Spiral - Bonds of Reasoning volume 2 (reading for fun)

This is the second Spiral book I picked up at my local library. I've decided that I do not like this series enough to purchase the volumes, but I do like it enough to continue reading it. So library it is. Yay, public library system!

This one picks up immediately where the previous volume left off, the locked-room mystery. That was a fine, a good conclusion. Yet, I'm glad that the rest of the volume was not the same sort of mystery. See, I was expecting this series to be in the same vein as Cased Closed /  Detective Conan, a murder case every time. That is not the case in the volume. As the plot thickens, different sort of mental challenges are thrown at Ayumi.

It was a pleasant surprise. I think I may like these better than the previous. First up is a bomb threat where a logic puzzle  is the only way to disarm it safely. Next is a twist on the "pick a card" trick. Ayumi has to guess which card the magician, so to speak, has drawn. If he guesses incorrectly, then the magician will release a bee,  and Ayumi happens to be hyper sensitive to bee venom. If he guesses wrong, he dies. Despite this pleasant change, my favorite aspect of this series continues to Hiyori. 

I like her character design because it is cute. I like her banter with Ayumi and others, because it is funny. I also like how she has more confident in herself than Ayumi, who deplores himself as basically an inferior version of his older brother. She appears to be trying to rid him of this mindset by encouraging him and telling him to value himself more. Though she has chosen to be Ayumi's sidekick, she has a persona beyond that role. 

Also, more information about the Blade Children. I still don't think it is a literal "curse", but it definitely appears to be a real thing. I was thinking it was some sort of social thing but it has a physical aspect to it. So that's a good development for the myth arc. 

The art is still good. I like it. 

Trickster Eric Novels gives Spiral - Bonds of Reasoning volume 2 a B+

Click here for my next book review: Sleepy Princess in Demon Castle volume 3

Click here for my previous book review: Witch's Printing Office volume 3

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

Witch's Printing Office volume 3

There was quite a cliffhanger last time, wasn't there? An open letter from a Japanese guy isekai-ed into this world to other people from his country (or at least his own world). This volume picks up there.

The "greeting" of Mika and her fluffy employee was a nice touch. I had been waiting to see these characters again.

As it turns out, this second isekai-ed guy, Kyouhei Yamanoto, is just as clueless as Mika when it comes to the why and how of their coming to this world. While they naturally agree to work together to get home, they seem a lot more passionate about their joint business venture.

See, he's decided to open a bookstore, but it has pitiful stock. There are some funny gags from Mika reacting to all the stuff he tries to show off. Ultimately, she connects him with some of the independent artists who frequent her Magiket event. This way they can continue to sell books outside of Magiket, Yamanoto can pull in a steady supply of new books, and Mika's Protagonist Press has a regular customer outside of the Magikiet season. It is a publishing house and book store partnership with independent creators; the content just happens to be spells.

It's a fun thing. This guy is like Mika, a truly ordinary person trying to make a living in the book business; no special stereotypical isekai stuff for him either. Speaking of which, there is a parody of such in another chapter.

I really like this one, so I hope you'll forgive me for spoiling it entirely. It is such a splendid parody. It's very funny, not at all mean-spirited, and yet fulfills the same narrative role as the straight version. So, SPOILER! BEWARE OF SPOILER!

Spoiler.

 You see, the chapter starts with this arcane looking ritual being performed by hooded mages.  One of them shouts, "savior from another world", and who shows up by Mika herself! It is enough to fool a reader into thinking that this is a flashback story, showing how Mika arrived in the world that the story takes place in, and perhaps the origins of Protagonist Press. Not even close.

This is not a flashback arc. The summoner pulled her away from her office during a busy period. The "another world" part of the spell is not accurate; it did not grab some super powerful magic creature, nor did it even reach across to another world. The mages are actually embarrassed when they learn who Mika is and where she is from.

The task they hoped the result of their spell would accomplish was save their village from being consolidated with other villages, because of a declining birth rate and lack of anything special about it. Mika can't do anything about that, so she plans to take the first airship back home.

That is a week from now, so the summoner offers to put Mika up in her house as an apology for basically kidnapping her. This works out to a vacation for Mika; no overtime at her printing office, eating delicious local cuisine, soaking in hot springs, and she doesn't have to pay for any of it.

So Mika's employees are naturally wondering were she is, and they find her living it up while they're working their (in some cases, literal) tails off. This leads to them jumping on the airship that is going towards Mika's location, not to retrieve her but to sample all the goodies she has been indulging in. 

So the town is inundated with the staff of Protagonist Press, and the clients of Protagonist Press, and THEN the regulars of Protagonist Press's Magiket events. This turns the town into a tourist destination, and it gets especially busy during Magiket. Which, incidentally, spares it from being consolidated by its lord. So, without doing anything heroic, or really anything at all, and purely by accident, Mika really does become the town's savior. 

It is such a light-hearted parody that makes so much sense it becomes hilarious!

That is just one example. I could go on but I don't want to. This review is already too long. The author has a talent for making these kinds of stories, and the artist for bringing them to life. 

Speaking of the artist, the art continues to look really good. It is cute and appealing without overdoing things. It has the right balance between cute and serious. I could imagine a legitimate, serious, played-for-epic dungeons-and-dungeons style story being in this art style. Except, when the adventurers finally reached the dragon's lair and discovered its treasure, they would not find gold or jewels but mint-condition scrolls from independent creators (that or may not be magical). 

Trickster Eric Novels gives " A Witch's Printing Office volume 3" an A+

Click here for my next book review:  Spiral - Bonds of Reasoning volume 2

Click here for my previous book review:  I've been killing slimes for 300 years and maxed out my level, light novel volume 1

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

I've been killing slimes for 300 years and maxed out my level, light novel volume 1 (read for fun)

This is the light novel version. I've already reviewed the manga version of it, and you read that at this link here. So this review is going to be more of a comparison between the light novel and the manga versions.

First of all, the light novel volume 1 contains more content than manga volume 1. The manga version stops after Falfa and Shalfa's introduction, and ends on a sequel hook for Halkara's introduction. The light novel includes Halkara's introduction, the conclusion of her arc, the Red Dragon Wedding, and the visit to The Great Slime. So I'm assuming that light novel volume 1 covers manga volume 1 and 2 together.

Next, the light novel presents more of Azusa's inner thoughts, so the reader sees references to her previous life more often. The nature of her previous life (i.e. lonely and overworked corporate slave) means that all references to it are a downer, definitely a contrast to her much happier and laid-back current life. This makes the manga a lighter and more feel-good read than the light novel already is.

Seriously, it happens. Even after 300 hundred years of life as an easy-going and potion making witch, reminders of Azusa's previous life are painful to her. For instance, when she hears that the medicines Halkara makes are basically energy drinks, she recalls how she used to guzzle them during her endless overtime, and it puts her on edge. However, this also underscores her kindness, because she takes Halkara under her protection despite the uncomfortable reminder of her past life and the potential for trouble in her new life. Indeed, the light novel does a better job of developing Azusa's character than the manga does, simply because the light novel has more room to display Azusa's inner thoughts.

For comparison, in the manga, when Azusa creates a magic barrier for her village, it comes out of nowhere. Laika remarks that the village has few defenses, out of nowhere and without context, and then Azusa creates it because she doesn't seem to have anything better to do. The light novel, by contrast, shows Azusa sincerely worried about the village's security because adventurers and dragons are now seeking her out due to her max-level reputation, and so Laika's remarks validate these fears. She creates the magic barrier because she has become protective of her village after three hundred years of treating its sick and injured, and doesn't want someone taking it hostage because of her. Looking after it gives her a sense of purpose, no reward required (or wanted; that "bronze statue" scene was really funny!).

In terms of narrative description and scene setting, the manga does a superior job by virtue of being a visual medium. So the event where Azusa freezes an entire waterfall when she learns about her ice magic for the first time is more of a spectacle. It wasn't as big of an event in the light novel; the ice-magic-as-refrigeration got more ink. Which makes sense, given Azusa's character. Someone seeking a laid-back life, like her, would naturally be more interested in food preservation than displays of power (so she could make a lot at once, freeze it, and then go days without having to make more).

In terms of "highest moment of action", I suppose the climax would be the Red Dragon Wedding, but to be honest, it feels more like the other events than a climax. No, the next event, the meeting with The Great Slime, feels more like a culmination of events and proper conclusion for this volume. It is a peaceful meeting that includes reflection on past events, and guidance on the future of Azusa's new family (spoiler: lots of hugs are involved).

Trickster Eric Novels give "I've Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level volume 1" an A+

Click here for my next book review:  Witch's Printing Office volume 3

Click here for my previous book review: Girls' Ops volume 4

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

SAO spinoff - Girls' Ops volume 4

I bought this volume after finishing volume 3, because it was excellent. I had a feeling that the series had found its stride in volume 3, and I was correct. This volume is just as good as volume 3, if not better. It continues the story of Lux and Gwen's troubled friendship while also delivering on story-plot satisfaction and set-pieces battles. There is also a bit of humor that I know SAO fans will appreciate (even haters might enjoy this part!)

The premise of this particular volume is a joint effort by the Slyphs and the Cat-Siths to defeat a new group of Player-Killers, the Batty Bat guild, which is led by Lux's old friend-turned-evil, Gwen. The Batty Bats have been going around Slyph territory killing players and causing other trouble, and so Lady Sakuya of the Slyphs wants to stop them and maintain order. The Girls Ops group are recruited to be part of this operation.

What follows is a confrontation between the Girls Ops group and the Batty Bats guild in their hideout. There are three distinct segments of this battle, and all three of them are well-developed, both in terms of the art and panels and in the progression of the battles themselves. There are some clever tactics (Angel Rings, FTW!) and a key difference between the two groups hits in a majorly emotional and satisfying way.

However, the sword and sorcery battles and anti-PK mission are not the only selling points here. No, there is more to it. One could say a "fourth" battle takes place, one very different from the previous three. It is just as well developed, and has a very sweet and satisfying aftermath. I'm looking forward to volume 5.

Defeat Means Friendship is a trope that is used in a lot of fighting series, and often times the bridge between "defeat" and "friendship" is not made clear. Basically, the fighters reach some kind of understanding during the fight or become fire-forged friends while later fighting a common foe. That is not the case here. 

After the battle is over, Lux has to put in a lot of effort to mend her friendship with Gwen. It requires quick thinking, a good bit of faith, and an honest heart-to-heart in physical reality. Even then, it might not have worked out if Gwen didn't realize that she wanted to mend their friendship as well, even if it meant accepting changes to that friendship (such as sharing Lux with three other friends). 

The art continues to be cute, and continues to deliver on battle sequences as well.  There is a battle with a large creature in this volume, similar to volume 1, but I had an easier time following it. Overall, it appeared better presented. The middle fight is fantastic; very atmospheric.

Trickster Eric Novels gives "Sword Art Online spinoff - Girls' Ops volume 4" an A+

Oh, you wanted to know which humor that even SAO haters might like? I can't do it justice here. Trying to explain it wouldn't be as funny. 

Click here for my next book review:  I've been killing slimes for 300 years and maxed out my level, light novel volume 1

Click here for my previous book review: Wandering Witch - The Journey of Elaina 1 (read for fun)
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Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

Wandering Witch - The Journey of Elaina 1 (read for fun)

I found this while browsing Barnes and Nobles, and that is the great thing about a physical book store. You get to browse and discover new things, and no background algorithm decides what you see or what you would like. I wasn't looking for books about witches, or short stories, or this delightful mix of comedy and tragedy. Online, I probably would never have seen it. 

Incidentally,  I wrote a blog post about this. You can read it at this link if you want. Anyway, about this book review. 

This is about Elaina the Ashen Witch and her travels across the world. She has no quest, goal or any other purpose while traveling, she is simply traveling because she likes to travel. What she doesn't like is getting involved in someone else's story; she'd rather add a few pages to it and then continue on her way. This makes the book something like a travel narrative. 

Most chapters start with Elaina entering a new country and taking part in a certain event going on there. Sometimes she gets involved in resolving a spot of trouble, but other times she skips town without doing anything. She is what you would call "Heroic Neutral". 

She is a nice girl, generally polite and does not make mischief. She will likely help a local if it doesn't cause her too much trouble or require her to stand in town for longer than three days. Don't ask her to do anything dangerous, but then she might brave the danger if she decides to do so. She is a primarily a sight-seer.

One of the interesting things about this book is that it spans the gauntlet of genres. Some of the stories are comedies, like the country divided in the Bread Faction and the Rice Faction. That whole thing was funny, from the apathy of the locals to the bickering of the rulers. Then there are some which are tragedies, really somber and sad, such as time Elaina met the boy who tried bottling happiness to lift the spirits of his bestfriend/crush. That ending is a critical hit to the heart, and just ambiguous enough to make it worse (Nothing Is Scarier style). Then there are those which focus more on Elaina herself; her history and her connections to people, such as her witch mentor and her own student. Those are are the full package of emotions and story linking together to support the broader narrative. 

All of this shows the author's skill, but the illustrator isn't to be left out. Occasionally, there will be illustrations of a scene. Of these is Elaina with her mentor. Another one shows her original departure from home after becoming a witch. These are great for underscoring key moments. 

Trickster Eric Novels gives "Wandering Witch -  The Journey of Elaina 1" a A+

Click here for my next book review: SAO spinoff - Girls' Ops volume 4

Click here for my previous book review: The Hero is Overpowered But Overly Cautious volume 1

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

The Hero is Overpowered But Overly Cautious volume 1

I think I heard about this story on Tvtropes. Then I saw it while browsing Barnes and Nobles. I picked it up, and these are my thoughts.  

First of, I should make clear that this book is a comedy. Though it has the premise of a hero being summoned to save a world from a demon king via fighting the demon king with swords and magic, it is not an action/adventure book. It is not driven by tension or suspense. A reader has to approach this book with that in mind to get their expectations in order.

The plot is a magic knight and a goddess of healing go out to the save a world from evil. However, the true nature of the story is more like a two-person comedy routine, Straight Man and Wise Guy style.  Seiya does silly/strange/outrageous things in the name of being Overcautious, and Ristarte reacts to them with confusion, anger or frustration.

We, the reader, get Ristrate's perspective on this story. So we are encouraged to see her point of view on Seiya's overly cautious preparations. This helps the comedy angle, because her thoughts are very expressive. No doubt, if we had Seiya's perspective, then the story would be much longer simply because we would have to read through all his extensive plans for all possible scenarios.

The story itself is split into two parts, one is Seiya's preparations and the other is him unloading these preparations onto an enemy. Both parts are comical, but the former is even more so because there is no threat or danger to distract from the comedy, and Seiya's preparations appear all the more ridiculous. I like this set up because it shifts the story's rationale for the outcomes of the set piece battles.

Typically, battles in this story's apparent genre and premise would go the route of guts, sudden power-ups and/or in-the-moment ingenuity.  They are typically won through Heroic Willpower, Indy Ploys or My Kung Fu Is Stronger Than Yours. Those are suitable for visual spectacle and can be exciting. These battles are based in foresight, preparation, and the execution of plans. In other words, the winner is the one who is more Crazy Prepared; like Sun Tzu once said, "Victorious warriors win first, and then go to war". 

There is one thing that I don't like about this book, and that is the personality of its hero, Seiya (hero as distinct from "Protagonist", which is Ristarte). It is not his overly cautious personality, because that is funny and also effective. It is not how brutally honest he is to people when he says something to the effect of "you're weaker than me so you're useless", because his party members really are out of their depths in the S-Class world the adventure takes place in. It isn't even how suspicious and rude he is to everyone, including his party members, because if you are overly cautious to point of paranoia, you assume that everyone is already plotting your demise, so why bother being polite? No, it is how far he goes to prove that everyone is useless. 

Ristarte has unlimited healing power and the ability to open portals to a safe haven? Call her a "walking healing potion", mention that you have dozens of those, and don't mention the portal unless you want to use it. Mash and Elulu have special dragon powers that enable them to use a supermode, find hidden items, and unlock special doors? Call the first redundant, don't acknowledge the special senses, and then break the doors yourself before they get a chance to open them. 

At one point, he gets particularly bad. He gets this auto-attack spell to defeat enemies before they get into melee range and is faster than normal attack spells. He uses this to defeat mook-level enemies that his party members are trying to fight, just for something to do so they can gain EXP. He doesn't explain that his method is safer, and that he doesn't want them getting hurt. No, he tells them that it is impossible for them to fight anything, ever. That's not overly cautious; that's just bragging. It's the opposite of overly cautious because he tells them the spell's limitations. 

It's like he's a badly behaved RPG player. 

Fortunately, it's only that area which is really bad. Otherwise, his paranoia is used for comedy. He also gets a Pet-the-Dog moment shortly after this, which helps to mitigate it. 

Trickster Eric Novels gives "The Hero is Overpowered But Overly Cautious volume 1" 
*because Seiya is not overly cautious enough to think other people might hold grudges against him. 

Click here for my next book review:  Wandering Witch - The Journey of Elania 1

Click here for my previous book review (for fun): Sleepy Princess in Demon Castle volume 2

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

Sleepy Princess in Demon Castle volume 2

 If am I being honest, I didn't enjoy this volume quite as much as the first one. The art is still good and the stories are still creative. The problem, to me at least, lies with Princess Syalis. She seems less sympathetic in several of these stories than she was previously. 

In volume 1, it is easy to write off her behavior as being side-effects of sleep-deprivation. She is too tired to be fully aware of her actions. So if she were better rested, then she wouldn't being killing demons so she can use their bodies as sleep aids. That doesn't appear to be the case in some of the volume two stories. 

There are two stories in particular where this stands out. The first of these is the story that introduces Harpy. This is a female soldier in Demon King Twilight's army who has been rotated out of active duty so she can take a break in the Demon Castle. So she decides to spend her leave time befriending Princess Syalis. Harpy appears just as benign as the other demons, but friendlier because she is actively trying to become Syalis's friend.

Princess Syalis is unresponsive to Harpy's entreaties until she notices how Harpy's feathers would upgrade her current comforter. So she agrees to be Harpy's friend and even to have a sleepover in her cell, just so that she can sleep on Harpy's feathers. She even tells poor Harpy to be quiet so she can sleep. Harpy is, of course, heart-broken that Syalis only "wants her for her body". 

Yes, I know that is the punchline for the joke, but the illustration of seeing Harpy so upset spoils the joke for me. I don't see the Princess's antics in this chapter to be Comedic Sociopathy in this case. 

The second story line I want to point out is the nightmare one. In a nutshell, Syalis discovers that everyone in the castle has nightmares about her every night. She recognizes this and then immediately dismisses it as unimportant so long as she, herself, is not having nightmares. Stories like these make one question, who is the real demon here? 

Fortunately, these are more of an exception to the rule. The other stories are not like this. For instance, there is a story that has two layers to it. 1.) Demon King Twilight is holding council with his generals about the progression of Hero Dawner's quest, and their future actions. 2.) Princess Syalis spilled fruit juice on her bed sheets and wonders how to clean them. 

The Demon Castle Council lists the magic items they plan to secretly give Dawner and the machines they will send against him to make his quest challenging-but-doable. While this occurs like a voice-over, Syalis finds each item and ruins them all in the process of cleaning the mess she made, unaware of how priceless and important each item is. The dramatic irony here is great, and the expressions of the Demon Castle Council when they see the Princess's good work is priceless. 

Then there are the cases where Syalis makes a mistake with a magic hourglass. It doesn't shrink her as much as make her younger. This leads to a "fawn over the small child" event, which annoys her. There is also the case of her getting sleep paralysis, and her loyal teddy bear demons cause her much comedic embarrassment in their attempts to help her. 
So not everything goes Syalis's way all the time, which helps to balance out the other chapters.  

The quality of the artwork continues. It is cute and comical, and so it is perfect for most of these stories. Even the one about the nightmares has its cute moments, particularly how Syalis resolves the nightmare problem. It is just those moments of unintentionally unsympathetic that bother me. 

Trickster Eric Novels gives "Sleepy Princess in Demon Castle volume 2" a B

Click here for my next book review: The Hero is Overpowered But Overly Cautious volume 1

Click here for my previous book review: SAO Spinoff Girls' Ops volume 3

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

SAO Spinoff Girls' Ops volume 3 (read for fun)

This is where the Girls Ops series truly kicks off. I checked this out of my local library at the same time as volumes 1 and 2. The first pair had their flaws, especially the second one, but the third one does not. 

For one thing, it doesn't rely on Kirito's shadow. The "Kuro" avatar does not appear. Likewise, Kazuto himself does not appear. This volume is completely about the Girls' Ops main cast, so their own characters are on display in a way that hasn't happened since the second volume of the main series. 

For the second thing, it doesn't rely on fanservice, not even in a Take-That sort of way, like the second volume. The closest thing to it is more like Fan Disservice, and it is a powerful and dramatic moment. Don't worry about a repeat of volume 2; this one is pure story and feels. 

You see, this story goes into Hiyori's past in SAO, during the two years she spent living as "Lux". It was very unpleasant for her to say the least. It is here that the significance of many things in volume 1 and volume 2 become clear. Why did her friendship with Rossa mean so much to her? Why wasn't she able to trust anyone before meeting Rossa? What was that mark on her thigh that Silica glimpsed when the Lux avatar appeared for the first time in Alfheim? Why did she wear a pareo like a security blanket? The third volume delivers on the answers to these questions, and in a majorly emotional and skillful manner. 

I say with no exaggeration that it is volume 3 that redeemed the series for me. Volume 1 was okay, nothing special. Volume 2 was a borderline disgrace, saved only by Lisbeth realizing that she was being Wrong Genre Savvy about Beach Episodes. Volume 3 took all the build-up from the first two volumes and delivered a magnificent pay-off. 

What is the actual volume's content? Lady Sakuya of the Sylphs calls the main cast for a tea party so she can tell them about a new group of player-killers in Sylph Territory. Shortly afterward, the main cast discovers that the leader of the player-killers is an old friend of Hiyori's. Well, former friend by now. The encounter triggers the release of Hiyori's past as Lux. 

Hiyori really didn't want her new friends to learn about her activities during SAO, because she is deeply ashamed of them. They involve the infamous assassin guild, Laughing Coffin, and how they made her an offer that she couldn't refuse. It is a wonderful delivery of exposition, with a satisfying climax that serves as a springboard into the next volume. 

The art work here does a great job of delivering the emotional content of the story. The battles are also easier to follow here than in volume 1, likely due to the human sized enemies. 

Trickster Eric Novels gives "Girls' Ops volume 3" an A+

Click here for my next book review (for fun): Sleepy Princess in Demon Castle volume 2

Click here for my previous book review (for fun): SAO Spinoff Girls Ops volume 2

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

SAO Spinoff Girls Ops volume 2 (read for fun)

 This is the second volume of the Sword Art Online spinoff, Girls Ops'. I checked this out of my local library at the same time as volume 1 and volume 3. I must say I have mixed feelings about this one.  It is about a contrast of content. 

Spoilers. Yes, lots of spoilers here. I need to spoil in order to make my point. So take heed, ye be warned of the dreaded spoilers!

The quest for this book is a swim suit beauty contest. Yes, really. The whole thing takes place on a beach area in Alfheim Online, and the main cast wears swimsuits for the whole thing. It is basically a Fanservice Episode. However, it is also a Take-That against fanservice episodes, and fanservice in general. Basically, that pandering to fanservice is missing the point as a storyteller, being ultimately a shallow means of grabbing attention that closes the teller off from a broader audience. 

Going off the prior volume's ending, the main cast needs to repair their armor because it was damaged in the prior volume's quest. So they travel to a renowned tailor who was recommended to Lisbeth by Asuna. This tailor, Ashley, tells them a surprisingly high price for the repairs. After explaining the debuffs currently afflicting their armor, Ashley points them towards the swim suit beauty contest. Its first prize will net them enough to pay the repair fee. 

The swim suit beauty contest rules encourage the contestants to "be the hero of the beach". Rankings in the contest are determined by the amount of attention gathered by each contestant, as determined by focused stares. However the rules clearly state that the Ethics Code is still in full effect, and that "unnecessary staring" will be reported to a game master. So right here we see the contrast, which is made explicit by Leafa: are contestants supposed to attract the sort of attention that could violate the Ethics Code?  

Reki Kawahara and the artist Neko Nekobyou cover many different types of fanservice. It is invoked by Lisbeth to attract the sort of attention that she thinks will win her group the contest. However, the more blatantly she goes into fanservice, the more her group's collective rankings drop. While they brainstorm, a crying NPC girl walks by . 

This leads to accepting the little girl's quest, to find her older sister. This ultimately leads to fighting a giant octopus monster, who had captured said older sister. They do this in front of everyone on the beach, thus gathering the most attention and winning the contest. It is implied that those higher in the rankings were completing similar quests this whole time. 

Evidently, the quest designers planned on someone taking the little girl's quest and finding the giant octopus. After realizing that the monster possessed a great advantage in its lair, the players would drive it out to the beach to deny it this advantage. Defeating this monster would earn them a great deal of attention, thus making them more likely to win the contest. 

So Lisbeth was wrong-genre-savy about the contest. The contest was never about sex appeal. It was about helping others in a beach setting. We can see this in the first chapter, where selling yokisoba was more effective in gaining attention than playing volleyball or dressing up in fanservice costumes. That is, fan service costumes other than swimsuits, of course. 

The message is loud and clear, but the volume still has the main cast and the background characters in swim suits for 90% of the story. Then there's the octopus, who engages in Silica's infamous running gag, and is also the villain of the piece. 

There are other pluses to this story that don't fit into my argument. These include Lux's continuing character development. A lot of foreshadowing is dropped regarding the history of Hiyori's "Lux" avatar, and it becomes the center piece of the next volume. Winning this beauty contest also sets up the plot for the next volume, and it happens in a very smooth way. 

So I have mixed feelings about this piece. 

I don't want to dock points for personal distaste, but I also sincerely don't think this volume is worthy of an A. I know this because volume three is worthy of an A, and volume two isn't as good as volume three. So I will settle in the middle. 

Trickster Eric Novels gives "SAO Spinoff Girls Ops volume 2" a B

SAO Spinoff Girls' Ops volume 3 (read for fun)

Click here for my previous book review: Sword Art Online Girls' Ops volume one

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

Sword Art Online Girls' Ops volume one (read for fun)

 This is the first volume of the Sword Art Online spinoff manga, Girls' Ops. It focuses on a trio of main cast members from Sword Art Online, Silicia, Lisbeth and Leafa, and one new character, Lux (real name Hiyori). This is the volume that introduces Lux. I enjoyed reading it but it has its share of flaws. To go into more detail... 

The story is framed by the release of a new quest in Alfheim online, Angel Rings. It is one that was present in Aincrad, and the new admins tweaked it to make it work in the world of the fairies. Lisbeth and Silicia invite Leafa to join them, and while on this quest they meet a dual-wielding sword-user wearing a black cloak. They assume it is Kirito, but it is actually "Kuro", an avatar created by Hiyori. 

This is one of the reasons that I find the first volume to be lackluster. Creating a copy of Kirito to anchor the plot feels like a narrative crutch. It is as though Reki Kawahara created a new (supporting) protagonist by flipping his main-story protagonist's gender and then justified it with a hero-worshipper angle. Silicia even convinces Lisbeth and Leafa to assist "Kuro" by suggesting they would be abandoning "a Kirito" if they didn't. However, it is more complicated than that.  

Hiyori has good reason to be emulating Kirito. This informs her decisions in this volume, gives weight to the plot, and it is funny to see her fangirl over simply meeting Kirito's sister. However, emulating Kirito obscures her actual personality and uniqueness.

One does not see the real Hiyori until she appears before her new friends as "Lux", which was her SAO avatar. The glimpse is in this volume was enough to pique my interest in seeing more of her, now that she was no longer role-playing The Black Swordsman. Indeed, the reader does not see an unobstructed view of Lux until volume 3. Trust me, it is worth the wait!

Anyway, about the other aspects of this volume. There are three or so stages of this quest for the Angel Rings. Each scene has a narrative purpose, and so the story has a nice structure and progression leading up to its climax. That was fun to read. 

 Another plus for this volume is the running gag about the Tsundere Angel. This is the name given to the NPC who is the quest giver for the Angel Rings quest. She is an angel who acts like a "tsundere", grumpy and rude at the start of the quest but becoming more affectionate and/or flustered to the player(s) at the end. The means of triggering the "dere" side of this Tsundere Angel is a fun little sideplot. 

The battle with the boss at the end of the quest was a little difficult to follow. The art style didn't convey action as well as I would have liked. Perhaps that was the fault of the boss itself; he's huge, and the players are human-size. The scale might might have been the problem. 

  Otherwise it was a fun and meaningful battle. The emotional content of this tough fight makes the fire-forged-friendship at the end feel more earned. Three of the four of them are SAO survivors, after all, so they know what it is like to depend on party members when fighting monsters. 

The art is good. It shows the cuteness of the main cast, but also the immensity and threat of the boss and the subordinate monsters. The panel showing what happened to the Tsundere Angel's rose pavilion is a stark image that shouts, "something bad has happened". 

Trickster Eric Novels gives Sword Art Online Girls' Ops volume one a B+

Click here for my next book review:  SAO Spinoff Girls Ops volume 2

Click here for my previous book review: Spiral, The Bonds of Reasoning volume 1

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

Browsing the Library is more fun

Browsing the Library is more fun than browsing Amazon. Tracing my eyes over the shelves and side-stepping to move to the next shelf was more fun than clicking on "other customers viewed" or whatever. It was a striking yet low-key experience. 

 See, I went to my local library the other day to return a book. It was "So I'm a Spider, So What?" manga volume 2, in case you are curious. That was a simple enough process. Then I went inside to pick up a reserve book. That's a thing with me; whenever I return a book I want to pick up a book. That creates a cycle of library visits. 

Because of the COVID-19 Pandemic, I had gotten into the habit of reserving a book and then picking it up. That didn't happen this time. See, I had reserved a book that was at this library, already present at this location, but it was marked on the website as "in transit", as if it were moving from another location. So I decided to look for it where it would normally be, thinking it was "in transit" between shelves. 

I browsed the shelves looking for it and I spotted another series. This was Sword Art Online Girls Ops. Volumes 1-3 were available. I had read about that series and I was interested in it, so I picked up all three. Then I found another series that I hadn't heard of, but it looked good, so I picked it up too. Then I saw a book with the title, "I Kill Giants" with a beautiful cover illustration. So I picked it up and started reading it then and there. 

Eventually, I came away with five books total, including the one that I had originally come to pick up from the reserve shelf. I had also spent a lot more time at the library than I had planned for. However, I didn't regret it. 

For one, I accomplished my two objectives, dropping off a book and picking up a new one. More importantly, I had fun. Browsing the shelves was fun. It was more fun than a similar activity at an online place like Amazon. 

Amazon, and, I imagine, other online book retailers, use algorithms to provide links to the next book. All Amazon points me towards these days are isekai manga and light novels. I've even been routed into the Reincarnation sub-genre of isekai manga and light novels. That gets, I don't know, shallow? "You bought that so how about buying this too? It's very similar." That sort of thing, like a salesman pointing you to the next sale. 

Browsing at the library is a discovery thing. Books in a library are grouped by subject matter. That's how the Dewey Decimal system works. Physical books belonging to the same category are shelved together for the purpose of organizing the collection. It has nothing to do with patrons. Everyone who comes in sees the same thing. The exception, of course, is books that are checked out when a given person arrives. 

So there is no data funnel. There is no separation of people by the choices made by an algorithm. Everyone gets the same view of the books available at a given location at a given time. So everyone gets a chance to discover something entirely new. Something unexpected could be on the next shelf; something that an algorithm would never show you. And that could be your next favorite book. 

The reserve book I came to pick up was called "Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle". It is a fantasy slice-of-life comedy. Sword Art Online Girls Ops is a Fantasy Adventure Shojo series. The fifth book was a realistic fiction detective manga. I found them all in the same corner of the library because they were all manga (Japanese comics).  They all belong to different subcategories and I found them all by browsing on my own. 

That is part of why I'm going to Barnes and Nobles the next time I want to buy a book. There are a host of reasons for why I'm shifting away from the Amazon-for-everything mindset. This is one of them. I can browse the physical shelves like I would the library, except, of course, no reading the material before I purchase it. 

That is a key difference, but if I go into that then I will diverge from the topic of this post. Browsing the library is fun. I wonder which books will be available the next time I visit. 

Brian Wilkerson is an independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor's degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback (and might be available at Barnes and Nobles in the future ^_~). 

Spiral - Bonds of Reasoning, volume 1

I found this at my local library when I was looking for a different series entirely. I picked it up on a whim. I'm glad I did because I like it. 

This is a mystery series. It focuses on Ayumu Narumi, the younger brother of a famous detective. Said famous detective went missing researching the mystery of "The Blade Children", and the first chapter opens with Ayumu unwittingly getting involved in a case connected to these "Blade Children". 

There are three mysteries here, and the first two are presented in full. The third is a cliffhanger. I feel like this might be a thing going forwards, and that annoys me. I don't like cliffhangers. However, I get the feeling that this is not a hanging-from-the-cliff sort of cliffhanger. It feels more like a commercial break prior to The Summation. Like in Detective Conan, the show would present all the clues, indicate that Conan has solved the mystery, and then give the audience time to figure it out on their own. So in that case, the cliffhanger is fine. 

The mysteries are fine, suspenseful and clever and all, but what I like is Ayumu's supporting cast. I feel like Ayumu's interactions with the people in his life are where this manga shines.  The way Ayumu bickers with and yet shows concern for Madoka, one would think they would were blood-siblings rather than sibling-in-laws (Madoka being the wife of his missing older brother).  Also, his interactions with his sidekick, Hiyono, are always entertaining. Truly, they are my favorite part of this manga. It is a classic Energetic Girl and Savvy Guy pair, but it is greater than that. Hiyono, for instance, initially struck me as bubbly comedic relief; someone who would not contribute to the plot itself. She's actually really good at intel gathering, and Ayumu relies on her to find the information he needs to solve these cases. 

The art looks good. Hiyono is adorable, but the art style itself isn't focused on being cute, so it can look solid and/or serious as necessary for the right mood. 

If I had to point out a flaw, then it would be the lack of information about the "Blade Children". There is no information about them other than Ayumu's brother going missing searching about them, and something nebulous about a curse. This series doesn't show any other supernatural elements, so I'm not sure if this "curse" is really a legitimate curse. 

It feels like a macguffin, you know? Just something to link the mysteries together into one story. From what is in this volume alone, I get the impression the mystery of the Blade Children will never be solved. 

Trickster Eric Novels gives Spiral - Bonds of Reasoning, volume 1 a B+

Click here for my next book review: Sword Art Online Girls' Ops volume one

Click here for my previous book review: Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

Making D&D props by reducing plastic waste

 Just the other day, I received a package. It was an air filter replacement for my furnace. The filter was shipped in cardboard and packed with brown paper, so that is all stuff that I can recycle. However, the filer itself was encased within a plastic sheet. That cannot be recycled. I couldn't use it as a bag either because I ripped it to open it. So I wadded it up to throw it in the trash. Then I thought, "what if I used it like this?"

 So I got out some duck tape and wrapped on the plastic. Just a little bit was enough to cover the circumference and keep it in an oval shape. So I had a clear plastic oval wrapped in black duck tape, and ideas for how I could use it in D&D spun themselves. 

I could use it as a boulder, a really big boulder that had been marked for some special campaign-related reason. Perhaps it was a special boulder that served as the seal on some terrible entity, and the party had to storm its location to prevent an evil cult from removing it or otherwise guard it from such a cult. 

I could use it to represent a construct creature, like a stone golem or maybe a huge ice elemental. Scaling it to typical D&D figures, it would certainly be a "huge" or maybe even "gargantuan" monster. This would be useful in any situation where a monster of great size is necessary but I didn't have a more appropriate figure for it. 

I could use it to represent a structure by standing it upright (and it will stand upright because of the tape holding its shape). A building with a black band around its midsection could appear in any town that the party travels to. It could represent the residency of a wizard who blackened the middle section of their tower with an arcane experiment, or maybe it is the location of a campaign-relevant guild hall. 

These are just three of the ways I came up with to use a wadded up piece of plastic compressed with tape. Sure, it doesn't look like anything more than a waded up piece of plastic compressed with tape, but it can be a lot of stuff if imagination is used with it. If someone is playing a roleplaying game such as Dungeons and Dragons, then I doubt they would have trouble suspending disbelief and using their imagination. That opens the door for the use of props like this and other ones. 

This is far from the first bit of plastic that I decide to re-purpose. A couple months ago, I used a plastic bag (I think it was a cereal bag) to represent an oni hiding in a sphere of magical darkness. All I had to do was place the bag over the oni (and the structure the oni was standing on to represent flight). Granted, this wasn't a perfect match to show how far the sphere of darkness extended, but the campaign was taking place over a Discord chat, so the players couldn't see details like that.  The bag was basically there to remind me that the oni was currently hiding in darkness. The point is that the plastic bag served its purpose, and now I plan to find ways to use plastic bags I can't recycle to represent other field effects. 

Could bubble wrap be used to represent a magical mine field? Maybe it is difficult terrain of some kind? If a player wanted to lay down a Gust of Wind, perhaps I should lay down bubble wrap to chart its course.

It's not just plastic bags and wrapping either. The oatmeal I buy regularly has a plastic seal on top. I discovered that if I roll this tightly and affix transparent scotch tape to the mid section then I can create a spear-like D&D prop. This can be used for many things: outlining a corridor in a dungeon, marking off a campsite for an encounter, representing a palisade at a frontier town or maybe something else appropriate to the session at hand. 

They're not much to look at. Other props definitely look better and add more atmosphere to the encounter. However, these plastic waste props don't cost me a cent. I use a small piece of tape to create them. That is it. Then I have functional tabletop game props without the hassle of looking for something specific or the expense of purchasing them. They also have a bonus of decreasing the amount of plastic I throw away. 

Recently, I read an article about how plastic recycling is a lot more complicated than I previously thought. There are many kinds of plastics, and some of them aren't as viable long-term as others. These plastics break down until they enter a limbo where they are too broken-down to be used in new products but not broken down enough so that they are not an environmental hazard. They can even turn into "microplastics". These are really tiny plastic fragments that can get into the bloodstream and organs of humans, thereby making them sick. 

So I've been looking for ways to repurpose the plastic that I cannot avoid. So far, I have three main options: 1.) turn them into D&D props and 2.) turn them bags for D&D props. 3.) Impromtu gloves for when I clean something with a chemical I'd rather not get on my hands. It's a creative exercise, so I enjoy it. 

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes (read for fun)

The supplement that is a treasure trove of lore!  This book has been a fascinating read for me, as a reader of fantasy fiction and also as a Dungeon Master. I have written previously about its value as a lorebook, the inspiration it provides to a Dungeon Master. You can read that in my other post -  The Value of Lorebooks. This post is more of an overview of the book itself. 

As stated, this is a lorebook. It is mostly about lore. Its frame narrative is that the grand mage Mordenkainen has been studying multi-versal conflicts in his pursuit of maintaining what he considers to be an ideal balance of the cosmos. This tome is a collection of his research. So it contains information about the Blood War, the origin of the feud between dwarves and duergar, why the Githyanki and Gizerazi hunt each other, and how the elves split into so many subspecies, with the drow among them. Then there is a chapter about the gnomes and halflings, who are explicitly noted not to have evil counterparts or even any major conflicts in their histories. 

 A bestiary is included after these lore chapters. It contains more monster stat blocks, along with variants on the standard drow/duergar/etc. Reading them was fun because I can think about how they would function in a campaign, not optimizing but rather about roleplay; how would this particular creature act in a story given their stats and abilities? The sections for the demon lords and archdevils was particularly fun, because they are boss-level creatures and have certain scenario considerations that can make them tougher to fight or otherwise deal with. 

Between all this lore and the bestiary, this is mainly a book for Dungeon Masters. There are only a few thing for players, such as rules for playing as some of the races featured, like drow or duergar. It is still a fun book, so I imagine that players would still find it fun to read. 

The artwork continues to impress. The illustrations of the monsters range from magnificent to horrific, and the lore chapters include depictions of certain events, like the original Clan Duergar falling into the mindflayer's trap. Those are scary. The illustration of a happy dwarven family, by contrast, is heartwarming. A few sections even have full, two-page spreads. Those are impressive. 

Trickster Eric Novels gives "Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes" an A+

Click here for my next book review: Spiral - Bonds of Reasoning

Click here for my previous book review: So I'm a Spider , so what? volume 2

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

So I'm a Spider , so what? volume 2 (read for fun)

 This is the second volume of the manga adaptation. It depicts Kumoko's continuing struggle to survive in the Great Elroe Labyrinth. At the start of the volume, she has been chased into the Lower Stratum, which features more dangerous monsters than the Middle Stratum, where she started.

The first major event is intense. I don't think I've ever used the phrase "nail bitter" in my of my reviews before, but it is perfectly qualified to describe this event. Who would have thought that a spider hunting stray wasps over ten days could be so suspenseful? It also shows significant character development on Kumoko's part. 

She has learned that web nests can be used for more than insulating herself from the world. They can be offensive weapons as well; attack and defense at the same time shows her growing tactical mind. Indeed, she is becoming quite clever in how she uses her webbing and how she construct her nests. At one point, she camouflages a nest by building it near the ceiling and  sticking small rocks to its underside. 

She also experiments with other skills she gains, such as poison creation, web control and cutting threads. The fantasies she has about these skills are fun to see. One of them is a magical girl spider, and another is trapping thousands of knights in a razor floss trap. 

The final major event of the volume is both good and bad. It is exciting. It is well constructed among the panels to create a flowing sense of battle progression. It showcases all the skills and strategic ability that Kumoko has developed. However, one might question how an army of apes could exist in this one area, and why they are so determined to kill this one little spider. Kumoko herself wonders this, and the battle does not conclude in the volume, so the answer should presumably be answered in the next volume. 

As with the previous volume, this one ends on a cliffhanger, and like the previous volume, this one is still slice-of-life, so the volume could end anywhere and it is might still be a cliffhanger ending. Kumoko's daily struggle to survive is different from an adventurer's mission, after all. 

The artwork continues to be really good. 

The dragon that appears at the start is truly fearsome. No wonder Kumoko thinks "No way. No way" when she sees it. Not only is far bigger and stronger than anything she has seen so far but it is also far beyond anything she could hope to engage in combat. 

There is this enormous open cavern in the latter parts of the volume, and the reader truly gets a sense of how big it is and how small Kumoko feels in comparison to it. The battle that takes place here is dynamic, making use of its height and the stalagmites. 

Trickster Eric Novels gives "So I'm a Spider , so what? volume 2" an A+

Click here for my next book review: Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes

Click here for my previous book review:  So I'm a Spider So What? manga volume 1

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.