Ehrenfest’s first winter without Ferdinand is colder and more oppressive than usual. A surprise betrayal within the former Veronica faction makes the purge even more urgent, and the few who know about Georgine’s destructive goals compare her to the Goddess of Chaos. Meanwhile, Rozemyne throws herself into her third year at the Royal Academy, trying to stave off the loneliness eating away at her. She pushes to win over the students of the former Veronica faction, hoping to save their lives, and meets a new archnoble librarian sent from the Sovereignty. Rozemyne also attends her first class of the archduke candidate course—though her personal ambitions mean she is taking the scholar course as well. In the midst of this balancing act, she finds that her environment has changed drastically once again! Here begins Part 5, the final chapter of this biblio-fantasy—and the legend of the saint grips Yurgenschmidt to the core! Includes two short stories and four-panel manga by You Shiina.
Kazuki started writing novels when she was in her second year of junior high school. After taking an entrance exam, she entered into a national university before graduating and becoming busy with work, stopping her from writing. Once she was married and her child entered kindergarten, Kazuki had more free time, which she used to start writing again. From 2013 onwards, she started publishing her novel Ascendance of a Bookworm on the user-generated novel publishing website Shōsetsuka ni Narō which saw success. In 2015, she officially debuted with said series under the T.O. Books imprint.
Ascendance of a Bookworm is one of my favourite series, and one reason for this is that it never got repetitive despite its length. One way the author achieved this was by having huge change in plot and setting for each part : Part 1 was in the lower city and focused on making paper, Part 2 was in the Temple and focused on Myne fitting in and making allies, Part 3 was in the Noble Quarter and focused on Myne learning how to act like a noble and discovering the rest of the duchy, Part 4 was Myne going to Magical School and learning about the rest of the country. By contrast, Part 5 opens with Myne still in Magical School as before. The main change is that Ferdinand has left Ehrenfest, but Myne is still secretly in contact with him, so it did not feel as big a change as in previous parts.
Instead, it feels that we have a gradual change in focus throughout this volume, from the internal politics of Ehrenfest to the national politics of the Kingdom of Yurgenschmidt. The first part of the volume is dominated by the internal purge of Ehrenfest, with Myne trying to keep control of the student dormitory and the links she built with the students from the former Veronica faction despite what was happening.
Interestingly, it turned out that the purge was actually quite small in the end : Georgine only had less than ten name-sworn followers in Ehrenfest, even if three of them were Giebes, out of 800 nobles in Ehrenfest. That was way too small to directly threaten Sylvester’s rule, so I guess they were planning to assassinate him and have Georgine tries to take over the foundation in the resulting chaos. But I doubt they would have succeeded when Sylvester was already on guard against them. It is no wonder that Matthias and Laurenz decided to betray them and join Myne’s side. They must have thought that Georgine’s followers did not have much chance of success and preferred to save their skin.
And with Georgine’s followers dead and the corrupt nobles of the Veronica faction arrested, Sylvester and his allies are now firmly in control of Ehrenfest. The small scale of the purge is also an interesting contrast to the one that happened at the end of the civil war. Sylvester seems way smarter than the king in that respect, and tried his best to avoid crippling his duchy with mass executions.
The second part of the volume was Myne getting more and more involved in the kingdom’s politics, forging ties to Dunkelfelger and Drewanchel through joint research projects, and being asked to help the royal family to find the magic book needed to rule the kingdom. This part was also used to set up the future conflicts for the rest of Part 5, so it also sometimes felt quite ominous. But the result was that the plot in this volume felt at time a bit meandering and unfocused. I guess it will get better next volume once the transition between Part 4 and Part 5 is completed.
it felt like there was less a plot, more a series of events. BUT this just the beginning of rozemyne's third year and the first volume of part 5. things are bound to get a lot more interesting. this was just the prelude to the storm rozemyne, despite her best efforts, will cause.
...I read almost this entire book in one day. The previous book left me so stressed out and emotional, and I just had to know what came next.
Also, it made me even sadder just seeing this cover, with Rozemyne depicted alone. I don't want to pull out every volume to check, but I don't think she's been depicted by herself for a long time. It is a scene in this book, and her solitude makes sense in context, but... To have her be alone on this cover right after losing Ferdinand, it broke my heart all the more.
As for the story itself...
The Prologue is in Hildebrand's POV, and I quite enjoyed it. It sets things up well for potential conflicts and problems, and I can't help but feel bad for Hildebrand. He's so innocent and nice.
As for the main story, it starts back a little further than I was expecting, but it shifts to the Royal Academy only a few paragraphs later. It's a nice way to set things up for what is about to happen (jumping back in time from what most of the bonus stories from the previous volume covered). Things are really tense between the factions, but it all feels natural and I love how it all plays out.
Things get really interesting with the magic system in this volume, with Rozemyne being the head of this, of course. I was slightly disappointed something more didn't happen in a certain moment, as it felt like Rozemyne was about to earn a gift or something, but it seems to be a mystery that isn't fully explained yet. I'd assume more will come from it later.
But I really, really love where things are going with the magic. I can't stress that enough. I already enjoyed this story becoming more and more fantasy in nature, but to have more depth to the magic system and have said depth be important to the main plot... I'm loving it, and I'm super excited for where it goes.
I love finally getting to the Archduke Candidate Course and seeing what that is. I will say, in some ways this has hardly felt like a Royal Academy because how fast Rozemyne and her duchy pass their lessons, so it's nice to get some focus on classwork (even if Rozemyne passes as fast as always).
Oh, and of course Rozemyne gets more involved with the Royal Family even after being told to stay away from them. I love every interaction with Rozemyne and royalty, as she is just so unpredictable even when trying to stay out of trouble.
So, this was a heavy book, some dark events going on, but the worldbuilding is just continuing to deepen, and the trouble Rozemyne finds herself in is always so much fun to read about. The magic system has intrigued me all the further, as well.
The Epilogue is told from Lestilaut's POV. It's hard to get too much into it because of spoilers, but I enjoyed getting a chance to see things through his eyes, as he seems to hide much of his thoughts and feelings (or, tries to).
Bonus story time. The first is from Muriella's POV. To be honest, I initially mixed her up with Gretia, as there's just so many characters at this point and not all of them stick with me. However, I still enjoyed her story, and I loved seeing this meeting through the perspective of one of the children from the former Veronica faction. While it was a little sad, it was super sweet as well.
The second is from Hortensia's POV. I loved seeing her thoughts and perspective on things, as she can be hard to read from Rozemyne's POV. Vague because of spoilers, but it was of her first starting her new duty (with an expansion on said duty), as well as a bit of backstory on her. Oh, and her trying to investigate if Rozemyne is a threat or not. I like her a bit more as a character after seeing things through her eyes.
As for the bonus comics, I found them all but the last one quite funny. Not that the final one was bad by any means, but it didn't make me laugh in the same way.
This book also includes the results in a popularity poll in the back. It's interesting to see how the various characters rank. I don't understand how Angelica is so high, as she's one of my least favorite characters, but I'm glad some of my favorites are high up even with them hardly being in the story at all anymore. The author thinks they might have placed high because of the anime, but I also think it's just because they're great characters. :P Granted, maybe my personal rankings of the characters will change if the anime ever gets this far and I can see everyone in action, but I think Lutz and Benno will forever remain within my Top 5.
As for the art, it is great as always. I absolutely love both color illustrations. The inside one is one of my all-time favorites, and it captures such a beautiful and powerful moment so well (maybe not beautiful and powerful for Rozemyne, but...). The rest of the art was amazing as always. I love this style so much.
Overall, another great addition to the series. I kind of gave an overall thoughts summary earlier up, but I love how this series is progressing. My heart is still broken from the previous volume, and I had no idea what to expect from such a title for this arc (Avatar of a Goddess), but it already fits this arc so well. I can't wait to see how things continue to progress.
The balance of one's devotions: to the king, to an oath, to an abstracted peace, to the presumption of romance, to a library. These are the increasingly fragrant embers that threaten to catch fire, should one or two or several of Yurgenschmidt's most influential oddments seize upon a gust of opportunity. The Sovereignty is suspicious of Lady Rozemyne. The young Prince Hildebrand has come of age, and of ambition. An archnoble librarian returns to the Royal Academy, in search of purpose. And cross-duchy mana research initiatives are increasingly on the rise.
ASCENDANCE OF A BOOKWORM v22 introduces a lot of amusing problems. And not without a hint of irony, one finds that most if not all of these issues could very well resolve themselves. But knowing Rozemyne's tendency to surprise even the most ardently prepared, readers can readily infer that's not likely to happen anytime soon. All told, another new year at the Royal Academy brings plenty of new challenges.
Ferdinand is officially off to Ahrensbach. Now, everyone in Rozemyne's retinue is responsible for keeping her aspirations in check, preventing the young woman from going rogue, and providing mindful consultation in lieu of embarrassing the duchy in front of royalty. Good luck. No Ferdinand means no boundaries. Although Rozemyne wouldn't view it this way. The truth is that without Ferdinand's steady guidance, the bookworm actively negotiates and navigates intraduchy tragedy (a brutal purge of the former Veronica faction is forthcoming) and impressively builds interduchy relations (collaborative research assignments are fashionable).
Why is Rozemyne drawing so much attention? Well, how can she not? Whether accidentally revealing she's an "omni-elemental," by gaining the favor of literally dozens of gods and their subordinates during a ceremony on divine protections, or bad-mouthing a new archnoble librarian, Hortensia, for neglecting her duties, Rozemyne draws everyone's focus because she's the best at what she does . . . which is everything. For now, one must be content with the growing recollection that Rozemyne's awkwardness stems largely from her blissful exuberance, rather than from calculated malfeasance.
ASCENDANCE OF A BOOKWORM v22 tosses a dozen splinter plots at readers, but it's unclear how many of them will stick around. The novel is a bit messy in this regard; everything is exposed, yet nothing is promised. For example, Hildebrand could be a fascinating character, should he have a larger role to play in coming volumes. If the young man heeds his mother's advice and actually makes a gambit for what he desires, then the whole country might turn on its head (Hildebrand's mother: "Focus your efforts, build your strength, and challenge fate as many times as it takes to get what you want [...] Never give up. Learn, improve, and continue to challenge the impossible," pages 24-25).
And for that matter, Hildebrand isn't the only male character with his eyes on Rozemyne. There's plenty of debate about the consequences of "stealing" the young woman away from Wilfried. Future novels could see more earnest (and deadly) courting of the bookworm than readers are accustomed.
The novel series' secondary characters step up considerably in this volume. Professor Hirschur takes a more prominent role, and beyond all expectations, does a good job. The way she pressures other duchies to flex to her needs and the way she backs up her students when they get into a pinch suggests Hirschur simply needed a duchy/student to be proud of before she truly stepped into her role. When Hirschur tells Sylvester it's "an aub's duty to protect the treasure of their duchy" (page 179), one needn't stretch the context too far to know what (or rather, who) she's referring to. Additionally, Rozemyne scores a few more helping hands: Muriella, a fifth-year medscholar, and Gretia, a fourth-year medattendent, join the gang. Gretia is an adorable character with a tragic past who no doubt requires her lady's protection.
The short-term reappearance of Prince Anastasius and his fiancée Lady Eglantine is particularly delightful. Eglantine takes up residence at the Royal Academy as a professor of Archduke Candidate lessons, and gives the bookworm her full support. Anastasius, hilariously, mopes about like his usual self (on Rozemyne: "We are not close," page 269).
Hopefully, all of the bits and pieces that make this novel series so genuinely fun will get their time to shine before all is said and done. The slow-motion collapse of Lady Georgine, and all of Ahrensbach more generally, seems ongoing, yet isn't quite inevitable. The excruciating uncertainty surrounding Rozemyne's fate in the hands of the Sovereignty's authorities, whether militant or religious, appears suffocating, yet escaping that fate isn't inevitable in its own right. ASCENDANCE OF A BOOKWORM v22 raises the expectations for the students of Ehrenfest the Eighth, and only time will tell as to whether the kids will met the challenges ahead of them.
In the after word Miya said this is the last part but we still don't know how many volumes it might be. As a die hard fan i hope a whole lot!
This was of course fabulous but if you are reading this far (over 20 books now) you already know! The academy grows even more exciting as this is the year Rozemyne gets to stay and socialize, instead of returning for the dedication ritual. Also more royalty rofl. I love that the more she's ordered to avoid royalty, the more different royals she meets. Loved seeing more of the Dunkelfeger kids and especially adorable Hannalore. So looking forward to what problems Lestilauts new obsession will bring for Rozemyne.
The new school year starts, and Myne is a bit distracted by events taking place at home and the impact it has on her fellow students from Ehrenfest. Things at home are obviously not her only problem, since, as always, she cannot retain a low profile even if she wanted to. What follows is the usual great slice-of-life that is Myne's life: great world building and good character development. Really curious what is going on with the Sovereignty or what exactly Georgina is planning.
9/10. The story was slow. Not much happened. I feel that each volume's part is becoming smaller and smaller in size. I've also started reading the advance chapters from J-Novel Club. I must say, I prefer reading the 230+ pages in one go, but having the opportunity to read a chunk of the part per week is very enticing indeed. So I succumbed and I must say it is not a good decision, since my addiction yearns for more, but not a bad one either since Monday has become Myneday. Since of yesterday, August 7th of 2022, I have read up to volume 5 part 2 chapter 1. To make an idea to anyone reading, volume 5 part 1 is going to be published on November 30th of 2022. Basically this means that I am one part and a half ahead of the publishing schedule. On the other hand, I am one part and a half ahead of the publishing schedule!? This is not something good since if I stop paying for the J-Novel Club service I'll need to wait 3 whole months for the newest volume to be published instead of the usual 2 months. Being 2 months without new parts was hell. I cannot wait for 3 months. Therefore, I have no choice but to keep going with the service. Of course, this is to be taken as a joke or an exaggeration. I am addicted to the novel, yes, but I am still sane.
I don't know were the story is going. Someone said Ferdinand is going to die. Does it make sense? Yes, only if by some means there's time travel. Ferdinand can't die. Myne wouldn't be the same. The feeling of the novel would become that of a story of revenge. I would read it, of course, and a part of me kinda wishes it happens in a way, but it can't happen. If Ferdinand dies and there's time travel, then the general feeling of the story will prevail but surely a war is going to break lose. Myne would fight to become the Zent and become strong to oppose whoever is on her way. Either way, I think the story is going in that direction. Myne becoming Zent is practically been put in front of me. She has the means and ability to become one. Anastasius will support her because of Eglantine's wish to have a true Zent. There just needs to be a civil war between duchies and what's gonna create it is the precaution the first prince has over Myne highlighted by the future problem that Georgine will cause. Also, the sovereign Knight Commander is setting up problems. Why is he incentivizing the third prince. Isn't he supposed to wreck this kinds of things. He will surely start the doubt over Rozemyne with the first prince when the time comes.
Well. That sums it up about the story. So little actually happened of relevancy that I decided to talk first about a light novel service and theorize haha. Worry not, if you are here you'll read it as well. I just know it. I was not paid to recommend the website.
We're back to plot building. The first chapters of the book are quite somber—what with Rozemyne clearly still feeling devastated after what happened in the previous book. Good thing, Ferdinand knows just how to pick her up.
The tensions are rising. Big things are surely coming. Rozemyne, with no one to stop her this time, is taking big strides and thus catching the attention of numerous prominent figures. There is yet again an undercurrent of drama and chaos going on. All the while, Rozemyne is just keeping herself busy to avoid being left alone with her thoughts. It was something I can empathize with haha
There is a certain feeling of unrest and emptiness all through out. And with all the people around poking their heads where they shouldn't be poking them in (ahem, Raublut and Lestilaut), it was quite frustrating too.
I am glad to yet again see new characters illustrated. The cover and additional colored illustrations are a feast to the eyes. I've always wondered how the illuminating (lol) whirling looks illustrated and alas, my expectations were well satisfied.
This was a good read yet again. I can't wait to read the next!
This was a fun start to the final arc of the series. While I miss Ferdinand, and Rosemyne's tinges of sadness when she thinks about him throughout the book made me sad, the book takes place at the noble academy so it's mainly focused on the tumultuous events taking place there. The start of the book is more serious, since it deals with the aftermath of the political purge, but the rest of the book is a bit more lighthearted. There's joint research projects, blessings from the gods producing unexpected effects, and new classes, and tea parties. Not to mention the prologue and epilogue both Overall, an excellent volume full of exciting new developments. I'm very excited to read more soon! 5 stars.
After the climax of part 4, we have a slow and gentle introduction into part 5 of Kazuki Senseis bibliofantasy.
In this volume we are introduced to more characters and walked through some rather ordinary events with very little conflict.
The parts that build the most anticipation this time are those that, as we can expect, tell the perspectives of some of the side characters in the prologue and epilogue. These go the furthest to instil a sense of trial and danger for our main heroine in the future. Will her efforts be understood by the wider world Kazuki Sensei has created?
Beyond that, there is not much to tell. It feels like a fix before the next volume comes out at the end of January.
I still find the educational premise of this world quite strange. Take your tests as soon as you arrive at school, pass the knowledge part and then learn the practical part as quickly as possible so you can pass that and then have tea parties. It's weird having so many Germanic names in a Japanese story about a medieval culture.
But, if I just accept the weirdness, it's interesting to watch Rozemyne learn to navigate this culture, and try to figure out where the secrets are hidden in the Academy, how the king will continue to rule, and the best way to help Ferdinand and the children of the Veronica faction. None of this makes much sense without the previous volumes, but it is a good story.
A welcome respite after the events in recent volumes, even though there are things happening in the background.
I am curious to see the actual aftereffects and implications of the purge - those inside the Academy would only feel the full brunt of it after returning to Ehrenfest and I imagine Georgine (and Veronica, would she even be able to know?) would not be taking it well. What of the other duchies possibly learning of it as well.
Anyway, I feel like sensei is foreshadowing a lot of things to come here and I am excited for the next few volumes.
P.S. I would also love it if the Sovereignty can stfu and gtfo tbvh.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
AAAAA que hermoso inicio de arco, extrañe de sobremanera a Ferdinand, pero ame todo, se están tejiendo muchos hilos, Lestilaud y Hildebrand queriendo robar a la novia me parece una hermosura porque ambos lo hacen pensando en ella, pero bueno, yo solo quiero ver como continua esto. Detlinde apareció muy poco y solo eso me basto para seguir odiándola, en cuanto a nuestra diosa de la luz, me sentí un poco decepcionada, es decir, yo estaba igual que Rozemyne, feliz porque su amiga estaría con ella, pero no, solo la estaban vigilando, fue un poco triste. Quedo feliz y con expectativas.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
The first of these that I read on kindle. Which was fine but I missed the full color art and the cartoons in the book were unreadable.
This one felt a bit long. And the conflict was primarily off-screen. And this was entirely in the Academy. And yet it was a nice pleasant read. I mean, except for the whole Guilt-By-Association purging. Which is a bit of nastiness in this world that is just built in.
As always plenty of characters. But I missed seeing outside the Academy. And Ferdinand only appeared in letters. Still a fine book. 3.5 of 5.
Despite the many comedic moments in the book, this series was pretty dark when it came to politics. Were it not for Rozemyne's intervention we would have a purge that killed many young adults and children simply because they were associated with a guilty person.
After that, the story focused again on how overpowered Rozemyne was compared to her peers. It was such fun reading about how she always caused many problems due to her 'excellence'. And now she started to feel like some reverse harem protagonist considering how many notable characters were aiming for her :P
Great Series - Wish it were finished so I I could enjoy the entire story without waiting
I love seeing the struggles Rosemyne goes through as she attempts to fully integrate with noble society. I love the contrast between setting things from her point of view and how logical her actions seem, and the explanations from those around her about how bad her decision was and why. This book narrates a lot of her growth as the stakes in her life escalate more and more.
A good opening to this new arc. The last volume was so sad, and this one starts with how everyone is coping with the loss.
Once again, lots of unusual things happen to Rozemyne which I think have to do with her being qualified to become Zent. It’s so intriguing! I can’t wait to see how things play out!
I don’t always like the short stories at the end, but I like Hortensia’s story since it goes into her backstory as well as some unusual things about the librarians.
Rozemyne is once again attracting attention in the Royal Academy. After a misunderstanding about the source material of their new book "The story of Fernestine" (which is actually about Ferdinand with some creative licence) someone decides she must be saved from Ehrenfest.
I didn't notice before, since they started by publishing short stories, but Ehrenfest books are the same as Japanese light novels.
I feel like Rozemyne is getting more and more notice by boys who would like to wife her. I still don't want her to grow up so quickly. I think the 3rd prince and her would make a cute couple. The way the storyline is going I believe everyone will start believing she truly is a saint. I wonder what she saw in that white space?
A weak start to the latest arc. A lot of nothing happens, everyone becomes even busier, and revel in being overworked, everyone passes all their classes, everything is good.
Very little in the way of actual progress with the bookworm. I think the passages are now a lot harder to follow as the number of characters are increasing without any real purpose. This story could do with an editor.
Im not going to lie I skipped half of the previous book just so I wouldn’t cry at work because I knew the farewell would be heartbreaking for me. At this point I’m not sure if I can go on I stopped reading the series due to being mad bout Ferdinand being married off to the same duchy his half sister who hates him is basically in charge of. I’m still mad about this!!!!!!!
Not particularly bad, but I think the series has more books that are boring than books that keep interest. I would say about 10% of this book was interesting, 70% was fine if it is building toward something, and 20% was a drag. Some of the books are pretty good but the series hasn't been worth the time.
As a note, apparently the cover art is Rozemyne ascending the staircase after her divine protections ritual, but I thought it was just notable that it's the first time in a long time we've seen her alone on cover, which, along with the rather stark background, seems sad-but-appropriate for the first book after Ferdinand's forced departure.
AOB is my favorite LN not just because of its superb writing but also the quality of translation. But this translation has 1 or 2 errors which is noticeable since previous volumes were practically perfect.
Más y más dudas, que buen libro me mantuvo pegada leyendo tiene muchos cambios. Por dios el romance yo sabía que el principito se iba a enamorar de Rozemyne y el Lieselt creo que se llama también, ese enemy to lovers de que la dibujo por dios era más que obvio.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
This was a great book, and oooh, there were some great twists and turns. I continued to admire how Miya Kazuki can pump out so much writing, and I am still so surprised by the plot. I cannot wait to see where things go.