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Kingdom Hearts #1-2
Kingdom Hearts
On the Destiny Islands, three children--Sora, Riku, and Kairi--are living out their peaceful, carefree lives while yearning for whatever lies beyond the great ocean. But one night, an unexpected disaster takes place, and the three are torn from each other and their island home. Meanwhile, at Disney Castle, Donald Duck and the other castle residents are in an uproar upon discovering King Mickey has suddenly gone missing. When fate brings them together, Sora, Donald, and Goofy set out on a grand Disney adventure to find their friends!
268 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 7, 2015
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1037 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews
March 22, 2022
I read this for the 20th anniversary of Kingdom Hearts!! Check out my reading vlog celebrating all things Kingdom Hearts here: https://youtu.be/8OKxewqlecc
February 11, 2018
3.5 stars
August 30, 2015
Honestly, the rating is probably closer to 2.5 than 3, but I rounded up because I love Kingdom Hearts and I really wanted to like this book.
You can guess what it is - a novelization of the first game and its ending. (Not the secret one - Another Side, Another Story would have been fairly confusing to put into the book.) I obviously wasn't expecting anything new, but I was still disappointed at its lack of substance.
The book is badly translated, straight up. There are more than a few instances in which I was certain the translator just ran a Japanese sentence through Google Translate and popped it into the book. The dialogue was jilted and read like a subbed anime, and a lot of the dramatic affect of the story was very much lost due to the poor translation.
The book made a few efforts to add things to the world of Kingdom Hearts, mostly at the beginning when we're going through Sora's daily life. The narrative mentions that Riku is better than Sora at school, and talks about the Destiny Islands and what life there is like more than I would have expected. This got weird at certain points though. In Wonderland, as Sora, Goofy, and Donald observe Alice's trial, Sora says that he's never heard of a "trial" before. This kid is fourteen years old, enrolled in school, and has never heard of a trial? Do they not have those where he's from? What is the justice system on Destiny Islands? Do they have one? These are the things that keep me up at night.
Toward the end of the book you could tell that either the original author or the translator was really losing steam as descriptions got more vague and confusing.
It should also be said that this is a novelization of Kingdom Hearts: Final Mix, not the original game. Sora faces "The Unknown" at the end, a boss that appeared only in FM. The book also makes mention of a lot of things that are more fully explained in sequels, but to someone who doesn't know that the pacing just gets crazier and crazier.
The book has also abridged the game substantially which I definitely understand, but the fact that they kept in Deep Jungle but didn't put in Atlantica or Halloweentown or the Olympus Coliseum (Cloud was not in this at all, so I'm wondering if he'll be ignored in the KH2 novelization as well) is super bizarre to me.
Pretty much the one redeeming quality of this book is Shiro Amano's adorable illustrations scattered in. I love the art style which is why I love the manga adaptation so much. I just wish the writing lived up to it. Honestly, the only reason my rating is as high as it is is just because I really love Kingdom Hearts.
You can guess what it is - a novelization of the first game and its ending. (Not the secret one - Another Side, Another Story would have been fairly confusing to put into the book.) I obviously wasn't expecting anything new, but I was still disappointed at its lack of substance.
The book is badly translated, straight up. There are more than a few instances in which I was certain the translator just ran a Japanese sentence through Google Translate and popped it into the book. The dialogue was jilted and read like a subbed anime, and a lot of the dramatic affect of the story was very much lost due to the poor translation.
The book made a few efforts to add things to the world of Kingdom Hearts, mostly at the beginning when we're going through Sora's daily life. The narrative mentions that Riku is better than Sora at school, and talks about the Destiny Islands and what life there is like more than I would have expected. This got weird at certain points though. In Wonderland, as Sora, Goofy, and Donald observe Alice's trial, Sora says that he's never heard of a "trial" before. This kid is fourteen years old, enrolled in school, and has never heard of a trial? Do they not have those where he's from? What is the justice system on Destiny Islands? Do they have one? These are the things that keep me up at night.
Toward the end of the book you could tell that either the original author or the translator was really losing steam as descriptions got more vague and confusing.
It should also be said that this is a novelization of Kingdom Hearts: Final Mix, not the original game. Sora faces "The Unknown" at the end, a boss that appeared only in FM. The book also makes mention of a lot of things that are more fully explained in sequels, but to someone who doesn't know that the pacing just gets crazier and crazier.
The book has also abridged the game substantially which I definitely understand, but the fact that they kept in Deep Jungle but didn't put in Atlantica or Halloweentown or the Olympus Coliseum (Cloud was not in this at all, so I'm wondering if he'll be ignored in the KH2 novelization as well) is super bizarre to me.
Pretty much the one redeeming quality of this book is Shiro Amano's adorable illustrations scattered in. I love the art style which is why I love the manga adaptation so much. I just wish the writing lived up to it. Honestly, the only reason my rating is as high as it is is just because I really love Kingdom Hearts.
August 25, 2021
HURTS MY HEART EVERY TIME
April 9, 2015
Great adaptation of the game with new information.
August 23, 2015
Wow, everything sucks about this book.The writing is very fast and it expects you to be familiar with the game, so if you aren't... you'll be left confused. That being said it has be written for kids, BUT the way the story jumps around it's just not good writing. Even for children. Like we found someone, then they are running off and we are running off, then we catch up, then someone appears the disappears. It's just that quick and the boss fights last as almost as long as a summary paragraph.Then there's the story...This is very much a damsel in distress story. All the women in the story are just there as objects. In this case their hearts are needed to open and door. You could replace them with a magic gem and the story wouldn't be affected. This extends to Kairi too, who you barely get to hear about before she disappears and then is rendered a lifeless doll for Riku to cart around.After she is saved by Sora, she is then told "IT'S TOO DANGEROUS FOR A GIRL" and left behind. OF COURSE. We save her then ditch her like the magical gem she is.Not only that in the course of the story Sora shows some sympathy for Captain Hook after he is told how hook lost his hand to the crocodile. Donald Duck dismisses his sympathy, because Hook "Took Kairi and Wendy prisoner." I'm sorry the two don't equal one another, and Hook's hand happened in the past.So basically since this book is aimed at boys we are teaching them that women are objects and to be unsympathetic, emotionless monsters. :|
August 27, 2016
2.75
Although I enjoyed reading this, for me it didn't really work as a novel. The pacing felt quiet off and I felt like a few things/details that could have been included were left out. However the new snippets were a nice addition, I think some of them were in the Manga too?
I wouldn't think this would be a good introduction to the series for someone who has not played the game. As I said above I had some issues with the pacing and some things weren't well established and explained so I have a feeling they'd be a bit confused.
I've heard some of the other novels hat came after this were much better so I'll be looking forward to reading them.
All in all, a nice filler for an avid fan but past that it's not much else.
Although I enjoyed reading this, for me it didn't really work as a novel. The pacing felt quiet off and I felt like a few things/details that could have been included were left out. However the new snippets were a nice addition, I think some of them were in the Manga too?
I wouldn't think this would be a good introduction to the series for someone who has not played the game. As I said above I had some issues with the pacing and some things weren't well established and explained so I have a feeling they'd be a bit confused.
I've heard some of the other novels hat came after this were much better so I'll be looking forward to reading them.
All in all, a nice filler for an avid fan but past that it's not much else.
September 5, 2015
if you have never played the game and you judge books for the writing style then this book isn't for you. As a fan I LOVED it! you actually get to be inside their heads in those moments, something you don't get in the game unless its important. although I am a bit upset that we didn't get to see all the worlds but that is my only complaint, everything else was great and I can't wait for the other books to come out.
September 8, 2021
Oh boy. I absouletly loved the book! Can't wait to play the game again!
Review to come this time.
Review to come this time.
December 19, 2018
Not the best writing (or translation?) in the world, but my baaaaaabies.
July 3, 2025
I’ve surprisingly never read the novels for Kingdom Hearts despite it being my whole personality but I wish had read them sooner. I could never hate anything related to Kingdom Hearts so this review comes with complete bias.
Kingdom Hearts is just the perfect story with the right amount of cheesiness mixed with some really strong character development and Disney/FF wackiness but it has a very unique charm that I’ve never experienced from any media before. The novel is a pretty straightforward adaptation with taking the key scenes and some of the smaller Disney world plot lines and just adapting them for a novel format. It’s not perfect, obviously scenes will be cut but more noticeably the descriptions were lacking in areas and sometimes it felt a little flat at times, even for a light novel. At times it felt like it was describing the cutscenes and not telling the story or adding in descriptions that people who haven’t played the game won’t understand as easily. It’s very fast paced too as many adaptations are but it’s probably harder to follow if you aren’t aware of the game’s story and the novel doesn’t take time to explain everything, just some of the more essential parts of the story. But despite that, it’s a really fun read and a nice adventure too and it captures a lot of great moments from the first game. Shiro Amano’s artwork also really captures the charm of the scenes, not as much as his work on the manga obviously since there’s less illustrations here but I enjoyed seeing his art featured here too. Kingdom Hearts’ narrative will always be one of those ones that will always be such a joy to experience no matter the medium. It still invoked a lot of emotion just for the sheer passion and love i have for the series as a whole so I managed to get a lot of enjoyment out of the book and I’m very excited to read the rest of the novels just to experience the series in a new way.
The novel adaption is not perfect as I have critiqued a couple areas but I love kingdom hearts too much that it’s the only series I will allow a 5/5 just for the enjoyment i had reading it despite some drawbacks
Kingdom Hearts is just the perfect story with the right amount of cheesiness mixed with some really strong character development and Disney/FF wackiness but it has a very unique charm that I’ve never experienced from any media before. The novel is a pretty straightforward adaptation with taking the key scenes and some of the smaller Disney world plot lines and just adapting them for a novel format. It’s not perfect, obviously scenes will be cut but more noticeably the descriptions were lacking in areas and sometimes it felt a little flat at times, even for a light novel. At times it felt like it was describing the cutscenes and not telling the story or adding in descriptions that people who haven’t played the game won’t understand as easily. It’s very fast paced too as many adaptations are but it’s probably harder to follow if you aren’t aware of the game’s story and the novel doesn’t take time to explain everything, just some of the more essential parts of the story. But despite that, it’s a really fun read and a nice adventure too and it captures a lot of great moments from the first game. Shiro Amano’s artwork also really captures the charm of the scenes, not as much as his work on the manga obviously since there’s less illustrations here but I enjoyed seeing his art featured here too. Kingdom Hearts’ narrative will always be one of those ones that will always be such a joy to experience no matter the medium. It still invoked a lot of emotion just for the sheer passion and love i have for the series as a whole so I managed to get a lot of enjoyment out of the book and I’m very excited to read the rest of the novels just to experience the series in a new way.
The novel adaption is not perfect as I have critiqued a couple areas but I love kingdom hearts too much that it’s the only series I will allow a 5/5 just for the enjoyment i had reading it despite some drawbacks
July 25, 2024
Frankly, it sort of just sucks. So little effort was put into getting the story to read like it’s actually supposed to be a book. It is painfully apparent that it’s an adaptation of a video game. Talking, battle, talking, battle, “items and accessories”, talking, battle, etc. It’s lazy. More importantly, it’s boring.
You’re telling the story of a kid who travels with Donald Duck and Goofy Goof to worlds inhabited by various Disney characters, and you opt to present it through plain, matter-of-fact, amateurish prose? No whimsy? No ornamentation? No fun? Give me SOMETHING, for Christ’s sake.
I understand this is a book for kids in middle school, but that doesn’t mean it’s okay to write with so little imagination. Tomoco Kanemaki and Melissa Tanaka, I am disappointed. You should both feel ashamed.
You’re telling the story of a kid who travels with Donald Duck and Goofy Goof to worlds inhabited by various Disney characters, and you opt to present it through plain, matter-of-fact, amateurish prose? No whimsy? No ornamentation? No fun? Give me SOMETHING, for Christ’s sake.
I understand this is a book for kids in middle school, but that doesn’t mean it’s okay to write with so little imagination. Tomoco Kanemaki and Melissa Tanaka, I am disappointed. You should both feel ashamed.
April 18, 2024
Sora and his friends, Riku and Kairi, want to explore beyond their small island, but when it ends up absorbed by a darkness that threatens all worlds, he'll need to work with new pals Donald and Goofy to find their missing friends and defeat the Heartless using the mysterious Keyblade...Kanemaki and Amano bring fans of the titular franchise a fun and fast-paced summarization, filled with quirky but charming moments and lovely illustrations, though a tad lacking on the full scope of the game. What is the Keyblade, and how did Sora of all people come to wield it?
October 1, 2017
Overall, Kingdom Hearts: The Novel does a good job of retelling the story of the first Kingdom Hearts game. In fact, even though it's been years since I played it, I could tell some dialogues were taken straight from the game, give or take a few expressions, and the charm of it all quickly made me remember the scenes themselves and the emotions while playing.
However, this also means that the book relies heavily on the reader actually having more context on what's going on than it strives to provide. In other words, since it assumes one is already engaged in the experience, people who have not played at least some of the games will probably find themselves easily lost and even alienated by some of the most cheesy moments.
Games are interactive mediums, where the player is an active participant in the events and can follow their own pace. Unfortunately, the novel fails to capture that feeling, and instead delivers an experience that is closer to watching a speedrunner on YouTube - you are just an spectator, and things are happening fast.
Now, note that I don't mean that in the "light novel fast" sense; light novels are supposed to be quick reads. What is too fast here is actually the chain of events. The battle begins! Stuff happens! Now it's over! Next world!. Characters are introduced and forgotten in mere pages, and the book expects us to care about them. If you have played the game, you might already have some sort of connection to them, but for those who haven't there is no time to form any kind of attachment.
The end result is the retelling a speedrun. If you have played the game, you already know what is happening, why, and who these people are, but if you haven't... well, you are probably going to be very lost, and chances are you are going to find little to keep you invested.
That, I believe, is the main lowlight of this novel. I enjoyed my time with it, even if I disliked the speedrunning feel and the overly cheesy (and at times weirdly worded) narrative, and I'm sure fans of the original game would enjoy it as well. For non-players, however, I'd strongly recommend either playing the game, or watching a Let's Play; even if it's just the latter, you will get a much better experience.
However, this also means that the book relies heavily on the reader actually having more context on what's going on than it strives to provide. In other words, since it assumes one is already engaged in the experience, people who have not played at least some of the games will probably find themselves easily lost and even alienated by some of the most cheesy moments.
Games are interactive mediums, where the player is an active participant in the events and can follow their own pace. Unfortunately, the novel fails to capture that feeling, and instead delivers an experience that is closer to watching a speedrunner on YouTube - you are just an spectator, and things are happening fast.
Now, note that I don't mean that in the "light novel fast" sense; light novels are supposed to be quick reads. What is too fast here is actually the chain of events. The battle begins! Stuff happens! Now it's over! Next world!. Characters are introduced and forgotten in mere pages, and the book expects us to care about them. If you have played the game, you might already have some sort of connection to them, but for those who haven't there is no time to form any kind of attachment.
The end result is the retelling a speedrun. If you have played the game, you already know what is happening, why, and who these people are, but if you haven't... well, you are probably going to be very lost, and chances are you are going to find little to keep you invested.
That, I believe, is the main lowlight of this novel. I enjoyed my time with it, even if I disliked the speedrunning feel and the overly cheesy (and at times weirdly worded) narrative, and I'm sure fans of the original game would enjoy it as well. For non-players, however, I'd strongly recommend either playing the game, or watching a Let's Play; even if it's just the latter, you will get a much better experience.
August 9, 2020
First of all I want to say that I absolutely love Kingdom Hearts. I was debating another play through however I decided to try out the novel/manga versions of the games instead. I started with this one, and I don’t want to be too harsh but it was not good at all. Everything that made the game great was lost and it was really cringeworthy. It was also somehow more confusing than the game too. This book is obviously meant for kids, so the writing was never going to be too great, but given that it is also a translation from Japanese it leads to some really bad moments of writing. I’m glad I read this though because I now know to avoid the novels and go for the manga instead.
February 1, 2019
I wanted to like this more than I did. Unfortunately, it just didn't translate well. And I mean that in a literal sense. There were issues with how things were phrased and occasionally odd symbols (At least in my digital book). This could have been a word by word script and I might have been more entertained. But the dialogue was the same as the game, with generic actions in between lines. Read a lot like a fanfic.
Don't get me wrong. I love kingdom hearts. I'm a huge fan of the series. This was just disappointing since I wanted a quick refresher of the lore.
Don't get me wrong. I love kingdom hearts. I'm a huge fan of the series. This was just disappointing since I wanted a quick refresher of the lore.
May 22, 2018
Loved the game, but this abridged version was a bit of a letdown. It's basically a straightforward description of the game, while missing any non-plot-related scenes (and worlds. sorry Pooh bear.). If you're looking for a quick recap of the game then it's passable, but that's all I see it as: a simplistic recap.
July 25, 2015
This kinda reminds me of fanfiction. Not super spectacular, but pretty decent if you're a fan of the game. Sadly, people who haven't played it might not understand some things because it doesn't go into a lot of detail. Still, pretty good. :)
February 19, 2025
on page 189, it say something like: "Donald flapped his wings like a bird." Donald Duck, I believe, is a bird.
The fight scenes where a little TO fast-paced.
I'll still always love the KH stories.
The fight scenes where a little TO fast-paced.
I'll still always love the KH stories.
July 10, 2015
While I love Kingdom Hearts, the novel didn't really blow me away. More to follow.
January 24, 2021
A solid 3.5 stars! This thing reads like a fever dream that an 8 year old had...but the STORY!! It’s so interesting and the world building is chefs kiss! Ugh I love the KH universe.
September 19, 2023
I bought this book hoping for an introduction to the world of Kingdom Hearts, as I don’t own the necessary equipment to play the games themselves. However, I do know much of the story for this series already thanks to the internet. In some ways, it's a good thing I did, because I likely would have been very confused by several parts if I wasn't already familiar with lore. Yet that doesn't mean you won't like this book if you know nothing about Kingdom Hearts.
But I'm getting ahead of myself.
Since I haven't actually played the games, I won't be setting any standards as to how well it adapts those. Instead I'll review this purely as a book, apart from the occasional acknowledgement of how video game mechanics likely affected the story.
The set up for this book was rather rushed. We meet our hero, Sora, on his home world called Destiny Islands. We're given fairly little time to get to know his dynamic with his friends Kairi and, especially, Riku. This despite their friendship being central to the themes and conflict of the book.
There's also no mention of the characters' home lives, beyond a single line mentioning Sora's "mom and dad". This is somewhat strange because we're told almost immediately that he and his friends are building a raft to sail away and explore new worlds. How they expect their parents to react to this is never explained. You'd think he'd feel a little guilty about this, no? Even once the main adventure begins, Sora never mentions his family, despite his desire to get himself and his friends home.
It's just kinda bizarre; stuff like the characters' home lives are the kind of things I'd expect to be expanded on more in a novelization of a video game, but this one doesn't do that.
Once Sora is off on his adventure, we get to see a whole bunch of Disney worlds, as well as Sora's great dynamic with Donald and Goofy. One thing readers of all ages can enjoy in this book is the delight of seeing various Disney characters interact. How often do you get to see Maleficent arguing with Captain Hook while calling Jafar an idiot?
This isn't without flaw, however. In order to avoid spoilers I won't give specifics; however, almost the entire plot of Aladdin is shoved into a single chapter. This resulted in some moments from the film happening but not really making sense in context, and character dynamics seeming underdeveloped.
But if you can get past that, it's a blast to see Donald Duck and Goofy working together with Aladdin and Genie to save Agrabah.
This book is probably perfect for Elementary-age kids and their parents to read together. Kids can marvel at seeing their favorite Disney characters interact. And unlike us adults, they hopefully won't be so nitpicky with plot-holes and pacing and can just enjoy it for what it is.
There’s a lot of quest-like scenes where the characters are told “Go here, find this, do this, come back.” In a video game, this leads to more gameplay. In a book, though, it just seems kinda pointless.
There's also some characters from the video game series Final Fantasy. I don't know anything about that series. Their inclusion didn't add to my enjoyment, but it didn't detract from it either.
The action scenes are pretty decent. If anything, the constant new waves of enemies got repetitive fairly quickly. I’m sure it’s a lot of fun in the game when you have to actually fight the monsters yourself. But when I’m just reading about Sora doing it, a lot of times it could be cut quite easily. In fact there are some parts where it clearly does skip over what were probably very difficult fights for the player in the actual game. Still, sometimes it might be more interesting if Sora simply had a real conversation with Donald and Goofy rather than fighting yet another wave of monsters.
I’d guess a lot of stuff from the game was cut out. Both stuff on Destiny Islands with Riku and Kairi at the beginning, and Disney worlds that they visit. It’s weird, because you’d think a novelization would have more time for character details, at least?
Either way, I don’t think I’d have the same level of emotional investment in what happens to Riku if I didn’t already know enough about Kingdom Hearts. But granted, that is from the POV of someone who already knew who these characters were beforehand. You may not have a problem with this at all.
The lore, involving constant uses of the words “light”, “hearts”, “darkness”, and “keyhole” over and over again is where this may be somewhat confusing if you’re completely new to this franchise. Whether you’re confused or not though, it’s 100% cheesy. In a good way, of course. If you know what you’re signing up for.
Again, if you’re looking for extraordinary world building and character development, this isn’t really that. But if you’re looking for a fun Disney crossover with some heartfelt messages, this certainly fits the bill.
Overall, this didn’t turn out to be the ideal substitute for the games for someone just looking for the story, since so much was cut out or shortened. Still, it manages to tell a decent story in the space it has and can be enjoyed regardless of your knowledge of Kingdom Hearts. If you have young kids, I’d recommend trying this with them.
But I'm getting ahead of myself.
Since I haven't actually played the games, I won't be setting any standards as to how well it adapts those. Instead I'll review this purely as a book, apart from the occasional acknowledgement of how video game mechanics likely affected the story.
The set up for this book was rather rushed. We meet our hero, Sora, on his home world called Destiny Islands. We're given fairly little time to get to know his dynamic with his friends Kairi and, especially, Riku. This despite their friendship being central to the themes and conflict of the book.
There's also no mention of the characters' home lives, beyond a single line mentioning Sora's "mom and dad". This is somewhat strange because we're told almost immediately that he and his friends are building a raft to sail away and explore new worlds. How they expect their parents to react to this is never explained. You'd think he'd feel a little guilty about this, no? Even once the main adventure begins, Sora never mentions his family, despite his desire to get himself and his friends home.
It's just kinda bizarre; stuff like the characters' home lives are the kind of things I'd expect to be expanded on more in a novelization of a video game, but this one doesn't do that.
Once Sora is off on his adventure, we get to see a whole bunch of Disney worlds, as well as Sora's great dynamic with Donald and Goofy. One thing readers of all ages can enjoy in this book is the delight of seeing various Disney characters interact. How often do you get to see Maleficent arguing with Captain Hook while calling Jafar an idiot?
This isn't without flaw, however. In order to avoid spoilers I won't give specifics; however, almost the entire plot of Aladdin is shoved into a single chapter. This resulted in some moments from the film happening but not really making sense in context, and character dynamics seeming underdeveloped.
But if you can get past that, it's a blast to see Donald Duck and Goofy working together with Aladdin and Genie to save Agrabah.
This book is probably perfect for Elementary-age kids and their parents to read together. Kids can marvel at seeing their favorite Disney characters interact. And unlike us adults, they hopefully won't be so nitpicky with plot-holes and pacing and can just enjoy it for what it is.
There’s a lot of quest-like scenes where the characters are told “Go here, find this, do this, come back.” In a video game, this leads to more gameplay. In a book, though, it just seems kinda pointless.
There's also some characters from the video game series Final Fantasy. I don't know anything about that series. Their inclusion didn't add to my enjoyment, but it didn't detract from it either.
The action scenes are pretty decent. If anything, the constant new waves of enemies got repetitive fairly quickly. I’m sure it’s a lot of fun in the game when you have to actually fight the monsters yourself. But when I’m just reading about Sora doing it, a lot of times it could be cut quite easily. In fact there are some parts where it clearly does skip over what were probably very difficult fights for the player in the actual game. Still, sometimes it might be more interesting if Sora simply had a real conversation with Donald and Goofy rather than fighting yet another wave of monsters.
I’d guess a lot of stuff from the game was cut out. Both stuff on Destiny Islands with Riku and Kairi at the beginning, and Disney worlds that they visit. It’s weird, because you’d think a novelization would have more time for character details, at least?
Either way, I don’t think I’d have the same level of emotional investment in what happens to Riku if I didn’t already know enough about Kingdom Hearts. But granted, that is from the POV of someone who already knew who these characters were beforehand. You may not have a problem with this at all.
The lore, involving constant uses of the words “light”, “hearts”, “darkness”, and “keyhole” over and over again is where this may be somewhat confusing if you’re completely new to this franchise. Whether you’re confused or not though, it’s 100% cheesy. In a good way, of course. If you know what you’re signing up for.
Again, if you’re looking for extraordinary world building and character development, this isn’t really that. But if you’re looking for a fun Disney crossover with some heartfelt messages, this certainly fits the bill.
Overall, this didn’t turn out to be the ideal substitute for the games for someone just looking for the story, since so much was cut out or shortened. Still, it manages to tell a decent story in the space it has and can be enjoyed regardless of your knowledge of Kingdom Hearts. If you have young kids, I’d recommend trying this with them.
October 22, 2018
Do you not have a playstation or really like Kingdom Hearts well this is the book for you.
This book is called Kingdom Hearts The Novel, by Tomoco Hanemaki, this is a book about the game well Kingdom Hearts, the genre is fantasy. The setting is basically almost all the places in the Disney franchise from Snow White to Cinderella. The main character is this boy named Sora but I guess Donald Duck and Goofy are also some of the main characters too. You guys already know what Donald and Goofy look like and if not WHAT, anyway Sora has spiky brown hair, blue eyes, has red pants/shirt thing, big yellow shoes, white gloves with some circle like things on them, has a blue/black jacket, and he has a keyblade. Sora and his friends want to leave their island called Destiny Island but then something bad happens some shadow creatures, Sora pass out and wakes up to find himself in a “new world” and that’s where he meets Donald Duck and Goofy, then they go to save the world. What I think about this book is that it is amazing and I would so read it again I love Kingdom Hearts and I think this book really does hit that point and it gives us more detail than the game did, I think the audience that they are trying to target to are one the people who love Kingdom Hearts and who had played it and also teens and adults.
This book is called Kingdom Hearts The Novel, by Tomoco Hanemaki, this is a book about the game well Kingdom Hearts, the genre is fantasy. The setting is basically almost all the places in the Disney franchise from Snow White to Cinderella. The main character is this boy named Sora but I guess Donald Duck and Goofy are also some of the main characters too. You guys already know what Donald and Goofy look like and if not WHAT, anyway Sora has spiky brown hair, blue eyes, has red pants/shirt thing, big yellow shoes, white gloves with some circle like things on them, has a blue/black jacket, and he has a keyblade. Sora and his friends want to leave their island called Destiny Island but then something bad happens some shadow creatures, Sora pass out and wakes up to find himself in a “new world” and that’s where he meets Donald Duck and Goofy, then they go to save the world. What I think about this book is that it is amazing and I would so read it again I love Kingdom Hearts and I think this book really does hit that point and it gives us more detail than the game did, I think the audience that they are trying to target to are one the people who love Kingdom Hearts and who had played it and also teens and adults.
February 19, 2018
Disclosure of Bias: I love the Kingdom Hearts games and they are very child-nostalgia for me so it is difficult for me to not love the novelization.
But no, I do feel like this is a very good adaptation of the video game. If you've played the game then there are no real surprises. But I imagine most who pick up this novel has played the game before. Knowing that this is a translation, there were no weird lost in translation blips either as everything flowed rather nicely.
The characters feel very much like they're game counterparts even in the peeks we get into the their thoughts. There's not odd characterizations or out of nowhere turns. The plot is slimmed down as we do not visit all the worlds, I noticed Atlantic was missing which was a shame because I feel King Trition's monologue on the Keyblade wielders not always being a beacon of Good being rather needed as everyone else thought Sora was a Godsend and it it worked for Triton since his character in the movie was very 'keep world's seperate.' HalloweenTown was also missing so I wonder if it was just the worlds in which they had to change to preserve the world orders that had to go or were chosen to be skipped.
But this is a good and I don't think readers, fans or not, will be disappoint.
But no, I do feel like this is a very good adaptation of the video game. If you've played the game then there are no real surprises. But I imagine most who pick up this novel has played the game before. Knowing that this is a translation, there were no weird lost in translation blips either as everything flowed rather nicely.
The characters feel very much like they're game counterparts even in the peeks we get into the their thoughts. There's not odd characterizations or out of nowhere turns. The plot is slimmed down as we do not visit all the worlds, I noticed Atlantic was missing which was a shame because I feel King Trition's monologue on the Keyblade wielders not always being a beacon of Good being rather needed as everyone else thought Sora was a Godsend and it it worked for Triton since his character in the movie was very 'keep world's seperate.' HalloweenTown was also missing so I wonder if it was just the worlds in which they had to change to preserve the world orders that had to go or were chosen to be skipped.
But this is a good and I don't think readers, fans or not, will be disappoint.
October 25, 2022
I adore this story. The first game is my favorite ever. Granted it’s a book based from a video game, so I wasn’t expecting it to be the most excellent adaptation. I am kind of glad I went in with a lower expectation.
There were a lot of parts that were embellished to make the story feel better. We got to see a lot of emotions, especially from Riku, which was better than fantastic! But then on the flip side, pieces of the story that made this game what it was were basically glossed over. I would have loved a short chapter of Sora as the heartless, or some of what Kairi was experiencing.
I think what really stood out to me as a negative was how this book glossed over things. It didn’t go into detail. It would then drop names of boss battles. I think the story just wouldn’t be accessible to those who didn’t play through the entire game if they were just reading this book.
Positives, I love this story. I love the Gummi Ship banter that was added and the extra emotion where it could be added.
This certainly was not a favorite, but I wouldn’t be surprised if I caught myself picking it back up.
There were a lot of parts that were embellished to make the story feel better. We got to see a lot of emotions, especially from Riku, which was better than fantastic! But then on the flip side, pieces of the story that made this game what it was were basically glossed over. I would have loved a short chapter of Sora as the heartless, or some of what Kairi was experiencing.
I think what really stood out to me as a negative was how this book glossed over things. It didn’t go into detail. It would then drop names of boss battles. I think the story just wouldn’t be accessible to those who didn’t play through the entire game if they were just reading this book.
Positives, I love this story. I love the Gummi Ship banter that was added and the extra emotion where it could be added.
This certainly was not a favorite, but I wouldn’t be surprised if I caught myself picking it back up.
January 27, 2018
It's a love-it-or-hate-it thing.
Myself? I LOVED it. The Kingdom Hearts novel abridges the Disney world parts and spends a lot of time with the original characters and core plot. You get fifty pages of Destiny Islands, maybe ten of Wonderland. It's a way of acknowledging that, while the Disney elements are why you probably showed up, it's not the meat of Kingdom Hearts.
Other readers will likely hate it for the same thing ("I skipped all that memories and friendship bullshit," says that one friend we all had in middle school).
So basically...if you love Kingdom Hearts for the story, or you're curious about Kingdom Hearts' story but don't wanna shell out for a PS4, this is a fun and fast read. If you loved the earlier days of the franchise, where the Disney characters had more focus, or if you don't even know what Kingdom Hearts is, then stay away.
PS. This is an incredibly-solid translation. It's more in league with 'Haruhi Suzumiya' and 'Accel World' than a badly-translated gibberishfest like, say, 'A Certain Magical Index'. (Meaning it actually reads like a novel.)
Myself? I LOVED it. The Kingdom Hearts novel abridges the Disney world parts and spends a lot of time with the original characters and core plot. You get fifty pages of Destiny Islands, maybe ten of Wonderland. It's a way of acknowledging that, while the Disney elements are why you probably showed up, it's not the meat of Kingdom Hearts.
Other readers will likely hate it for the same thing ("I skipped all that memories and friendship bullshit," says that one friend we all had in middle school).
So basically...if you love Kingdom Hearts for the story, or you're curious about Kingdom Hearts' story but don't wanna shell out for a PS4, this is a fun and fast read. If you loved the earlier days of the franchise, where the Disney characters had more focus, or if you don't even know what Kingdom Hearts is, then stay away.
PS. This is an incredibly-solid translation. It's more in league with 'Haruhi Suzumiya' and 'Accel World' than a badly-translated gibberishfest like, say, 'A Certain Magical Index'. (Meaning it actually reads like a novel.)
January 19, 2018
Tengo mis dudas con las 2 estrellas, pero allá va...
Se lee de una asentada. Como buen fan de la saga de Kingdom Hearts que soy, admito que KH: The Novel hace un trabajo "aceptable" al volver a contar los acontecimientos del primer juego. Pero solo eso. Entiendo que los diálogos estén "calcados" del videojuego, pero más que una novela, siento que he leído un fan fic. Los acontecimientos suceden a una velocidad tan alta, si bien se asemeja al ritmo que en ocasiones el juego puede tener, hace que pierda el interés. Además, entran y salen nuevos personajes de tal modo que son fáciles de olvidar.
De hecho, le falta captar la misma esencia que he sentido en el videojuego. Pero tampoco se puede hacer mucho cuando simplemente se quiere explotar esto, ¿verdad? :/
Se lee de una asentada. Como buen fan de la saga de Kingdom Hearts que soy, admito que KH: The Novel hace un trabajo "aceptable" al volver a contar los acontecimientos del primer juego. Pero solo eso. Entiendo que los diálogos estén "calcados" del videojuego, pero más que una novela, siento que he leído un fan fic. Los acontecimientos suceden a una velocidad tan alta, si bien se asemeja al ritmo que en ocasiones el juego puede tener, hace que pierda el interés. Además, entran y salen nuevos personajes de tal modo que son fáciles de olvidar.
De hecho, le falta captar la misma esencia que he sentido en el videojuego. Pero tampoco se puede hacer mucho cuando simplemente se quiere explotar esto, ¿verdad? :/
June 3, 2018
3.5/5 Stars
This isn't the first light novel that I've read. I've tried about three or four other light novels and I could never finish them so I am very happy to have read and finished this one! Kingdom Hearts is one of my favorite video game franchise's I love the story line and the characters. This book follows the video game pretty closely with the exception of some of the worlds that you would visit in the video game. Over all, I really liked this book and if there is another one I wouldn't mind reading that one.
This isn't the first light novel that I've read. I've tried about three or four other light novels and I could never finish them so I am very happy to have read and finished this one! Kingdom Hearts is one of my favorite video game franchise's I love the story line and the characters. This book follows the video game pretty closely with the exception of some of the worlds that you would visit in the video game. Over all, I really liked this book and if there is another one I wouldn't mind reading that one.
March 4, 2025
me gustó mucho mucho, pero no es perfecto. hay algo en lo que flaquea, y es que puede decirse «kingdom hearts» como el primer capítulo de una historia fragmentada en grupos bastante amplios. quiera o no, es difícil mantener una opinión firme en base a algo tan incompleto.
por un lado, podría decirse que no posee un final como tal, sino una conexión directa con el segundo libro. por otro lado, quedé tan satisfecho que no dudaré en leerme el siguiente a este. :D
[una canción que escuché mientras leía el libro fue «a well respected man» de the kinks. siento que aquellas vibras encajan].
por un lado, podría decirse que no posee un final como tal, sino una conexión directa con el segundo libro. por otro lado, quedé tan satisfecho que no dudaré en leerme el siguiente a este. :D
[una canción que escuché mientras leía el libro fue «a well respected man» de the kinks. siento que aquellas vibras encajan].
December 12, 2019
If you've played the game, then you've essentially read the light novel. It was a bit of a dry read, but I'm going to assume it due to being translated. There are a few moments here and there than "probably" happened between worlds that help flesh out Sora, Donald, and Goofy's bonds. I'll certainly go on to read Chain of Memories, but so far the novels are a completely nessisary read for the Kingdom Hearts fan.
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