Upon receiving this book, I had a few expectations I was looking for. I was interested in how the book is composed, is it cheap and fragile or well-made and sturdy? Secondly, I know this book was originally written in Japanese which is linguistically quite different from English, so how well does the translation stand against odd colloquialisms of fantasy fiction stories? And thirdly, the story. I am hoping for an interesting yet fun story that draws and keeps my attention. With all of my expectations outlined, I will present my opinion of this novel.
Immediately I was surprised by how heavy the book was compared to its size. It is not a very thick book, however, the cover was almost a velvet-like paperback. The spacing between the words was very even, and even the style of font was nice and clean. In short, this looked like a book that is meant to be read leisurely. I’ll admit, sometimes when I see such big fonts and wide spacing, I think that it is meant for children. I was most definitely proven wrong.
As I began to read the first chapter, I came across my first of very few complaints. I felt as though the first three pages were redundant with descriptors; adjective soup. I was expecting the author to describe the character, but nay. Instead, they spent three pages describing the pain and confusion the character felt. Characters, setting, and even the magical moments of action are where the abundance of exposition shined. When I allowed myself to get lost in this book, which didn’t take much, I found myself physically leaning into the book as I would to a TV. There were many modern jokes that I felt resonated with me, I didn’t feel like it was too literally translated at all. However, some of the vocabulary choices felt odd during comedic scenes and it was hard to tell what demographic this book was written for.
Lastly, as I previously mentioned, the book really kept my attention. I found myself giggling or even burst out laughing at parts. I found it hard to put the book down until I found a suitable place to stop, the story was rewarding to read. Intense moments were intricately iterated in such a way that I was hanging on every word. Battles flowed in a way that I could almost see the sparks fly off the page!
Overall, I think this novel was enjoyable, to say the least. Again, I’m not much of a reader, and oftentimes I would rather read a series in the form of a manga, but I am aware there are series such as this one that might have more to offer in words. I am also not a very quick reader, but I read this in less than two weeks, which is a lot for me. At times, I came across some hang-ups that I don’t particularly enjoy when reading, but the content of the story itself was unscathed. If you are looking for something entertaining, to make you laugh, or an escape during downtime, this novel is worth picking up.
The Magic In This Other World Is Too Far Behind! Novel Volume 1
Suimei and two of his best friends find themselves mysteriously summoned to another world. There’s a cute princess, magic galore, a Demon Lord that needs to be defeated, and a world that needs to be saved—the works! Too bad Suimei isn’t interested. His friends are all too ready to play the parts of heroes, but Suimei just wants to get home. He has an advantage as a magician... but he’s in for a rude awakening when he finds out what actually passes for magic in these parts.
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