

 

Opinion: 

Snitchland is a great sequel to Witchland! The plot investigates unanswered questions from the previous novel, whilst maintaining intrigue. What drives the story had been pre-established in the first book and the results were nice to see come to fruition: it felt like a needed and natural progression. Although Witchland’'s praises carry over, Snitchland is quite different. For starters, Witchland focused on horrifying visuals and paranormal attacks to create fear, but Snitchland focuses on festering tension and paranoid emotion, which can feel even more threatening. On the note of horrifying visuals, Pyrink (once again) delivers with some amazing artwork, presenting a different, more suspenseful look as they depict flashbacks and ghosts. With the written aspect, Mulligan keeps the plot alive with engaging banter among characters. He also further develops Shannon and Brett as characters by revealing their histories with the nuclear plant. The deeper characterization is beneficial to readers because it not only allows them to empathize with their situations, but also fleshes out the culture of families in Richland, making the setting all the more real. Through confirming these aspects of Richland’s history, Mulligan increases the “re-readability” of the series. More than once I found myself returning to the first book and discovering small details I had missed on the first go-around. The criticisms in my previous review of the occasionally redundant dialogue are mostly absent in Snitchland. Additionally, approaching the text already knowing who the characters are made the plot flow very smoothly. With these returns to Witchland, it became clear that reading the books combined greatly improved the reader's experience. And, after the end of Snitchland, I can not wait to see what happens in Twitchland, when it drops in 2025. So, if you were a fan of Witchland, run to get your hands on a copy of Snitchland A.S.A.P!!   

 
Rating:
4
Content Rating:

Content rating - mature content

Explain your content rating: 

The rating for Snitchland is relatively the same as Witchland. Snitchland is less gory than its predecessor, but still contains some blood and profuse amounts of swearing. Addiction as an underlying issue is present in Snitchland, too, but does not touch on it to the extent that Witchland does. However, grief and the deaths of loved ones are unavoidable aspects of the plot.

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