Romantic Country: The Second Tale by Eriy

Romantic Country is hands down one of the most beautiful colouring books on the market. Notice I said beautiful, not necessarily the tidiest or most precise (due to the fact the illustrations are done with a toothpick dipped in ink) but it certainly has a charm and whimsy that is perfectly executed despite it being rough round the edges. Eriy used 1200 toothpicks on this book alone!

As it's one of my top three colouring books, I didn't think anything could beat RC1. I was wrong! Incredibly, Romantic Country: The Second Tale is more stunning than its predecessor with FAR more detail and extended focus on the people of Cocot and its different regions. Colourists who have the first book will know that Cocot (a place of Eriy's imagination) is a land of humble needs and self-sustaining prosperity, full of kind and calm inhabitants. RC2 explores the areas of Cocot we didn't get to see in the last book, including Yowguste Forest where it's rumoured a witch lives deep within, and Magleil Castle, home of the Fairies. Other places of interest are the farmer's market, dressmaker's shop, post office and Magician's Town.

I love how every page in the Romantic Country books is labelled and described at the rear of the book, so you get to find out exactly what is happening in the scene and give your colouring some context. As in the first book, you'll also find a poster which folds out to reveal several characters and bits of scenery which you can cut out, colour, glue to a base and create a 3D diorama to display/let the kids play with.

The book is exactly the same format as RC1, featuring a dust jacket and inner cardboard cover which is illustrated with a hot air balloon scene from the book. The paper is beautifully thick with a creamy colour and smooth surface. There isn't a huge amount of tooth for coloured pencils but more than enough to layer colour as you can see in my finished picture below. The linework is grey/brownish rather than black, which adds to the warmth and charm that this book exudes.

As I mentioned earlier there is a lot more detail in this book than the first, but nothing terribly intricate so it's suitable for most colourists. There is a mixture of double page spreads and single page scenes, so it's totally up to you whether you want to spend time on a big spread or something a bit quicker. Whilst the illustrations are double sided, the paper is good enough to take waterbased markers and a modest amount of water without buckling or bleed-through.

Overall I absolutely adore this book with its endearing & enchanting illustrations and cannot wait for Romantic Country: The Third Tale to be released in the UK in May! Here is my Crystal Cave from the book, coloured with Prismacolor Pencils.

I was given this book in exchange for an honest review. You can find it on Amazon here:
Romantic Country: The Second Tale by Eriy