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The Asterisk War Light Novel #1
The Asterisk War, Vol. 1: Encounter with a Fiery Princess
The school-city of Rokka-also known as "Asterisk." Here boys and girls of the Starpulse Generation all compete in the Seibusai-the "star battle festival," fighting for glory on the greatest combat entertainment stage of the world. Ayato Amagiri has just arrived at one of these academies at the express invitation of its student council president, but when he begins his career by making a dangerous enemy, his life on Asterisk is off to a rough start!
192 pages, Paperback
First published September 20, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
January 10, 2017
The Asterisk War (otherwise known as Gakusen Toshi Asterisk, or simply referred to by me as Asterisk) is the prime definition of cliche. I'm not going to lie about that; there are several tropes that run abundant in this that make it a prime example of the entity genre. You know, the shows where a male protagonist goes to a "special school" where the students have "special powers" and he accidentally manages to get a harem? We get a grand amount of anime adaptations for these series every so often, and it's enough to make the most sane viewer go crazy.
Granted, I can even admit this when I've already watched the series (both seasons/cours in fact). To me, this stands out from the other magical school with sci-fi elements and harem shows because it does things a little differently than most. I won't say exactly why (spoilers and all), but I do think people should at least give it a few episodes before immediately judging because Asterisk might prove you wrong.
This first LN covers the first four episodes of the first season, with some scenes done a little differently and with more world-building. All of the parts to why I liked the episodes were here, and they were pretty fun to read rather than watch. I do prefer watching anime compared to reading manga and LN's, but I admit that there's something special about reading something that was eventually adapted into an anime.
I like the story, the characters, and how this arc plays out with a nice helping of introduction and mystery. The world building could have been better incorporated though, since most of the time it was used, it'd put a pause on the plot entirely that it became a bit annoying. I feel like there's a way to not mostly ignore it like the anime did until some moments, and not just occasionally dump it in our laps like the light novel did. I've seen this being balanced out before in other books.
But Miyazaki admits that he really likes world building in the Afterword, as he states he enjoys the seeds of information that construct something in a mind. Hopefully it'll be better incorporated in the future, but there's a map and a glossary at the beginning and end of the novel respectively, so that won't be as big of an issue.
Overall, I really liked this first LN, and I'm curious to read on to see where this goes (a bit more than The Devil is a Part Timer I have to admit, due to the LN series' shorter length, and the fact that the anime covers more ground from Asterisk's material).
Granted, I can even admit this when I've already watched the series (both seasons/cours in fact). To me, this stands out from the other magical school with sci-fi elements and harem shows because it does things a little differently than most. I won't say exactly why (spoilers and all), but I do think people should at least give it a few episodes before immediately judging because Asterisk might prove you wrong.
This first LN covers the first four episodes of the first season, with some scenes done a little differently and with more world-building. All of the parts to why I liked the episodes were here, and they were pretty fun to read rather than watch. I do prefer watching anime compared to reading manga and LN's, but I admit that there's something special about reading something that was eventually adapted into an anime.
I like the story, the characters, and how this arc plays out with a nice helping of introduction and mystery. The world building could have been better incorporated though, since most of the time it was used, it'd put a pause on the plot entirely that it became a bit annoying. I feel like there's a way to not mostly ignore it like the anime did until some moments, and not just occasionally dump it in our laps like the light novel did. I've seen this being balanced out before in other books.
But Miyazaki admits that he really likes world building in the Afterword, as he states he enjoys the seeds of information that construct something in a mind. Hopefully it'll be better incorporated in the future, but there's a map and a glossary at the beginning and end of the novel respectively, so that won't be as big of an issue.
Overall, I really liked this first LN, and I'm curious to read on to see where this goes (a bit more than The Devil is a Part Timer I have to admit, due to the LN series' shorter length, and the fact that the anime covers more ground from Asterisk's material).
July 15, 2024
I previously streamed the anime with my boyfriend and we really loved it so he went looking for the original books. And i lovee spending some more time with these characters
November 8, 2025
i really enjoy Ayato, Julis, and Saya as characters!! i’m kind of on the fence about Eishirou, and i’ve disliked Claudia from the moment she was introduced🫣 a very cool world so far!!
December 18, 2016
Many (though thankfully not all) light novels have formulaic set-ups, but most authors at least come up with interesting twists. You can pick up Sword Art Online, Log Horizon, Grimgar, and Rising of the Shield Hero, and even though all of them are variants of "Guy from our world gets stuck in a fantasy land that's suspiciously similar to an MMORPG," you'll get four very different takes on the idea.
But Asterisk War is straight-through generic. The author goes with the tried-and-true battle school with a side of harem set-up, familiar from other series like Aria of the Scarlet Ammo, Psycome and The Irregular at Magical High School. But whereas all of those had their own take on the genre, Asterisk War plays everything by the book. No twists. No turns. (Well, there are attempts at twists, but they're all pretty obvious, from the Draco Malfoy wannabe turning out to be a jerkish hero, to the mysterious mastermind figure whose identity isn't at all mysterious.)
Which is too bad, because this is one of the better written LNs in terms of actual prose and translation. It's too bad its wasted on a threadbare story.
But Asterisk War is straight-through generic. The author goes with the tried-and-true battle school with a side of harem set-up, familiar from other series like Aria of the Scarlet Ammo, Psycome and The Irregular at Magical High School. But whereas all of those had their own take on the genre, Asterisk War plays everything by the book. No twists. No turns. (Well, there are attempts at twists, but they're all pretty obvious, from the Draco Malfoy wannabe turning out to be a jerkish hero, to the mysterious mastermind figure whose identity isn't at all mysterious.)
Which is too bad, because this is one of the better written LNs in terms of actual prose and translation. It's too bad its wasted on a threadbare story.
October 2, 2016
*I received my copy from goodreads first reads. It does not affect my review of this book.
I really loved this book. It had a decent amount of world building. Also had really good writing and was translated well. Though, there might have been a few points where there was random point of view switches. That's common for new writers. There's a bit of fanservice too. But it's not too bad.
I really enjoyed the character and character building in this too. I didn't feel like any of the characters were the same.
I'll definitely be picking up the sequel December 13, 2016.
I really loved this book. It had a decent amount of world building. Also had really good writing and was translated well. Though, there might have been a few points where there was random point of view switches. That's common for new writers. There's a bit of fanservice too. But it's not too bad.
I really enjoyed the character and character building in this too. I didn't feel like any of the characters were the same.
I'll definitely be picking up the sequel December 13, 2016.
February 20, 2017
Not the most innovative LN you'll find. It is considerably better than the anime, as it builds up the universe rather than just throw students into fights.
Ayato does look considerably weaker in the books which was interesting and makes his modesty more believable (again in the anime he's all powerful and super extra modest).
All in all, decent enough for me to pick up vol 2. It loses 3 stars for being "super-haremy" (every girl is going nuts for Ayato before he even speaks), short even for a light novel and unoriginal. It does get 1 star back for excellent pace of the story.
Ayato does look considerably weaker in the books which was interesting and makes his modesty more believable (again in the anime he's all powerful and super extra modest).
All in all, decent enough for me to pick up vol 2. It loses 3 stars for being "super-haremy" (every girl is going nuts for Ayato before he even speaks), short even for a light novel and unoriginal. It does get 1 star back for excellent pace of the story.
November 14, 2018
Even better than the anime
I previously streamed the anime and really enjoyed it so I went looking for the original books and was pleasantly surprised to find a professional localization. The anime is a good adaptation, but The Asterisk War is a complex world and the book gives greater insight into the characterization and morality.
I previously streamed the anime and really enjoyed it so I went looking for the original books and was pleasantly surprised to find a professional localization. The anime is a good adaptation, but The Asterisk War is a complex world and the book gives greater insight into the characterization and morality.
September 10, 2016
This is a story about a future dominated by extreme tournament style competition. It combines a science fiction setting with magic, romance, comedy, and mystery. A fun read. I really enjoyed the world building presented in the book.
October 15, 2015
The anime version did Julis some justice. :)
May 6, 2019
I liked it. I really had a good time reading this book. I enjoyed the setup and world building. I have liked most of the characters thus far. Sure, there are some cliche things and tropes you've seen in many a light novel/manga/anime of this style. But I've never been one to choke too much on it so long as I enjoy the presentation in whatever series it happens to be in. One big complaint I see is that it happens to be something of a harem story. *shrug* Harem / reverse harem doesn't usually bother me.
It's pretty light (though there is a fair bit of world building with a lot of 'new' vocabulary) and certainly fun. I haven't read the manga (aside from the few pages at the end of this volume) and I haven't seen the anime so I can't really compare them -- but I'll definitely be looking into more of the Asterisk War.
Verdict: If you want something light and fun you could do a lot worse than Asterisk War (so far).
It's pretty light (though there is a fair bit of world building with a lot of 'new' vocabulary) and certainly fun. I haven't read the manga (aside from the few pages at the end of this volume) and I haven't seen the anime so I can't really compare them -- but I'll definitely be looking into more of the Asterisk War.
Verdict: If you want something light and fun you could do a lot worse than Asterisk War (so far).
December 26, 2022
This Elite-Martial-School-series is in it's 10 anniversary 2012-2022 and it was inspiration to a lot of the later anime-light-web-novel series-manga (Hundred, Irregular at Magic School, Classroom of the elite, Redefining the META, Reign of the 7 Spellblades, Chivarly of a Failed Knight, Serei Gensouki, etc.)
Yes, the story tends to be about life outside of school more than academic life in-school, with not one class being taken, not one cafeteria breakfast or lunch being eaten...and the incessant need to compete at the all-school-meet level to see who are the best martial artists in the Asterisk.
This light novel series reached 17 volumes, a manga adaptation and 2 seasons of animation (anime series). This book 1 has 7 chapters and over 200+ pages. It is one of the better school-academia-hero-series out there.
Yes, the story tends to be about life outside of school more than academic life in-school, with not one class being taken, not one cafeteria breakfast or lunch being eaten...and the incessant need to compete at the all-school-meet level to see who are the best martial artists in the Asterisk.
This light novel series reached 17 volumes, a manga adaptation and 2 seasons of animation (anime series). This book 1 has 7 chapters and over 200+ pages. It is one of the better school-academia-hero-series out there.
May 2, 2020
Generic, but nicely done generic.
Young competitor/warrior type goes to magic school to get better at being competitor/warrior. Harem ensues. Let the standard plot line flow!
The main character isn't super deep. The conspiracy elements are vague to the point of obnoxious. The whole missing sister thing seems weak.
Not a bad read.
Note, I watched the anime series before reading the book. In some cases, it makes the book more enjoyable. In this case, they are very close.
Young competitor/warrior type goes to magic school to get better at being competitor/warrior. Harem ensues. Let the standard plot line flow!
The main character isn't super deep. The conspiracy elements are vague to the point of obnoxious. The whole missing sister thing seems weak.
Not a bad read.
Note, I watched the anime series before reading the book. In some cases, it makes the book more enjoyable. In this case, they are very close.
December 28, 2022
It doesn't do anything out of the ordinary for something of this genre, but the characters writing is fun enough to hold the attention, and the setting - something like harry potter if the schools were all funded by megacorps - is intriguing. The romance too, while not doing anything that I haven't seen before in a shounen-y, young adult-aimed light novel before, made me smile in parts.
The fairly standard, tropey story feels elevated by a solid writing style, and I'm eager to read more.
The fairly standard, tropey story feels elevated by a solid writing style, and I'm eager to read more.
August 13, 2017
Asterisk War is in many ways a very stereotypical light novel, filled with Anime tropes. If that doesn't bother you it's surprising well written and offers some good mysteries that at least makes me wanna keep reading.
January 22, 2022
It is readable but childish.
New boy in school gets challenged to a duel. It's a draw.
I really can't understand why anyone chooses to read this type of book.
I'm probably too old and missed something along the way but it makes absolutely no sense to me - none at all.!
New boy in school gets challenged to a duel. It's a draw.
I really can't understand why anyone chooses to read this type of book.
I'm probably too old and missed something along the way but it makes absolutely no sense to me - none at all.!
November 21, 2024
What can I say, it was a fun LN to read about.
It is another school-battle genres that was prevalent to the LN genre, but I take this more than I take another regression and Isekai fantasy that have predominantly cluttered the LN industry.
Sure, the protagonist is still a power fantasy freak of being the strongest guy in the room, but at least he wasn't tone deaf and actually knows what happened around him, sort of. He still gullible in some part while other times, shown hyper vigilant awareness, but because I enjoyed it I am willing to look past it.
And the harem aspect wasn't muddling the story for now anyway.
It is another school-battle genres that was prevalent to the LN genre, but I take this more than I take another regression and Isekai fantasy that have predominantly cluttered the LN industry.
Sure, the protagonist is still a power fantasy freak of being the strongest guy in the room, but at least he wasn't tone deaf and actually knows what happened around him, sort of. He still gullible in some part while other times, shown hyper vigilant awareness, but because I enjoyed it I am willing to look past it.
And the harem aspect wasn't muddling the story for now anyway.
March 28, 2020
not bad but too clicher and predictable for me
March 6, 2022
Read my review at: https://joshgear.nz/book-review-aster...
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June 26, 2024Best
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September 15, 2016DNF @ page 30.
I just don't want to read it.
I just don't want to read it.
May 16, 2021
|This book was won from a Goodreads Giveaway|
Maybe I just don't get light novels (this is my first read of the genre), but this was... not good. I could see where it would be a mindless but fun anime, but reading it in novel form really just felt like fanfiction, and in a bad way. Not in a fun, character-focused way, but more of a fanservice-y way. Which is something I'm used to from anime, or even manga, which does still make me think that it was just that I'm not used to the genre.
Either way, even if I'm not really interested in continuing this series, I would be mildly interested in watching the anime adaptation.
Maybe I just don't get light novels (this is my first read of the genre), but this was... not good. I could see where it would be a mindless but fun anime, but reading it in novel form really just felt like fanfiction, and in a bad way. Not in a fun, character-focused way, but more of a fanservice-y way. Which is something I'm used to from anime, or even manga, which does still make me think that it was just that I'm not used to the genre.
Either way, even if I'm not really interested in continuing this series, I would be mildly interested in watching the anime adaptation.
August 31, 2016
I enjoyed this much more than I anticipated - while there are harem elements to the story, it doesn't feel like a "harem" per se, and Julis is actually a very human character rather than a simple tsundere. So there's another example of "the source material is always better"....
Full review eventually appearing on ANN.
Full review eventually appearing on ANN.
November 1, 2016
The color illustrations at the beginning of this novel were really cool, but I had a hard time becoming engaged by the storyline. I received this book in a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review.
March 11, 2020
英文版電子書在小說結束後還附上的漫畫版的試閱
有點莫名
感覺就像是消費者剛買下黑色手機後，購物網站再推薦買同款的灰色手機
有點莫名
感覺就像是消費者剛買下黑色手機後，購物網站再推薦買同款的灰色手機
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews