"I Belong to House Castielo" Graphic Novel Review

Title: I Belong to House Castielo

Author: Siya & Cotton

Genre: Fantasy, Romance

Graphic Novel

Rating: 3/5 stars

This story is about a girl that is sold off to what most consider to be a terrifying duke, as she is his half-daughter. She has to learn how to survive in her new surroundings.

This story was easy and smooth to read, and I actually liked the main character. The issues I have with the story come from the story itself. First, as I mention below, demons play a role in this, and I'm not a big fan of how. Demons are sometimes mentioned in other stories but it was too strong of a role here, and seemed to be okay to those in the story.

SPOILER ALERT --- (Don't continue if you are concerned about spoilers.)

Also, I didn't like the scenes where the main character was kidnapped and how real they made that. I have read other stories with child abuse, but there was just a lot of it in this story, and some of it was... too intense for me.

Aside from that, I didn't like the male lead, I felt like it came too close to grooming. I know some people will disagree, and honestly the age gap itself I wouldn't have an issue with. However, he knew her since she was a young child and served beside her. He also helped, in many ways, raise her. It didn't sit well with me that they became romantic later.

Aside from that, the relationship she had with the male lead didn't seem healthy. There was a huge lack of communication and a lot of acting on their own, hurting the other person because they each think they can fix things, etc. So I wasn't really rooting for the relationship. Her relationship with her father and her brother were good, though, and I liked both of those characters in their own rights.

I also didn't like what happened with the princess and the way that entire plot unfolded.

There was good tension in the story and it drove the storyline forward at an even pace. The characters were also well-developed, but I just wasn't really a fan of the things in the story itself. That's not to say others won't enjoy it, but it wouldn't be one I'd personally recommend.

Clean Read?

This was definitely not Christian, at all. The main characters have demon blood in them and that is a part of the story. There is also violence, some gore, and sexually suggestive scenes. There is magic, and there are scenes of child abuse that may be triggering to some people.

Enjoy your next adventure!

~ G.G. Marshall