Murry Summerfield, relentlessly decent son of the farmstead, meets Jacob Durris, charming but troubled new neighbor. When he discovers why Jacob has moved out to the countryside, Murry has his hands full keeping his friend happy and dealing with his own blossoming feelings.
Cassandra Jean is a freelance illustrator and comic artist who spends her days toiling with a pen in her hand, and her faithful dog sleeping at her feet. The radio is always on and Gatorade is a constant source of power! Her interests include video games, tattoos and town festivals. She has had works published both in the United States and abroad.
My heart has simply exploded. I just want to hug this graphic novel for the rest of my life.
The characters are just perfection, the art is STUNNING, and the freaking animals had me dying of laughter throughout the book.
I don't even have enough words to express how wholesome and just sweet and comforting this was. I am truly obsessed and will happily live on my favorite's shelf. Can't wait to get a physical copy 😭
thank you SO much Netgalley, Cassandra, Mosskat and Yen Press for an arc in exchange for an honest review!!
Soooo sweet and wholesome!!! Made me bawl my eyes out, but my crops are watered, my skin is clear, my depression is gone.
Murry is hanging out with his goat Billy when he notices new neighbours moving in. Like the kind and well-mannered country boy that he is, he goes to give them a hand. He meets Jacob, their teenager son - Murry is instantly disarmed not just by his many piercings, but his friendly, teasing personality. The two become good friends and spend a lot of time together, and learn about each other's quirks.
I appreciate that this graphic novel talks about mental health! Jacob and Murry are so cute, I loved their little bubble and their cute animals!!! And despite some negative events happening to these two, their feelings are so strong. Also loved the bonus stories at the end.
Rep: queer brown main character, gay Southeast Asian love interest with DID, poc side characters
Cassandra Jean's art is so charming, the pastel colours and cute character designs make this such a calming graphic novel to get lost in. Cuckoos Three is a simplistic meet-cute romance between a farm boy and the new move-in, though it also briefly touches upon some more serious themes involving mental health and homophobia. Murry and Jacob are such sweet main characters, I just wish there was a little more development between them before they got together. This is a really cute graphic novel!
This graphic novel deals with some hard themes but had quite a soft execution. Partly because of the gentle, pastel tones of the art, but mostly because the characters were just so lovely.
Murry is such a golden retriever sweetheart, and though Jacob looked like a feisty kitten, he was a real softie at heart too.
I loved all the animals, I have such a weak spot for them. It was so wonderful how Jacob encouraged Murry's love for animals and adopted the gorgeous old man dog when Murry couldn't.
While I don't have any personal experience with it, it seemed like a respectful portrayal of D.I.D. and I appreciated the author mentioning the research that they did and having a little informational section at the end of the novel.
I think for me the flaw of the graphic novel is that even though you do get facial expressions and physicality, you don’t get as much insight into the inner workings of the character so the emotional connection felt just out of my reach.
On balance, graphic novels and YA/NA stories aren't really my thing but I would recommend this for a younger audience, or for people who do really enjoy graphic novels. Either way, it was a lovely breath of fresh air.
the first thing that drew me to this story was the cover (look at it!!) and the art style was definitely one of my favourite parts of this book. however, the storyline was a bit predictable, and many characters were underdeveloped, but this isn't something that majorly detracted from my enjoyment of this because sometimes you just need a fluffy little romance!
also, i loved that the author included dissociative identity disorder (DID) into her story in a way that did not villainize it as is often in other movies/books. there was also a short q&a with jacob (the character who has DID) which was super helpful to understand the truth of what the disorder actually is.
jacob & murry were so cute and overall, i would say definitely give this one a try!
Wow, this one was so sweet with a great message! We have a character with Dissociative Identity Disorder, and I have not seen that represented in a graphic novel before. The art is lovely. (reminds me a little of the art in Heartstopper) Both characters were sweet and supportive of each other. I am hoping we continue to get stories like this in future!
This was adorable, and I can see myself revisiting this a lot. It just made me so soft. I always see many queer graphic novels compared to Heartstopper, and that comparison doesn't always hold up, but in this case I would genuinely compare the two: both are m/m romance graphic novels, both have a focus on mental health, and both are very fluffy. I adored the characters just so much, they were both so lovable and amazing. Since I felt so invested in the story, the extras at the end were so cute too, giving some insight into the characters' life together after the graphic novel ends. Highly, highly recommend!
I had been reading this on webtoon so ofc I had to buy it when I saw it was being published. This is a standalone volume and it covers the whole story between Murray and Jacob (more than what’s currently published in the webtoon). It’s really sweet and mostly fluffy but it also covers a bit about D.I.D and other mental health issues.
I could understand that some readers might think the pacing isn’t great, but I think that’s due to the fact that this was originally had one page published once a week so it seemed much more spaced out then.
The artwork for this manhwa is EVERYTHING. I will immediately be looking for anything else with the same illustrator because there is something so warm and inviting about the art style. It’s a mix of pastels and autumnal pallets which were utter perfection.
This was a sweet & angsty romance / litfic delving into heavier themes like prior abuse and mental health. It also looks at DID which I’ve rarely seen covered in literature.
I do wish the disability rep was better which is why I marked this down to 3.5. The story and romance is great but Jacobs disability is often exaggerated for effect and feels quite forced for drama. It also gives Murray a bit of a hero light which I wasn’t keen on. I do however appreciate the fact the authors talked with folk with DID before writing this, and did put in time for research. I just wish some things had been a little different in how they were presented.
Saying that these two are so fricken cute and there is something cathartic about their growth through the novel and Murray’s wish to never judge anyone poorly. He is a soft bean of a human.
Rep// Gay Asian American MC with Dissociative Identity Disorder & PTSD, BIPOC Gay MC , MLM relationship focus.
Thank you to Yen Press for sending me a copy for review.
TWs listed below, please skip if you don’t want vague spoilers.
TW//CW// Depression, Self harm (scars depicted on page), PTSD, DID, Parental abuse in past, Homophobia, Homophobic attack (brief on page), Ableism, Mental health struggles, Aggression, Accidental injury.
"It's okay. I know you aren't crazy, and you don't have to explain it."
This graphic novel was a heartfelt read from start to finish, and served as a wonderful reminder that there Will be someone who will love you for exactly who you are.
Thanks NetGalley for the opportunity to read this. I really liked the majority of the graphic novel but the ending just killed it for me. I was thinking of four stars but then the plot with the broken arm happens and ends so abruptly? And we have a little bit of a epilogue that’s cute but it doesn’t solve any of the problems that arose with the broken arm. Maybe if it had been longer or just that last part didn’t happen I would have enjoyed it more. Our love interest has dissociative identity disorder (DID) and I think it’s handled pretty well but I don’t have DID nor do I know of anyone diagnosed with it so I can’t say how accurate it is. I’m so disappointed I didn’t enjoy this more I was so excited for it.
This was really sweet! I was under the impression the main characters would be adults, but they were actually high school students. The romance was soft and sweet, building from friends to more. There were a few heavy topics addressed in this, and while some of it was hard to read, it felt sensitively handled. There was also some humor with regards to the antics of the animals that show up throughout. The story ends somewhat abruptly, so I'm glad we get some bonus stories at the end. Definitely recommended! And that cover is so pretty by the way.
I received this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange of an honest review.
OMG, I was just so hyped when I was approved for this book. I just love Cassandra Jean’s work, like I really loved Reindeer Boy! So I was very excited to try out this one!
In this one a city boy and a smalltown boy meet each other when the city boy moves to live in the small town, even smackdab next to the smalltown boy. There is an instant connection, no so much instalove, but there is something and I was immediately rooting for these two. I loved it! I loved learning more about each of the characters, about what makes them tick. And Jacob (the city boy) has a lot going on which learn quite early on, but as the story continues we truly learn what is going on. Jacob has Dissociative identity disorder and that means that at times he is just not there. The first time we see it is when Jacob goes missing and Murry finds him in a barn. Jacob has no idea what he has been doing there and didn’t know that hours and hours have passed. But as the story continues we see more and more of DID and what it entails. We learn that Jacob hasn’t had the easiest childhood with his birthparents and that this is a reason why he is switching/why things happen. It was really well written and my heart broke, I loved that Murry stayed. That he tried to be there for Jacob, tried to help when he could, didn’t get angry when Jacob switched and things happening. It was just so sweet, and it makes me happy.
Murry was such a fun character as well! A farmboy but also the star of the sportsteam at school. But he is also very sweet and adorable and I loved how he was there for Jacob. We really got two fantastic characters that you will really love and that will stick with you even after the story.
And of course these two will be dating! Which was adorable and made me squee many a time. I loved seeing them together and see them share kisses, lie in the back of the truck (which is such an American thing to do, haha) and watch stars. I love how Murry didn’t care what people thought about him dating a guy. Sadly, we see that there are a couple of bigots in the town, I was definitely worried for my sweet boys, and sadly things do happen. I am glad that in the end Murry and Jacob got people on their side and that they weren’t alone in this.
Oh, and I just love the smaller guy and big guy romance trope. Is it a trope? I would say yes, haha, and I love it.
I loved that at the end we got some more epilogue/short bits featuring Murry and Jacob, because these two kept on dating even in university years and beyond. So cute! And I was delighted that the author added some more information on DID by letting Jacob chat about it.
The art was, of course duh, fantastic and I loved every bit of it.
Ah, I would like to warn peeps that there is a mention of suicide, not very big, but I know for me seeing those wounds + hear him chat about it was more than enough.
All in all, I flew through this book, it was just adorable, sweet, at times heartbreaking and sad, but all around fantastic. You will love these characters and their bond/their romance. Highly recommended.
It carries its big heart and its complexity with hopeful exuberance. I enjoyed the art and especially appreciated the ways that thoughts and feelings were depicted/written. For a story dealing with inner and outer maelstroms, it feels purposefully gentle and tender, with a humor and I can only (and appreciatively) call "cute". I was also delighted by the end materials -or- continuing ellipses of the story in multiple little beats. Also goats. <3
thanks to netgalley and yen press for the arc of this comics
Beautiful. I'm a huge fan of cassandra jean's drawings and loved every single part. The story is really beautiful, exciting and full of so many important aspects. It's the first time I've read about a character with dissociative identity disorder and dealing with this type of character is very useful to make people who don't know the diseases or problems understand what it means to live with them and how you can help others.
3.5, this was so cute!! The art style is absolutely amazing my eyes were feasting every page. One small complaint I had was that it felt like the pacing was a little fast but overall still a very cute and nice romance.
I thought this was a sweet and wholesome graphic novel. There's a lot of warm coziness to this book. I loved watching the relationship between Murry and Jacob blossom and deepen.
I have mixed feelings on the true reason why Jacob moved to the contryside. The notes at the end show the authors are committed to being fair, educational, and increasing the representation for . But personally it rubbed me the wrong way. I don't know how to describe it, but I felt kind of let down? Murry and Jacob do overcome any hurdles puts in their way.
*Thanks to Yen Press for giving me the ARC of this graphic novel through NetGalley in exchange of a honest review*
Cuckoos Three is a graphic novel about Murry, a farmboy who meets the new neighbor Jacob, a cityboy whose parents decided to move to the small town for a change of scenery. They easily become friends and eventually develop feelings for each other. Although a very cute story, it tackles an uncommon mental illness in a sensitive manner, the writer sure did their research.
Cassandra Jean's artwork is cute, the main characters are likeable and...I might be biased but i appreciate the representation of alt/casual goth teens haha :3. Pleasantly surprised with this book! Will follow this duo for future works.
I received this title as an ARC on Net-galley in exchange for a honest review. Thank you Yen Press for the copy!
Highlights: I immediately loved Jacob and Murry's black cat and golden retriever dynamic they had going on. They both really cared about and understood each other. This was such a cute story! I also loved the art style and color palette used.
Format: Ebook — Netgalley
The Rating I give this book a 4/5🌟 rating. I really liked this sweet couple and the beautiful art.
I received an ARC copy via NetGallery in exchange for an honest review.
This type of story isn't really my cup of tea, but I still wanted to try to read something that could make me forget about life's problems for a little bit and I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that I read this graphic novel all over again. one breath. A sweet treat to read on a day when you feel like you need it.
I adored the two protagonists and I'm fond of their story.
I recommend it to lovers of the genre who want to enjoy a modern fairy tale full of romance.
Absolutely amazing and wonderful to see an actual realistic portrayal of someone with DID. Very beautiful artwork and the story, while simple, is so impactful and I hope the DID community finds out about this- what would have been even cooler is if the author identifies as someone with DID but clearly she and he did the research as they stayed away from the classic Hollywood stereotypes. I absolutely recommend this and chat with me about it after you’ve read it- it’s great!
4.25 Noooooo it's already The End That was so cuuuuuuute The art is so so so pretty TT As if I didn't already know that Cassandra Jean's artstyle is stunning. And the characters have my heeeeart (especially the little black cat hzbenfngn cutie, the cat&dog shenanigans made my day <3) I just love character driven books at the moment TT And this story was so warm, I needed that hug It was PEAK romance. I mean, the stars ?? CLIMBING A TREE to go see your lover ??? Modern fairytale love idc. I want all of it (except the angst provided by the jerks, but it all made a perfect story) (I miiiiight update my rating once I get my hands on the physical copy.)
I ended up being surprised by how much I liked this! The two main characters are lovely and so kind to each other. I absolutely adored all the extra glimpses into their lives after the end! ❤️