Sword Art Online 4: Fairy Dance

Sword Art Online #4

by Reki Kawahara, abec (Illustrator)

Read the novel that ignited the phenomenon!

Kirito plunges into a suspicious new VRMMORPG called ALfheim Online to rescue Asuna, who never returned from Sword Art Online. ALO offers many features to entertain players in the wake of ultra-high-end graphics, action-heavy gameplay, a choice of fairy races, and a next-generation flight engine. Playing as a spriggan, Kirito heads for the location of Asuna's prison--the top of the World Tree, the final destination of every player in the game! Along the way, Kirito nearly falls to a plot hatched by the enemy salamanders, just barely surviving the ordeal with the help of a sylph named Leafa and his Navigation Pixie, Yui. But just as Kirito and Leafa make it to the foot of the World Tree, the end of their quest in sight, each realizes the other has a very big secret...

Genres: Light Novel, Fantasy, Manga, Science Fiction, Fiction, Young Adult, Romance

196 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 10, 2010

About the author

Kawahara Reki (川原礫) is the writer of Sword Art Online and Accel World. He also uses the pen name Kunori Fumio. His hobby is cycling.

Reviews

[Sean O'Hara · Rating 3 out of 5]

On the whole this is a fun fast paced read, but it suffers from the same problem as the previous volume -- Asuna is reduced to the status of Princess Peach waiting for Mario to rescue her from King Koopa -- who again tries to get all rapey with her. She does manage to escape once, but she's of course recaptured since we can't have a female protagonist saving herself.



That would just be lame. I mean, the damsel-in-distress trope has been with us for thousands of years. Why change a good thing? And just to make sure Asuna learns her lesson about being a strong feminist figure, she's threatened with an extra helping of rapeyness with added tentacles.

Reki, Reki, Reki.

How can you take a kick ass character and reduce her to this? Yeah, she does manage to contribute to her escape in one important way, but ultimately she has to rely on her boyfriend to save the day. Lame.

At least the other female character in the book gets to kick some major ass. Sugouha FTW. If only Lizbet and Silica had had a chance to get in on the action, it would've been awesome enough to make up for Asuna's depowering.

Hopefully the GGO arc is better.

[Sushi (寿司) · Rating 5 out of 5]

The soul travels. From world to world. From this life to the next.
And it seeks others. Call out.
Long ago, in a big castle floating in the clouds, a boy who dreamed of being a warrior and a girl who loved to cook met and fell in love. Those two are gone, but after a long, long journey, their hearts met again.

[Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Continues exactly where last book left off - Kirito's NewGame+ speedrun to reach the 'prize' Fairy Queen locked in her golden cage

This story just isn't as good. Where Aincrad held weight and urgency (while using tropes wisely), Alfheim boils down to "sup hero, do a sorta-timed rescue quest" (while Asuna was reduced to the resident damsel-in-distress NPC)

Too much little sister crush trope (drowning full pages with her mushy~ness... seriously. Sugu-chan, we need to have a serious talk on what '1st cousins' & "onii-chan, daaaisuki" means), failed attempts at a love triangle, some more pages of ALO info~dumps that aren't of much use, and lets not forget the downright prelude-to-hentai that most ALL of Asuna scenes seem to be *shudder* nobody needed that.. with the tentacles.. and the. thing.. nope nope nope nope noooooooope

Continuing with my Valve-inspired comparisons from last review, the novel ends with a concept of "World Seed" - a mod-making development kit anyone can use "Perpetual Testing Initiative" & "Source Filmmaker" "Source SDK" which promises interesting sequels

[Wiktoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This completes the first anime story line. Great read for an SAO fan.

[Séverine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kazuto Kirigaya se réveille à l'hôpital, après avoir passé deux ans dans le VRMMO Sword Art Online sous le pseudo Kirito. Deux mois plus tard, il est toujours à l'hôpital, mais plus qu'en simple visiteur. En effet, il rend visite quotidiennement à Asuna, toujours endormie, accrochée à son Nerve Gear. Kazuto est désespéré et ne sait quoi faire pour sauver la fille qu'il aime. Mais l'espoir revient quand Agil, un ancien joueur de SAO lui parle de ALfheim Online, un nouveau VRMMO qui fait fureur, er où l'on a pu apercevoir une jeune fille enfermée dans une cage qui ressemble étrangement à Asuna. Le jeune homme va donc se lancer dans ce jeu pour sauver celle qu'il aime...

Fairy Dance est la suite de Aincrad, le premier tome de cette saga. Comme le précédent, ce livre regroupe deux tomes de la version japonaise, mais cette fois-ci le récit n'est absolument pas décousu, on garde une certaine continuité jusqu'au bout. Autre nouveauté, nous ne suivons plus uniquement le point de vue de Kazuto, mais également celui de sa sœur, Suguha et pendant quelques instants, celui de Asuna. Notre personnage principal n'est pas seul, et cela permet d'avoir un point de vue extérieur sur la situation qui n'est pas désagréable. 

Je n'étais sûr d'être envie qu'au beau milieu de la mort.
- Kirito

 

Nous avons donc affaire ici à un nouveau jeu. Exit Sword Art Online et sa politique meurtrière, bonjour à ALfheim Online. Un nouvel univers, de nouvelles règles, de nouvelles compétences à apprendre, avec ici la magie qui n'avait pas voix au chapitre dans le premier tome. Dans ALO, les joueurs incarnent des fées et par conséquent réalisent le rêve des hommes : voler. C'est un jeu où le Player Killer est fortement encouragé, et dont le but est d'atteindre le sommet de l'Arbre Monde, une quête qui s'avère bien plus difficile que d'atteindre la dernier étage de l'Aincrad. Je reste tout de même assez surprise que ALO ai marché, commercialement parlant, alors qu'il est sorti quelques temps après la capture des joueurs dans SAO. On aurait pu croire que les gens seraient vaccinés, mais bon ! Bienvenue dans ALfheim Online, un jeu dans lequel on ne peut mourir définitivement, mais qui cache une réalité terrifiante...

On alterne dans ce deuxième tome entre des phases in game et IRL, puisque l'on peut sortir du jeu normalement. On va donc voir Kazuto évoluer dans la vie réelle, aux côtés de sa sœur Suguha, qui pratique le kendo. Le jeune homme va devoir réapprendre à vivre dans un monde sans épées dans le dos, plus de compétences spéciales, reprendre l'école, reprendre tout simplement le cours de sa vie, même si Asuna occupe toutes ses pensées. Son retour à la réalité peut-il être complet sans le retour de l’Éclair Fulgurant ?

En bref, Fairy Dance est une bonne suite pour Sword Art Online. Un nouvel ennemi, un nouveau jeu, de nouveaux personnages, tous les ingrédients sont là pour revivre une aventure aux côtés de Kirito, sans le côté mortel dans la balance. On apprécie la continuité, et que ce tome ne soit pas décousu comme le précédent, permettant de mieux apprécier cette nouvelle lecture.

[WorkingYoungAdult · Rating 1 out of 5]

No.
What happened? I used to devour the first book, and now struggling to finish this. Fourth book in the series, four girls "fall in love" with Kirito. Seriously this book pushed me to my limits, the story got dragged on and on with pointless romance. Yaaaa, this guy is so cool, I love him to the moon and back after spending less than a day with him. Yaaaaa, he's my cousin-not-brother, so it's totally OK to love him despite living in the fuging same house forever. I'm tired, SAO 4 has lost all of it's charm that I love in the first one, and replace them with cheesy teenage love story, witch makes up half of it. Suguha, I don't like you, but I don't think it's your fault. Kawahara wasted a character full of potential for the sake of over used sister/brother romance context (and some harem shit). It's the definition of Japanese M/A, the bad one.

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

Were Reki Kawahara a better author, this would have been a better book. Simplistic, I know, but that's the main issue here - Fairy Dance is just unable to rise above its problems, such as overwritten description, far too many girls falling for Kirito, and a villain so malicious and overdrawn as to be ridiculous. The concept is still as fun as when Vivian Vande Velde used it in the late 1990s, and the book is enjoyable to a point, but I can't help thinking that in more skilled hands, it would have been much better.

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can these really just be getting better and better?! I LOVED this volume of the SAO light novel series! It was really cool being able to experience a couple of new scenes that don't show up in the anime. I love getting extra little details on things and this book definitely delivered on that front. I can't wait to read the next one!

[Khari · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yay! All's well, that ends well.

Hmmm. Not the greatest book ever. But entertaining. I enjoyed it.

There was one thing I quite liked about the book and one thing I quite disliked. I quite disliked Suguha falling in love with Kazuto. It's weird. Maybe it's something about the Japanese culture and it's view of blood ties as all-important, but it's just weird that someone who was raised in the same house from birth, basically, would fall in love with their brother. He is her brother, just because he's adopted doesn't mean that he's not her brother. It's weird to fall in love with your brother. And the book acknowledges that it's weird, but never really deals with it. They just cry and mutually apologize and poof problem disappears and they are friends forever. I don't like that, I think the issue of incest is far too serious to just be treated as a backdrop of a novel. It's a serious topic and should be dealt with seriously not cavalierly. Did not like that. I do not approve.

On the other hand the aspect that I quite liked was the exploration of the question, what constitutes reality? Are the emotions that we feel in a game real? It's an interesting question. One that I fall hard on the side of 'Of course they are real! How could you possibly doubt they were real?' I mean, come on, I practically live in a world of fiction, I've fallen in and out of love hundreds of times. I've been sorely disappointed that the people I came to know in a book weren't real. I've learned a lot from fiction. I've cried, I've laughed, I've been sent into a deep dark depression because of books I've read, and I've been lifted out of depression. It doesn't matter that those characters don't actually exist, we have an amazing imagination and in a sense we create the characters that we interact with. It's one of the most amazing parts of being human, the fact that we can imagine other worlds and live in them and through them. I don't see the difference between fiction and non-fiction in this area. I can be moved by the true story of a person who actually underwent some trial, and I can be moved by the fictional story of a person undergoing an imagined trial. The effect on the true person and on the world is far different of course, but the effect on me is not necessarily different.

Anyway, it was an interesting thought intertwined with the story.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

And so the arc comes to a close.

Reki Kawahara does a tremendous job with characterization and tension. He does a tremendous job holding you and investing you in every moment of the story.

With this book now finished we say goodbye to the sword art online saga. And what a journey it has been.

Magnificent characters and a superb plot kept me hooked from beginning to end.

The attention to detail is great as well. Stories never just feel like stories. The characters here are constantly learning and pulling from their past to conquer their future.

With this tale now at its end I look forward to what is next!

[Stephany · Rating 4 out of 5]

War definitiv wieder besser als Band 3. Zwar immer noch ein Großteil in Suguhas/Leafas Sicht geschrieben aber auch wieder große Teile aus der Ich-Perspektive unseres wahren Protagonisten. Und spätestens ab der Hälfte war es super spannend und hörte auch nicht auf. Deshalb musste ich die zweite Hälfte jetzt auch in einem Rutsch durchlesen.... Ups.....

[Stephanie Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with the last two SAO books, I knew what to expect with this volume. However, it was nice to get in the heads of the characters. I don't know what else to say except that if you're an SAO fan, you should have read, or plan to read, these books.

[Moonlight · Rating 4 out of 5]

También me costo, pero él Kiriasu me motivo

[Les Chroniques Aléatoires · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quel plaisir que de me replonger dans SAO ! Alors que Kirito a fini le jeu, qu’une ère s’achève, le cauchemar est loin d’être fini; En effet, plusieurs joueurs dont Asuna ne se sont pas réveiller pour des raisons inconnus et de fil en aiguille, Kirito se retrouve dans un nouveau jeu et de nouvelles aventures pour sauver sa belle. On reprend presque les mêmes et on est repartis, mais dans un nouvel univers incroyable et fantastique, sans oublier de nouveaux personnages pour pimenter le tout. Si vous avez aimer SAO, découvrez l’incroyable ALO.

Kirito est donc toujours le personnage principal et le seul à raconter les choses à la première personne (sauf une petite exception mais j’y reviendrais). Il remet le couvert dans le nouveau VRMMO qui fait fureur, ALfheim Online ou autrement dit ALO. Notre taciturne adoré va faire de nouvelles rencontres dans ce monde de fées inspiré des mythes nordiques et avec l’aide de Yui, plus mignonne que jamais. Epéiste hors pair à la ténacité inégalée, il se donne pour mission de rejoindre l’Arbre-Monde et sauver Asuna. Même si on retrouve rapidement nos repaires avec lui, il est agréable de voir qu’il a murit et qu’il s’ouvre plus facilement.

La première personne que Kirito va rencontrer est la belle blonde Sylphide du nom de Leafa qui n’est autre que sa petite sœur Suguha dans le monde réel. Durant leur quête, ils vont se rapprocher tout en ignorant leurs identités respectives. Suguha/Leafa est un tout nouveau genre de personnage, une héroïne inédite jusqu’à présent. Deux personnalités qui sont les deux faces d’une même pièce : Suguha est garçon manqué et timide, pendant que Leafa est plantureuse et extravertie. On peut dire que par instant il en va de même pour Recon, le compère de la demoiselle.

Asuna est la seconde héroïne de l’histoire, même si elle a un rôle de support et de raison de l’aventure dans laquelle se lance le jeune homme. Grâce à elle, on a certaines informations sur les coulisses du jeu et de son « enlèvement ». On a aussi la confirmation qu’elle est à la fois une jeune femme douce, intelligente et forte à la fois. Ses face à face malsains avec Sugo rajoutent une couche de ténèbres et de tristesse sur le couple maudit. D’ailleurs Asuna n’est pas la seule tête connue de SAO puisqu’on voit Agil, Klein, Silica et même Lizbeth (la fameuse narratrice à la première personne qui peut s’expliquer de part sa personnalité franche et entière).

A peine sortit de l’enfer, et déjà Kirito fonce tête baiser dans le suivant. Mais contrairement à SAO où l’on risquait sa vie à tout moment, dans ALO les personnages s’amusent, tentent tout et se créent un alter-ego parfois à 10000 lieu dans leur « moi » du monde réel. Ce concept même du jeu change tout pour le sabreur noir et il va lui falloir un moment pour voir ALO pour ce qu’il est normalement : un jeu ludique. Oui, ludique grâce à la possibilité de voler grâce aux ailes de fées. On est clairement dans deux univers différents, ce qui augmente le gouffre entre SAO et ALO.

Toujours est-il que ce nouveau monde est tout aussi complexe et bien construit que le précédent. Je tire mon chapeau à l’auteur qui a une imagination incroyable. De plus, les différentes illustration, ainsi que la carte du jeu, nous permet de totalement nous plonger dans l’histoire. Le livre, ou plutôt l’anime suit parfaitement le roman et du coup on a pas beaucoup de surprises ce qui dommage. Mais une fois de plus, on se retrouve avec un véritable bijou entre les mains, malgré quelques coquilles qui sont passées entre les mailles du filet de l’éditeur. Une belle aventure et un nouvel arc qui prennent fin, mais que peut bien nous réserver la suite ?

[Cat Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inhalt:
Kirito und das Sylphen-Mädchen Leafa sind auf dem Weg zum Weltenbaum, um Kiritos Freundin Asuna aus den schmutzigenen Händen von König Oberon zu befreien. Dabei stellen sich ihnen zahlreiche mächtige Monster und Spieler in den Weg, sodass die beiden an ihre Grenzen stoßen müssen, um sich einen Weg zu bahnen. Und auch im Reallife läuft nicht alles so, wie es soll. Während Kazuto in Gedanken stets bei Asuna ist, droht seine Schwester Suguha auf sehr schmerzhafte Art und Weise ihr Herz zu verlieren.

Fazit:
Und schon geht es weiter mit dem vierten Band der „Sword Art Online“-Reihe von Reki Kawahara. Dieser umfasst den zweiten Teil des Fairy Dance-Arcs, der hauptsächlich in ALfheim Online spielt.
Direkt zu Beginn geht es sehr actionreich los, denn Kirito und Leafa hat es mehr oder weniger freiwillig nach Jötunheimr verschlagen, einer brandgefährlichen Eislandschaft voller starker Gottheiten, für die es weitaus mehr als zwei Spieler bedarf, um diese zu besiegen. Die Situation scheint ausweglos, doch es wäre nicht die SAO-Reihe, wenn Kirito und Leafa nicht auf spektakuläre Art und Weise jeder Gefahr trotzen würden. Fans des Animes werden auf jeden Fall ihre Freude damit haben, denn endlich erfährt man, was es mit Tonky aus dem Calibur-Arc auf sich hat.
Auch werden in der Romanvorlage einige Zusammenhänge klarer und wie immer auch für doofe Menschen wie mich verständlich erklärt, ohne ausschweifend oder gar zu technisch zu wirken.
Die Harmonie zwischen Kirito und Leafa ist sehr erfrischend, das Zusammenspiel zwischen ihm und Yui einfach bezaubernd. Ich denke, Reki Kawahara kann definitiv nicht abstreiten, selbst ein kleiner Yui-Fanatiker zu sein 😉
Ich kann mir durchaus vorstellen, dass Suguhas Gefühlschaos so manchem übel aufstoßen wird – auch ich habe mit der Thematik so meine Probleme. Allerdings hat mich das in „Fairy Dance“ überhaupt nicht gestört, da die Fronten zumindest einseitig sehr eindeutig geklärt sind.
Mit jedem weiteren Band von „Sword Art Online“ wird mir immer mehr bewusst, was für ein großartiger Autor Reki Kawahara vor allem im Bezug auf Character-Building ist. Ausnahmslos jeder Charakter ist mir wichtig geworden, es gibt keinen, den ich nicht sofort ins Herz geschlossen habe. Man mag diejenigem, die man mögen soll und man hasst diejenigen, die man hassen soll. Das hat Reki Kawahara recht simpel konstruiert und doch verfügt nicht jeder über dieses Talent. Dass ich Kirito bereits von der ersten Seite an verfallen bitte, dürfte keine Überraschung sein – welche Frau mag ihn nicht? 😛
Ich möchte außerdem noch einmal abecs wundervolle, liebevoll umgesetzte Illustrationen hervorheben, die dem Buch wieder sehr viel Leben eingehaucht haben. Die Art, wie er die Emotionen in seine Bilder verpackt, ist einfach grandios! Außerdem liebe ich das Cover des Buches abgöttisch ♥
Reki Kawahara schafft es mit dem vierten Band „Sword Art Online – Fairy Dance“ erneut, die Qualität konstant hoch zu halten. Es wird nie langweilig und ich habe das Buch innerhalb von zwei Tagen regelrecht verschlungen – weiter so! 🙂

[Abby Ang · Rating 2 out of 5]

the magnetism of our souls was so strong it was practically visible, sparkling with light in the space that separated us

my deep unending love had turned that familiar image into one beaming with sublime radiance

the prose is KILLING ME

[Melisande · Rating 4 out of 5]

http://accrocdeslivres.blogspot.fr/20...

[DarkChaplain · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I said about volume 3 still holds true for volume 4; the author fundamentally misunderstands and misrepresents the way video games, the vg industry, and hardware production work. In parts, it becomes even clearer here, where admin privileges and secret virtual backrooms become very important to the plot. It just doesn't work like this, Tim.

Another thing that still holds true, however, is that I very much enjoyed the main duo's relationship, the snark and banter, as well as the eventual heartbreak. It drove the story more than the damsel-rescue core scenario. It propelled Suguha into the position of one of the better-written characters in the series. There's some actual depth here - something that Asuna, the main heroine and damsel of the two-volume arc, still lacks so desperately.

On the flipside, Suguha's presentation here actively harmed Asuna's rescue, or the efforts towards it, by clearly outshining Asuna as a love interest for Kirito. There is very little justification for his feelings, both of love and fury towards the villain, within the story itself. It's all based on volume one, maybe a few tidbits of volume two, although that one also highlighted alternative heroines rather than Asuna. To my mind, Kirito is obsessed to an unhealthy degree more out of shared trauma and idealization than because of the character of Asuna herself.

...but this is understandable in context of the story.
What isn't would be Asuna's utter devotion and faith in Kirito coming to rescue her - of course, that's also what she has to cling to, to keep herself sane in her captivity. It becomes problematic when she simply doesn't act for most of the two-volume arc, leaving everything to him instead. There's no true struggle on her part; while she does make a break for it, it is lacking the more spirited character she exhibited back in volume 1. This becomes extremely jarring when the more controversial scenes featuring the villain happen later into the story.

In other words: She is frustratingly passive throughout this arc. So much so that it becomes rather clear that Kawahara just didn't know what to do with her, and that he had more fun writing Leafa/Suguha than Asuna this time around, and did not wish to compromise on the adventure side.

A second jarring thing for me was the level of violence towards the end - it felt very over the top for the story up to this point. It makes sense in context, looking at the characters' state of mind, but it almost felt like a different story altogether for a bit.

If I had to call the two-book arc one word, it would be "uneven". There are clear balancing problems between Kirito's side and Asuna's, between Suguha/Leafa and Asuna, between the villain and realism, and journey and destination.

There are a lot of weird aspects about Fairy Dance, but to my surprise, I found the journey to be an enjoyable one, with a few nitpicks.
It is the reward, the carrot on the stick, the outcome, that I find most disappointing - because this arc in particular gave me very little reason to consider Asuna to be worth all this trouble, the protagonist's obsession, by itself. Without the context of the first Aincrad novel, and the Yui story from the second, I would not give a damn about her, and see her only as a weak, overly devoted damsel in a golden cage, eternally waiting for her savior.

...thankfully, the lack of focus on Asuna also proves the book's greatest strength, because it allows for more meaningful development of Suguha, her relationship with Kirito, and the emotional turmoil & trauma she goes through. There's some genuinely interesting stuff in here, some heartfelt moments that were nailed rather well.
But at the end of the day, it feels like one character did all the heavy lifting in Fairy Dance, while another reaped the rewards. That's a pity.

[Glasdow Teacosy · Rating 4 out of 5]

After finishing this book, I feel confident in reading the rest of this series. This was my least favorite storyline in the anime because it was so creepy. Not only was there a subplot featuring a struggle with incestuous feelings, but the soft hentai scenes were distasteful. I also thought that Asuna was reduced to a damsel in distress, which was a crying shame since she was my favorite character in the first series due to her phenomenal strength, courage, and heroism.

However, the book was in many ways a different experience than the anime. With two books crunched down to fourteen-ish 24-minute episodes, there was a lot left out.

I don’t feel like I can do this book justice, however. The fan translation was rough. I simply did not enjoy it, so I plunked down the money and bought the platinum edition box set. I’m going to re-read the entire series from the beginning with a professional translation.

I can say this for now. The incestuous plot line was handled with far more nuance and delicacy in the book than the anime. It was nowhere near as creepy, it felt properly resolved, and addressed interesting online issues of falling in love with an avatar without knowing who the other person truly is. The same goes for the abuse scenes. Although I didn’t like Asuna as a victim, she was far more courageous and fierce in the book then she was in the anime. The abuse scenes featuring her were moments of inappropriate touching in the book, but they were downright rapey in the anime. Reki relies on sexual exploitation to define villains—something regarded these days as a bad trope. Since he doesn’t do the same to his male characters, I do question it as a cheap ploy for character development.

I will withhold reviewing further until I read a proper translation. Overall, the book was good and resolved well. Seek out the Yen press edition.

[emily_oriley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, super quick read. I mean, the story just continuously flows so before you know it, you’re a hundred pages in.

Okay, so piggybacking off my review of volume one, this one did a better job with balancing the narrative so you get roughly the same amount of Lyfa, and Kirito’s POV so already that was a plus. And like I said before, this story is fairly action-packed which is why it seems to go by super fast.

My problem with this arc (this goes for the anime too) is the stakes just aren’t that high. If Kirito dies in ALO, he just has to start back at an inn and go back and try again. There is a sense of urgency, but no true element of danger like in the Aincrad arc. Plus a lot of that urgency is lost because the majority of the story is told from Lyfa’s perspective. Which again I understand why it’s done that way and I agree having 90% of the dialogue being Lyfa explaining what everything is to Kirito would just get tedious, it does take something away from the core story. Plus, I’m sorry, but I got over Lyfa’s emotional turmoil mighty quick so the numerous pages devoted to that were just bothersome.

Overall, I was worried about being bored reading this arc since I didn’t enjoy the anime version but I actually really liked these books. Like I said, the second one flows a lot better than the first but this is a continual story so unless you read both volumes you will not get the full story. Especially since volume too begins with chapter five.

[Tuna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Personally the romance between Kazuto and Suguha is a bit more interesting than with Asuna and this volume shows. While Kawahara does his best to write romance between Kazuto and Asuna, it continually feels as if there is something missing there as if the romance is forced due to circumstances versus everyone else felt like some type of natural progression, like think back to a previous volume with Lisbeth getting feelings during their journey, Silica as well, or now, Leafa on her journey through ALO to get to the world tree. I think this excellent and interesting writing between Leafa and Kirito made for a powerful and emotional concluding volume for Fairy Dance. The explosion of emotions, tears, and how they handled it left me teary eyed and hopeful. I can only hope upon Kirito’s return to real life that maybe everyone will have an equal chance to get with him…Klein included, lol.

Action wise, this was a great volume. I enjoyed the straightforward journey from the wilderness to the world tree and then some. Asuna’s point of view providing whats on the other side of the world tree was also compelling. Some parts were weak for example the moments in the real world containing the second part of the climax, but it was serviceable.

Overall Fairy Dance will probably be my favorite arc thus far of Sword Art Online due to straightforward storytelling and compelling emotional delivery.

[Payton Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Closing up the “Fairy Dance” arc I have to say that I really enjoyed it. The anime does a HUGE disservice to it. It leaves out tons of foreshadowing (the discovery of Excalibur + Tonky, Akihiko Kayaba’s assistant Rinko). Don’t get me wrong, I still like the anime and it will always have a special place in my heart, but the books are really great. The character’s internal monologue and Kirito’s specifically is just fantastic. We get to see inside his thoughts and the reasons for what he does. The dichotomy between the real world and virtual and how that affects someone like Kazuto is handled very well. And of course, the ultimate reunion between Asuna and Kazuto is very well earned. It has been a struggle and it feels so worth it. Plus, it’s kind of nice just to see characters hanging out at the end and finally get resolution. After all, the first book ended on a cliffhanger, the second added some more stories, and this whole arc is, as the author himself admits, and long epilogue. Still though, I really loved this volume. Here’s to the next arc Phantom Bullet! I remember loving this in the anime so I’m excited!

[Jacob · Rating 4 out of 5]

God, I've let my Goodreads go to pot over the last month. I just finished Sword Art Online v.6 and find I haven't even reviewed volumes 4 and 5. What happened in v.4? Damned if I know.

NO, wait, I do. This is the second half of the story started in v.3. You know, Kirito is awake in the real world after his two years in SAO, but Asuna didn't wake up? Rumor of an avatar that looks like her in some popular fairy MMO crops up, so Kirito checks it out. V.4 picks up midway through his adventure.

I've never liked this arc of the anime much. Luckily it works much better in light novel form. A touch more detailed where it matters, but quicker with advancing the plot. The ending, especially, lacks the flash of its anime adaptation, but is more logically satisfying. (Still a touch deus ex machina-y, although the illogical quotient does go down smoother in written form.)

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Fairy Dance arc of SAO was never really my favorite in the anime. Too much little-sister-crush trope in the arc which made Suguha's chapters difficult to slug through. Asuna goes from awesome kick-butt heroine in SAO's first novels to the damsel in distress (although she does have moments of defiance). But, those elements aside, I still can't help but enjoy this series.

Kirito continues to be our overpowered hero, both in-game and in real life. Kirito and Leafa finally realize who they are in real life which makes for some awkward dramatic moments. The end has a sense of finality to it, a true ending to the beginning arc like the last two books were just a long epilogue (the author admits as much in the afterword). I go forward in this series with the understanding that probably no further books will be on the same level for me as the very first, but read on I shall.

[Hibiscus e Livros · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eu li 2/3 bem rápido, mas o finalzinho eu posterguei bastante kkkk estilo “isso aqui não termina nunca”

Achei melhor que o mangá, mas num geral é bem igual. Então eu acho que as cenas que eu DETESTEI (com a Asuna sendo abusada) são bem mais palatáveis lendo apenas com palavras do que com imagens junto.

Porque as ilustrações realmente fazer o ilustrador/mangka parecer um tarado nojento (o que é bem possível que seja mesmo). Também não duvido nada do autor original.

As meninas nesse livro até tem cenas em que são “corajosas”, habilidosas e fortes. Mas não saem do estereótipo chorona e emotiva pra crl. Além da Asuna ser praticamente inútil a história toda.
Pelo menos o herói também da uma chorada no final. Achei bonitinho.

[Conor · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was disappointed with this book. A great many things combined to give me a bad reading experience. I'm not sure whether I should blame the author or the translator for the awful grammar and clunky sentences, but I can certainly blame the author for the failure of consistent characterisation and the rampant, thoughtless sexism. Asuna, a previously powerful and glorious example of a strong female character, is reduced to the role of a damsel in distress, with thoughts for nothing and no-one but her lover. The whole thing read like a shaky first draft. Honestly, the anime is ten times better than the original novels.

[Heather Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this series. This was an amazing wrap up to the story line so far that reaches all the way back into books one and two as well as book three. I loved the anime, and I loved this book even more. This was the one with the most extra in the book compared to what I remember from the anime (though it has been a few years since I watched it, so take that with a grain of salt).
Kirito is still him, but also vulnerable and courageous in new ways too. Suguha's arc is also wonderful in this book. It was a very satisfying wrap up to the story thus far, but doesn't make me any less eager to start on book 5.

[Tri Quach · Rating 4 out of 5]

Một cuốn sách mang tính giải trí cao.
Là một fan của MMO, fantasy, nhất định không được bỏ qua SAO, và tất nhiên đã đọc SAO phải đọc vol 4.
Mình thích cách tác giả mô tả phong cảnh, tâm lý nhân vật (Nhất là Suguha và Kirito) và hơn hết là mô tả thế giới game chăm chút đến nỗi đó là một thế giới thực vậy. Quả thực càng đọc càng muốn chơi MMO.
Hình trong light novel đẹp, giúp mình xem xét lại khả năng tưởng tượng của mình. Nói chung là okie.
Cơ mà ai vừa bỏ game MMO sau khi nghiện mà tâm lý không vững thì không nên đọc nhé ^^.

[Josh Stinnett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Over the course of the two books in Fairy Dance, there were several unexplored aspects of ALO. This by itself is disappointing, but it isn't the point of the story. Kirito is no longer trapped in SAO. A death only means loading from a previous save. The only stake is saving Asuna. In this context, the story is very well done. This truly felt like a conclusion to story that started in volume 1. With this closure, I find it difficult to see how the story will continue, but as we all know it has and I look forward to exploring more.