Silent Witch 沉默魔女的祕密 I

サイレント・ウィッチ 沈黙の魔女の隠しごと [Silent Witch: Chinmoku no Mahou no Kakushigoto] (Light Novel) #1

by Matsuri Isora, 依空まつり, Nanna Fujimi (Illustrator)

「沉默魔女」莫妮卡．艾瓦雷特。
她是世上唯一一位能使用無詠唱魔術的魔術師，同時也是單槍匹馬擊退傳說黑龍的年少英雄。
然而她的本性──其實怕生到要加上「超」字來形容？
她之所以會練習無詠唱魔術，是為了可以不用在人前開口就了事。
絲毫沒發現自己天賦異稟的莫妮卡，就在毫無自覺的情況下獲選為「七賢人」，
還被硬塞了護衛第二王子的極祕任務……？
生性羞怯膽小，實力卻是最強。
天才家裡蹲魔女隱瞞本性，偷偷制裁接近王子的惡人，痛快無比的奇幻冒險劇！

Genres: Light Novel, Fantasy, Manga, Magic, Fiction, Romance, Comedy

308 pages, ebook

First published June 10, 2021

About the author

依空まつり

Reviews

[Noi (in & out) · Rating 4 out of 5]

“it’s nice to enjoy things that aren’t necessary,”
“Human life is full of the unnecessary, so why not enjoy it?’ That’s another quote from one of Dustin Gunther’s novels.”
For Monica, who had to try her hardest just to live, enjoying the unnecessary seemed like a monumental task. Nevertheless…
“I’ll…give it a try,”

This was precious.

[Diana H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Social anxiety social anxiet-ies her way into politics,,, 10/10

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it! It was a little annoying with how shy she was, but it was SO admirable of her in how she tried to fight her shyness to do her job.

I think she might be on the spectrum, with her inability to handle large crowds and how she goes deep into numbers when she gets overly stressed. Her cat familiar Nero can break her out of her spells of zoning out of reality by putting his soft kitty paws onto her face, which seems like a tactile therapy of a sort maybe?

It’s really a cute book and I hope the rest follow suit. 4, so glad I got this when book 2 is already out so I can read it now, stars.

[Winter]

Since this is a Japanese light novel, I won’t focus much on the writing itself—it’s serviceable at best and very much follows “anime logic.” It may feel odd or not entirely sensible to readers who aren’t familiar with manga or anime storytelling conventions, but that comes with the territory.

That aside, the story itself is cozy and enjoyable. It’s the kind of book you can relax with in your free time, similar in vibe to The Apothecary Diaries, except the protagonist suffers from extreme social anxiety, which plays a central role in the narrative. It’s clear that her behavior is shaped by past trauma, and while the story keeps a light tone overall, her struggles add emotional weight and make her easy to root for.

I also agree with another review that the anime adaptation toned down the bullying to make the story more light-hearted and the characters more immediately likeable. Because of this, fans who started with the anime and want to continue the story through the novels should strongly consider reading from Volume 1. The light novel includes more detail, context, and character nuance that were either softened or omitted in the adaptation.

If you enjoy fast-paced, cozy fantasy stories with introverted leads and a character-focused progression, this series may be well worth your time.

˚ · .˚ ༘🦋⋆｡˚ pre-read
Just finished the anime, so naturally, I have to run to the source material 🤭

[Ami 乁⁠ ⁠˘⁠ ⁠o⁠ ⁠˘⁠ ⁠ㄏ (written by Jane Austen) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started reading this one on a whim as I watched the anime and ngl, this book is a gem, especially for me, who has always struggled with social anxiety, it felt rather nice to see a protagonist struggling with it also and still managing to be the best at her field. In fact, it makes me positively happy that the book depicts her with the ability of turning her flaws into strengths!

That being said, the way some of the characters treat the protagonist is...quite vile. The anime really toned it down, which I guess they had to do if they wanted to make the characters more palatable. I just hope that we get to see what should be coming for them soon. (Like honestly can't wait for Bridget to get in major trouble).

Anyways, I loved this book and will continue the series!

[Mistress OP · Rating 4 out of 5]

2024 - Overall, it's not a bad series. It's not hitting anything out of the park, and I wouldn't super recommend it. It's more of a filler book, one that won't throw you into a reading slump. I also didn't think I would reread it.

2025 -But I ended up rereading it after all. The series stuck with me. I wasn't a fan of the high-key shy trope that kind of character where everyone has to fawn all over her, but she's so shy she doesn't notice how wonderful she is. That's tiring for me normally. I never disliked the books; I just knew it wasn't my cup of tea. But it had good action moments, and those moments and the magic stuck out to me.

So, I ended up rereading it now that more English books are out. I'm not sure how far I'm going to make it, though. I'm not really into "school prince" style books. Buttttttttttt. It's better than I remembered.

[Claudia Doppioslash · Rating 5 out of 5]

More of a series review that a review for this book specifically, I'm up to book 6.
I started reading this after watching the anime, looking for what happens next.
It's much better written and translated than the average Japanese light novel, which was a pleasant surprise.

I think the basic scenario is a great idea, and it's quite expertly developed.
The characters are all interesting, lovable, and often funny.
While it starts off as a "magic school" scenario, it breaks out of that and becomes much more interesting in later books.

Monica is massively overpowered in a believable way, her crippling social anxiety is well justified (eventually), and makes for an interesting dynamic that I don't remember having read before.
While everyone's personality traits are exaggerated anime-style, their psychology is still well built.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great first volume. I think it can be hard with shy characters to walk the line between endearing and annoying, but I found myself laughing out loud at several points at Monica and how she dealt with the situations she found herself in. The mystery was a little predictable, but it was a good set-up for everyone's role and personality in the story, and it set up greater intrigues for future installments. I also liked how each character was unique in their own way, and they felt like they had some depth to them, not just acting for the plot's sake. I'm especially looking forward to seeing how the relationship between Monica and Felix develops going forward.

[mj ｡^‿^｡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

i’m so glad i watched the anime first because omg the details that they left out that are in this??? but not knowing what i was missing in the anime makes reading this even better (although i will also argue i do love the more slow burn approach the anime takes) it’s like watching a kdrama and being scandalized when they brush hands already in the first episode. FELIX YOU LITTLE MINX! i love seeing more in depth into the thoughts of all the characters too, i already know nero is gonna be a big fave for me reading this

[Eylan · Rating 5 out of 5]

بيرفككتت حرفياً

[EVAN · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5
I ABSOLUTELY ADORED THIS THING!!!

[Kristen Tegtmeyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally read the first volume! I loved it so much after watching the anime I needed more of the story can’t wait to read more volumes !!

[Russell Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was in the mood for a light novel and I think I picked this up on sale nearly a year ago, so figured why not? I was a little worried about 20% in because it felt way more young-adult than the average LN I've read, but it managed to keep my interest to the end. It didn't hurt that it was such a quick read.

I first worried whether I would like this after introducing our MC as a sage (one of the most powerful mages) who solo kills a black dragon and then a whole flock of smaller dragons. This alone wasn't a big issue, but considering this was the intro, it threw me a bit off to have the story from there turn into the equivalent of Garfield and the Case of the Purloined Pie.

I also struggle to stay on board with characters that are so debilitated in their day-to-day life as this girl is due to her social anxiety. Honestly, if the story and writing didn't read so quickly, there's a fair chance I would have dropped this.

That being said, despite not really being my cup of tea, I think the book excelled at doing what it set out to do, which was tell a very straightforward mini-mystery with some comedic elements and hints of romance that the MC was too dense to notice.

If that sounds up your alley, then maybe give it a try.

[Nicole Nieto · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had difficulty with this one. I wanted to enjoy it, but I really couldn’t get into it with the way that the main character Monica was being treated. Like, this girl isn’t super shy, she’s abused. I know the book doesn’t say it outright, but this isn’t rocket science. Her behavior, the things she says sometimes, even just some small memories, it all adds up to one really disturbing truth. And I’m sorry (not) but I can’t really laugh or enjoy myself when I read an obviously abused child being continually abused and bullied.

Despite all this, I did enjoy the school mystery going on. Those parts made the story fun.

[My · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoy protagonists with hyperfixation as a talent.

Very solid start - it seems like your typical school of magic with archetypal student council characters and nobility shenanigans, but it is well-written and engaging.

Monica's crippling social anxiety doesn't come across as caricature-ish imho and I'm curious about the glaringly loud hints to her backstory. Felix is like every other charming yet conniving prince in a light novel so far but he's likeable so I'd like to see his backstory fleshed out too.

Looking forward to where this one is going!

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

The plot has my interest, but the way everyone treats the main character, even the way the main character treats themself is depressing. I don't mean depressing like, 'oh poor girl'. It's depressing in an infuriating angry inducing sickening feeling. Absolutely hate it and hate the way the main character acts but there is obviously some heavy abusive background there. I am still going to read it but I just hope the main character's treatment by others and themself becomes better.

[Liz (Quirky Cat) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary:

Monica Everett is one of the most talented witches of her generation: the problem is that she doesn’t see herself that way. As an incredibly shy individual, she couldn’t bring herself to chant her magical incantations in front of others, so she perfected something new.

She created and mastered the art of uncharted mage craft, something that had never been done before. This was enough to induct her into the Seven Sages, and life has not been as peaceful and quiet as she would have liked since then.

Review:

So, I recently discovered a magical series called Secrets of the Silent Witch, and I am hooked. I started by watching all of the anime currently available, then started reading the manga. Then I decided that I actually wanted to read the light novels, since there’s far more of that. So yeah, I’m hooked. No turning back now.

Secrets of the Silent Witch (Light Novel) Vol. 1 introduces a magical world, compelling characters, and so much more. It covers the first two volumes of the manga (give or take), just to give you an idea of the pacing.

Enter Monica, aka the Silent Witch. She’s my new favorite character, as her shyness is beyond relatable. She turned this fear of public speaking into her secret superpower, and that’s incredibly impressive, right?

The magical system itself is intriguing, though it’s the characters that really make this world come to life. Monica is an outlier, given her status, but she’s far from the only character we’re getting to learn about. I’m looking forward to getting further into the series, so I can see more about the other Seven Sages.

Interestingly, while the manga and the light novels are pretty comparable, I am noticing some differences between them and the anime. It’s not necessarily anything huge, just details here and there. It’s enough to convince me that I really do need to read along while I watch. I want every detail possible, please!

Highlights:
Fantasy Series
Incredibly Shy Protagonist
Magical System
Cat Familiar

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[Triscia Katerina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this. So much. I don’t care if there were archetypal anime characters in this story, the world building and the characters were so intriguing enough that I enjoyed everything, even if it can be really cheesy.

World building: I LOVED the fact that magic is created based on formula. It made my math nerd self really happy. Monica being a shy mathematician magician is also VERY UP MY ALLEY. I’ve never seen any anime or read any fantasy books that built magic like this. It makes so much sense to use mathematical modelling for magecraft — I need to stop myself before I nerd out over the math in this story.

CHARACTERS: Monica is so, so cute. I want to hug her and also slap her like, GIRL, believe in yourself more. But that’s okay, it’s just the first volume. I hope to see more of her character development in future volumes. (I already ordered the second volume yesterday oops hehe) Felix surprised me. I thought he was going to be a typical kind, handsome prince, but he’s pretty smart and perceptive. Nero is so cute. Cyril is so cute. Lana is so cute. EVERYONE IS SO CUTE.

I hope this gets adopted into an anime one day. I’d love to see the magic and action all animated.

[Sarul Sakulthong · Rating 5 out of 5]

Secrets of the Silent Witch เป็นเรื่องราวของแม่มดสาวขี้อายนามโมนิก้า เอเวอร์เร็ต ผู้เป็นถึง 1 ใน 7 นักปราชญ์ ซึ่งจู่ๆก็ต้องรับหน้าที่แอบคุ้มกันเจ้าชายอันดับสอง เฟลิกซ์อย่างลับๆ ทำให้เธอต้องปลอมตัวเข้าไปเรียนโรงเรียนเดียวกับเจ้าชาย....
เรื่องนี้เรียกได้ว่ารีวิวค่อนข้างยากถ้าจะไม่ให้สปอยล์เนื้อเรื่องเลย เอาเป็นว่าระหว่างอ่านผมค่อนข้างเพลินกับการเอาใจช่วยโมนิก้า ผู้มีความสามารถล้นเหลือเข้าขั้นอัจฉริยะ แต่ความขี้อายของเธอทำให้ทุกการกระทำของเธอกลายเป็นโก๊ะๆเปิ่นๆขาดๆเกินๆไปเสียหมด อดไม่ได้ที่อ่านไปแล้วจะทั้งขำและเอ็นดูน้อง ฝ่ายเจ้าชายก็ไม่ได้เป็นหนุ่มน้อยขี้แยอย่างที่ผมจินตนาการไว้ตอนก่อนเริ่มอ่าน ว่าพล็อตแนวนี้เจ้าชายต้องติ๋มๆอ่อนแอแหงๆ ทว่าอันที่จริงเขากลับเป็นเด็กหนุ่มมากเล่ห์ พราวเสน่ห์ที่สตรีต้องหลงใหล บุรุษต้องคร้ามเกรงเสียด้วยซ้ำ จังหวะการดำเนินเรื่องก็ทำได้ดี ค่อยๆปูพื้นทีละนิดจนผู้อ่านอย่างผมค่อยๆหลุดเข้าไปในโลกสมมตินี้โดยไม่รู้ตัว ระบบเวทย์มนตร์ในเรื่องก็ทำได้ค่อนข้างน่าสนใจ อ่านแล้วให้ความรู้สึกว่ามันเป็นไปได้ (ถึงจริงๆมันจะเป็นแค่เรื่องแฟนตาซีก็เถอะ) อีกจุดที่ผมชอบคือผู้เขียนดูมีความหลงใหลในวิชาคณิตศาสตร์ หลายๆอย่างในเรื่องที่เค้าใส่เข้ามาผมอ่านแล้วก็แบบ "เออว่ะ! คณิตศาสตร์มันทำแบบนี้ได้ด้วยสินะ" อ่านเล่มนี้จบแล้วต้องไปหาซื้อเล่มที่เหลือมาอ่านต่อแล้ว

[Fuwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely love this!

The beginning setting up of the story feels a little forced, and it turned me off for a bit so I hesitated and also procrastinated in reading this book.
As it turns out, once I passed the prologue maybe by the end of 1st or 2nd chapter, I was completely hooked. Ended up squeezing some free time at work just to read this - didn't want to wait for tomorrow.

The characters are absolutely interesting and likable. Even though who dislikes our main, Monica. They are (as 1st volume often does) not fully fleshed out yet given there are future books for that, it's understandable. Their dislikes/hate have reasons that are plain human, right or wrong.

The only thing that gives a minus 1 star is that it is predictable. VERY ENJOYABLE but still predictable. I also didn't like how pretty barren the villain is.

That's that. I do recommend this book for anyone up to beautifully made shy characters - and pretty magic.

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is formulaic so that Monica would love it. Every major event is predictable. There is a mystery of sorts that forms the core of the plot but I saw through it near the beginning so there was no more suspense. I would compare that to The Tainted Cup by Robert Jack son Bennett which I read earlier this year as a fellow mystery. I felt stupid reading that because I was not solving any of the mysteries; by comparison I was a genius while reading this. I mainly picked this up for a change of pace with a shy protag who might be somewhat relatable, and it accomplished that much, so yay. Still, there is nothing more to get out of it, so I have no intention of reading another volume. Maybe three stars is generous, but two feels excessively miserly, so I reserve it for properly bad books, which this is not - only mediocre. I dislike five star systems.

[Kozan Soykal · Rating 5 out of 5]

This (series (upto book 3 as of this post)) is one of the best I've read out of some hundred or so light novels. The book handles the main character really well. She is quite strong in magic, a common trope in shonen LNs, but she is not an all-powerful individual: She almost dies from drinking poisoned tea, for example. She is also amazing in her element (math and magic), which avoids the useless princess coddled by 3+ princes shoujo trope. She painstakingly builds realistic relationships with people, both boys and girls and the book does an excellent job of explaining these with ups and downs.

Trigger warning: The MC is depicted as "shy" which is misleading. She's actually abused. The book does not get into that part until it's latter half and it comes up in later books.

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

While it's an enjoyable story, the anime does a lot of good in smoothing over some of the cruder character interactions and bringing out more nuance among the cast compared to this first novel. The characters are complex enough that the over-exaggerated tropey characteristics actually take away from my enjoyment of the cast and immersion in the story, especially since the author tends towards generic 'mean girl' behavior and casual physical abuse. There's a cool magic, political mystery going on and an interesting, nontraditional hero, but the thrown-in slapstick just cheapens the impact of the actual bullying and the abuse of power themes underpinning the story. 3 'creepy Prince is a creep' out of 5.

[Hartwig Th · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm blown away! At first, I didn't enjoy the book much. The build-up felt cliché and tempered my expectations of the book. But once I got into the story, it was captivating.

Cyril is such a mood, I love him! He single-handedly carried the male cast in my opinion. The prince is more interesting than I thought too, but I sincerely hope he won't end up with Monica. I won't expect much tho, given the prince bias of otome stories (｡•́︿•̀｡)

Monica is autistic and anxious af and that is well portrayed in my opinion. I'm giving a thumbs-up to the author for this.

I can strongly recommend this book! (◕‿◕)♡

[Matthew Heftie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each book is very short, and the plot is mostly overarching, so this is my review of the whole series.
The plot does seem a bit stretched, most likely the result of originating as a web novel. I'm also not sure how much of the events in the later books were planned from the beginning, and some things that turn out to be very important don't really seem foreshadowed.

Other than that, 10/10 very good (Monica is actually me fr). Mostly just a magical high school where the main character is incredibly good at magic and a failure at social interaction. We mostly focus on the social interaction, as that's more fun than a constant power fantasy. That part's fun too, though.

[Chi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this was a tad of a slog. For one thing, Monica shrinks into herself a great deal. Seems like she's had trauma in her past, and retreating into numbers and magecraft was her way of protecting herself. However, it still hurts to read others resorting to physical and verbal violence when berating her.

When she hits her stride though- that's when the story really shines. Her competency and her capabilities really shine through, and it's those moments, paired with her interactions with Nero (her cat familiar) that ultimately made this a really interesting read.

[Isabella Palma · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started reading this because the anime was so good and I needed to know what happened, I’m so glad I did! The light novel touches so much more into the story than the anime did and really seems like so many important parts of the plot in the light novel that are missing in the anime! I think in the translation to English some of the reading is a bit weird, but I really loved it and I feel like we get to look into Monica’s abilities a lot more and see so much more of Felix’s personality!
Will I still watch the anime when the next season comes out? Absolutely. The imagery is beautiful!

[Mathxxl]

Une intro pas dénuée d'intérêt, l'histoire est celle d'une magicienne de génie mais hyper timide qui se retrouve à devoir protéger un prince sous couverture.

Si le cadre scolaire très classique me déçoit un peu, j'aime bien sa protagoniste peu sociale et fan de sciences. Rien d'exceptionnel mais ça se lit bien.

Il semble se former autour d'elle un groupe de personnages un peu à part socialement, ce qui mène à quelques interactions wholesome. J'espère qu'on continuera sur cette voie.

[Charlie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely adored this light novel so so much! Will definitely be reading the next one asap. Secrets of the Silent Witch is a greatly heartwarming and cosy book full of magic, mystery and intrigue. There’s a snarky cat who acts as Monica’s familiar, dragon slaying, princes, and a main character who is so shy she breaks out in hives at the thought of having to introduce herself (same honestly). It’s so underrated!

Overall 4⭐️

[Rachana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started with the anime and instantly got pulled into the world—it was charming, emotional, and full of magic. Since the series is still ongoing, I picked up the novel and honestly, it’s been such a refreshing read. The pacing, the atmosphere, the way the story unfolds—it’s something I’ve been taking my time with, just enjoying every bit of it.

What makes it even more special is that I’ve already decided I want to read this to my future niece or nephew one day, right alongside the classic Disney stories. I want to be the one who opens the door to the world of enchantment for them, the cool aunt who introduces them to magic, mystery, and imagination.