Monstress, Volume 10: Hollow Gods

Monstress #10

by Marjorie M. Liu, Sana Takeda (illustrator)

The Defiled, a group of Monstra long confined to the prison planet Golga, have slipped through a rift between worlds and possessed anyone who has ever held the Mask of the Shaman-Empress--including Maika, Kippa, and Maika's father, the Lord Doctor. Without Zinn at her side, Maika will need to partner with the most unlikely of allies to fight this invasion--or risk losing everything and everyone she loves.

Collects MONSTRESS #55-60

Genres: Fantasy, Graphic Novels, Comics, Horror, Graphic Novels Comics, Steampunk, Adult

200 pages, Paperback

First published November 19, 2025

About the author

New York Times bestselling and award-winning writer Marjorie Liu is best known for her fiction and comic books. She teaches comic book writing at MIT, and she leads a class on Popular Fiction at the Voices of Our Nation (VONA) workshop.

Ms. Liu is a highly celebrated comic book writer. Her extensive work with Marvel includes the bestselling Dark Wolverine series, NYX: No Way Home, X-23, and Black Widow: The Name of the Rose. She received national media attention for Astonishing X-Men, which featured the gay wedding of X-Man Northstar and was subsequently nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for outstanding media images of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. Ms. Liu also wrote the story for the animated film, Avengers Confidential: Black Widow and Punisher, which was produced by Marvel, Sony Pictures Entertainment (Japan) Inc., and Madhouse Inc.

Her newest work is MONSTRESS, an original, creator-owned comic book series with Japanese artist (and X-23 collaborator) Sana Takeda. Published by Image in Fall 2015, MONSTRESS is set in an alternate, matriarchal 1920’s Asia and follows a girl’s struggle to survive the trauma of war. With a cast of girls and monsters and set against a richly imagined aesthetic of art deco-inflected steam punk, MONSTRESS #1 debuted to critical praise. The Hollywood Reporter remarked that the longer than typical first issue was “world-building on a scale rare in mainstream comics.”

Ms. Liu is also the author of more than 19 novels, most notably the urban fantasy series, Hunter Kiss, and the paranormal romance series, Dirk & Steele. Her novels have also been bestsellers on USA Today, which described Liu “as imaginative as she is prolific.” Her critically praised fiction has twice received the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award, for THE MORTAL BONE (Hunter Kiss #6), and TIGER EYE (Dirk & Steele #1). TIGER EYE was the basis for a bestselling paranormal romance video game called Tiger Eye: Curse of the Riddle Box.

Liu has appeared on MSNBC, CNN, MTV, and been profiled in the Wall Street Journal.com, Hollywood Reporter, and USA Today. She is a frequent lecturer and guest speaker, appearing on panels at San Diego Comic Con, the Tokyo Literary Festival, the New York Times Public Lecture series, Geeks Out; and the Asian American Writers Workshop. Her work has been published internationally, including Germany, France, Japan, Poland, and the United Kingdom.

Ms. Liu was born in Philadelphia, and has lived in numerous cities in the Midwest and Beijing. Prior to writing full-time, she was a lawyer. She currently resides in Boston.

Reviews

[Abraham O'Coffey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Monstress is a steam punk inspired visual masterpiece akin to the great fantasy series written by Sanderson, Tolkien, and Gaiman. It started out extremely strong, with lots of real world analogies and complex world building to complement its powerful characters. As I’ve read 60 issues over the last 5 years, it has transformed into something much more mythic, cosmic, and vague. It’s still extremely unique in the comic world but much of the magic feels different as the focus has changed from more grounded characters to more ambiguous ones (the old gods). I’ll keep reading it, but it is the most difficult series to read issue by issue rather than altogether.

[Oscar · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story line has me bit confused, but the artwork is absolutely beautiful! 3.7 🌟

[Sud666 · Rating 4 out of 5]

The tenth volume of Monstress carries on the tradition of great storytelling and superb artwork. Maika, who is separated from Zinn, and anyone who has touched the mask have become possessed by the Defiled.
Without spoilers, this volume was very interesting. We learn much more about the Defiled and their intentions and their conflicts. Maika struggles to control her "guest" inside her, while trying to recover Zinn from her father. But the Doctor has also come under the possession of a Defiled and he now seeks to destroy the world. From the huge developments with Kippa, the Cats, the Doctor, and the internal feuds of the Old Gods, this was a very interesting volume.

Due to the dimensional quality of the story the artwork is amazing. I even pointed the artwork to a friend who had no idea about the story. I must reiterate that the sheer depth and complexity of this story, in its entirety, almost require the volumes to be read in order or this need to be released in an Omnibus format. Either way this is one of the most unique and cool series out there.

[Kalena ୨୧ · Rating 5 out of 5]

⋆.˚✮ 5 stars ✮˚.⋆

i was hoping that there would be more books in this series and soon as i read everything up until volume 9 last year. luckily, and unbeknownst to me, volume 10 came out at the end of last year and what a thrilling read it was! i love this series for the themes that are evaluated through both a darker lens with our main character, but also with a hopeful lens through the eyes of others- it really puts into perspective how lots of what we perceive is based on US. as always this was explosive, i have no notes and am very excited for more!

[Vyshakh Aravindan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Monstress, Volume 10: Hollow Gods

Written by Marjorie Liu | Art by Sana Takeda

Hollow Gods brings the saga to its most reflective and unsettling phase yet. The title captures its theme perfectly — gods that are hollow, power that has lost meaning, and heroes who no longer know what they’re fighting for.

Maika stands at the edge of everything she’s endured. The divine and mortal worlds have intertwined into chaos, and the question isn’t whether she can win, but whether she can survive herself. Liu’s writing is at its most philosophical here — questioning not just war and faith, but the emptiness that follows them.

There’s an eerie stillness to this volume — an awareness that the world has changed too much to return to what it was. The gods are revealed not as omnipotent beings, but as flawed echoes of human ambition. It’s a theme that resonates powerfully: divinity and monstrosity are two sides of the same broken mirror.

Takeda’s artwork remains transcendent — a visual hymn of decay and divinity. Her depiction of ruins, spirits, and celestial remnants makes every page feel like the fading memory of a dream.

Hollow Gods doesn’t end things neatly. It leaves the reader in a suspended state — uncertain, haunted, yet awed. It’s not closure; it’s reflection.

[Jesse Bookout · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cool series, but I'm starting to wonder if they know where they're going with it.

[Natasha den Dekker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Do I have a clear idea of what's going on? Absolutely not. Is it a fever dream of Poe/Ctulhu inspired artwork? Yes.

Will Maika ever catch a break? Probs not. What is Kippa? Zinn and Maika 4 Eva.

What a hot mess but I keep coming back.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

The old gods are fighting each other. At some point I need to reread this whole series from the beginning.

[Marybeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

"YOU ARE HUNGRY."

Hungry for more, yes. These cliffhangers are killing me...

"...Some memories are more real...than others...and this song...was always an infection..."

The art, the art, the art, the art. My favorite art of any graphic novels so far, just the details. It is absolutely not for you if you have an aversion to multiple eyes tho.

"Our fractured hearts, bleeding into each other. Until your memories, your grief were as real as mine. How could that not change me?"

I missed this story, a lot. I really need to reread everything before Vol 11 releases.

"I had a heart, a very long time ago. Sometimes, I felt the echo of it..with Tuya...or Kippa. Just enough to pretend that one day I might feel things the way other people do."

There's a lot happening in this volume, plot-wise. Multiple strings from previous volumes are coming back & tying in to the events. It's a lot of action, as opposed to explaining though.

"Who am I when I'm all alone inside myself? Who is the girl with no heart?"

Representation: MC & multiple characters with amputation, an MC is temporarily blind, lesbian MC

"You ally yourself with cats? You are a fool. We must exterminate them, with great haste."

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

This pains me to say as someone who has been reading since day 1 but I’m putting this series on hold. Officially removed it from my pull box today. :’( While this final issue did feel like they were maybe contemplating wrapping things up, it still just feels a bit too meandering for me, like every arc just expands and expands with no closure. At least Maika and Zinn are finally back together, I think I’ll leave them here for now, maybe return once everything is wrapped up to finish their story.

Issue #55: Read 03/23/25 4.5 stars
Issue #56: Read 05/23/25 2.5 stars (maybe the first time in the series that I thought about quitting)
Issue #57: Read 05/23/25 4 stars
Issue #58: Read 10/03/25 3 stars
Issue #59: Read 10/03/25 3.5 stars
Issue #60: Read 12/28/25 4 stars

[Jayson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to come...


(A-) 80% | Very Good
Notes: Review pending re-read. Individual reviews for included issues can be found here:
- Monstress #55
- Monstress #56
- Monstress #57
- Monstress #58
- Monstress #59
- Monstress #60

[Anna Quilter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though the storyline gets a bit confusing (for me) its just so amazing to look at....and savor.

[Bertazzo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the Old Gods better when they were trapped in Golga.

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid 3.5 book.

It always takes me a bit to remember where I was when I get a Monstress volume because a lot happens from volume to volume.

This was a lot of dialogue that is moving the story along at a lot slower rate than I'm used to but that's probably because of the Old Gods being a larger part of the volume. We finally are getting hints of what they're planning and doing vs Maika who is a consistently moving problem for everyone.

This volume didn't change that.
Maika has her own problems from the last volume since waking up so she's still reeling from the loss of Zinn and now the old gods being known and being pests.

I did find this volume harder to read in general. The font is small amongst all the dialog bubbles and I thank whoever for the different colors of bubbles to go with the person in question but overall the reading was just harder so I had to pause and zoom in a lot so in zooming out I would get to see the actual illustrations through out.

[Jade Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is slippery. I read the entire thing last year and remember nada (of the later volumes at least). This one took an interesting turn tho. As always, intrigued to see what happens next.

[Abigail Pankau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of the Defiled have escaped their prison, and have possessed any who have come into contact with the mask shards, including Maika, her father, and Kippa. Maika and Kippa fight for control over their own bodies, while Zinn and the new Defiled are fighting within Maika’s father. But there seems to be infighting even amongst the Defiled. Can Maika convince the Defiled that is trying to possess her to help instead?

Another excellent addition to this series, which is still darkly beautiful and complex and strange. While I love the art, this one is a bit harder to follow because of all the tentacles from the Defiled. But still really great.

[Chihoe Ho · Rating 3 out of 5]

Monstress is one of the hardest graphic novel series to dive back into its world even though only 11 months have lapsed since I last read Volume 9. There are plenty of threads and characters to keep up with, but it seems like the plot is now squarely focused on the Old Gods. I actually did enjoy this arc, but I do hope it advances the overall plot because it feels a bit tediously circular. This might be the volume I put a pause on keeping up with the series annually, only choosing to return with yet another re-read of Monstress once it concludes.

[TAB · Rating 2 out of 5]

This series hasn't gone anywhere for two years now. It's been circling seemingly unsure of how to resolve all the arcs in a clean way. It pretends to focus more deeply on character growth, but I'm not sure there's enough evidence to support that. I will continue buying it because it is an absolutely beautiful story and I am invested in many of the characters and the lack of a true good/bad divide, but I really could use some resolution or at least a path towards it.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of big things happening but for some reason I did not enjoy this quite as much as the previous ones. But I'm quite sure the next one will be back to the usual amazing stuff, if this *insert curseword here* cliffhanger is anything to go by.

[Audet Maxime · Rating 5 out of 5]

We are now 10 volumes deep into this series, you know what you are getting when a new volume drops: amazing art, slow-moving pace, cosmic horror and a cliffhanger that makes you wish you could fast forward 12 months to read the next issue.

[Tamara Morrill · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars just because i hate tuya

otherwise as always 5 stars , this like volume 9 is setting up some new plots and a new ark
if you like monstress other vols you will like this continuation

[Adrian · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a mixed blessing, being hard to kill. It means you keep getting second chances. For some people, maybe most people, that would be an opportunity to become someone new. Fix everything wrong with themselves, bit by bit. But that's not how it works for me. Every time I start to change, something bad gets in the way. Part of me gets cut out or dies. And I start over, just as I was before. The girl with no heart.

Monstress is set in an alternate, matriarchal, world, in the aftermath of a war between humans and the Arcanics, a half-breed of Immortal Ancients and Humans. On the human side are the Cumaea, an order of sorceresses who consume Arcanics to fuel their power.

Maika Halfwolf is one such Arcanic who is burdened by the possession of an Old God, Zinn. As all sides tussle to control her and her power, a few allies are fighting to help her.

Having survived their spiritual entrapment on Golga, the prison-planet of the Old Gods, Maika, Kippa, and Ren wake to find a whole year has passed. The world has inextricably changed and Maika's father has severed the link between her and Zinn. Now wielding Zinn's powers himself, he was waged war across the World to seize full control.

Regrouping with former allies, Maika is regaining her strength when the story twists again. It seems they were not the only ones to escape Golga and a number of the defiled have piggybacked a ride! Finding herself a host again, Maika must make quick decisions which will affect not only her allies but the tide of the war!

This was a frantic volume. Fast paced and full of detail about the history of the defiled, Zinn's betrayal, the Shaman Princess, and the mask. The only complaint is that it didn't contain any lectures from Professor Tam Tam. That aside, its still a clear 5 stars.

Witches hide, but we won't slack!
Hunt them down and start to hack
Witches fall, their powers crack!
Hunt them down, our duty's clear!
Raise your blades, have no fear!

[Benji Glaab · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sana Takeda's art is out of this world, and thematically this is a great read, but everything else is so dense from the large cast to the metaphysical, and posession from demons?, aliens??? There is still plenty to enjoy, and I'll be a good soldier and keep on reading even if the plot has its challenges

[Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

I genuinely can’t follow what’s going on in this series anymore but like, great art and I love lesbians and eldritch monsters

[Sara Jovanovic · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

[Lila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alright, I'm finally caught up.

I really should have gone back further to refresh my memory of who all the characters are; going a year or so between volumes means a lot gets forgotten in the meantime. That being said, this was an interesting volume. The worldwalkers and their presence is probably the most interesting to me at this time, as well as Ren and his abilities. I look forward to seeing how things develop with him and the worldwalkers going forward. What was up with their tails? What is the story behind the multiple tails? The finale raised some interesting questions about what purpose they serve.

I am increasingly intrigued by the Servac, and what their motives are.

I don't know that I fully understand who is still alive and connected after the finale of this volume, and I will definitely need to reread this a few more times before I fully understand what transpired. I think that Maika raised an interesting question, about how much of her was actually Zinn, and how much did her experiences and emotions affect him? Who are they, truly, without each other, in terms of their emotions and minds? Who were they before and who would they be if they hadn't shared a body? I don't know that we will ever have an answer to that last question. I am also interested to know what effect Lore will have on Maika, if any, or will they remain separate? Are they separate now? Again, the ending confused me greatly, though thankfully it seems Kippa might be okay.

I'm very interested to see what alliances hold and for how long after this volume. There were a lot of unexpected twists that I am still unraveling.

[Lau · Rating 3 out of 5]

Leer esta novela gráfica esperando a que salga hace que seguir la ilación sea difícil. El principio me hizo pensar en el final de Evangelion, por lo filosófico y complicado.

Me tomé el hábito de leer el resumen de la historia al inicio de cada capítulo porque a veces esclarece cosas del anterior. Algunas son tan sutiles que se me escapan en el momento en que ocurren, como los defiled poseyendo en el final del tomo anterior a los que alguna vez tocaron la máscara.

Estoy perdiendo la esperanza de que Monstress retome su ritmo original, si bien hubo dos o tres momentos en que nuevamente pasaron cosas importantes.
Pero ya hace al menos tres tomos que siento que rellena con muchos diálogos que no llevan a nada. Simplemente debaten la situación (que es cada vez más enreversada) y nos deja con un cliffhanger para que queramos seguir.
Eso aún funciona.

[Karissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Series Info/Source: This is the 10th volume in the Monstress series. I bought this in paperback format to read.

Thoughts: I really enjoyed the artwork and revisiting this world. I still find this series a bit confusing and wonder where it is going. I keep hoping we are getting close to wrapping up the storyline, but I am honestly not exactly sure what the point of the storyline is anymore. I think I buy these mainly for the cool artwork at this point.

The Defiled have slipped through a rift between worlds and have started to posses former owners of the Mask of the Shaman Empress, including Maika herself and many of her friends. With Zinn trapped by her father, Maika is forced to find a partner elsewhere to help her push back the Defiled.

This was fine; I finished it. The artwork is amazing, and I enjoy reading about these characters. I do wish there had been more of a recap because there are so many characters that I forget where we left off with some of them. I just tried to go with the flow here, the story is very ambiguous so I feel like that's all I can do.

I don't really understand how the Defiled play into the larger story. I felt like they were kind of randomly thrown in to create more trouble and extend the series. Of course, maybe they do tie into some earlier story elements, and I just don't remember those earlier story elements. I don't own the earlier books in this series anymore (I sold them when I moved), so I can't do re-reads of this every time a new book comes out.

My Summary (4/5): Overall I liked the artwork here and enjoyed reading about characters I like. I am unsure about the new Defiled invasion storyline and don't really understand what the point is. As a result, I am not a huge fan of where the story is going, or maybe I just don't understand where the story is going. Will I keep reading this series? Probably, I like the artwork enough just to buy the series for that alone.

I would absolutely love it if there was a synopsis about how the Defiled tie in with the broader scope of this world. The lack of any sort of summary or synopsis has been an ongoing complaint of mine with this series, but I keep reading it. I think there is just something so unique about this series and I keep being drawn back to it even if it is a bit of a mess. If you enjoy dark fantasy graphic novels, I would recommend this series as a whole.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, as a marginal fantasy fan, I have never really fully known what was going on here, and yet the various arcs the series explore are still moving glacially forward, seeming more cosmic than ever. And darker (before the dawn, maybe), maybe, more dreamlike, vague. Entering into the heart of darkness, or the dark night of the soul? At the heart of all the arcs is young woman mc Maika Halfwolf trying to figure out who she is, who her family is, seeking out her personal and political goals.

She and mom and dad in someways are in the central circle. The next concentric circle involves all those cute animals, including Kippa, and then Ren, who take center stage here for awhile. I have no idea what the gods ultimately represent, or who is fighting for what, but I bet true fantasy lovers can tell me in a minute (or hour).

Let me just be clear, as always: Though the Marjorie Liu story seems like it is forever very slowly evolving (story, 1-2 stars, as far as I can figure out), the amazing Sana Takeda artwork holds everything together as much as possible. Some consistent combination of gorgeous and sometimes horrific work worth checking out even if you don't follow the story.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

So many old Gods! This volume see many of the characters possessed by the old Gods who have escaped from the prison dimension. It's not long before they are fighting among themselves and betraying people left right and centre.
There isn't as much traditional action in this volume but there is so much going on it can be hard to keep track of. I'm not entirely sure who has ended up on who's side at the end of the volume but it does seem to come to something of a climax.
The artwork as always is outstanding and a lot darker than previous volumes. There is also a handy colour coordination when the various old Gods speak so you can see who is possessing who and say what.
As I have now caught up with the series I was rather hoping that it would finish with the end of an arc but sadly it looks like I'm going to be left hanging for quite some time. I guess it's ana excuse for a re-read when the new volume comes out.