One Piece Novel Ace, Vol. 2: Il nuovo mondo

ONE PIECE novel A #2

by Tatsuya Hamazaki, Eiichiro Oda

Portuguese D. Ace, il fratellone di Rufy depositario dei poteri del frutto Foco Foco, è stato ed è tuttora uno dei personaggi più amati in assoluto mai apparsi nello sconfinato universo narrativo di One Piece. Di lui consociamo le eroiche gesta come comandante della seconda flotta dei pirati di Barbabianca, così come la turbolenta infanzia trascorsa assieme a Rufy e Sabo. Ma... nel mezzo? Come nacque la ciurma dei pirati di Picche? Di quali avventure furono protagonisti? Lo scopriremo leggendo questo ciclo di romanzi.

Genres: Manga, Light Novel, Fantasy, Fiction, Pirates, Young Adult, Comics

176 pages, Paperback

Published December 1, 2020

About the author

浜崎達也 (Hamazaki Tatsuya).

Reviews

[cey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would have loved if ace would have met Rayleigh. Anyway Shanks realizing who Ace is >

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not crying you're crying! MY BOY FOUND A PLACE TO BELONG!!!!

Vol 1 of these light novels I was tempted to call pointless trash so I was very hesitant going into vol 2.... my god the difference. They completely understood Ace's character, his aspirations, his struggles, and how lost this sweet boy was.

Is the writing and plot masterful, no. but I feel like I've learned something about Ace's character and his relationship with the Whitebeard pirates. Seeing him come to terms with sailing under the Whitebeard flag and calling him 'pops'.... oh my actual heart!!!

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ace's Story 1 was an exciting adventure, describing the formation of the Spade Pirates. Ace's Story 2 takes a different tone, serving as an in-depth character analysis of Portgaz D. Ace.

I think this story would especially impact young people who have misgivings with the world and authority. Bonus points if they have parental issues. It teaches humility, willingness to make mistakes and acknowledge those mistakes, but most importantly, it inspires hope.

Ace's Story 1 and 2 are stories of family, and I think that's important for everyone of all ages.

[Broheros · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.2 stars

Soooo glad they dropped the first person perspective, it was much better in third person. I loved volume 2 so much more than volume 1, from the complexity of Ace and his reasons for trying to kill whitebeard, to seeing Teech before he became Blackbeard. This short book showed me how utterly amazing marineford was, and now I’m even more excited to reread one piece to see all the foreshadowing!

[Dylan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yeah I delayed reading this for a long time haha

Well this isn’t really an exceptional book, if your viewing objectively in terms of writing maybe should be lower. However I just view v1-2 as more complimentary pieces to the one piece world than full novels in its own right. The prose honestly does oda world a complete disservice. Though considering the target demographic and it’s a light novel it does the job in that front. If you already have an attachment to the world of One Piece you will enjoy some extra information of this great character though this book.


My critiques basically remain the same that this could have been longer and be a proper chronology of ace life instead of cliff notes of aspects of this man Journey. In all honesty, the writing style in what the authors intent was strange at first I thought we were looking at the events Deuce perspective as historian but nope not really. Just in the first volume he didn’t really have a POV chapter of him... plus they an issue have multiple authors working on the novel which creates some jarring elements. This book is 3rd person 3rd person omniscient but rarely utilises it effectively. They also just awkward info dumps of knowledge you will know from the main series... I understand not everyone will remember everything but how it’s implemented just handled poorly.

Because of the context I give this 6/10 though if u judging this standalone I probably be more harsh.

[Alyssa DeWitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

very wholesome ending. I’ve seen the anime and I love how this book really explained Ace’s reasoning. In the end he found a father and a family of brothers. it was interesting seeing more of that backstabbing traitor Blackbeard/Teech. Ace and Kotsamaku (the cat) both had feelings about him from the beginning!

[Thomas O. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Non le avevo messe 🥺

[Eva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wholesome. Much better than p1.

[و · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this VOL more than the previous one

[Victoria brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably closer to 4.5 stars
This was sooooo much better than part 1. Really added depth and understanding to Ace and had so beautiful parts. I’m glad we got more Ace ☹️🙂

[Sophie Annett · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great sequel, the character descriptions were so vivid I could picture them all in my head. Such a fitting end for Ace.

[Cress · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Thank You for loving me" I will never not crying seeing that panel.
• White beard was an absolute saint and will always love him for accepting Ace
• Ace and Yamato even tho is was soo short it just made me happy. I ship those two soo bad!
• I love the idea of Deuce working with Morgan and reporting everything related to Luffy and Sabo. I wish that part actually became canon

[Julian Ferrer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Comparing the pacing with the first book, Part 2 was very similar: slow in the beginning then transitions to be a page-turner at the end. I love how complex Ace's characterization became to be in the book and with the right amount of comical parts and cameos from the manga, we really got to see not just Ace's story but others. The end of the era of the Spade Pirates was bittersweet but left with the notion that Ace found his forever home on the Moby Dick.

[Francisca · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book started really slow for me. There’s lots of exposition about One Piece’s world throughout it, but since the beginning info was things I already knew from the anime and manga I got kinda bored.
I think the story starts to pick up the pace once Shanks appears. Shanks chapter in this story introduced new, interesting things to the story and offered a deeper look into the characters of Ace and Shanks (the last one to a lesser extent, though). This chapter points out some of Ace’s bigger flaws, which helps present the character through a new light. It feels like rediscovering the character, in a way, which was something I wasn’t expecting.
And then comes Ace’s time with the WB pirates, which was great to read. It gave us insight into Ace’s relationship with Thatch, Whitebeard, Teach... God, Teach was someone I wasn’t expecting much of out of this book (even though the guy is in the cover) but he delivered so much. I don’t like Teach, I’ve never done so. Not because he’s a bad character or anything like that but for the threat he poses to the world of One Piece. But this book made me so intrigued by him, that it feels like it wiped out my dislike for him. Now I’m curious, because the way he acts doesn’t match up.
I laughed, felt curious, and overall had a great experience reading this. It’s a nice, fast lecture for a free afternoon.

[Irman Toto Furume · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must read if you are a One Piece fan

At first, I felt weird that the second volume of Ace’s story wasn’t written from Masked Deuce’s POV, but that did not really affect overall feelings about the novel itself.

This one was just as good, if not better, than the first one. I especially loved the comparison between Whitebeard and the other Yonkos. This books dives deep into the balance of power in the New World and the leadership methods of each Yonko. I also loved the dynamic between Ace, Thatch and Teech (Teach). The manga and anime doesn’t really show that Ace and Thatch had such a deep relationship and that explains a lot about the events that lead to war.

This novel also explains why Luffy is so special. It’s subtle but you might be able to catch in some of the dialogues the things that set Luffy apart in comparison to Ace and Sabo.

[Noa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty cool, I'm still not used to writing but we come to the meeting of Ace with Shanks and his arrival in the crew of Whitebeard so it was very pleasant. I can't wait to see what it will look like in manga, but I'll read it when I update in One Piece.

[MarwaAW · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rate: 3.5 ⭐️

[Maisie :D · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this book is impossible to read and not fall in love with Ace. In 200 pages we watch him go through such an important character arc; from wanting Whitebeard dead for his own personal glory and antogonising him, to learning the importance of family and how he isn't alone.

Personally I found this book to be more enjoyable than the first (somehow considering I loved the first one) as we see the wider perspective of the world on Ace.

My favourite chapters were the stories I already knew but in more depth. Like I knew Ace sought out Shanks to thank him for saving his brothers life. But I had no idea that the two of them had so much tension. The only common ground they have is Luffy and they seem to only hold themselves back on is behalf. But other than that they see one another as a threat and Shanks treatment of Ace was something I've not been exposed to yet. He came across as dangerous and cold, so the contrast to what I knew of him was very jarring but nice to read.

His interactions with Jimbei were also less lighthearted that I first thought. Jinbei approaches him angry, he didn't come to fight Ace as a warlord, but as a friend to Whitebeard and a protector of the Ryugu. The battle is intense and serious, no quippy remarks from either of them.

These chapters alone explained Ace's impulsiveness and pride more than anything. He is full of this darkness that shows no care for his own wellbeing. He picks fights with men much stronger than him, goading them in a way that gets under peoples skin. He's more polite than he was as a child, but he's still full of rage.

And when he meets the Whitebeard pirates, he slowly starts to change for the better. This hole in him (metaphorically...too soon) starts to fill. He starts to learn that there is more to life than Sabo, Luffy and his crew. He starts to learn about forgiveness as Whitebeard allows him to attack him over and over again, whilst keeping his hand extended towards Ace to invite him into their family. He lashes out like a wild animal but the Whitebeard pirates keep coming back.

Thatch was a delight to read. I don't think I had a soft spot for him when I first watched the anime, so it was nice to come back to this character and learn of his strength and kindness when he was alive.

Teech was as harrowing and unnerving as I thought he would be. Ace feels uncomfortable with him on their first meeting and brushes it aside even when Kotatsu displays aggression towards him. He is seen as a stereotypical pirate so Ace just accepts him for it, even when he is violent towards others. This book sets him up perfectly as an antogonist as we see how sneaky and brutish he is.

And then the Spade Pirates, the most delightful characters. Deuce is forever a character I will have a soft spot for, especially with his silent devotion to his captain. But other members of his crew stood out in this one, like Wallace and Banshee. Both characters are from the undersea and are not exempt from the prejudice of humans. It was nice to see the two of them partake in the taking down of the slave ring and how they trusted Ace to look after them.

And then obviously his dynamic with Whitebeard was great to read. Going from seeing him as an enemy to a man he respects to someone he would be proud to call his father. It's such a nice progression of his character and really shows off the sides of the character we didn't get to see.

[Max Boger · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Listen, Doc. A wall’s something you build in your own heart. People can only change themselves into who they want to be” - Edward Newgate to Masked Deuce

I reckon this book must be very boring to anyone who’s not familiar with One Piece. But if you don’t know One Piece, you’re probably not gonna pick this up anyways.
That being said, this book is astonishingly beautiful. Far better than the first Ace Novel (mainly because Vol. 1 is written from Deuce’s perspective and I hate that arrogant snotnose. Luckily his role in this book is much smaller and there is an omniscient narrator).

Anyways there is just about no new information we get about Ace or the Spade Pirates.
But seeing Ace’s career develop from this little lost boy completely consumed by the anger inside him
trying to achieve the impossible to finally conquer said anger, to the autonomous man of the world he is gonna be for his little brother once the Alabasta arc unfolds, is simply amazing.
A gorgeously written coming of age story about a kid trying to find his place in the world.
A brutal and dangerous world mind you, which is also described well in this book. Again, there is not really any new information about how the One Piece world works, but the cultural and most notably political specifics of the Blue Planet (and especially the New World) are woven seamlessly into Ace’s story. It paints a much clearer picture of how the world goes round, than you’d get from just reading the Manga. Why does Ace feel this bottomless hatred for his late father? Why do people decide to live under the flag of a pirate like Whitebeard? How did this man change the World anyways? How does one find meaning for himself on the vast seas?

And more specifically: How can Ace turn himself around and learn to love who he is? All of these and more questions get answered in beautifully written dialogue between the likes of Shanks (he just might say more words here than in all of One Piece lol), Benn Beckmann, a young Blackbeard, Jimbei, Aladin, Marco and other notable Whitebeard-Pirates and of course the man himself, Edward Newgate in all his might and wisdom.

What more is there to say other than this book was perfect for me. I wished I would’ve had it back when I first experienced the Paramount War Arc. And I recommend it especially to those who want more from Ace after seeing/reading that arc. But any One Piece fan should read this sooner or later. It easily keeps up with the quality of the manga in terms of storytelling, characterization, world building and humor.

The end is pretty much like the One Piece version of the obligatory Wedding in a romance novels finale and made me the equivalent of a hopeless romantic teenage girl crying her heart out at it.

I loved every word in this book!

[Kelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

“I will live without regrets.” (48)

So, this one picks up right where the first novel left off.

We’ve got Ace setting out with his Spade Pirate crew as they embark on a mission to make names for themselves on the Grand Line.

But, they quickly realize that, despite their combined strength and Ace’s Flame-Flame Devil Fruit power, they are but small fish in a large ocean.

After a rather one-sided fight with Whitebeard, one of the four fearsome Emperors of the Sea, Ace and company find themselves aboard the famed vessel Moby Dick.

Ace vows to fight Whitebeard till he wins; Whitebeard asks Ace to become his son and join his crew.

Ace isn’t looking for s father though… is he?

For fans of One Piece, I think this is a pretty enjoyable story all around. It follows the beloved and tragic Ace as he makes his way in the world.

Because this second story covers how Ace joins the Whitebeard pirates, I think it would be especially enjoyable for fans of the main series since both characters are so very adored and continue to be so to this day. It’s a heartwarming story.

Definitely recommend~

[Ashe Catlin · Rating 1 out of 5]

For such a simple and endearing first volume this certainly dropped the ball, right off the bat we are introduced to Whitebeard having a conversation. Nothing interesting is said and it's not a great way to start off being this is supposed to be Ace's Story. That leads me to the biggest problem of the series, Ace isn't in most of this book and when he does appear all he is talking about is Whitebeard. He hasn't even met the guy yet and cannot stop talking about him, even with the whole Fishman island thing going on it just felt like exposition dump after exposition dump.

There is no character journey, no progression, it's not a fun ride to read and lastly it's never even about damn pirates. It's just a bunch of guys talking, I got the the meet up with Shanks which was awesome but that's the thing Shanks is awesome by himself, if you don't have an interesting lead then it won't work and they ruined Ace in this. He was a joy to read last volume but his goal is just so weak and dull, which again is a real shame because the first one was one of the best light novels I've read.

[Ilaria Vigorito · Rating 3 out of 5]

Anche questa novel mi è piaciuta, per quanto mi sia mancato il POV di Deuce, che avevo apprezzato parecchio. Il suo rapporto con Ace - di amico "responsabile" e confidente - così come viene delineato nella novel precedente e anche in questa mi piace molto e continuo a dire che mi piacerebbe vedere un adattamento animato di queste storie, perché il buon Portuguese D. Ace se li meriterebbe tutti. Ho apprezzato questo tentativo riuscito di ricostruire il suo percorso di crescita e perché Ace sia approdato alla decisione di unirsi alla ciurma di Barbabianca e accettarlo come padre - lui che ha un rapporto così conflittuale con la figura di Roger.

Ho apprezzato anche l'inquietante presenza di Teach, che già qui rivela l'ombra di tutte le pessime intenzioni che paleserà nel prosieguo del manga e soprattutto a Marineford. Niente, è stata una bella lettura ma Ace mi manca davvero un sacco, sigh.

[Devyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Portgas D Ace how I love you Portgas D Ace

In case you're wondering, I read this after Marineford. No, I have not recovered. I cried seven times with that arc and almost cried at the end of reading this. But that's a whole other story for a different day teehee.

In all honesty, this volume was much better than the first one. It was told in a third point of view and not from Deuce's like the first one, but I would've preferred that if they wanted to tell Ace's story from a first point of view to do it from the man himself and not his right hand man. I like how it actually developed Thatch and Blackbeard as characters and describe their relationships with Ace, since Thatch was shown for like five seconds in the anime and Blackbeard is a whole other issue in itself. Everyone just seemed more fleshed out to be honest.

I will most certainly be rereading both because this volumes just make me love Ace as a character more and more lol

[Pixie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is vol. 2 of the novelization of a manga that is a spin-off of a popular long-running series. Strangely, it has the same creator and translator but a different author from vol. 1. The first time was charming. This one felt like a hack woman writer, the type of writing that makes me cringe (even though I googled it, and the author is male). I can guess the problem is with the writing, because the exact same translator did such a great job with vol. 1. What fans will appreciate is all the information that fills in the One Piece universe, although it is hoped they will notice and deplore that while White beard doesn't allow drugs and slavery in his domain, Oda (the buck stops with this story's creator, which was then novelized by another writer) seems to have no problem with prostitution (a type of slavery, which they don't seem to understand). If I were buying tons of expensive One Piece books for a middle schooler, I'd definitely be having talks with them about that.

[Sofi · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first was a pure adventure to the creation of picche’s pirate. This one here is more deep, heavy and meaningful for ace’s evolution as a character. He’s constantly fighting against Whitebear to reach is own goal, to be known for who he is and leave behind his real dad name and fame (it’s crazy how everyone would know it during Marineford arc)
He met Shanks and treated him with respect because he saved Luffy back then, his little brother, and party began.
All the “boss” actually admired and respected Ace even before he was someone “important” in the New World setting. And it said a lot about it.
One sentence that made me think is from Edward to Duece it said something like -we are the one who build the walls that surround us- like we are the one who sets goal and define limits, and also we’re the one who can overcome them. CRAZYYYY
5/5 not just for Ace

[Taylor Ann Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was great, though I prefer the first one. Ace's pirate crew, The Spade Pirates, are extremely charming, I wish they got to speak in the manga when they appear in the Wano arc with Otama. RIP.
I loved the old mermaid lady in particular.

This suffers from some of the awkward translation problems of the first novel. The plot about breaking up the slave ring didn't engage me that much, I felt like it took up too much time when I was more interested in learning about Marco, Thatch, and WB's crew.

The racism and misogyny problems of One Piece are glaring in this novel, when they weren't in the last one.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The entire world is my enemy. Warlords, Emperors, even Celestial Dragon. . .I’ll topple them all. I’ll bring low everything that now sits high and mighty. And I’ll do it with this flame. . .with my name and my flag.”

“If it hadn’t been for Sabo, and a handful of a little brother like you,
I wouldn’t have bothered staying alive.”

“Power was a weapon that could be used to achieve ambitions. Sometimes, power enveloped others inside of it, becoming an even greater power.”

“Listen, Doc. A wall’s something you build in your own heart. People can only change themselves into who they want to be.”

“That was the greatness and generosity of the man named Edward Newgate. The greatness. . . of a father. He was the man who had created his own territory. His own sea. He stood upon the sea and built not a system of law and justice, or fear and conquest—but a family. Of course, it was all taken from others, everything gained by another’s loss.”

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this, I’m always down for more One Piece content and seeing Ace’s story play out is very interesting. I don’t think it’s spectacular, it doesn’t measure up to Oda’s writing certainly, but it’s good enough as a side story. I like Ace’s crew and his relationship with Whitebeard is pretty great, I only wish more of the stuff that lead to Marineford (Blackbeard stealing the fruit from, and killing, Thatch) and Ace’s pursuit of Blackbeard, but I suppose that’s covered in passing in the manga so whatever. Still pretty decent, I might slightly prefer the first just because I like the Marine girl, sad she doesn’t appear in this one.

[Paige · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has a lot of the same issues I had with the first one regarding the writing itself, but it was easier to look past in this one given all that's going on. Between all the talk of Shanks (and his appearance, truly a delight), the political/business side of the Yonko, and the emotion of Ace becoming Whitebeard's son, this volume was far more enjoyable than the first. It was interesting seeing more of Teech and Thatch as well, and was rather unnerving to read about when you know what's right around the corner for all of them.

[MissKats (Taylor's Version) · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a cute little adventure, I was hoping for more deep stuff thoeeee.

Shanks & Ace moment: "For I am such a simple country boy, I may have committed some errors of the tongue."

Lol, Makino be like: well, at least he tried.
----------------
He’d expected that even after he was dead in his grave, no one would come to place flowers at his headstone.

Poor baby 😢😢😢
----------------
“I leave my back open for you. To me, this cup means that I found what I was searching for, right here. And that the time is right to bear your mark on my back. Pops…"