Queen's Favorite Witch #1

Description

Elizabethan England is a time of superstition and strange goings on. If you have a problem, it's common to go to a witch for help. And Queen Elizabeth I is no different. When Daisy -- a precocious young witch -- learns of the death of the Queen's Royal Witch, she flies to London to audition as her replacement. But Daisy is from a poor family, and they don't let just anyone into the Royal Court. The only way into the palace is to take a job as a cleaner. As Daisy cleans the palace, she draws the attention of Elizabeth's doctor (and arch-heretic) John Dee, who places her into the auditions -- much to the chagrin of her more well-to-do competitors. But Dee knows how dangerous the corridors of power have become, with dark forces manipulating events for their own ends. To him, Daisy represents a wild card -- one that may decide the fate of many. With so many wanting her to fail, Daisy will need all her grit and determination to make it through these auditions -- not to mention a sense of daring and adventure...

Benjamin Dickson is a writer, artist and lecturer who most recently produced the critically-acclaimed A New Jerusalem for New Internationalist/Myriad Editions (also published in France as Le Retour, by Actes Sud). He also wrote Santa Claus vs the Nazis for Aces Weekly/Markosia, and co-wrote Fight the Power! For New Internationalist. He has also co-produced several graphic novels on the subject of climate change and written short stories for several publishers, including Self Made Hero, Accent UK and Heavy Metal Magazine. He lives in Bristol, UK. www.bendickson.co.uk Rachael Smith's debut graphic novel House Party came out in 2014 with Great Beast Comics to critical acclaim. The Rabbit, released by Avery Hill Publishing in 2015, is her second graphic novel and was nominated for Best Book in the British Comic Awards 2014/15. Rachael is also the creator of Flimsy the Kitten and One Good Thing. She currently works with Titan Comics on her monthly strip for the Doctor Who comic series, and is working on her new webcomic, Bess, which launched November 2015. She lives in Hebden Bridge, in Yorkshire, in the UK. www.rachaelsmith.org

"Dickson introduces promising relationships to develop across the series' comic game of thrones"-- "Publishers Weekly" "The colorful trinkets, flat backgrounds, and lax line-work provide a fun, simple atmosphere for Daisy to explore, and while the introduction provides historical context, even readers uninterested in Elizabethan England will enjoy following this young, likable witch on her daring adventure"-- "Booklist" "The Queen's Favorite Witch is lively, funny, compassionate, endearing, engrossing, clever, and very well drawn, and uses history creatively and mischievously in the way that good fantasy fiction should"-- "Professor Ronald E Hutton, M.A.(Cantab.), D.Phil.(Oxon.), F.R.Hist.S., F.S.A., FLSW, FBA, Professor" ALA GNCRT Best Graphic Novels For Children List 2021 "With the energy and humor of stories like Nimona and Kiki's Delivery Service, Smith's art is bright and colorful, featuring characters with wide, expressive eyes [...] For kids, teens, and even grown-ups who delight in historical fantasy about witches, palace intrigue, and girls learning to trust their own power"-- "School Library Journal"