Customer Reviews

Nightschool, Vol. 1 (v. 1)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Wow! April 13th, but I found it in shops! It's out a week early. FINALLY GETTING TO READ THE WHOLE THING ALL TOGETHER WAS AWESOME. I'm split between 5 or 4 star on this .... 4.5 stars? I picked 5, because I'm definitely buying volume 2!

But there are plot questions I have ... some of which are part of a good story and make me want the next volume, but some of my questions I really wish were more adequately answered in volume 1. T_T;;; I write these questions in an amazon review in the hopes maybe I can get some answers? Maybe in future volume? >___>;;;;

I didn't know what a Weirn was until I read the back of the book [I didn't bother at first, since I was already buying it...]

What's an astral? [beyond poofy smoke]
What are the school 'keepers'?

Over all I loved it, but I wish there were some extra explanation on these setting points. ><

All of Svetlana's good points are here though! 8D All the characters are distinct and lovable, there are hilarious moments, the art is good, the colored pages from Yen Plus 2 are printed in full color and on glossy paper. <3 Toning was completely successful and added to the art's clarity.

YEAH. MORE PLEASE.

Nightschool left me rather unimpressed. The premise is cliche, but a cliche I dearly love. A school for all things weird: vampires, witches (called weirns), werewolves you name it. Plus it is from the author of Dramacon another work I surpriseningly enjoyed.

The work started off without any real idea about what was happening. To start off we are introduced to the main character but she doesn't seem to matter at all. Then we are introduced to a volly of side characters without any idea how they are important. It isn't until about half way to the end of the work do things begin to make sense.

The work is still enjoyable. The humor is top notch even if you don't know why things are happening. The art is clean and depicts a number of interesting charcters to view. My only complaint is the main character's familiar (if you will) is hard to discern at first. The familiar first looks like a weird flame/blob creature but once the author ceases to use close up drawings of the familiar it is recognizable.

I would expect the following volume to improve over the first. The cliffhanger the first vol ends on is wonderful and leaves you wanting to know what happens next.

Rating is actually 3.5 stars.

Alex and her sister Sarah live in our world, but they are not human. They are weirn, like witches. Sarah is the Night Keeper at the Nightschool, where teenage demons, vampires, weirn, and more attend classes. Despite her powers, though, Alex doesn't attend. A problem she won't discuss keeps Alex cut off from her own kind and studying at home. When Sarah disappears--and Alex is the only one who can remember that she even existed--Alex must venture out into both the real world and the world of the Nightschool. But not knowing who to trust might get Alex into serious danger as a group of determined Hunters is circling ever closer to the students of the Nightschool.

The first two volumes of Chmakova's urban fantasy are the beginning of a unique creation that should instantly capture the attention of paranormal fiction fans. Even by the end of the second volume, readers won't be sure exactly who is a hero and who is a villain. It's quite possible that none of the characters is really completely one or the other, which makes the story both more realistic and more exciting. One nice touch is that Chmakova doesn't present or drop characters for no reason. Three characters who are introduced briefly in the first volume, and who seem simply to be comic fodder, are brought back in the second volume and prove important to Alex's story. Alex herself is still an unknown by the end of volume two. She's sweet and likeable, but readers are given plenty of hints that she hides a dark and extremely dangerous secret. Both the Hunters and the demons of the Nightschool seem to have reasons for their behavior, though readers aren't given many of those reasons this early on in the series, so they are left intriguingly unsure of where Chmakova's tale is heading.

Chmakova's artistic abilities are in full view here as she effortlessly combines Eastern and Western comic art techniques into her own, original storytelling style. She creates characters who are all gracefully beautiful, but who stand out from each other at the same time. Using both horror and humor to tell her tale, she is careful to not muddy the two by blending them too much, so the scary scenes and action scenes are as heart-pounding as they should be and the comedic sections are laugh-out-loud funny. She can use manga elements like chibi to great effect, but her work doesn't have the feel of trying to be any particular style. This originality makes her art ring true in the eyes of readers. One small weakness is a tendency to use emoticons in her text bubbles. This is unnecessary since her characters are more than capable of conveying emotion through their faces and bodies. But as her story builds, the emoticons begin to drop off and readers become too engaged in the tale to notice them anyway.

Libraries trying to keep up with the insatiable demand for paranormal fiction should buy this series immediately. With Chmakova's talent and the strong binding and attractive covers that Yen Press added, this series should sell itself. The teen rating is appropriate, as there is no sex and only a little language and violence. The only problem is that readers will soon be clamoring for the next volumes!
-- Snow Wildsmith

If I had to compare this first book in the Nightschool series to anything, it would be Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the TV show, not the movie or the comic), and not just because Buffy has the market on high school + the supernatural cornered. Instead, this is a tightly plotted and very ambitious start to what looks like it's going to be a wonderful manga series.

The basic story is: When the sun sets and the clock strikes six, the creatures of the night (vampires, werewolves, and witches, oh my!) come out to learn and play. When Alex's sister Sarah, nighttime keeper at the Night School, is erased from existence, Alex, a homeschooled Weirn (witch) must begin to solve the mystery.

The main protagonist of the book is Alex, a young homeschooled weirn (witch), whose sister Sarah, through magic, is erased from existence and memory. She is remembered by no one (or so we are led to believe) except for Alex.

There are quite a few other characters in the book, as well. These include hunters, who seem to be students themselves, who go after vampires and other dangerous creatures of the night, a young seer who is prophesying bad things coming, as well as students and teachers at the school. The first book predominantly deals with world building (which is expertly drawn in words and images) rather than character building, though.

While I am truly interested in learning more about this world, it was the little moments that made this first book: the girl who turns out to be an avid supporter of vampire rights; the astral being who wants cookies; the ominous sense of dread that is illustrated when Sarah is erased from existence.

This book was named the Best New Original English Manga of 2009 by About.com, and was named to the American Library Association's Great Graphic Novels For Teens list in 2010.

I was just wondering in a book store in December looking at different manga I wanted to read, when I saw this book. I bought it and instantly fell in love with it. This book is amazing! I love the characters, the mystery, and the way the author keeps you on your toes wanting more. As soon as I finished this book, I ran back in the book store to purchase the second volume.

I read this book about ten times. The first time I wasn't impressed. I was thinking to myself how retarded it seemed and how some dialogue was just childish. The second time I read it I started to enjoy the story a little bit more. The artwork is nice and the story is mysterious. As I went throughout the story there seemed to be gaps of the plot filling up with knowledge. At the end of the book I was confused but not as baffled as I was the first time. Honestly, this book wasn't easy for me to understand but I still managed to like it.

So, this is the start of yet another awesome series by Svetlana Chmakova, my all time favorite Russian-Canadian author.

This first volume in particular is about a Weirn and her sister who is a new worker at a school for monsters, and the strange tragedy that ensues by the end. The opposing forces or hunters, monsters, and the fantastic powers are ever present in this vivid and beautiful world that has been created for us. If you like the supernatural, as well as previous series like Dramacon, you'll enjoy this series.

I know really do... :)

Mixed in with her own flair, Svetlana adds in a bit of Harry Potter, a dash of Buffy and a hint of Vampire Knight with her new series, Night School. While not terrible originality, it's a fun read that leaves you wanting to know what happens next. So, if you enjoyed 'Dramacon', I would certainly recommend giving this one a shot.

This is amazing! I loved Dramacon but I was a little hesitant to pick this one up (I didn't want to read something that looked more X-Men-ish than manga/anime-ish). However, I'm glad I finally did pick up the book (only because I love Svetlana's work). What a wonderful read! I am a fan of all that spooky weirdness in books anyway (witches, werewolves, vampires and the like). I love how this pokes fun at the genre of supernatural while staying dramatic and serious enough to make this a real page-turner. I am definitely buying the next volume Nightschool, Vol. 2: The Weirn Books (v. 2).

Kudos to Svetlana for another great OEM (Original English Manga/Original English Language manga), and double-kudos to Yen Press for picking up one of TokyoPop's best OEM artists/storywriters after they were all given the axe by TP.