Bizenghast: The Novel

by Shawn Thorgersen, M. Alice LeGrow (Illustrator)

With two of the four Tower Guards to aid them, Dinah and Vincent are halfway to freedom from their nightly tasks. But a new set of vicious ghosts is only the first of many dangers for the pair--and even the help of the gallant Edrear might not be enough to protect the humans from becoming part of the ranks of the departed themselves. Jealousy, bitterness and resentment keep the dead from finding peace, but what happens when those emotions start to affect Dinah and her comrades? And as more of the mystery of Addie Clark is revealed, Dinah may discover that there are some creatures that even the dead fear... "The next great fantasy series!" â€"ign.com As seen on Teen People's Hot List!

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Horror, Young Adult, Fiction, Ghosts, Graphic Novels

262 pages, Paperback

First published August 12, 2008

Reviews

[Jody Mena]

Loved this book! It was delightfully creepy and macabre. After reading the manga, which I also loved, this book was fascinating. The imagery is visceral and forces the imagination to bend in slightly unnatural, and oddly compelling, thrilling and chilling ways. This really illuminated and filled out the characters, their histories, emotions and motivations. They're such interesting characters, archetypal yet also strangely believable, that its a treat to get inside their heads! The section from Edrear's point of view was particularly interesting, very psychological as he clinically synthesized his own version of human emotions, and I still adore Edaniel's quirky and sarcastic joie de vivre, je ne sais quoi and any other cliche French phrase you might like to apply (but I'm so sad he didn't ask to make out with anyone, or try to part their hair in the back - ah, he's definitely the most quotable character in the world of Bizenghast!). I liked the way the book ended, there was something frighteningly confident about Dinah at the end, like she'd gone halfway from being the innocent protagonist to one of the monsters lurking in the dark. I guess part of the price of strength is innocence; whatever the case, I liked the effect, it gave the book a sense of closure while ending on quasi-cliffhanger, leading off into the sunset after adventures yet imagined. I'd love to read a sequel to this, since there is plenty of story left to write!

[Danielle R · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is really what I wanted out of the Bizenghast manga: a tighter story that does something to address Dinah's trauma with a few key illustrations. Definitely check this one out if the manga left you feeling cold. 4/5

[Kathryn · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's the same as the manga series. It doesn't expand on anything. What a letdown.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! This book was really quite wonderful as light novels go. The writer clearly has some talent, although there was something that seemed to be lacking...I am not enterly sure what that was but I enjoyed it anyway. I have read the manga three times this year (actully within the space of two months, I am that addicted to it.) but reading this makes me crave reading it once again. There were deleted scenes and wonderful insights into the characters that I throughly enjoyed, and even better was that it remained true to the vivid, nightmarish imagary the manga excels in. The bonus fan fiction at the end was enjoyable as well, althought not quite as outstanding as the rest of the book. Overall the book was as dark and emotional as the manga series is. Plus it features more of LeGrow's stunning art work. I can only hope that the following volumes will be made into novels, I have yet to find any further information on that but will remain hopeful for more news.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised to find that, while this does follow the same story as the Manga, it adds other bits to the story that are missing from the Manga, so you aren't just reading the same thing over again.

[Hillary · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like this book could of had more done to it that it does not leave a unanswered ending to the story.

[Kris Ivy · Rating 3 out of 5]

dnf
there was a lot more substance to the manga, but I guess that's why sticking to the original author tends to go best.