Shinigami no Ballad Light Novel

[Sterling01]

Is it just me or does Momo's bust size vary from time to time...?

Also UN is awesome

[serenade_beta]

Originally Posted by Sterling01

Is it just me or does Momo's bust size vary from time to time...?

I don't really see it varying... (Though the art from time to time seems to differ... I once doubted whether it really was Momo or a look-a-like in one of the color illustrations...)

---

Spoiler for vol.3 thoughts:

I wonder if I should find myself amusing that I found the 2nd story's connection to the first story more exciting/interesting then the actual 2nd story...?
But it really did shock me, because I did not expect it...

Which made me think a bit on whether the female/mother on the phone was Tomato or not... The way the mother talked (Jii-chan, anta, etc.) was similar to Tomato, and she mentioned the supplementary classes (just like in the 1st story) to Kantarou, but what made me doubt it was her for a moment was that instead of "Kanta", she went "Kantarou"... But then again, it isn't exactly strange for someone to change the way they call someone else when their relationship changes, yes?
I guess it is safe to say that that was Tomato?
Either way, just how much time passes between the 1st and 2nd story? As always, the novel likes time jumping......
And Kantarou is still taking supplementary classes?! Dame da, koitsu...

I was pleasantly surprised that the anime had changed the fact Kantarou and Tomato called each other by nicknames...
Either way, I still love this story. It's a bit "bittersweet", but thanks to the 2nd story...... You know.

The 2nd story was... interesting in a rather unexpected way. The actual story wasn't too great (typical story for this novel), but I had thought the old lady in the white room (probably the hospital) was Yaeko the whole time (as in, the story was told with her reminiscing), but it turns out that the old lady was Ichigo's grandmother... And she was the red haired girl who knew Kantarou's grandfather!!
And when I realized this huge connection, I almost forgot breathing...

The main characters/narration in this volume had an unusually high tension, didn't it... Mostly the narration. Provided plenty of humor.

And then the usual Momo story...
From the "hints" given, I'm guessing that maybe Momo is still alive or something (like a certain other similar anime)? Since her heart is beating and everything, and she is white while the others are black (dead). Perhaps she tried to commit suicide but failed and is in a coma?
And An (the person)... Wahh... What a thing to do, that fiend... Putting all of the people that died aside, what happens when Shinigami die? Their souls wander for eternity?
And I found the connection to Snow Rebirth good. Having connections to other stories really do raise the enjoyability value...

"UN" really has a slightly difficult name... Sometimes, the story writes her name as "アン' and sometimes as "UN", and UN is pronounced アン, but when I read UN, I think of the un you do while nodding.

Come to think of it, I still haven't read Shigofumi yet... I wish Amazon would restock...

[Matt122005]

I read the first story in Vol. 2, it was AWESOME! Such a SHOCKER at the end, made me smile so big. Such a great story.

Besides this, I then saw the anime version of it.............IT ...... WAS....HORRIBLE.

They ruined the story, I mean, seriously, they ruined it entirely.

Such a beautiful story, for the anime to change it so drastically, was gut wrenching.

-Matt

[Izayoi]

LOLIS IS WIN! So I finally got around to volume 11, quite a beautiful plot. Well I do enjoy these kind of genre I guess.

Originally Posted by Matt122005

Besides this, I then saw the anime version of it.............IT ...... WAS....HORRIBLE.

Think I did try watching the anime adapt of this, no idea. It was a long time ago so I don't quite remember, but I really never got pass episode one before I dropped it. Still I don't even know why, since I don't usually drop series with lolis. Maybe I just don't have time, but you know, the novel is very good.

[serenade_beta]

Scary... I hope real twins don't think the way anime twins sometimes tend to think... Scary, scary~

I've always wondered why the novel tends to create characters who names are in Katakana...... How nice they later reveal the kanji names of those characters, ne~?

Spoiler for vol.4 thoughts:

Unn...... I thought about this possibility, but it ended up "stranger" than I thought...
So, these two girls from the prologue and epilogue are UN and Momo...?
They are twins (Touka and Kyouka), and have this not very uncommon little thing about being each other (too bothersome to write...), and Touka tells Kyouka to die first, and "a girl" dies...
According to the end of the 4th story, the black shadow was born first, so the girl who dies is Kyouka=UN? Because Touka was wearing "red shoes", which means Touka=Momo?
So,
Kyouka=UN=Suicides and becomes a Shinigami (UN)
Touka=Momo=Suicides(?) afterwards and becomes a Shinigami (Momo)
Well, that would explain why UN and Momo look alike (aha~, thought so).
But still, what a scary thought process... For Touka to just straight out tell Kyouka to die, and Kyouka actually dies (suicide-->Shinigami, so cause of death=suicide)...
Then the question is how Momo became a white Shinigami? Looking forward to more hints, but for now, I'll give myself a pat on the back for figuring most of this out before reading the epilogue.
Yay~

*looks up*
Um... wrote too much...

The connections in this volume were very predictable. The moment Subaru (1st story) was described, I knew it was her (too bad they quickly revealed her name soon after). I saw the 2nd story in the anime, so... yeah. And the 3rd story was easy too (though at first, the possibility was either 1st story of 1st volume or Snow Rebirth).

The 1st story really didn't click... To be honest, it was fairly boring (though the part Eri gave Hitomi a present was moving. *laugh*).
I guess it was because the outcome could be seen from miles away, and the thoughts of the main character was similar to Mitsuki's.
The whole "Why did she have to die when she was so great. I should have been the one." type of thing...
Though it was interesting to see what Subaru herself was like...

The 2nd story was a lot better. I knew the outcome, but Eco's cuteness ( ) was great motivation! And the overall story was good too. And Saiki became a stalker...
When I first saw Kouta this story... My first thought was " Changed too much in a year, oi!!"

The 3rd story was... sad.
The fact that Nanase dies was already revealed in Snow Rebirth, so I had to read along knowing what would happen to her...
*sniff* Sad...
And the part with Seigo "wasting" his life reminded me of various anime...
Good to see Azuri (kanji name! *shock*) is doing well, though.
Yeah, sad......

For the 4th story... In the end, everything was just desserts+cruelness of the world... (-_-)

Yo~sii~ Next volume finally has that story I've always been interested in after seeing the illustration... I think. （´・ω・｀）

---

Originally Posted by Matt122005

Besides this, I then saw the anime version of it.............IT ...... WAS....HORRIBLE.

They ruined the story, I mean, seriously, they ruined it entirely.

Such a beautiful story, for the anime to change it so drastically, was gut wrenching.

Entirely? If I remember correctly, the anime adaption was quite close to the original story (besides the title and the end). Most things cut were the narration (which is normal when novel-->anime).

Originally Posted by Setsilya~

Think I did try watching the anime adapt of this, no idea. It was a long time ago so I don't quite remember, but I really never got pass episode one before I dropped it.

The 4 novel stories that are animated are pretty decent. A few cuts here and there (for time reasons, I believe), but fairly faithful... Coincidently, I prefer those 4 to the 2 anime-original. Plus there is the great OP (engrish...) and decent ED to hear.

LOLIS IS WIN!

Ahh! <--sound of agreement
Lolis are win! Most of them

[Kagami~n]

Do you guys know if any stores are carrying this series anymore? I was buying light novels at Kinokuniya bookstore in NYC, but they were recently all replaced with yaoi novels. I was really liking Ballad of a Shinigami, but I can't seem to find it in stores anymore. Maybe I just have to order it online.

[FireChick]

Volume 2 was good! Especially chapter 3 with the little girl! My friend Lee said that the little girl kinda looked like Osaka from Azumanga Daioh.

[serenade_beta]

Yaa~, long time no see, ShiniBara~

What happened last time...?
*checks old posts*

Hmm... Ok, OK...

Spoiler for volume 5 thoughts:

Compared to the previous volumes... I found this one a bit lacking... I guess it was because of the strange elements of supernatural powers added in. Well this "Irregular" thing pop up in later stories and become an important factor to something?
But still, when the characters started appearing and, in the first and third story, have these supernatural powers, I was left with a type of feelings.

The first story (Ano toki, Sono toki, Deckbrush)... was probably the most unfortunate of the stories, I felt. It was very obvious where it was going, by explaining the whole "give up magic after breaking the rule" thing. Overall, it left me unsatisfied... Not an interesting story, yet not a touching story...

The second story (Suika to Hoshi no Tane) felt more like it went back on track with the usual Shinigami no Ballad stories. Another simple "Good story" type of plot, but it was interesting (and a bit awkward) to constantly view the circumstances by Aboro's point of view. It felt dragged at times, and the truck really came from nowhere, but a good story overall. Ren and Hiromu managed to come to an understanding, Aboro managed to stay with the family.

The third (Alice)... Another story based on supernatural powers... Never thought the volume would have two stories like that...
Unfortunately, perhaps I have send bad relations with these "dark societies" in my past life or something, but I can never really get myself to like characters belonging to these groups. Therefore, I wasn't able to sympathize or pity or anything the characters that appeared. Well, I guess that helped, since two of them died.
Also, the end left me with "Oi, that's all?", but I guess that is the point.
Surprised that UN made a sinister appearance...

And for Momo's story... Compared to the previous stories, I wasn't able to understand much at where it was heading... I guess there is a continuation and this is just a build-up, but I had a question mark over my head the whole time...

And the very last section about... something... Didn't understand after all... Though it is good to see Yutaka and Mitsuki happy and doing well. Love that story...

Next time... Scary...

[serenade_beta]

Ah~ah, the melancholy... *goes to find a rope*
...

Spoiler for volume 6 thoughts:

What, is this depressing volume? Entirely full of bad ends...

The first story (Hajikko no Shoujo) was probably the most interesting, perhaps simply because it was the most understandable story out of the three. At first, I thought the person lying on the bed was the dead one, but it turned out to be her instead. It didn't really turn out that depressing, to be honest, since the guy was just some crazy stalker, so I didn't feel any pity over his insanity.
And so, Risa waits there forever. The end.
(-_-)

The second story (the ferris wheel one) was the most depressing volume, since both Sora and Kanoko were likable and I wanted them to somehow end up together... But in the end, Sora erases his existence and she forgets him. Very... depressing...
Though it was rather... difficult to understandable... confusing... somewhere around that line. When he disappeared and the book said his existence was erased, I was like WTF?!
And so Sora waits at the magical land of... something forever. The end.
(-_-)(-_-)

Third story (Kanojo no Fuukei) was also a bit confusing, but it was in the domain of logic, so it wasn't as bad... But the characters were hard to sympathize with, with Mia being so incredibly idiotic and all. The story was interesting, that's true.
Well, Eight really is unlucky. He chose the wrong answer, got a bad end, and died.
And so Mia and Eight dies. Eight gets to see a white shinigami. The end.
(-_-)(-_-)(-_-)

For Momo's story...
It was easier to understand than last time's... But the whole thing about UN being the light and Momo being the shadow and the whole creation thing was somewhere between "OK, I get it" and "Wait, what?"...
The whole twin thing was pretty much revealed in the past volumes, so that wasn't difficult to figure out, for the readers.

Preview: Some musician and two sisters; UN gets more appearance than just laughing at some esper

[Matt122005]

I so want to read book 3. *sniff sniff*

-Matt

[Amak]

Unfortunately, Seven Seas has dropped the series. They weren't making much (if any) money off of some, or all, of the light novels. I believe they're keeping the license, but they won't be printing any new volumes or reprinting the old ones. There is little official news on this, but just look around their forums.

[serenade_beta]

Don't know how I missed the releases, but volume 12 is out already. The 2nd volume of Unknown Stars is released this month.



Just from reading the ratings/reviews by readers... I don't wanna read this volume. (;_; )...
Then again, I'm not even close to volume 12... Hahaha.

Originally Posted by Amak

Unfortunately, Seven Seas has dropped the series

Ah-ah..........

[yongshun]

Man I really liked the novelettes I really wish that Seven Seas will continue the series someday.

[Matt122005]

I wish someone would buy the rights or a fan translation would start to finish them.

-Matt

[kuroishinigami]

what is this novel about? It seems interesting from the comment in this thread.

[Matt122005]

Its essentially a Kino no Tabi inspired series. It follows Momo, a shinigami, and her traveling companion Daniel, a talking flying demon cat, who visit different people and get involved in their lives. Each chapter is a short story and has a beginning and ending.

I've only read books 1-2 so far, and I highly suggest you get both. ^_^

-Matt

[kuroishinigami]

Hmm, how's the japanese difficulty in this series? Or is there english version out already?

[Doraneko]

Originally Posted by kuroishinigami

Hmm, how's the japanese difficulty in this series? Or is there english version out already?

This is the first Japanese novel I read, when I had only been learning the language for a little more than a year. I would say it is a good starter's choice if you have elementary Japanese background and haven't read any light novels before.

In particular, the writing emphasizes more on atmosphere and feeling instead of detailed descriptions. As a result the density of text per page is relatively low and even beginners would find it a comfortable reading experience.

Hope it helps.

[kuroishinigami]

Well, this is not the first novel I read, I have no trouble reading easier one like Baka to tesuto, and just have little difficulty reading To aru Majutsu no Index. But I hurt my head trying to memorize all those vocab on Spice and Wolf and Gossick @_@.

Oh well, might just give this a try since from serenade_beta's spoiler, it seems each volume is comprised of several short stories. Thx Doraneko ^^.

[serenade_beta]

Necromancy~

New volume recently came out...

Spoiler for pic of title:

Unfortunately, it isn't a real "new" volume, but actually a collection of short stories the author has written before (such as DVD bonus novels, etc.)

Need to finish reading up to 12 before Summer ends...

Spoiler for volume 7 thoughts:

Haa... Well, when I started the story, I felt that there was a chance no one would die in this volume's only story, but boy, was I proved wrong when Aya suddenly got sick and suddenly died off like that. Pretty much, that entire 100+ pages were the prologue, it felt.
But I guess it was a good story. Nothing really stood out compared to previous stories though. The artist from the first volume(?) made a small appearance, seemingly doing well with his light-filled art.
My Girl, My Girl, Call My Name, My Girl-
baby baby, me me me-

No idea what was going on in the story for UN though... I guess it will be clearer later...

Spoiler for volume 8 thoughts:

Pretty average volume

Strawberry Note-
Really plain... story about a guy who starts to like a woman who is his brother's girlfriend, and she even reminds him of his dead mother.
Main point of the story is Rikoko's re-appearance, from vol.2
...The art is so different...

We wish upon a scarlet-
A very short story about Hanetora and Aboro, who appeared before in... volume 5.
Not really that interesting either.

Cherish You-
Two chapters focusing on Kurosaki Kuroe, with Toiro and Makoto also reappearing. Another average story about Kuroe's attachment to her dead grandmother and her lack of friends, but compared to the other two stories, it was pretty nice.
Mostly liked Toiro and Makoto's part though.

Momo's part in this book continues from last time.
Un throws Daniel into another dimension.

Spoiler for volume 9 thoughts:

Compared to the previous volume, a lot shorter, but the stories more unique.

Nino-
Was a surprising story about a guy who gets addicted to an RPG virtual world.
At first, I thought it was a normal PC game, but wow, virtual world, huh... I wish stuff like that would be invented in real life.
Anyways, an unfortunate story indeed. He could have even got a cute girlfriend, if he didn't get so addicted. He falls into a coma instead. Shame.

Afternoon repose-
Another mysterious story.
Turns out, at the end, Mizuki was a tree who loved a human. Hoh~

Goldfish swims in the air-
Back to normal stories, as Sumika worries over what she should do towards the fact her childhood friend is going to die from a disease in the future.

Momo's part...
Well, Daniel came back after all, just like he told Un.

Spoiler for volume 10 thoughts:

Well, mixed-up feelings for this volume, but generally positive.

Warriors of the Flower was a pretty simply story and nothing new, but the atmosphere itself was nice.

A world's end humming... left me with a "What was that all about..." feeling, since it was just so... I don't know, frank? Very short and pretty much no solution or saving of the protagonist. Kind of new for this novel though.

It's a wonderful world-
It was an OK story. The end was like one of those atmosphere-breaking developments where the character that supposedly disappears comes back again and every happy-happy.
By the way, the novel says Yuka has black hair, but I have no idea how the color illustration of her could have black hair. It's brown!

Momo confronts Un in her part.

Spoiler for volume 11 thoughts:

PRYTHEMIC GIRL (Step up)(Step 1, 2, 3)
Seagull to Sonnet, and vice-versa
An incredibly long 300+ connected story.

The first part between Kanoka and Mitsumi was pretty enjoyable, but the other parts was pretty average and felt like it rambled on and on...
Though I was happy to see the story of the people who made the video that was pointed out in in volume 10's Warriors of the Flowers.
PS: Kanoka's appearance time was too short...

Momo and Un disappear from the world.

Spoiler for volume 12 thoughts:

I HAVE NO~~~~~ IDEA...
The entire stuff involving Momo and the worlds and that bob-cut girl just left my head aching.
I think I understand... But too be honest, the entire thing tired me out enough that I don't really care to understand it.

I swear I recall that bob-cut girl from somewhere before, but where...?
Nayuta Sora... I know. The guy who disappeared into the amusement park in volume 6.

Glad to see Kuroe and Mitsumi doing well. Nothing really changed here.

Been a long time since Eco and Kouta appeared. All grown up now...

Seigo gets yet another appearance this time. To be honest, his part of the story was the most emotional in the entire volume.
Wished Anzuri got more appearance time... Anyways, love how she looks now though... Guhehe, *slurp*...