"I " < My initial review was converted to this, so I'm going to save it for posterity. Somehow this review got 16 thumbs up and 2 thumbs down despite the entire visible review being contained in those quotemarks there... Lesson learned: write review in notepad or something, copy it here after you're done.
Edit: I don't know how close what follows is to the original review I wrote that turned into "I " but... Here goes.
The beginning: this is my favorite novel I've read in a long time. It's so completely different from everything else, and it does what it is WELL. This is not a novel that I can recommend in general; I recommend thinking twice before you read this, even though I personally find it great.
Later/the middle: this is still quite good, but obviously some of the novelty has worn off and I wouldn't still say it's 'my favorite in a long time' - this is certainly at least partially because the novelty has worn off and I like *anything* I get into more when it's new to me, which this no longer is.
The horror elements are not just: Scary monster ooh. It's delving into the psychological horror of losing your sanity. But you can't actually tell if you're losing your sanity. Maybe you are, maybe you aren't? Maybe since you can question whether you're going crazy it means you are sane? Unless that's a delusion you created to help yourself feel better about your insanity... Oh, and that's just the beginning.
Within the FIRST CHAPTER of the novel, in what neither we nor the MC know if it's a dream or reality... The main character is in a workshop where all the workers are physically or mentally different from 'normal'. He has pissed off someone, so they select him and a girl to meet the master. The girl's mental development is behind, but we don't know exactly by how much. She acts like she might be 5 years old, but it's not clear if she's only 10 years old, or if she's all the way up to 20 years old and still that underdeveloped. Either way, it won't matter for long because when they meet the Master, he throws her into a giant mortar, and uses his giant pestle to smash and grind her into paste that he uses to concoct some kind of medicinal pill, all while the blood from the child(?) coats his face.
Unlike Goblin Slayer's anime, where episode 1 is supremely brutal and it backs down a bit from there... This is entry level stuff for this novel. It does not become more tame, it becomes creepier and more bizarre as it goes.
The translator and/or editor have notes and memes at the end of most chapters. I am still (ch 100~) not sure whether these are to provide some comedic relief to the readers to keep things a bit lighter for us given how grim it can get... Or if it's something the translator/editor included for THEMSELVES because they need something to break apart the content they're working on.
If you can imagine a subtype of the 'horror' genre, it's covered in this novel. So, if reading something about horrific changes to the human body could bother you, or if you're not good with witnessing someone's slow descent into insanity (or maybe not?) I would suggest you consider moving on and finding something else. Honestly, as of chapter 100 I have *no idea* exactly how sane the main character is. I see valid arguments for both the idea that he's almost completely sane, or that he has gone so far past the 'deep end' that he's in the middle of the sea.
If this were a manga or show, there is a 0% chance that I would be here. I can handle this in text, but I don't think I could watch it.
"I " < My initial review was converted to this, so I'm going to save it for posterity. Somehow this review got 16 thumbs up and 2 thumbs down despite the entire visible review being contained in those quotemarks there... Lesson learned: write review in notepad or something, copy it here after you're done.
Edit: I don't know how close what follows is to the original review I wrote that turned into "I " but... Here goes.
The beginning: this is my favorite novel I've read in a long time. It's so completely different from everything else, and it does what it is WELL. This is not a novel that I can recommend in general; I recommend thinking twice before you read this, even though I personally find it great.
Later/the middle: this is still quite good, but obviously some of the novelty has worn off and I wouldn't still say it's 'my favorite in a long time' - this is certainly at least partially because the novelty has worn off and I like *anything* I get into more when it's new to me, which this no longer is.
The horror elements are not just: Scary monster ooh. It's delving into the psychological horror of losing your sanity. But you can't actually tell if you're losing your sanity. Maybe you are, maybe you aren't? Maybe since you can question whether you're going crazy it means you are sane? Unless that's a delusion you created to help yourself feel better about your insanity... Oh, and that's just the beginning.
Within the FIRST CHAPTER of the novel, in what neither we nor the MC know if it's a dream or reality... The main character is in a workshop where all the workers are physically or mentally different from 'normal'. He has pissed off someone, so they select him and a girl to meet the master. The girl's mental development is behind, but we don't know exactly by how much. She acts like she might be 5 years old, but it's not clear if she's only 10 years old, or if she's all the way up to 20 years old and still that underdeveloped. Either way, it won't matter for long because when they meet the Master, he throws her into a giant mortar, and uses his giant pestle to smash and grind her into paste that he uses to concoct some kind of medicinal pill, all while the blood from the child(?) coats his face.
Unlike Goblin Slayer's anime, where episode 1 is supremely brutal and it backs down a bit from there... This is entry level stuff for this novel. It does not become more tame, it becomes creepier and more bizarre as it goes.
The translator and/or editor have notes and memes at the end of most chapters. I am still (ch 100~) not sure whether these are to provide some comedic relief to the readers to keep things a bit lighter for us given how grim it can get... Or if it's something the translator/editor included for THEMSELVES because they need something to break apart the content they're working on.
If you can imagine a subtype of the 'horror' genre, it's covered in this novel. So, if reading something about horrific changes to the human body could bother you, or if you're not good with witnessing someone's slow descent into insanity (or maybe not?) I would suggest you consider moving on and finding something else. Honestly, as of chapter 100 I have *no idea* exactly how sane the main character is. I see valid arguments for both the idea that he's almost completely sane, or that he has gone so far past the 'deep end' that he's in the middle of the sea.
If this were a manga or show, there is a 0% chance that I would be here. I can handle this in text, but I don't think I could watch it.
