La forêt de l’oubli, vol. 3, by Nadja 6.5

This is the final chapter in the ‘La forêt de l’oubli’ series. It brings Linda’s adventures to a close, with a resolution that is satisfying, if cryptic.

The artwork is a significant improvement over the last book. The colours are more vibrant, there’s more detail in the characters’ faces, …etc. It’s hardly a graphic novel fan’s dream, but it has a unique style that is appealing in its own way. It serves the material relatively well, although finer detail might have served the reader better.

The story is more intriguing than in the last book, which was virtually bereft of development, but it’s not necessarily interesting: in its attempt to wrap everything up, it became fairly incoherent, not explaining clearly who is who, what they’re doing, and what the implications are.

In the end, we are left wondering what happened; even though Linda’s fate is self-evident, how she got to that point is confusing to say the least. And that’s a shame, ‘cause there’s a multi-layered, intricate tale in there, but it’s rendered impotent due to an inability to articulate it.

I would be curious to hear what 10-year old girls (its apparent audience) would think of this series, but I wouldn’t even bother to recommend it; there’s too little wonder, cohesion and coherence to justify slogging through it over the course of three volumes.