Reviews

Wandering Witch: The Journey of Elaina, Vol. 1 by Jougi Shiraishi

noway218's review against another edition

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4.0

とっても楽しかった

naleagdeco's review

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4.0

Figured this would be a light kid's book, a bit like Little Witch Academia, but it's more nuanced than that. Not incredibly so, this is still a fairly casual tale, but I did appreciate that it has some dark moments, and that it had some moments centring on people and their emotions, without necessarily crossing the line into incredibly dark material like, say, [b:The Ancient Magus' Bride, Vol. 1|23310828|The Ancient Magus' Bride, Vol. 1 (The Ancient Magus' Bride, #1)|Kore Yamazaki|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1431012310l/23310828._SX50_.jpg|42041493][b:The Ancient Magus' Bride, Vol. 1|23310828|The Ancient Magus' Bride, Vol. 1 (The Ancient Magus' Bride, #1)|Kore Yamazaki|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1431012310l/23310828._SX50_.jpg|42041493], which this seems akin to but far less disturbing.

So far, this is the travelling stories of a young talented witch. There is no overarching story of global importance, or even a great character arc, as far as this volume is concerned.

The volume is four short stories, establishing the main character's talent, that this she has some emotional depth, and that this world can be a dangerous place. The world seems fairly straightforwardly medieval in that way that lighthearted manga fantasy tends to be, although the second volume, in that we learn that this world can be incredibly dangerous, will probably stick with me in a good juxtaposition against the relatively optimistic fare that the rest of the book is.

My favourite parts were the points when we learn how dangerous this world can be, as well as the interaction between the witch and her mentor.

michieknee's review

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4.0

As opposed to the more linear narrative of the anime, the Wandering Witch light novels string together like a collection of fairy tales linked by their narrator, Elaina, much like something from the Grimm Brothers or Hans Christian Andersen. While linear does work well for the anime, I quite like how each story flows into the other here as Jougi and/or their editing team do a good job of ordering stories in a way that seems fitting.

I liked getting more into Elaina's head. The first person narrative adds a lot to the stories. I enjoyed the majority of the stories, some recognizable from the anime and some that can only be found here.

anais201717's review

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funny lighthearted relaxing slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.25

myusika's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A

3.75

zonnikku's review

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3.0

I can really see the inspiration from Kino's Journey with this title. However, I don't think it's quite as good. I noticed it was really lacking in depth and detail in the story and the stories end very briefly with the exception of maybe one or two having a bit more depth to them. It was still a comfortable read and it went by very quickly.

homebodywitch's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted relaxing slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

kokoro's review against another edition

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5.0

Editado 29-09-2022: Una palabra.

Llegue si tener mucha idea de que va esta LN y verdaderamente ha sido un viaje leyendo las 14 historias que conforman este primer volumen.

Me recuerda a Kino no tabi, ambas series tienes similitudes, pero creo, en lo poco que recuerdo tras leer aquella LN, de que prefiero a Kino que a Elaina.

Una cosa que se debo decir es no se dejen engañar por la portada, si, el diseño de personaje y algo de fondo es cute, pero ni ella ni buena parte de las historias lo son. Confieso fui a Amazon.JP para sacar el subtitulo del volumen y vi una reseña con una estrella, dicho usuario comentaba que se sentía decepcionado por que Elaina a pesar de ser cute no es moe y varias historias tampoco son moe, conforme iba leyendo estoy de acuerdo con dicho usuario y tuve algunos problemas para calificar la LN por ello.

La personalidad de Elaina no es del todo agradable, puede que incluso no caiga bien dependiendo de la historia, trata de no involucrarse demasiado con la vida o problemas de los demás y a pesar de que supongo podría ayudar con su magia no lo hace, y tiene la manía pues la LN es narrada en primera persona de hacer como si fuese otro narrando, ejemplo, esa hermosa joven que va por ahí en una escoba, si muchos le vieran se preguntarían embelesados quien seria esa doncella. Ah si, ella soy yo. OK, la primera vez esta bien, pero las siguientes cansa.

Las historias tienen diferente digamos género, y por lo general intentan, o por lo menos eso creo, dar una enseñanza y por lo general no son muy de final feliz.

01 The country of mages: Elaina pierde su broche que le acredita como bruja, mientras lo busca intenta ayudar a una principiante en magia.

02 A girl sweet as flowers: La primera gran sorpresa de esta LN, solo diré que es creepy y una de mis favoritas.

03 On the road: The tale of a muscleman searching for his sister: Elaina encuentra en el camino a un hombre musculoso que desea rescatar a su hermana secuestrada o se supone esa es su intención.

04 Fund-raising: Nuevamente una historia un poco detectivesca junto con más escenas mostrando parte de la personalidad no moe de la prota.

05 On the road: The tale of two men who couldn't settle a contest: Elaina debe decidir una disputa entre hermanos.

06 Bottled happiness: Otra sorpresita que nos da esta LN, en lo personal me enojé con Eliana al final.

07 Before the match begis: La ciudad se divide en dos secciones, con costumbres orientales una y occidentales otra.

08 On the road: The tale of two men who fought over a girl: Alguien dijo personajes desagradables?

09: Apprentice witch Elaina: Conocemos parte del pasado de la protagonista.

10: A gentle death slowly approaches: Otra gran sorpresa en esta LN, no quiero decir nada por si alguien se anima a leer la LN pero ufff. Esta historia es mi otra favorita.

11: The country that persecutes ugliness: Nuevamente una ciudad dividida en dos pero en esta ocasión, una parte la habitan personas guapas en tanto en la otra personas feas, claro que esto es relativo a quien preguntes.

12: The queen of an empty country: Otra historia no muy feliz que digamos.

13: The start of a journey: Conocemos el motivo por el cual Elaina esta viajando.

14: Royal Celestelia: Y para finalizar una historia digamos normal.

En resumen si buscas una historia con una protagonista linda tanto física como personalidad junto
con historias tipo cómicas, con fanservice, harem romance o algo así, esta no es tu LN. Si por el contrario buscas algo más tras leer Kino no tabi o una protagonista linda físicamente pero que por lo general se mueve por el “primero yo”, con historias cortas que no siempre son alegres, que pueden ser deprimentes llegando a lo tenebroso, esta es tu serie.

“The things we think we do for the sake of others are not always what’s best for them." Elaina.

08151991j's review

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4.0

I love how the character Elaina transform through each of her traveling adventures. She meets new people and does the best she could to help others with personal dilemmas.
The book is filled with short storys of Elaina's travels. I look forward to reading another. There are graphics on several pages. The descriptions are straightforward allowing readers the freedom to picture what happens. Overall it was very entertaining, however it could use a bit more action, and obstacles that prevent Elaina from going forward in her travels.

grimmarchive's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted relaxing slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0