Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 7 by Kanehito Yamada, Tsukasa Abe Series Name: Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End Genres: Adventure, Elves, Fantasy, Magic Intended Age Group: Teen Publisher: Viz/Shonen Sunday Edition: Paperback ISBN: 978-1-9747-3620-1 Rating: 4/5 AmazonBarnes&NobleCruncyrollThriftBooks
Description from the Book
Elf mage Frieren and her courageous fellow adventurers have defeated the Demon King and brought peace to the land. But Frieren will long outlive the rest of her former party. How will she come to understand what life means to the people around her?
After all the dangers the examinees have faced, passing the first-class mage exam will come down to a simple interview with Serie, whose intuition will determine success or failure. Then, Frieren, Fern, and Stark set out again on the road to Aureole, the land where souls rest. The journey provides new challenges – though the most challenging thing Stark and Fern may have to face is a date with each other!
Personal & Info
I bought this at the same time as volume six, and read them one after the other after my reread of the series. At this point, there are ten volumes available, so I’m still a little behind. When I eventually get caught up, I plan to try to keep up better with the current releases.
Characters
Frieren is an elf mage famous for defeating the demon king with her companions around 80 years ago. She’s a bit of a slob and rather lazy. Her hobby is collecting any and all types of magic spells, no matter how useless they may seem. Her perspective on magic is that the pursuit of the art itself is the greatest joy.
Fern is Frieren’s mage companion and apprentice. She seems to take a motherly role in caring for both Frieren and Stark.
Stark is Eisen’s apprentice. He has great skill as a warrior, but tends to be easy to scare.
Story & Thoughts
This one felt long. It’s not, but the pacing makes it feel like both a lot and nothing are happening in a way that makes the volume feel lengthy. I think the beginning and end sections were the best parts.
The first part of the volume covers the third part of the exam, picking up where the previous book leaves off with Fern. The rest of the examinees are then evaluated. If you read volume six, you know that this part of the test is simply Serie choosing to pass or fail them based on reactions or questions. I found this part amusing, because Serie’s questions and judgements about who passes and fails says a lot about her personality. It’s an interesting way to learn more about her character.
After the exam, there are the goodbyes to all the friends everyone made during the test. Some are seen again on the road, but things mostly get back to the travel montages and various flashbacks of things from Frieren’s past.
The part that excites me, and probably other readers with ships, is the latter end of the book. Stark and Fern actually go on their first date. It’s cute, but don’t get your hopes up too high. No drastic changes or improvements to their relationship occur during or because of the date.
There isn’t much action now that the exam is over, but this is still a good volume. I found myself smiling at multiple parts throughout the story. Despite the series starting off on a depressing note, I think it’s very heartwarming. It’s a comfortable and cozy feeling to read almost any volume.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 6 by Kanehito Yamada, Tsukasa Abe Series Name: Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End Genres: Adventure, Elves, Fantasy, Magic Intended Age Group: Teen Publisher: Viz/Shonen Sunday Edition: Paperback ISBN: 978-1-9747-3400-9 Rating: 4.5/5 AmazonBarnes&NobleCrunchyrollThriftBooks
Description from the Book
Elf mage Frieren and her courageous fellow adventurers have defeated the Demon King and brought peace to the land. But Frieren will long outlive the rest of her former party. How will she come to understand what life means to the people around her?
The mages begin the second stage of their certification exam: a dangerous expedition into the innermost depths of the ruins of the king’s tomb. This time, there are no teams and it’s every mage for themselves. Whether they want to team up or not, the challenge they will face – their own clones – will push their skills to the limit.
Personal & Info
I haven’t been keeping up with this series as well as I should. There are long gaps between some of my volumes getting read, and I don’t buy them as often as I would like. I did a reread of volumes 1-5 before reading this one, because it’s been more than six months since I read anything from the series. The reread was worth it. It made the transition to my newer volumes smoother and refreshed my memory.
Everybody probably knows this already, but there’s an anime for this series available now.
Characters
Frieren is an elf mage famous for defeating the demon king with her companions around 80 years ago. She’s a bit of a slob and rather lazy. Her hobby is collecting any and all types of magic spells, no matter how useless they may seem. Her perspective on magic is that the pursuit of the art itself is the greatest joy.
Fern is Frieren’s mage companion and apprentice. She seems to take a motherly role in caring for both Frieren and Stark. Her skill shines during the exams.
Kanne and Lawine are both third-class mages. They were Frieren’s teammates for the first part of the exam. Both of them attended the same academy of magic, and are good friends, despite how often they fight.
Übel and Land are third and second class mages. They were Fern’s teammates for the first part of the exam. Übel apparently learns magic via empathy and she’s pestering Land because she wants to learn his ability.
Denken, Laufen, and Richter are mages from a team in the first part of the exam. Richter appears to run some kind of store. Denken comes from an imperial mage background, and Laufen gets treated like she’s his granddaughter. Richter and Denken are second class mages while Laufen is third class. Denken is their leader.
Scharf, Ehre, and Wirbel are mages from a team in the first part of the exam. All three are second class mages. Wirbel appears to be their leader.
Sense is a first class mage, and the proctor for the second part of the exam.
There are more characters, but these are the ones that are most significant due to having played important parts in the first part of the exam. They are also the ones who get the most screen time in this section. Others mentioned in the book get less time, but may still be important.
Story & Thoughts
This is a great volume. The second part of the first class mage exam begins. It’s much simpler in comparison to the first part. Catching the stille was convoluted compared to this. For the second test, the goal is simply to make it to the end of an unmapped dungeon. What they don’t tell you is it’s not an ordinary dungeon.
Much like the the previous book, there’s a lot of magical combat. This is paired well with more information about various types of magic. So, if you like learning about how the magic of the world works, it’s pretty interesting.
I didn’t like Übel at all when she was first introduced, but the more screen time she gets, the more I like her. She’s a little psychotic, but sometimes the best characters are. I’m looking forward to more content with her if she makes any appearances after the exam.
The third exam is also in this book. It’s pretty pitiful compared to the first and second, but Fern’s turn makes me giggle. Her reaction must have felt so insulting, and then the volume just ended right there.
Overall, this volume was really good. It has comedy, strategy, competition, magic battles, and magic lore. I was torn on giving it a five, but I don’t think it was quite perfect. I’m enjoying the exam section a lot, but I also miss Stark. We’ve hardly seen him since the exams started. Poor guy can only wait around and kill time while the girls are taking the test.
I wasn’t actually expecting to have many manga for a haul this month. I thought I’d have maybe four. Obviously, I ended up with more than that. A pleasant surprise. Everything in this haul was purchased new from various sources or received as gifts, except for one manga.
Light Novels
Bofuri: I don’t Want to Get Hurt, so I’ll Max Out My Defense, Vol. 2
This book was gifted to me by the same friend who initially recommended the series and also gave me the first volume. I have seen some of the anime since reading the first book, but not the manga. Based on what I’ve seen of the anime, I think the light novel is the better version. I couldn’t read certain information in the anime without having to pause many times, because it seems like the anime doesn’t consider the forum posting as important as the light novels do. The forum posting parts are so wholesome. I feel like that’s one of the many reasons I like the light novel as much as I do.
I plan on reading this series long term, but it’s not a high priority on my collection list. The reviews for it will likely not be frequent. This one is also twice as thick as the first book, so that’s nice.
Just a warning, the light novels for this series are bound with flimsier paper than usual. If you so much as set it down wrong or drop it on the floor from a small height, there is a strong possibility it might tear. I’m two for two on that, so far.
What is it?
A funny and interesting VRMMORPG themed series.
Heaven Official’s Blessing: Tian Guan Ci Fu, Vol. 1
I’m dipping my toes into the danmei genre. I read the first volume of The Scum Villain’s Self Saving System and really liked it. This series is by the same author, so I got the first book to try. If I like both series, I’ll expand more deeply into the genre. So far, I’m optimistic.
What is it?
A historical BL (danmei) of some kind.
Manga
Ai Ore, Vol. 1
This is the only pre-owned manga in my haul. I bought it in the same store as some of my pre-owned novels the same month, in one of the same stores. The manga section of the store was closed the day a friend and I were shopping. We kept checking back in to see if they’d opened it. When we were finally allowed to enter that area, I felt like it would be rude not to buy something, since we kept asking about it.
The selection was pretty small, but this manga stood out to me. It’s pretty thick, like twice the size of a regular volume, and it’s a gender queer romance. It was half cover price, so I figured why not?
What is it?
A romance with two gender queer characters and a rock band.
Cat + Gamer, Vol. 1
This book was gifted to me from my wishlist. It’s about someone who gets a cat and uses their video game knowledge to help them learn how to take care of it. It sounded super cute when I came across it, so I’m looking forward to reading it. I think it’s great how many slice of life series about cats there are these days.
What is it?
A cute series about a gamer who adopts a cat and has no idea how to take care of it.
Daemons of the Shadow Realm, Vol. 3
Volume one hooked me. As a fan of Fullmetal Alchemist, this series does not disappoint. I’m excited to read this volume. I hope it keeps going strong. This is probably a series I’ll be collecting long term.
What is it?
An action adventure featuring spiritual duo companions and special powers as well as a generations old feud.
Dragon Ball: That Time I Got Reincarnated as Yamcha
I was a huge Dragon Ball fan when I was growing up. I’m generally not a fan of the modern stuff for it, though. My preference was for Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, and I’m one of those weird people who actually likes Dragon Ball GT. So, I don’t pay much mind to anything Dragon Ball these days.
THIS, however, is a gift I received that I am absolutely excited to read. After reading the description and flipping through the pages a little, this manga seems hilarious, and I love the concept. It’s definitely on my short list of things to read in my immediate pile of manga.
What is it?
A stand alone isekai story that, I strongly assume, is a comedy.
Fangs, Vol. 2
I like volume one of this series, but it’s definitely not for everyone. It’s not exactly a happy series. I thought this was the final volume, but I did some quick checking, and people are saying there is likely more to come, because there’s supposedly a cliff hanger. Now I have concerns, because this volume came out two years ago and I don’t see any release information anywhere about a third volume. I’ll definitely be reading this soon to find out for myself. It’s on my short list pile.
What is it?
A vampire BL romance with some depressing themes.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 6 & 7
I’m still a little behind on volumes for this series. I’m hoping to catch up before I get around to watching the anime. The other day, I saw volume ten came out, so I’m not too far behind on the English releases.
Reviews for the volumes I’ve already read can be found in the index section.
What is it?
A fantasy story about an Elf mage coming to terms with how long her lifespan is compared to those around her.
Moriarty the Patriot, Vol. 1
I’m a fan of mysteries and Sherlock Holmes, so this series has been on my list of things to try for a while. This copy was gifted to me, and I’m looking forward to reading it. I don’t know anything about the contents, but I’m aware of who Moriarty is. I don’t think I’ve actually read any Sherlock Holmes stories that had Moriarty in them, though, so I don’t actually know a whole lot about the character, aside from them being Holmes’ rival. The only exposure to Moriarty I’ve had was the TV show Elementary, where if I remember right, Moriarty was a woman.
What is it?
A mystery series featuring Sherlock Holmes’ rival, Moriarty.
Soul Eater: The Perfect Edition, Vol. 2
I love Soul Eater, but my first exposure was the anime. I hear the manga is significantly better. Either way, I already planned on getting the manga. The perfect editions are hardcovers, and I see no reason not to get a favorite series in hardcover, so these are the ones I will be going with. It’ll likely be a while before I get around to reading them.
What is it?
A fantasy setting where people are trained to be warriors called meisters and wield weapons, that are actually people who become the weapon. They collect tainted souls in hopes of someday turning their weapons into their ultimate form to be used by Death himself. Sometimes this task involves saving the world.
This series is said to be in the same universe as Fire Force, which I have not yet read.
Miscellaneous
Fullmetal Alchemist 20th Anniversary Book
I don’t even really know what’s in this book. I just saw a 20th anniversary book was being released and I had to have it for my Fullmetal Alchemist collection. It’s approximately the same size as the hardcover editions of the manga, so it should look nice next to them on the shelf. I’ll likely read this after I get around to rereading the series.
What is it?
A collectable anniversary book with extra comics and information pertaining to the main series.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 5 by Kanehito Yamada, Tsukasa Abe Series Name: Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End Genres: Adventure, Elves, Fantasy, Magic Intended Age Group: Teen Publisher: Viz/Shonen Sunday Edition: Paperback ISBN: 978-1-9747-3007-0 Rating: 4.5/5 AmazonBarnes&NobleRightStufThriftBooks
Description from the Book
Elf mage Frieren and her courageous fellow adventurers have defeated the Demon King and brought peace to the land. But Frieren will long outlive the rest of her former party. How will she come to understand what life means to the people around her?
Frieren and Fern have ended up on different teams in the highly competitive first-class mage exam. Capturing a rare bird is required to pass, but personality clashes among teammates are making things difficult. Everyone soon realizes there is more at stake than mere success or failure – for some of them, the exam could be a matter of life and death.
Personal & Info
I’m slowly catching up on this series. I want to be up to current volumes before I watch the anime, which is supposed to come out sometime this fall. This is a great series, and I highly recommend it to fans of elves, magic, or Dungeons & Dragons.
Characters
Frieren is an elf mage famous for defeating the demon king with her companions around 80 years ago. She’s a bit of a slob and rather lazy. Her hobby is collecting any and all types of magic spells, no matter how useless they may seem. Her perspective on magic is that the pursuit of the art itself is the greatest joy.
Fern is Frieren’s mage companion and apprentice. She seems to take a motherly role in caring for both Frieren and Stark.
Stark is Eisen’s apprentice. He has great skill as a warrior. He doesn’t get much screen time in this volume, since it focuses on the Mage exam.
Kanne and Lawine are both third-class mages. They are Frieren’s teammates for the first part of the exam. Both of them attended the same academy of magic, and are good friends, despite how often they fight.
Übel and Land are third and second class mages. They are Fern’s teammates for the first part of the exam. Little is information is given for them. Übel is no stranger to murder, which was made clear in volume four.
There are plenty more characters in this volume, as there are several teams for the exam. I think Fern and Frieren’s teams are the most important, so those are the ones I’m choosing to list.
Story & Thoughts
I think this is the best volume in the series, so far. It has comedy, strategy, competition, and magic battles. All wonderful elements for a great volume.
The book starts off by jumping straight into the exam. The teams assigned at the end of book four are gathered at the location for the first-class certification exam’s first test. It is here where they are given a small cage, and the rules and conditions of the test are explained. To pass, teams must catch a special bird, a stille, and have it in the cage at the end of the time limit, with all three team members also present. Generally anything goes, as long as nobody leaves the testing area, which is basically impossible to leave anyway.
The entire volume focuses on this portion of the test. There are ten chapters, and only the last two take place outside of the test. Those final chapters are mostly relaxation and enjoying time with friends as everyone relaxes before the second part of the test.
There is a significant amount of magical combat compared to all of the previous volumes. The birds for the exam are hard to catch, so most opt for trying to steal from others. I actually love the combat, because we get to see more varieties of mage capabilities and spell preferences. Frieren and Fern like to keep things simple, so it’s nice to see how other casters do things.
We still see flashbacks from Frieren’s past, as usual, but I feel like this volume has so much more meat to it than others. I think a big part of that is the number of characters. Generally speaking, there are several fun new characters in this volume, and they all seem to have strong personalities or character quirks that make them engaging and entertaining.
The large number of people is handled well. The ones who are not important are seen in the background or only in a few panels, while the ones that matter get just the right amount of screen time.
I’m looking forward to reading the next volume to see how the second part of the test goes. The competing characters are interesting enough that I actually care to find out who all passes the tests, and hope certain ones don’t perish.
I was expecting to barely have enough books to even do a manga haul this month. My self control obviously needs work.
The books in this haul are a mix of Amazon orders, new and used, and purchases from my local store.
Comics
Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Rift
This is the fourth omnibus in the recommended reading order for the Avatar comics, at least as far as I know. I think this is the library edition. For most of the Avatar comics, the paperbacks seem to be the individuals, and the hardcovers tend to be the omnibus library editions.
What is it?
A comic omnibus of The Rift that continues the story from the TV show, Avatar: The Last Airbender.
This book is a danmei, which is a genre that is exploding in popularity right now. Danmei is essentially the Chinese equivalent to Boys Love. I generally love stories with BL couplings, so I got this book to try some danmei.
I specifically chose this one to try, because it’s rather short as a series. It only has four volumes in total. The series is a trilogy, with a fourth book that covers content for both past and future. So, if I like the series, it won’t be a huge commitment to finish it.
What is it?
From what I can tell, it’s a historical isekai BL romance.
Manga
The Apothecary Diaries, Vol. 8
The Apothecary Diaries is a fantastic series and I highly recommend it. The review for this volume is already available. Volume nine will release on August, 15th.
What is it?
A Chinese inspired historical mystery romance.
Flame of Recca, Vol. 18, 19, & 22
Flame of Recca is out of print, but I started my collection in middle school, so I want to finish it. The remaining volumes are higher in price, so they likely will not be seen in my hauls very frequently. I also will be purchasing them out of order from here on out, because it’ll be entirely based on what I find at reasonable prices based on availability.
What is it?
An action adventure featuring supernatural powers and magic items with a similar vibe to Yu Yu Hakusho.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 5
I love this series. I’m a little behind on the English releases, but I’m trying to catch up. My goal is to catch up to the current releases before I watch the anime. There’s still time before that airs.
At the time of this post, reviews for the first four volumes are available. Five should be up in the near future.
What is it?
A fantasy story about an Elf mage coming to terms with how long her lifespan is compared to those around her.
Inuyasha VIZBIG Edition, Vol. 5
I’ve already read the Inuyasha manga, but I’ve never had my own physical copies. I’m working on that with these editions. It’s not a high priority, though, so I won’t be getting them often. Reviews for this series will likely wait until I feel like doing a re-read, which will probably be a good while.
Recently, I’ve also started getting the sequel series, Yashahime. I haven’t read any of it, yet, but reviews for it will be up eventually.
What is it?
A Japanese time travel adventure romance with demons.
Noragami Omnibus, Vol. 6 (volumes 16-18)
I’m getting these as they release, and I have plenty to get started on whenever I feel like it. This series is one of the manga I’m looking forward to reading the most. I just haven’t found the right time to start it.
What is it?
An urban fantasy focused around gods and the spirit world.
Tail of the Moon, Vol. 15
This is the final volume of the Tail of the Moon series. It completes my collection, so after all these years, I can finally finish reading it. This series will be on the short list for manga I will be reading.
What is it?
A romance story about an incompetent ninja girl sent to woo Lord Hanzo.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 4 by Kanehito Yamada, Tsukasa Abe Series Name: Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End Genres: Adventure, Elves, Fantasy, Magic Intended Age Group: Teen Publisher: Viz/Shonen Sunday Edition: Paperback ISBN: 978-1-9747-2725-4 Rating: 4/5 AmazonBarnes&NobleRightStufThriftBooks
Description from the Book
Elf mage Frieren and her courageous fellow adventurers have defeated the Demon King and brought peace to the land. But Frieren will long outlive the rest of her former party. How will she come to understand what life means to the people around her?
The village priest Sein has no intention of becoming an adventurer, but his desire to find a long-lost friend may lead him to join Frieren’s party on their journey north. They are headed for the magical city of Äußerst, where Frieren can obtain the first-class mage certification needed to enter the Northern Plateau region. At Fieren’s urging, Fern decides to take the certification exam as well, and faces some unexpected competition…
Personal & Info
I’m slowly catching up on this series. I want to be up to current volumes before I watch the anime, which is supposed to come out sometime later this year.
Characters
Frieren is an elf mage famous for defeating the demon king with her companions around 80 years ago. She’s a bit of a slob and rather lazy. Her hobby is collecting any and all types of magic spells, no matter how useless they may seem.
Fern is Frieren’s mage companion and apprentice. She seems to take a motherly role in caring for Frieren.
Stark is Eisen’s apprentice. He has low self confidence, but great skill as a warrior.
Sein is the party’s new priest. He seems to be the peacemaker of the party.
Story & Thoughts
The story picks up where volume three left off. The group is in a village trying to recruit a priest for their travels. Of course, the guys also get their stuff back. It doesn’t seem like they learn their lesson, though, because there’s a panel later that implies they lose it again. Sein and Stark shouldn’t gamble. They obviously aren’t good at it.
After they leave the village, they continue their travels to Äußerst. This series is the best I’ve seen at actually portraying travel. I mean, aside from a few gems, like maybe Inuyasha, for example. It takes a certain kind of skill to cover travel without it getting dull. There are plenty of random encounters and towns to visit.
It always seems like someone learns something, or some of them grow closer from the events of their journey. None of it feels insignificant, and the characters themselves are wonderfully portrayed enough to make their interactions entertaining. Stark and Fern are lucky to have Sein with them, because they appear to be navigating some difficult times communicating with each other due to their young ages. Frieren is not one to assist in mediating things like that.
Based on their interactions, I’m starting to ship Stark and Fern. They always want to apologize to each other, but don’t know how. They have definitely gotten more comfortable with each other compared to when Stark first joined the party. Fern seemed almost mean to him back then.
Near the end of the volume, they finally make it to Äußerst, where they can take the first class mage exam. Either Fern or Frieren will need to pass. They need one first class mage certification to get permission to continue their main quest of going to Ende in search of Aureole. The test itself will be in the next volume.
My haul is a little small this month. This is closer to what it is usually like, though. There are only five books this month. All of these are either new or used from Amazon, or from my local book store.
Flame of Recca, Vol. 16 & 17
I’m still slowly working my way through getting the volumes for this series. These put me approximately half way through the total volume count. It looks like they might be more expensive from here on out, so they might not pop up in my hauls as frequently.
What is it?
An action adventure featuring supernatural powers and magic items with a similar vibe to Yu Yu Hakusho.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 4
I love this series. I’m a little behind on the English releases, but I’m trying to catch up. My goal is to catch up to the current releases before I watch the anime. There’s still time before that airs, and I don’t think there is a release date, yet, aside from just, “this year,” so I’m not too worried about it.
Reviews for volumes, one, two, and three, are already available.
What is it?
A fantasy story about an Elf mage coming to terms with how long her lifespan is compared to those around her.
Soul Eater: The Perfect Edition, Vol. 1
I love Soul Eater, but my first exposure was the anime. I hear the manga is significantly better. Either way, I already planned on getting the manga eventually. The perfect editions are hardcovers, and I see no reason not to get a favorite series in hardcover, so these are the ones I will be going with.
What is it?
A fantasy setting where people are trained to be warriors called meisters and wield weapons, that are actually people who become the weapon. They collect tainted souls in hopes of someday turning their weapons into their ultimate form to be used by Death himself. Sometimes this task involves saving the world.
This series is said to be in the same universe as Fire Force, which I have not yet read.
The Titan’s Bride, Vol. 1
I’ve heard good things about this series. I didn’t think it would get a localization, so I’m glad it did. If it didn’t, I was set on ordering a Japanese copy after I learned enough of the language to be able to read it. My BL collection is slowly expanding.
What is it?
An erotic, uncensored, BL isekai with a size difference theme.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 3 by Kanehito Yamada, Tsukasa Abe Series Name: Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End Genres: Adventure, Elves, Fantasy, Magic Intended Age Group: Teen Publisher: Viz/Shonen Sunday Edition: Paperback ISBN: 978-1-9747-2724-7 Rating: 4/5 AmazonBarnes&NobleRightStufThriftBooks
Description from the Book
Elf mage Frieren and her courageous fellow adventurers have defeated the Demon King and brought peace to the land. But Frieren will long outlive the rest of her former party. How will she come to understand what life means to the people around her?
An old enemy returns as Frieren continues her journey north. Decades ago, Frieren and her party defeated a servant of the Demon King called Aura the Guillotine, one of the powerful demons known as the Seven Sages of Destruction. Now Aura is back with a score to settle. But what price did Frieren pay for victory in the past, and how will the choices she made then affect the present?
Personal & Info
I haven’t been to the bookstore in a while due to holidays and various other reasons. I grabbed this on my birthday while going around to a couple different stores. This is definitely a series I intend to read long term.
Characters
Frieren is an elf mage famous for defeating the demon king with her companions around 80 years ago. She’s a bit of a slob and rather lazy. Her hobby is collecting any and all types of magic spells, no matter how useless they may seem.
Fern is Frieren’s mage companion and apprentice. She seems to take a motherly role in caring for Frieren.
Stark is Eisen’s apprentice. He has low self confidence, but great skill as a warrior.
Story & Thoughts
The story here picks up where the previous volume left off dealing with the demons. Those events take up more than half the book. It’s the first really serious battle in the series so far. Not necessarily serious for Frieren, but definitely for Fern and Stark.
There are several flashbacks. The story uses them to show how Frieren originally learns certain skills or advice. They come up frequently for showing what affects her decisions in handling her traveling companions, too. It seems like she had little to no social skills before she became an adventurer.
I love the dramatic moment where Frieren reveals her true strength to Aura. Stark and Fern’s first battle with demons is pretty great, too. The advice Stark applies from Eisen is amusing, but also not wrong.
For an Elf who claims an adventure was only a measly ten years long, that adventure seems to have changed her significantly and drastically affected her thinking and morals.
It looks like the group might be getting a new party member. That will likely be solidified in the next volume.
I didn’t expect to have enough books for any kind of haul this month. I neglected to consider my birthday. This haul contains the usual purchases for myself, as well as birthday gifts.
Light Novels
Bofuri: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt, so I’ll Max Out My Defense, Vol. 1
This is a gift from a friend. That same friend recommended this series to me initially, which led to me putting it on my wishlist. I’m aware the anime is available, but I haven’t seen it, yet.
What is it?
A funny and interesting VRMMORPG themed series.
Manga
Flame of Recca, Vol. 13
Thirty more volumes to go for this series. It’s going to be a while. This one was an Amazon order as a pre-owned copy since it’s out of print.
What is it?
An action adventure featuring supernatural powers and magic items with a similar vibe to Yu Yu Hakusho.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 3
This is a fantastic series. It does a great job portraying how elves think compared to the average person. I’m behind on volume releases, but I’ll catch up eventually. I highly recommend this if you enjoy fantasy or D&D type settings. Thankfully my local bookstore carries these, so I can get them quickly when I want them.
The reviews for volumes one and two are already available. Volume three will be up soon.
What is it?
A fantasy story about an Elf mage coming to terms with how long her lifespan is compared to those around her.
Kamisama Kiss, Vol. 1-4
I originally found this anime on Hulu, and loved it. The anime does not have a complete ending, so of course, I added the manga to my wishlist. These volumes were gifts from two people.
What is it?
A romantic comedy about a girl who takes over a shrine as its god.
Noragami Omnibus, Vol. 3 (volumes 7-9)
I’m making steady progress on obtaining these as they release. Another volume or two and I might have enough of a buffer to work them into my reading schedule.
What is it?
An urban fantasy focused around gods and the spirit world
Ouran High School Host Club, Vol. 4-5
These were gifted to me. I’m excited to be making progress on my collection for this series. It’s been on my list of things to finish reading for so long that I have to start over. I’m so glad I’ll have my own set eventually. Originally I read them by borrowing from a friend.
What is it?
A gender bend, slice of life, comedy, romance.
The Rising of the Shield Hero: The Manga Companion, Vol. 1
I’ve never had a manga labelled as a manga companion before, so I’m not entirely sure what that means. I THINK it means it’s just not the original source material. If that’s the case, then I’ve had a lot of manga companions that were not labelled as such. The original material in this case is the light novel version of the series. This book was a gift.
What is it?
An isekai featuring a poorly treated protagonist in a world similar to a video game.
Spice & Wolf, Vol. 1-3
This is the manga version of the popular light novel series, Spice & Wolf. Every volume is marked as explicit content, but upon flipping through a bit, it looks like that’s just because Holo is frequently naked. Nipples are included in the art, so they have to be more careful about the rating. These volumes were gifts.
Reviews for one through five of the light novel editions are already available, with six coming soon. Manga reviews will get done more slowly depending how frequently I get the books. I’m curious to see the differences.
What is it?
A commerce slow burn romance between a human merchant and a snarky wolf girl.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 2 by Kanehito Yamada, Tsukasa Abe Series Name: Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End Genres: Adventure, Elves, Fantasy, Magic Intended Age Group: Teen Publisher: Viz/Shonen Sunday Edition: Paperback ISBN: 978-1-9747-2723-0 Rating: 4/5 AmazonBarnes&NobleRightStufThriftBooks
Description from the Book
Elf Mage Frieren and her courageous fellow adventurers have defeated the Demon King and brought peace to the land. But Frieren will long outlive the rest of her former party. How will she come to understand what life means to the people around her?
At Eisen’s urging, Frieren and her apprentice Fern head north seeking the land where heroes souls are said to rest, which also happens to be the location of the Demon King’s castle. Along the way, they meet Eisen’s apprentice, whose fighting skills may come in handy – though the Demon King is long gone, his surviving minions have unfinished business with Frieren!
Personal & Info
I forgot I already bought this. Well, I guess that means I can read it sooner than I expected. At the time I am typing this, I already have volume three, so it will follow soon. Anything after three is going to take a little while to get and review. I don’t know when, but I’ll review them quickly once I obtain them.
I highly recommend this series for anyone who likes elves or D&D or fantasy. It’s so good it might even be one of my new favorites.
Characters
Frieren is an elf mage famous for defeating the demon king with her companions around 80 years ago. She’s a bit of a slob and rather lazy. Her hobby is collecting any and all types of magic spells, no matter how useless they may seem.
Fern is Frieren’s mage companion and apprentice. She seems to take a motherly role in caring for Frieren.
Stark is Eisen’s apprentice. He is a powerful warrior whose never seen any actual combat.
Story & Thoughts
Frieren recruits another traveling companion in this volume. Eisen has an apprentice who has run out on him. His name is Stark, and while he has great skill, he lacks confidence. A warrior will be a helpful addition to the group.
The story is gaining more traction as Frieren sets out to complete a goal. She is heading to Ende in search of Aureole, so she may speak with her dead friend Himmel. It takes approximately ten years to reach Ende, and with Frieren’s leisurely pace, it could take far longer than that.
Things get more intense toward the end of the volume. A town is dealing with demons, and in imminent peril, because they are not as aware of demon nature as Frieren. Apparently her reputation is well known among demons.
I love how Stark and Fern interact. Their conversation while clearing the landslide cracks me up.
The art is beautiful. I never tire of looking at it. There’s just something about the style that makes it cute, but also serious, and the backgrounds are always so detailed.
The elf perspective is still done great. Frieren is ready to wait possibly more than three years for permission to pass through a gate, but her comrades are having none of that. We also get a vague idea of how long Frieren will live. Ten years is apparently less than one one-hundredth of her life. It’s mind boggling to think about.
