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Eternal: Zachary's Story
Cynthia Leitich Smith’s New York Times bestseller is reimagined as a graphic novel seen through the eyes of Zachary, teenage guardian angel.
Reckless guardian angel Zachary has an unusual assignment. He’s meant to save the soul of Miranda, high-school theater wannabe turned glamorous royal vampire. Completely devoted to Miranda, Zachary takes his demotion to human form in stride, taking a job as the princess’s personal assistant. Of course, this means he has to balance his soul-saving efforts with planning the Master’s fast-approaching Deathday gala. Vivid illustrations by Ming Doyle elevate this darkly funny love story to a new dramatic level with bold black-and-white panels.
Reckless guardian angel Zachary has an unusual assignment. He’s meant to save the soul of Miranda, high-school theater wannabe turned glamorous royal vampire. Completely devoted to Miranda, Zachary takes his demotion to human form in stride, taking a job as the princess’s personal assistant. Of course, this means he has to balance his soul-saving efforts with planning the Master’s fast-approaching Deathday gala. Vivid illustrations by Ming Doyle elevate this darkly funny love story to a new dramatic level with bold black-and-white panels.
160 pages, Paperback
Published February 12, 2013
2 people are currently reading
541 people want to read
About the author
Cynthia Leitich Smith
39 books1,292 followersCynthia Leitich Smith is the New York Times bestselling, award-winning author and anthologist of more than 20 books for young readers. She was named a 2025 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award Candidate, the NSK Neustadt Laureate, Texas Literary Hall of Fame inductee, and winner of the Southern Miss Medallion for Outstanding Contributions in Children’s Literature. Cynthia has also been named to deliver the 2026 ALSC Children’s Literature Lecture. She is the author-curator of Heartdrum, a Native-focused imprint at HarperCollins Children’s Books, and served as the Katherine Paterson Inaugural Chair for the children’s-YA writing MFA program at Vermont College of Fine Arts. Cynthia is a citizen of the Muscogee Nation and lives in Texas.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
June 14, 2019
A quick flip-through was enough to tell me this was an angel hubris romance, where the hubris is your typical How Dare You Love a Human. Except in this case, the human becomes a vampire.
Now the question became: how much fluff and trash does this have? The book cover is littered with blurbs from NYT and Publisher's Weekly and words like "bestseller" (typical marketing bullshit), and zero info on the story or author herself.
But hey, this Zachary angel resembles Alucard from Castlevania. And this book is thin. At worst, I'll get something similar to Gaiman's Murder Mysteries. At best, I'll end up with Mike Carey's Lucifer.
This thing... sort of straddles both those worlds with Stephanie Meyer levels of romance. Which means bloody but chaste. For example, our guardian angel locks lips with his now-vampire human charge just once, then backpedals frantically when she reveals she died a virgin.
I can dig the awkward angel hero who respects boundaries and isn't as interested in getting the girl, as he is in redeeming her corrupted soul and maybe saving the two-legged blood banks locked in her Dracula Daddy's mansion. It's also really strange that his rescue operation of those poor people is practically an afterthought.
Ah hell, I've wasted too many brain cells on this review already.
Now the question became: how much fluff and trash does this have? The book cover is littered with blurbs from NYT and Publisher's Weekly and words like "bestseller" (typical marketing bullshit), and zero info on the story or author herself.
But hey, this Zachary angel resembles Alucard from Castlevania. And this book is thin. At worst, I'll get something similar to Gaiman's Murder Mysteries. At best, I'll end up with Mike Carey's Lucifer.
This thing... sort of straddles both those worlds with Stephanie Meyer levels of romance. Which means bloody but chaste. For example, our guardian angel locks lips with his now-vampire human charge just once, then backpedals frantically when she reveals she died a virgin.
I can dig the awkward angel hero who respects boundaries and isn't as interested in getting the girl, as he is in redeeming her corrupted soul and maybe saving the two-legged blood banks locked in her Dracula Daddy's mansion. It's also really strange that his rescue operation of those poor people is practically an afterthought.
Ah hell, I've wasted too many brain cells on this review already.
February 20, 2015
I was doing this thing for a while where I was getting five kid/teen comics for free in the mail, which I then professionally reviewed for a database of book reviews. I didn't get to pick the books, and I got a wide variety of comics. This is one of those titles.
This just so happens to be also a GN spin-off/adaptation of a book I've actually read (years ago), giving me a better informed perspective on the world, plot, and concept.
This was my diplomatic review:
Getting to see a story from the vantage point of the hunk you drooled over should be awesome, right? Maybe not. This graphic novel depicts the same story as Smith’s book Eternal -- but this time, from the perspective of Miranda’s Guardian Angel, Zachary. Both books describe events in which Zachary saves Miranda from danger by revealing himself, then is banished from Heaven and eventually finds himself back in her service after she’s become a vampire. It’s an intriguing premise, but seeing things from Zachary’s perspective does not enrich the story, especially because this uses the graphic novel form. It is difficult to depict the inner thoughts of characters well in an illustrated format, and attempting to tell the story of an angel in this way makes things even more difficult. The illustrations do the story no favors, either. Doyle’s drawings are awkward and stiff. The characters are drawn inconsistently, and it is not always possible to tell the secondary characters apart when you have not retained their names. This couldn’t possibly thrill even the most rabid of fans.
I loved Tantalize by Smith, and love her professional, scholarly work, so I'm bummed I hated this so much. But GNs that are mere adaptations always start out at a deficit for me.
This just so happens to be also a GN spin-off/adaptation of a book I've actually read (years ago), giving me a better informed perspective on the world, plot, and concept.
This was my diplomatic review:
Getting to see a story from the vantage point of the hunk you drooled over should be awesome, right? Maybe not. This graphic novel depicts the same story as Smith’s book Eternal -- but this time, from the perspective of Miranda’s Guardian Angel, Zachary. Both books describe events in which Zachary saves Miranda from danger by revealing himself, then is banished from Heaven and eventually finds himself back in her service after she’s become a vampire. It’s an intriguing premise, but seeing things from Zachary’s perspective does not enrich the story, especially because this uses the graphic novel form. It is difficult to depict the inner thoughts of characters well in an illustrated format, and attempting to tell the story of an angel in this way makes things even more difficult. The illustrations do the story no favors, either. Doyle’s drawings are awkward and stiff. The characters are drawn inconsistently, and it is not always possible to tell the secondary characters apart when you have not retained their names. This couldn’t possibly thrill even the most rabid of fans.
I loved Tantalize by Smith, and love her professional, scholarly work, so I'm bummed I hated this so much. But GNs that are mere adaptations always start out at a deficit for me.
July 13, 2013
Eternal: Zachary's Story.
Written by Cynthia Leitich Smith. Illustrated by Ming Doyle. Candlewick Press, 2013. 160 pages.
Genre: Graphic novel
Recommended age level: Young adult (13+ years)
Series information: Tantalize Graphic Novels
Subjects and themes: angels, vampires, good vs evil, devotion
Eternal: Zachary's Story tells follows a snarky and reckless fallen angel who is given a chance to redeem himself by saving the soul of Miranda, a recently created teenaged vampire. This is the graphic edition of Smith's novel, Eternal, published in 2009.
This book will undoubtedly appeal to the hordes of vampire-obsessed teens who just can't seem to get enough of the vampire/werewolf/undead story. Its sad attempts at a love story and extreme good versus evil conflict (how much more extreme can you get than an angel fighting a vampire?) will likely seem exciting and fresh to many young readers.
Perhaps I would have enjoyed this story more in its original novel form. This graphic novel was completely lacking in detail and richness, and never really succeeded in attaining any depth to either the characters or the storyline. The story does build up to an action-packed climax at least, regardless of how "cheesy" it is. Despite Ming Doyle's strong illustrations, I would have to recommend that the reader bypass this painful graphic novel in favor of perhaps reading the original novel.
Genre: Graphic novel
Recommended age level: Young adult (13+ years)
Series information: Tantalize Graphic Novels
Subjects and themes: angels, vampires, good vs evil, devotion
Eternal: Zachary's Story tells follows a snarky and reckless fallen angel who is given a chance to redeem himself by saving the soul of Miranda, a recently created teenaged vampire. This is the graphic edition of Smith's novel, Eternal, published in 2009.
This book will undoubtedly appeal to the hordes of vampire-obsessed teens who just can't seem to get enough of the vampire/werewolf/undead story. Its sad attempts at a love story and extreme good versus evil conflict (how much more extreme can you get than an angel fighting a vampire?) will likely seem exciting and fresh to many young readers.
Perhaps I would have enjoyed this story more in its original novel form. This graphic novel was completely lacking in detail and richness, and never really succeeded in attaining any depth to either the characters or the storyline. The story does build up to an action-packed climax at least, regardless of how "cheesy" it is. Despite Ming Doyle's strong illustrations, I would have to recommend that the reader bypass this painful graphic novel in favor of perhaps reading the original novel.
May 28, 2013
Eternal: Zachary's Story may have been better enjoyed in its original novel format, but despite many aspects I did not enjoy, I found myself becoming drawn in here and there by earnest situations. It's still overwhelmingly sappy and mired in the confines of all that's teenybopper romance, but it's got some bright spots too. Ming Doyle's artwork helps bring the cheesy storyline to life, even if I'd have preferred more stylized designs for the characters. It's far from perfect, but I can see plenty of young vampire/werewolf/angel/demon obsessed teens finding plenty to love here, especially in the form of Zachary, even if Eternal is quite fluffy fare.
Full review by Brittany Vincent.
Eternal: Zachary's Story Review on Popzara
Full review by Brittany Vincent.
Eternal: Zachary's Story Review on Popzara
November 14, 2013
The cover of this graphic is exquisite and beautifully done. I was kind of disappointed when I opened this book and found it to be solely in black and white. While I don’t mind black and white, I feel even a touch of one color throughout a graphic novel provides more sell-ability as people are naturally drawn to color.
“Forget love, forget passion. No way should I deflower the undead.”
Read the entire review at http://www.musingwithcrayolakym.com/3...
“Forget love, forget passion. No way should I deflower the undead.”
Read the entire review at http://www.musingwithcrayolakym.com/3...
May 13, 2013
Black and white illustrations are detailed and clear. The story follows Zachary, a guardian angel who has slipped and is given the opportunity to redeem himself by saving the soul of Miranda, a teenager who has turned into a vampiric royal consort.
Based on a novel, the graphic version is lacking in the detail and richness given in the full-text. However, graphic novel fans and those who follow the series will enjoy it.
Based on a novel, the graphic version is lacking in the detail and richness given in the full-text. However, graphic novel fans and those who follow the series will enjoy it.
September 25, 2023
This is how Zachary meets and falls in love with Miranda. We see the events of Eternal through Zachary's eyes. The Guardian Angel, or GA, isn't perfect but he is trying to help Miranda win back her afterlife since she lost her first life. This was a very helpful graphic novel. It wasn't a straightforward adaptation of the novel, but just like Keiran's story, gives us another side of the novel. I enjoy Cynthia Leitich Smith's writing and I was able to pick up more of her books to read.
March 22, 2015
On the plus side, it's got werebears. On the minus side, it's preachy, the hero is kinda dumb, the heroine is inconsistent in personality, and the plot is oddly paced. The artist is also apparently not that good at drawing male bodies, which means that the hunky angel is just not that hot. Graphic Novel equivalent of movie-of-the week.
February 13, 2013
It has been a long time since I read Eternal, but the story came back to me quickly. The palette is just black, white and grey-tones, which lend a sense of gloom over the story. There's suspense, a little romance and gore. Fans of the series should enjoy this graphic-novel adaptation.
June 7, 2013
Beautifully illustrated, but the story was wanting in original plot devices. Too much of this I have either seen or read before.
September 30, 2013
It was ok. I haven't read any of the series this graphic novel is based on. I might pick them up. I think they'd be better than this.
April 5, 2014
review to come.
July 16, 2014
story is a bit meh and cliché but the illustrations are really good.
November 3, 2015
An okay book if you ask me. Angel falls for a vampire. Vampire falls for Angel. Who would of known?
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews