Jodie was Mari’s best friend through their teens and twenties. As young Mari began to explore her identity as a bisexual, biracial outsider in a rich, white town, Jodie was her constant confidant, even kissing Mari out of the closet. The two were inseparable as they sought to gain a foothold in life and love as young feminists, Jodie an entrepreneurial sex worker, and Mari working in the boys’ club of video game development in the late ‘90s. Then, suddenly and mysteriously, Jodie ends their friendship. Years later, Mari is stunned when she discovers why.

Now much older, Mari is ready to forgive, but her memories of Jodie seem to have vanished. Through journal excerpts, letters, conversations with friends, and cross-country travel, she pieces together lost memories from a lost friendship in an attempt at catharsis. The reader follows in real-time as the author unravels her own mystery, examining the expectations of friendship, the unreliability of memory, and the struggle to let go.

“This book is a tremendous achievement, a penetrating exploration of memory and relationships and the messiness of living with a changing self and other changing selfs. The art is intriguing and beautiful, and it complements and enhances the story. I’ve never read anything else quite like this.” — Steph Cha, author of Your House Will Pay

“Brilliant, heartbreaking, revealing as a dream.” – Alexander Chee, author of How to Write An Autobiographical Novel

“Innovative...captivating...equal parts wistful and skeptical, wise and all too human.” – Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

“Dazzling in theme, story, and visuals…a standout graphic memoir.” – Foreword, Starred Review

“A visual feast…ideal for anyone who remembers the betrayal of losing your best friend but still knows that we all grow and change—so the future holds hope.” – Booklist

“I Thought You Loved Me is a fucking amazing book.” — Gina Murrell, Razorcake

”[I Thought You Loved Me] is one of the most incredible pieces of art I have read in some time… This will be one of my top picks of the year, if not THE top pick.” — Jimmy Aquino, Comic News Insider

Author/Artist: MariNaomi
Publisher: Fieldmouse Press
Pages: 44pp
Size: 5.5 x 8.5
Notes: softcover, color
Date of Publication: May 2023
ISBN: 978-1-956636-16-1