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Zaregoto #6
ヒトクイマジカル―殺戮奇術の匂宮兄妹
477 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2003
12 people are currently reading
128 people want to read
About the author
NisiOisiN
288 books967 followersNisio Isin (西尾維新 Nishio Ishin), frequently written as NisiOisiN to emphasize that his pen name is a palindrome, is a Japanese novelist and manga writer. He attended and left Ritsumeikan University without graduating. In 2002, he debuted with the novel Kubikiri Cycle, which earned him the 23rd Mephisto Award at twenty years of age.
He currently works with Kodansha on Pandora, the Kodansha Box magazine, and Faust, a literary magazine containing the works of other young authors who similarly take influence from light novels and otaku culture. He was also publishing a twelve volume series over twelve months for the Kodansha Box line; Ryusui Seiryoin was matching this output, and the Kodansha Box website stated that this is the first time in the world two authors have done twelve volume monthly novel series simultaneously from the same publisher.
In February, 2008, his novel Death Note Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Murder Cases was released in English by Viz Media. Del Rey Manga has already released the first volume in his Zaregoto series. His Bakemonogatari, Nisemonogatari and Katanagatari novels have been adapted into anime series. Nekomonogatari (Kuro) has been adapted into an anime TV movie, and Kizumonogatari will be release in theaters this year. Monogatari Series: Second Season, adapted from 6 books in Monogatari Series will air in July 2013. Another of his works, Medaka Box (manga), has been adapted into a two-season anime series.
He currently works with Kodansha on Pandora, the Kodansha Box magazine, and Faust, a literary magazine containing the works of other young authors who similarly take influence from light novels and otaku culture. He was also publishing a twelve volume series over twelve months for the Kodansha Box line; Ryusui Seiryoin was matching this output, and the Kodansha Box website stated that this is the first time in the world two authors have done twelve volume monthly novel series simultaneously from the same publisher.
In February, 2008, his novel Death Note Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Murder Cases was released in English by Viz Media. Del Rey Manga has already released the first volume in his Zaregoto series. His Bakemonogatari, Nisemonogatari and Katanagatari novels have been adapted into anime series. Nekomonogatari (Kuro) has been adapted into an anime TV movie, and Kizumonogatari will be release in theaters this year. Monogatari Series: Second Season, adapted from 6 books in Monogatari Series will air in July 2013. Another of his works, Medaka Box (manga), has been adapted into a two-season anime series.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 23, 2021
This book...
what the hell did I just read?
"have you ever thought of yourself as the protagonist of a story? You do not need to have much conviction about it, but have you ever, at least once, thought of yourself as an existence somewhere in an enormous story?
If you have not pondered that even once-------then you do not deserve to be alive."
My thoughts after reading "Cannibal Magical: Niounomiya Siblings, Masters of Carnage"
Written by NisiOisiN
Illustrated by Take
Translation:
This book was fan-translated by Suiminchuudoku and Hikiken, it's a very damn good translation. As always it was a very fun and good reading experience, with the exceptions of a few spelling mistakes I can definitely say that overall it's a very high-quality translation. Thank you for your hard work!
I can't compare these two translators because, to be honest, I wasn't able to tell who translated which parts, all that I could tell is that it was very damn good, and in the end, that's what matters the most.
I'll be rereading this book two more times in the future (when vertical releases it and when I read them in Japanese), so maybe I'll update my thoughts on translations when I read them.
↓
The story:
After the crazy mad things that happened at Shadou Kyouichirou's lab, Ii is finally back to his home. He lives his daily life when he suddenly gets a very tempting part-time job invitation. Deep in the mountains, he goes to partake in this weird and interesting part-time job while his whole world twists and turns and changes into something totally different. With his new friends: a great detective and a killer what will Ii do at this lab away from civilization and what the hell is that guy with the fox mask?
↓
Enjoyment:
This book is crazy, it the literal definition of greatness and madness. NisOisiN created literature back in 2002 when he wrote Kubishime Romanticist, but many are unaware of the fact that NisiOisiN also back in 2005 when Cannibal Magical was released he also created emotions.
The enjoyment it felt while reading this book is unparalleled, I can't really express how incredibly, absolutely, and definitely enjoyable this book it. Each page had something interesting, each chapter had something absolutely incredible and memorable, each character was so well written that at times I felt like I could hear them breathing right beside me.
It's like if this book was a battering ram that slowly but surely aimed to destroy the walls of my heart, make them crumble, and then burn them to ashes. All of that with the sole purpose of kidnapping and pulling out all of the raw and unfiltered emotions hidden deep inside me. This book made me feel emotions I didn't know I could feel, its something incredible.
The conversations also stood out, the philosophical aspects were very damn good and interesting. The mystery was incredibly well crafted, but the best thing about this book is character development. I felt like a proud dad watching his son mature thought the entirety of this book.
This is the second book I've ever read that has made me cry out of sheer raw emotions in all my life as expected the first one was Kubisime Romanticist, but Magical Canibal really went all out and said: "fuck it, If I'm making them cry, ill make them cry a lot".
The enjoyment, the thrill, the sadness, the curiosity, the emotion, the despair, the happiness, the proudness and the everything of this book is probably the best thing I've experienced and enjoyed in my life.
↓
The verdict:
I don't know what else to say, this book has left me speechless, it has me writing a review at 1 am while feeling nostalgic and exhilarated.
Nisio, thank you for this book.
But Nisio, I hate you because of this book.
I'll never be able to read something else without thinking about how Cannibal Magical is better. I'll never forgive you for what you did to me with this book, there are things that I won't be able to forget in my entire life and Cannibal Magical is definitely one of them.
And now onto the score, how much did Cannibal Magical score? It cant be measured but if I had to ill have to say its probably a 101/10.
So is it my favorite book ever?
no.
Kubishime Romanticist and Cannibal Magical are so damn good that I can't choose between the two, from now on my "favorite book ever" are these two.
This book...
what the hell did I just read?
I read something truly Exhilarating.
Truly, clear.
Truly a masterpiece
what the hell did I just read?
"have you ever thought of yourself as the protagonist of a story? You do not need to have much conviction about it, but have you ever, at least once, thought of yourself as an existence somewhere in an enormous story?
If you have not pondered that even once-------then you do not deserve to be alive."
My thoughts after reading "Cannibal Magical: Niounomiya Siblings, Masters of Carnage"
Written by NisiOisiN
Illustrated by Take
Translation:
This book was fan-translated by Suiminchuudoku and Hikiken, it's a very damn good translation. As always it was a very fun and good reading experience, with the exceptions of a few spelling mistakes I can definitely say that overall it's a very high-quality translation. Thank you for your hard work!
I can't compare these two translators because, to be honest, I wasn't able to tell who translated which parts, all that I could tell is that it was very damn good, and in the end, that's what matters the most.
I'll be rereading this book two more times in the future (when vertical releases it and when I read them in Japanese), so maybe I'll update my thoughts on translations when I read them.
↓
The story:
After the crazy mad things that happened at Shadou Kyouichirou's lab, Ii is finally back to his home. He lives his daily life when he suddenly gets a very tempting part-time job invitation. Deep in the mountains, he goes to partake in this weird and interesting part-time job while his whole world twists and turns and changes into something totally different. With his new friends: a great detective and a killer what will Ii do at this lab away from civilization and what the hell is that guy with the fox mask?
↓
Enjoyment:
This book is crazy, it the literal definition of greatness and madness. NisOisiN created literature back in 2002 when he wrote Kubishime Romanticist, but many are unaware of the fact that NisiOisiN also back in 2005 when Cannibal Magical was released he also created emotions.
The enjoyment it felt while reading this book is unparalleled, I can't really express how incredibly, absolutely, and definitely enjoyable this book it. Each page had something interesting, each chapter had something absolutely incredible and memorable, each character was so well written that at times I felt like I could hear them breathing right beside me.
It's like if this book was a battering ram that slowly but surely aimed to destroy the walls of my heart, make them crumble, and then burn them to ashes. All of that with the sole purpose of kidnapping and pulling out all of the raw and unfiltered emotions hidden deep inside me. This book made me feel emotions I didn't know I could feel, its something incredible.
The conversations also stood out, the philosophical aspects were very damn good and interesting. The mystery was incredibly well crafted, but the best thing about this book is character development. I felt like a proud dad watching his son mature thought the entirety of this book.
This is the second book I've ever read that has made me cry out of sheer raw emotions in all my life as expected the first one was Kubisime Romanticist, but Magical Canibal really went all out and said: "fuck it, If I'm making them cry, ill make them cry a lot".
The enjoyment, the thrill, the sadness, the curiosity, the emotion, the despair, the happiness, the proudness and the everything of this book is probably the best thing I've experienced and enjoyed in my life.
↓
The verdict:
I don't know what else to say, this book has left me speechless, it has me writing a review at 1 am while feeling nostalgic and exhilarated.
Nisio, thank you for this book.
But Nisio, I hate you because of this book.
I'll never be able to read something else without thinking about how Cannibal Magical is better. I'll never forgive you for what you did to me with this book, there are things that I won't be able to forget in my entire life and Cannibal Magical is definitely one of them.
And now onto the score, how much did Cannibal Magical score? It cant be measured but if I had to ill have to say its probably a 101/10.
So is it my favorite book ever?
no.
Kubishime Romanticist and Cannibal Magical are so damn good that I can't choose between the two, from now on my "favorite book ever" are these two.
This book...
what the hell did I just read?
I read something truly Exhilarating.
Truly, clear.
Truly a masterpiece
August 16, 2021
I liked the 7th and 8th chapter
December 9, 2022
We are alive.
Bye bye.
Farewell.
Goodnight.
Thank you.
Bye bye.
Farewell.
Goodnight.
Thank you.
April 7, 2022
what in the fuck was that
February 20, 2023
A bit too much on the action side and less on the mystery side.
September 2, 2024
10++/10
December 9, 2023
Cannibal Magical: Niounomiya Siblings, Masters of Carnage
“Vague and unclear, half-assed and hazy, not choosing anything and letting myself go along with other people, I’ve led an uncertain and ambiguous life, that’s why….
"....I don’t want to die…."
Like that.
I realized that I was alive.
I learned at what moments I cried.”
Unreal turning point for our narrator. The best entry in the series so far. The way NisiOisin addressed pre-determinism, strength and weakness, and Ii’s world view was brilliant. I’ll never get tired of his paradoxical writing style, questioning if strength and weakness are two different things or the same one thing. A lot of philosophical topics in this one strike me deeply, especially the Fox Man’s words. Ii’s realization of how he’s alive is a highlight of the series. He’s crazy so he’s surrounded by crazy people. During all of this he’s met interesting people. He is alive. Cannot wait to read the final entry. I wonder what the Story has set for us?
4.5/5 if GR had half stars.
“Vague and unclear, half-assed and hazy, not choosing anything and letting myself go along with other people, I’ve led an uncertain and ambiguous life, that’s why….
"....I don’t want to die…."
Like that.
I realized that I was alive.
I learned at what moments I cried.”
Unreal turning point for our narrator. The best entry in the series so far. The way NisiOisin addressed pre-determinism, strength and weakness, and Ii’s world view was brilliant. I’ll never get tired of his paradoxical writing style, questioning if strength and weakness are two different things or the same one thing. A lot of philosophical topics in this one strike me deeply, especially the Fox Man’s words. Ii’s realization of how he’s alive is a highlight of the series. He’s crazy so he’s surrounded by crazy people. During all of this he’s met interesting people. He is alive. Cannot wait to read the final entry. I wonder what the Story has set for us?
4.5/5 if GR had half stars.
Read
November 13, 2017(This review is based on the original Japanese work.)
So here we have the sixth book in the Zaregoto series: Cannibal Magical. In this tome of a volume (over 800 pages), Kasugai Kasuga the veterinarian and our favorite nonsense user Ii-chan are now cohabitating after the events of the last arc. After coming across a girl collapsed in the road one day Kasuga takes her to their apartment, and when she awakens she introduces herself as Niounomiya Rizumu. Rizumu turns out to have a dual personality named Izumu who lives in the same body. Rizumu is a seasoned detective, whereas Izumu kills indiscriminately. Having spent most of his money on hospital bills and still in debt to various people from previous events, Ii-chan learns of a part-time research position with renowned assistant professor Kigamine Yaku which would coincidentally let him pay most of it back. However, it involves a "research facility of immortality," and though he isn't told the details up front, but he is allowed to take some of his friends with him.
After being told he and his friends need to pass some sort of test before the research takes place, the party of Kasuga, Hime-chan, and Ii-chan all venture to the research facility located all the way out in the mountains. There, they meet Kuchiha Madoka, a girl who "can't die," as well as Rizumu/Izumu, who are there on "other business." It is here that Ii-chan experiences an event that is not only one of the worst and most baffling tragedies of his life yet, but might put the final nail in the coffin for the strongest weapon Ii-chan has: his nonsense.
This volume is fun for several reasons: you get a good look at some tenants of the apartment that were previously glossed over, like Yamaguchi Houko (my favorite) as well as Nananami Nanami. Almost everyone makes an appearance in this book, all your favorite characters are probably going to be here. You are also finally introduced to Ii-chan's ultimate "adversary," Saitou Takashi, making this book kickstart the climax of the Zaregoto series.
However, while this book does have some powerful, incredible, and clever moments, and is about as darkly humorous and unpredictable as you'd expect a Nisioisin novel to be, I do think it's one of the weakest volumes in the series. This is because the mystery, in my opinion, is too simple. You can easily figure this one out almost as soon as the murder happens. Yeah, I know Zaregoto has never been about the actual murder mystery and more about the mysteries surrounding the characters, but those looking for a satiable mystery here will be sorely disappointed. However, if you're looking for some story progression and character development, this is your volume---what happens in this volume very strongly influences the story's direction from here on out, and I do mean "the story" in the most literal and metafictional sense.
Speaking of that, Saitou Takashi is one of the most interesting characters we've been introduced to thus far---he seems to know everything that's going on (kind of like Gaen Izuko in Monogatari) and he directly references the "story" as something that needs to be "progressed." His goal is to see the "end of the story," the end of everything, and sees everyone as a character fulfilling the means to that end. He insists that he and Ii-chan are fated to be enemies. Will Takashi fulfill his goal, or will Ii-chan continue to delay the inevitable with his nonsense? We shall see in the final 3-volume arc, Nekosogi Radical.
So here we have the sixth book in the Zaregoto series: Cannibal Magical. In this tome of a volume (over 800 pages), Kasugai Kasuga the veterinarian and our favorite nonsense user Ii-chan are now cohabitating after the events of the last arc. After coming across a girl collapsed in the road one day Kasuga takes her to their apartment, and when she awakens she introduces herself as Niounomiya Rizumu. Rizumu turns out to have a dual personality named Izumu who lives in the same body. Rizumu is a seasoned detective, whereas Izumu kills indiscriminately. Having spent most of his money on hospital bills and still in debt to various people from previous events, Ii-chan learns of a part-time research position with renowned assistant professor Kigamine Yaku which would coincidentally let him pay most of it back. However, it involves a "research facility of immortality," and though he isn't told the details up front, but he is allowed to take some of his friends with him.
After being told he and his friends need to pass some sort of test before the research takes place, the party of Kasuga, Hime-chan, and Ii-chan all venture to the research facility located all the way out in the mountains. There, they meet Kuchiha Madoka, a girl who "can't die," as well as Rizumu/Izumu, who are there on "other business." It is here that Ii-chan experiences an event that is not only one of the worst and most baffling tragedies of his life yet, but might put the final nail in the coffin for the strongest weapon Ii-chan has: his nonsense.
This volume is fun for several reasons: you get a good look at some tenants of the apartment that were previously glossed over, like Yamaguchi Houko (my favorite) as well as Nananami Nanami. Almost everyone makes an appearance in this book, all your favorite characters are probably going to be here. You are also finally introduced to Ii-chan's ultimate "adversary," Saitou Takashi, making this book kickstart the climax of the Zaregoto series.
However, while this book does have some powerful, incredible, and clever moments, and is about as darkly humorous and unpredictable as you'd expect a Nisioisin novel to be, I do think it's one of the weakest volumes in the series. This is because the mystery, in my opinion, is too simple. You can easily figure this one out almost as soon as the murder happens. Yeah, I know Zaregoto has never been about the actual murder mystery and more about the mysteries surrounding the characters, but those looking for a satiable mystery here will be sorely disappointed. However, if you're looking for some story progression and character development, this is your volume---what happens in this volume very strongly influences the story's direction from here on out, and I do mean "the story" in the most literal and metafictional sense.
Speaking of that, Saitou Takashi is one of the most interesting characters we've been introduced to thus far---he seems to know everything that's going on (kind of like Gaen Izuko in Monogatari) and he directly references the "story" as something that needs to be "progressed." His goal is to see the "end of the story," the end of everything, and sees everyone as a character fulfilling the means to that end. He insists that he and Ii-chan are fated to be enemies. Will Takashi fulfill his goal, or will Ii-chan continue to delay the inevitable with his nonsense? We shall see in the final 3-volume arc, Nekosogi Radical.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews