Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

genre: young adult graphic novel

Lord Blackheart doesn't need a side kick. His villainy is doing just fine on its own. But Nimona, well, she's persuasive. With her shapeshifting skills and penchant for wreaking havoc and destruction, he soon decides that she's worth the risk. With Sir Goldenloin (ha!) and the Institution to expose to the masses, this unlikely duo have their evil work cut out for them.

 I grabbed this because it had a National Book Award Finalist sticker on the front - and within the first few pages, I was engaged in the plot. Nimona is spunky and rash - the relationship between our two main characters is the real highlight of the book, I think. The world building is a cross between medieval Europe and steampunk, which really worked. It's violent but not graphically gory and there's heart in here too, with minutes of tenderness and surprising compassion. The drawing style is funky and I love that Nimona is curvy and tough. The language is clean and the ending is satisfying. Fun read.