ARCANA: THE LOST HEIRS BY SAM PRENTICE-JONES // spoiler-free book review: say hello to your next fantasy graphic novel obsession!

The fact that I had this down in my calendar a month late tells you how my life has been lately but hey at I did realise the my error and feel bad about it so hopefully you can forgive me?

Big thank you to Toppling Stacks Tours for having me <3<3<3

Title: Arcana: The Lost Heirs
Series: Arcana #1
Author: Sam Prentice-Jones
Page count: 384
Date published: 24 June 2025
Genre: Young Adult fantasy graphic novel

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Synopsis:

Debut author/illustrator Sam Prentice-Jones explores fighting against your destiny and reconciling the actions of your ancestors in Arcana: The Lost Heirs, a tarot-inspired fantasy graphic novel for young adults.

James, Daphne, Koko, and Sonny have all grown up surrounded by magic in the Arcana, an organization of witches that protects the magical world, run by the mysterious and secretive Majors. Eli Jones, however, didn’t even know other witches existed . . . until he stumbled into James. As James introduces Eli to the world of the Arcana, he finds the family he never had, and a blossoming romance with James.

The five new friends soon realize that sinister things are afoot and everything may not be what it seems at the Arcana. When the group delves deeper into the mystery surrounding the deaths of their parents and the Major’s rise to power, they discover that they’re at the center of a curse – one they’ve just unwittingly set into motion. As the friends search for answers, they’ll have to confront the cursed legacy that links them in hopes of freeing their futures.

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Big thanks to Toppling Stacks Tours for having me on the tour and to Fiewel & Friends for the eARC via Netgalley! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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STAR RATING: (4.5 out of 5 stars)

It’s been under 24 hours, and I still require approximately 7 working days to recover from that cliffhanger.

It’s felt like an AGE since I read anything remotely fantasy, and this was such a perfect dip back into a pool I love so much. And since I’m here already, lemme squeal about how unique this premise was gosh I love urban fantasy so much!!! I know less than nothing about tarot cards, so I can’t speak on that part, but it was cool and I liked it a lot? That should be enough to convince you hey?

THE ART STYLE WAS EVERYTHING!!! This in’t remotely similar, but it reminded me of Persepolis, which is a fav,e and now I can’t remember where I was going with this. But I love art with big shapes and sketch lines; it scratches an itch in my brain.

The characters were oh-so-cutie-pa-tootie, and they all deserve forehead kisses. Of course, one for Eli and Jame,s but let’s not forget about Daphne and Sonny??? Ugh love them so much!

And I NEED BOOK TWO NOWWWW

Okay, that’s it from me, I’m out <3<3<3

I’m an author-illustrator working in Brighton UK who graduated from Arts University Bournemouth in 2019 with a BA Hons in Illustration, specialising in graphic, character-based work. I like to create work that celebrates diversity and queer culture and even created a queer illustration magazine titled POOF Magazine which ran from 2019-2021. The goal of this magazine was to help uplift and celebrate LGBTQIA+ creators making themed work for each issue. My work is mainly digital and I have had the chance to create work for the worlds of book publishing, web design, advertising and product design.

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Website // Instagram

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HAVE YOU READ THIS BOOK? IS IT ON YOUR TBR? DO YOU ENJOY GRAPHIC NOVELS? WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE GRAPHIC NOVEL? LET ME KNOW!