What even was this? [Animus by Antoine Revoy]
So I went to a library in my home library's interlibrary loan system. The goal was to see if there were copies of books on my wishlist there, books I hadn't found at regular haunt. I found some books, though I didn't borrow them all. I'd also been told by my sister that there was a manga section to be scoured. Ever since she's gotten into anime, she's also gotten in manga. I myself am not a manga reader but I'd had the idea for possible video content where we'd both read something and then discuss it together. She'd been amenable and had agreed to manga, so I went a-looking.
Suffice it to say, when I asked one of the librarians where the manga was and she asked "did you mean the graphic novels," I had a hunch pickings were slim. Usually the manga is close proximity to the graphic novel section anyway, but I'd gone perusing and seen none. When I was close to the door, about to exit, I saw that indeed, on a bookcase by the door and adjacent to the YA section, there were manga available for borrowing.
I didn't find many manga with stories I wasn't familiar with, i.e. via proximity to popular animes. Didn't really see any new books either, nothing that said it might be a story neither of us was familiar with. Some graphic novels and some other YA books were interspersed on the top shelves of the bookcase but nothing that really interested me. Then I found Animus.
I thought to myself, this will be a book my sister will like. From my quick cover flap read I got the impression it was a supernatural story. Maybe supernatural lite.
The illustrations are lovely, I really enjoyed them. Unlike most graphic novels but like most manga, Animus is entirely black and white. Revoy, the French-born, Japan-raised author and illustrator, has a unique style. Oblong distortion is a visual theme repeated throughout, and yet the mannerisms and minute details of the characters are conveyed so beautifully.
The story is divided into a prologue, nine chapters, and an epilogue. Everything progresses very logically for the beginning half of the book. The supernatural mechanisms, character actions motivations - you feel you know where the story is going and that even if it goes where you think it will go you're enjoying the ride. Story investment is quick and early.
Unfortunately there are a lot of loose ends. Auxiliary characters are introduced with subplots that are seemingly critical to the storyline. For instance, the story set-up begins with a detective investigating a string of disappearances and possible links to an imprisoned serial killer. The possibility of a copycat murderer is raised. For some reason this whole aspect of the story goes nowhere.
I rate books on Goodreads. Because I just made my account (and I want accurate recommendations) I'm especially committed to giving book reviews. Thinking about this as I read, up until a point I was ready to give the book a 4 out of 5 star rating, my justification being that the book was too short. By the end my planned rating had not changed, but my justification had. Now I was being more than fair, perhaps even generous.
My confusion started towards the end of the eighth chapter, where there's a sudden shift in story. I've been vague this whole review because I don't plan on giving too much away, but the resolution for the story seemingly came out of nowhere. An ending with little rationale and sudden character actions with no explanation, no foreshadowing, no hints or clues as to why they took that action, left me baffled. I really finished the book and said aloud, "what?!" The second chapter, the end of the eighth, and the ninth and final chapter seemingly are the most interconnected as to these sudden shifts. Irregardless of semblance of foreshadowing there really was none.
I've given my review and I'm happy with it. I enjoyed the book, it was a quick read. At 221 pages, it's not a long read. It was a lot shorter than I expected it. The characters were self-aware and we didn't have giant hoops of logic that were jumped through. We didn't ever really go outside of in-story mechanics. Save for the sudden shift and some loose ends, I enjoyed the story. Would I recommend it? Sure, it was cute enough. Still, be prepared for small let-downs.
Suffice it to say, when I asked one of the librarians where the manga was and she asked "did you mean the graphic novels," I had a hunch pickings were slim. Usually the manga is close proximity to the graphic novel section anyway, but I'd gone perusing and seen none. When I was close to the door, about to exit, I saw that indeed, on a bookcase by the door and adjacent to the YA section, there were manga available for borrowing.
I didn't find many manga with stories I wasn't familiar with, i.e. via proximity to popular animes. Didn't really see any new books either, nothing that said it might be a story neither of us was familiar with. Some graphic novels and some other YA books were interspersed on the top shelves of the bookcase but nothing that really interested me. Then I found Animus.
I thought to myself, this will be a book my sister will like. From my quick cover flap read I got the impression it was a supernatural story. Maybe supernatural lite.
"Tucked away in a quiet Japanese neighborhood lies a peculiar playground. There, Hisao and Sayuri meet a masked ghost named Toothless. And there, one of their friends gets hurt. Now they must race against the clock to solve the mystery of who Toothless really is - and break the playground's curse."It's not really a manga. It takes from manga styles and is set in Japan, but the pacing and structure of the book definitely have that graphic novel feel. The book feels semi-hefty. I thought it was gonna be a solid read. I didn't look at the page count, because...who does that? When I got home and showed my sister she wasn't into the plot. She's not a big fan of anything that sounds like supernatural horror, which is apparently the vibe she got from the quick look she gave the tome.
The illustrations are lovely, I really enjoyed them. Unlike most graphic novels but like most manga, Animus is entirely black and white. Revoy, the French-born, Japan-raised author and illustrator, has a unique style. Oblong distortion is a visual theme repeated throughout, and yet the mannerisms and minute details of the characters are conveyed so beautifully.
The story is divided into a prologue, nine chapters, and an epilogue. Everything progresses very logically for the beginning half of the book. The supernatural mechanisms, character actions motivations - you feel you know where the story is going and that even if it goes where you think it will go you're enjoying the ride. Story investment is quick and early.
Unfortunately there are a lot of loose ends. Auxiliary characters are introduced with subplots that are seemingly critical to the storyline. For instance, the story set-up begins with a detective investigating a string of disappearances and possible links to an imprisoned serial killer. The possibility of a copycat murderer is raised. For some reason this whole aspect of the story goes nowhere.
I rate books on Goodreads. Because I just made my account (and I want accurate recommendations) I'm especially committed to giving book reviews. Thinking about this as I read, up until a point I was ready to give the book a 4 out of 5 star rating, my justification being that the book was too short. By the end my planned rating had not changed, but my justification had. Now I was being more than fair, perhaps even generous.
My confusion started towards the end of the eighth chapter, where there's a sudden shift in story. I've been vague this whole review because I don't plan on giving too much away, but the resolution for the story seemingly came out of nowhere. An ending with little rationale and sudden character actions with no explanation, no foreshadowing, no hints or clues as to why they took that action, left me baffled. I really finished the book and said aloud, "what?!" The second chapter, the end of the eighth, and the ninth and final chapter seemingly are the most interconnected as to these sudden shifts. Irregardless of semblance of foreshadowing there really was none.
I've given my review and I'm happy with it. I enjoyed the book, it was a quick read. At 221 pages, it's not a long read. It was a lot shorter than I expected it. The characters were self-aware and we didn't have giant hoops of logic that were jumped through. We didn't ever really go outside of in-story mechanics. Save for the sudden shift and some loose ends, I enjoyed the story. Would I recommend it? Sure, it was cute enough. Still, be prepared for small let-downs.
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