A Certain Magical Index, Vol. 1 - light novel

I actually started reading this series when it was still labeled as a legal translation in the website Baka-Tsuki. Using that as a comparison (though by no means am I denoting that one is better than the other), I have several opinions: 1. It might be an effect of reading Baka-Tsuki translations, but I find myself liking it more when the characters have their name kept in Japanese format (i.e Kamijou Touma or Misaka Mikoto). Reading 'Touma Kamijou' or 'Mikoto Misaka' still needs a bit of adaptation on my part, but thankfully, it doesn't affect the story-reading all that much. 2. The YenPress translators have done a wonderful job. In and of itself, nearly all of the terms are cleverly inserted just as how I've read in Baka-Tsuki. I may like the term 'magician' the Baka-Tsuki translators use more than 'sorcerer' the YenPress translators use, but it's really just a matter of preference. I do, however, get confused when I read about the church terminology. Apparently, they wrote 'Russian Catholic Church' and 'Roman Orthodox Church'. My first reaction was, "Eh? Isn't it the other way around?" because I'm pretty sure the correct terms are 'Russian Orthodox Church' and 'Roman Catholic Church'. Then again, I'm not that knowledgeable about that kind of stuff. All in all, the translation's really the only thing I have minor (or rather, microscopic) issues with. The story's a great mesh between sci-fi and magic, and the author, Kamachi Kazuma, is really brilliant in his way to write the story in a detailed yet concise manner. I honestly thought I was reading a really interesting scientific paper the first time I started reading the series. Great story! A must have in your collection!

Absolutely fantastic series about Magic and Religion versus Hard Science. Enemies can become friends, and friends can become enemies. The characters are dynamic, their feelings fleshed out sufficiently in the shirt book. I've been a long time fan of the series and happy to see it translated to English. The first light novel does a good job at telling a story, without revealing too much that is to come. It's slow at first, but picks up and shows the main character, Touma Kamijou, struggling to do what he determines to be right. The characters has not been fleshed out fully, since its only the first light novel. Much more background is added to the characters in the later iterations of this series, making them truly feel unique. The main heroine of the series, Index, can be frustrating at times. Her personality isn't the most likable at times when she's being childish, but at other times, she really shines. She's is a child with a huge burden on her shoulders, while still helping everyone she can. Definitely a must read if you like science, magic, and religion. I hope to see the whole series translated.

I really enjoyed this book. I am really looking forward to volume two. I have watched the anime, I didn't care much for season one, but I really enjoyed season two. This book has a fully realized setting, and it is very well described. The characters are also well described. Their really isn't any character development in the book, but that could happen in future volumes. The only thing that really develops was Touma and Index's relationship. Something really cool about the story is the difference between magic and science. This volume sets up tension between magic and science for future volumes. Most importantly this book entertained me. It was a quick read, I finished it in a couple of days. It is also an easy read. The writing flows smoothly, and in other translated novels that I have read their are times when their are passages that are awkwardly read, but I didn't come across any. I recommend this to people who liked the anime, or are looking for a quick entertaining read.

I bought: Series: A Certain Magical Index (Book 1) Paperback: 224 pages Publisher: Yen On (November 18, 2014) Language: English ISBN-10: 0316339121 ISBN-13: 978-0316339124 which is the light novel NOT Series: A Certain Magical Index (manga) (Book 1) Paperback: 176 pages Publisher: Yen Press (May 19, 2015) Language: English ISBN-10: 0316302228 ISBN-13: 978-0316302227 which is the manga. the ISBN numbers are different, and so are the publish dates--if you are ever confused with buying other yen press stuff; go to their website, find the book, and look at its ISBN or publish date--publish date doesn't always work, as some of the manga come out in the same month as the novels, so id double check. Interestingly enough, the index novels and manga are very defined, and one normally wouldnt get them confusted; but other yen press manga and novels do have that problem. like spice and wolf. Im not the biggest fan of this series, as i'm a mega railgun and accelerator fan, i'm just waiting for book 3 to come out; so i can read my favorite ark! I watched the anime first--so i know what is going to happen; the only difference between the novel and the anime is that in the novel we get more technobabble and insight into what the characters are thinking, This is a science fiction/fantasy book; the only reason im not the biggest fan is that i find Index annoying--others disagree--and i'm not the biggest science fiction fan. if you haven't watched the anime or read the manga, this is a great buy! i would also recommend to to those that DID watch the show, as the insight into the characters and more infor on the world was enlightening--While watching the show i didnt understand how esper abilitys came to be, or why espers couldn't use magic, and why kamijo came to his school teacher, and not anyone else. basically espers are people that academy experimented on; from level zero to level five, basically their brain pathways are different then normal human. I would not recommend this book to people who do not enjoy anime or manga or other light novels; as all anime/manga/light novels present themselves similarly; as a mega otaku who has watched anime for as long as they can remember, i have watch quite a bit of anime, so i get all sorts of culture references that apparently other people don't understand.

If you've seen the anime, you may ask some questions or certain parts may not make sense. This Light Novel explores much deeper into the world of Academy City and it's characters.

Excelente

Ok

I purchased this novel based on the strength of its various animate adaptations. It makes for an amusing way to pass the time, though some of the writer's stylistic conventions are a bit jarring. The protagonist repeatedly refers to himself as the man who could slay even God, which is a phrase perhaps best used sparingly. A number of things feel slightly off as compared to the animated version. The best explanation I can give is that the anime was likely made after a few volumes of the novels were already out, so characterization from future books was carried into previous events. Here at the beginning of the novels characters feel a bit rough, and in novel form a few of the plot holes are a bit more glaring without the visuals to help carry the suspension of disbelief. Still, I enjoyed it and will likely seek out further volumes in the future.

The story of this light novel is great.

I started this series with it's spin off "a certain scientific railgun" anime and manga so i decieded to read the original magical index books and i enjoyed it its more in depth and better than its anime counterpart . I still like the spin off railgun series more

There's a reason this is one of the top selling light novels in Japan, the concepts and ideas the author concocts, or rather takes from other places and arranges them in a unique manner are brilliant, the characters are interesting and mysterious. It blends but also opposes modern scientific technology with magic, implicitly suggesting a false dichotomy between the two by my reading which the author leverages to their advantage. Both of these 'sides' are utilized in causally coherent ways to drive the plot forward. The magic is based of actual real magical societies of history, texts, mythologies, religions, this isn't goofy Harry Potter or something, the scientific side and powers are also based on real scientific models and concepts. There are also mild sexual elements. If that sounds interesting you must check this series out.

Zum Inhalt der Serie werde ich nun nichts schreiben. Einfach weil man sich den Inhalt auf erdenklich vielen Internetseiten (inkl. Amazon!) durchlesen kann. YenPress ist der Verleger der Serie und ich bin sehr positiv überrascht über die gute (englische) Übersetzung. Selber spreche ich kein Japanisch, aber es gibt eine Internetseite die die Bücher schon seit Jahren von Japanisch auf Englisch übersetzt. Ob der Wortlaut 1:1 übereinstimmt kann ich nicht sagen, soviel Zeit wollte ich dann doch nicht investieren. Das Taschenbuch ist gut verarbeitet und etwa DIN-A5 Format. Also bedeutend großformatiger, als ein regulärer Manga. Das Papier ist griffig, dennoch dünn (etwas über 200 Seiten!). Für Unterwegs sollte man deshalb einen Schutzumschlag benutzen! Die Schriftgröße entspricht dem was ungefähr "Arial 10-12" entspricht. Angenehm zu lesen und auch die Bilder der Originalbücher (in den jeweiligen Kapiteln gibt es die ein oder andere illustrierte Szene) sind passend zu den Kapiteln übernommen worden. Gelesen wird diesmal aber nicht von hinten nach vorne, sondern westlich, also von links nach rechts. Sonst kennt man es mittlerweile von vielen Mangas (zum Glück!), dass diese entsprechend "von Hinten" zu gelesen werden. Ich freue mich sehr die Bücher endlich in Papierform lesen zu dürfen. Da ich sowieso noch einmal vor hatte alle Bände zu lesen, ist es umso schöner diese nun als richtiges Buch lesen zu dürfen. Der Preis ist fraglich, aber die Lizenzen für diese "Lightnovels" sind, als Nischenprodukte außerhalb Japans, anscheinend teurer gegenüber Manga Lizenzen. Klare Kaufempfehlung für die Fans der Serie.

tutto ok