Les Normaux: A Graphic Novel

First of all, I want to give a huge thank you to the publisher for giving me the chance to read this before it was published! (And for also drawing it to my attention, because I'd never heard of it before.)

This book is super cute.

Sebastien and Elia are both sweet, awkward guys that are so cute and unsure when they're around each other. They both do have stuff going on, Sebastien more than Elia, that puts them on shaky ground, but they are likable, even relatable for all that one has magic and the other is a vampire. I like their friend groups, too and that they are at least a little fleshed out.

I don't know if there's any intention to make this a series, but I could definitely see some of the other characters getting a bit more attention. (Honestly, I think I wound up more invested in the side romance between Ronnie and Drew than I did the main romance, but that's just my own weirdness.) And I would really love to see these characters grow as people.

I also have to make mention of the racial and sexual diversity here, which is lovely to see. (A couple of side characters say ‘I'm ___.” Which is something I love. But...I was told by the person that I dealt with from HarperCollins (I think she was in marketing?) that Sebastien is demisexual. I can see that, but with what is in the book, I personally would not have put that together. Honestly, with the way Sebastien talks, I'm not even 100% certain that he, right now, knows he's demisexual. So, if this is a series, I would love to see that part of his story.)

I absolutely adore Pierre, Sebastien's pet bunny rabbit with dreams of world domination. Also, I have to add, the art is solid. I've read some comics where the art is confusing or, honestly, kind of ugly, but this art is nice, consistent and pretty bright, over all.

I don't usually do this, but, I think that there would be a lot of fans of Heartstopper that would also like this book.

The only real complaint I have about this book is that there is some, very light, background world building but it never is explained. We apparently have the magic world and the human world. We have a magic Paris and a human Paris (and Italy and likely more) but it's never really explained if they coexist together, if they overlap, how this is handled.

We have a magic school and vampires and cyclops and I'm not really sure what else. (A Frankenstein's monster, maybe? Fae, I think and maybe something else with pointy ears. Ooh, also an incubus.) But how, why? Are all the myths real? (Side note: are there werewolves? Dragons?)

Sebastien receives a phone call from the human world, but Sebastien also states that he's never been on these streets in the human Paris, either. So... How does this mesh? The first seems to preclude alternate dimensions, while the latter seems to preclude a Harry Potter like setting, where the human and the magic live side by side. (There's something about humans not being able to hurt the non-humans in the magic world, but how? What?)

These are questions I have, that if you are just here for the cute romance and the fun characters, you probably won't have the same questions, but I am craving more of a deep dive into this world building.

This is an adorable webtoon that is being compiled into volumes.

Sébastien moves from the human world Paris to the paranormal Paris and he is lost and looking for friends. He goes into a bar and runs into Elia, a vampire who is also a fashion model. Sébastien and Elia make out and both thought they would never see each other again.

Turns out... they live in the same apartment building!

This webtoon evolves around Sébastien and his coming to terms with his sexuality, magic, and his social awkwardness. The story goes back and forth between Sébastien's story, Elia's POV, and Sébastien's friends love lives.

This comic has cute stories and characters you can 100% relate too.

I really enjoyed it and want to continue reading it on WebToon!