Author: Kaoru Kurimoto
Illustrator: Naoyuki Kato
Translator: Alexander O. Smith and Elye J. Alexander
U.S. publisher: Vertical
ISBN: 9781934287200
Released: July 2008
Original release: 1980
Awards: Seiun Award

The Marches King is the fifth and final volume in “The Marches Episode,” the first major story arc in Kaoru Kurimoto’s fantasy epic The Guin Saga. While “The Marches Episode” is the only part of the light novel series available in English, The Guin Saga lasted for one hundred thirty volumes in its native Japan, winning the 2010 Seiun Award for long fiction. The Marches King was originally published in Japan in 1980. Vertical released the English translation of the novel by Alexander O. Smith and Elye J. Alexander in 2008, retaining the illustrations by Naoyuki Kato. Even though The Guin Saga hasn’t been nearly as successful in English as it has been in Japanese, the series is still very important to the development of the light novel form and Japanese fantasy literature. The Guin Saga was an influence on and source of inspiration for many Japanese creators.

It is only a matter of time before the Sem and the secrets of Nospherus will fall to the Mongauli army. Although they have managed to deal significant blows to the indavers’ morale and nearly wiped out the Blue Knights completely, the Sem are still vastly outnumbered and have sustained heavy casualties. When it comes to military prowess and strategy there is no question that the Monguali are superior. The Sem’s only chance is the leopard-headed warrior known as Guin, but he has left the Sem to face the invading army alone as he desperately tries to find and convince the mysterious Lagon to join the their cause. If the giants agree to come to the diminutive Sem’s aid they may be able to repel the Mongauli forces. But until Guin returns with reinforcements, the Sem are on their own. And if Guin fails the Sem will be annihilated; the Mongauli are preparing for a final frontal assault that they cannot lose.

From the very beginning of “The Marches Episode,” Kurimoto has known how to write a fantastic battle scene, whether it’s the one-on-one fights that Guin frequently finds himself in, the ambushes and skirmishes of the Sem, or the more coordinated military maneuvers of the Mongauli army. In fact, the fight sequences feature some of the best writing in the series. The scenes are engaging and exciting. Despite the occasional similar setup, the fights never come across as repetitive. I found Kurimoto’s creativity and clarity to be quite impressive when it comes to writing a fight scene. The Marches King is no different as the battle for Nospherus reaches its climax and is finally resolved. Kurimoto doesn’t hold back, either. The fighting is brutal and the ramifications are gruesome. There will be casualties in war and it is not often pretty.

Although The Guin Saga was off to a bit of a weak start with the first book, each volume improved and built upon the volumes that preceded it. By the time I reached The Marches King, I was already sold on the series and want to read more. “The Marches Episode” is a complete story in itself but it is obvious, especially after reading the afterword which puts the arc into mythological and historical context within the world that Kurimoto has created, that there is still plenty of story to be told. Kurimoto’s worldbuilding, while not always particularly original as she makes very good use of fairly standard fantasy archetypes and tropes, is excellent. Throughout “The Marches Episode” she has given hints about what is to come and has established a solid groundwork for future stories. Unfortunately, it is very unlikely that any of the later novels in The Guin Saga will be translated into English. However, I am very glad to at least have the beginning of such an influential series available.

Author: Kaoru Kurimoto
Illustrator: Naoyuki Kato
Translator: Alexander O. Smith and Elye J. Alexander
U.S. publisher: Vertical
ISBN: 9781934287194
Released: May 2008
Original release: 1980
Awards: Seiun Award

Prisoner of the Lagon, with illustrations by Naoyuki Kato, is the fourth book in Kaoru Kurimoto’s heroic fantasy light novel series The Guin Saga. Immensely popular in Japan, The Guin Saga is over one hundred volumes long. In 2010, Kurimoto even won a Seiun Award for the work as a whole. The Guin Saga hasn’t met with as much success with English-language audiences. Only the first five volumes which make up the first story arc of the series, “The Marches Episode,” have been translated by Alexander O. Smith and Elye J. Alexander. Originally published in Japan in 1980, Prisoner of the Lagon was released by Vertical in 2008 as a paperback. Prisoner of the Lagon is the first volume of The Guin Saga not to receive a hardcover edition from Vertical. Although I wasn’t overly impressed by the first novel in The Guin Saga, I have since become quite fond of the series and so was looking forward to reading Prisoner of the Lagon.

The deadly battle for Nospherus and for control of its secrets is a long one. The Sem continue to harass and ambush the the Mongauli troops. Despite its superior numbers and resources, the invading army’s morale is steadily declining. General Amnelis must take decisive action against the Sem and turn the tide of war before her troops lose all confidence in her leadership and their mission. Her foe, the mysterious leopard-headed warrior Guin, knows that the Sem won’t be able to hold out much longer. Their familiarity with Nospherus has given them an important advantage against the Mongauls, but no mater how dirty the Sem’s tactics they will eventually lose. Guin believes they only have one chance for success. Leaving the Sem to fend for themselves, he heads deeper into the wilderness of Nospherus, hoping to find and enlist the aid of the Lagon, a race of giants who are only rumored to exist.

While Guin has always been a prominent player, the saga is named for him after all, many of the previous volumes in the series have heavily featured other characters. Prisoner of the Lagon turns much of the focus back to Guin. More and more is revealed about him as more and more is revealed about Nospherus. But even now, very little is actually known about Guin. Both allies and enemies, not to mention Guin himself, wonder who this god-like warrior really is, what lurks in his past, and where his destiny lies. None of these questions are definitively answered in Prisoner of the Lagon, but the hints that Kurimoto drops are becoming less subtle. The convenient restoration of Guin’s memory when needed for the story still bothers me, but it bothers Guin, too. At least this means Kurimoto is aware of the issue and Guin tries to come up with a satisfying explanation.

A few things stand out for me in The Guin Saga. Kurimoto writes fantastic fight scenes. In Prisoner of the Lagon, Guin in particular has a few excellent solo battles in which he is revealed not to be all powerful even if he is an incredible warrior. While the conflicts in The Guin Saga are engaging, I wouldn’t say that the violence is glorified. Strategic errors made during war have brutal and fatal consequences; Kurimoto doesn’t shy away from horrifying outcomes. Morality is a complex issue in The Guin Saga. The protagonists are capable of truly terrible things that are made no less horrible because they are in the right. On the other hand, Kurimoto doesn’t demonize the saga’s antagonists. In fact, the characters are often sympathetic. Count Marus, commander of Mongaul’s Blue Knights, is a good example of this in Prisoner of the Lagon. He has a family that he misses, close friends and comrades that he worries about, and he genuinely cares for the men who serve under him. The Guin Saga gets better and better with each book. I’m looking forward to reading the final volume of “The Marches Episode,” The Marches King.

Author: Kaoru Kurimoto
Illustrator: Naoyuki Kato
Translator: Alexander O. Smith and Elye J. Alexander
U.S. publisher: Vertical
ISBN: 9781934287064
Released: March 2008
Original release: 1979
Awards: Seiun Award

The Battle of Nospherus, with illustrations by Naoyuki Kato, is the third volume in Kaoru Kurimoto’s epic light novel series The Guin Saga. In Japan, the novel was originally released in 1979. Vertical first published The Battle of Nospherus in English in 2003 in hardcover and then again in paperback in 2008, translated by Alexander O. Smith and Elye J. Alexander. The Battle of Nospherus is the third book in the first major story arc in The Guin Saga, often called the “Marches Episode,” which is the only part of the novel series currently available in English. The Guin Saga has been at least partially translated into six other languages. I don’t know how it has been received in other parts of the world, but the English version hasn’t been nearly as successful as the series is in Japan. At well over a hundred volumes, The Guin Saga even won the Seiun Award for long fiction in 2010.

With General Amnelis and the Mongauli army in pursuit, the leopard-headed warrior Guin and his companions retreat even further into Nospherus, seeking shelter among the Raku tribe of the Sem. Amnelis’ actions are unexpected. Normally, Nospherus and its dangers are avoided at all costs, but she has brought what amounts to an invasion force, much more power than is needed to simply capture the escaped heirs of Parros and those who aid them. Amnelis is determined to take Nospherus and any secrets it holds despite the tremendous risks involved. Meanwhile, the Sem are struggling to band together their tribes, normally at war with one another, in order to protect themselves and their land from a common foe. Vastly outnumbered, outclassed, and out-equipped, the Sem place their hope in the very capable hands of Guin and in Nospherus itself.

Although The Battle of Nospherus is the third book in the series, there isn’t much character development that hasn’t already been established. Guin is still mysterious, Istavan is still a likeable ass, Amnelis is young and ambitious, Rinda is fortunately slightly less annoying, and her twin brother Remus is…well, Remus is often easy to forget that he’s even there and is frequently eclipsed by his sister. However, throughout the books there has been heavy foreshadowing indicating that he will become very important later on; I’m just not sure that it will happen by the end of the “Marches Episode.” One notable exception, The Battle of Nospherus does give more insight into the character of the love-besotted Captain Astrias. In fact, a good portion of the novel is seen from his perspective. This is one of the things that I really like about The Guin Saga: the story is also seen from the Mongauli’s side. While they are most certainly the antagonists, they are not inherently bad people. Particularly the lower ranking soldiers who are only in Nospherus because they have been told to be, not because they want to be.

I actually found The Battle of Nospherus to be rather slow going for the first half or so of the book. The narrative, especially the dialogue, felt very stilted to me in the beginning. I have a feeling this may have been the case in the original Japanese as well and so don’t blame the translators for it. But by the end of the book, it has settled into a more natural cadence. I was also troubled by the opening sequence and found myself coming up with excuses to cover for what I saw as inconsistencies. And while clever, I wasn’t entirely convince by our heroes’ solution to their immediate problem. However, if there is one thing that Kurimoto has done well since the beginning of The Guin Saga it’s writing a good fight scene. The last half of The Battle of Nospherus is filled with just that—a string of exciting battles and skirmishes. Kurimoto is able to capture the chaos while preventing it from becoming confusing or overwhelming for the reader. The fight for Nospherus continues in the next volume, Prisoner of the Lagon.

Author: Kaoru Kurimoto
Illustrator: Naoyuki Kato
Translator: Alexander O. Smith and Elye J. Alexander
U.S. publisher: Vertical
ISBN: 9781934287057
Released: January 2008
Original release: 1979
Awards: Seiun Award

Warrior in the Wilderness is the second volume in Kaoru Kurimoto’s heroic fantasy light novel series The Guin Saga. Originally published in Japan in 1979, Warrior in the Wilderness was first released in English in 2003 in hardcover by Vertical. In 2008, a paperback edition was released. Alexander O. Smith and Elye J. Alexander return to the series to provide the English translation. Happily, Naoyuki Kato’s illustrations from the original are also included. At far over one hundred volumes, The Guin Saga is immensely popular in Japan, winning a Seiun Award in 2010. Parts of the series have been translated into multiple languages. Only the first five volumes, consisting of the first major story arc, are currently available in English. I didn’t enjoy the first volume, The Leopard Mask nearly as much as I was hoping to, at least not until towards the end of the book, but even still, I remained interested in the series and looked forward to reading Warrior in the Wilderness.

During the chaos of Stafolos Keep’s fall, the leopard-headed and amnesiac warrior Guin manages to escape along with the twin heirs of Parros, Rinda and Remus, and a young Sem girl named Suni. Joining them soon after, and somewhat reluctantly, is a skilled mercenary known as Istavan Spellsword. Traveling along the river Kes, the odd group of former prisoners flee the Keep hoping to avoid pursuit. Their luck doesn’t hold and they find themselves trapped between the army of Gohra and the dangerous and cursed land of Nospherus, inhabited by strange beasts and home to bizarre phenomena. Guin and the others decide the best option is to take their chances with the terrors of Nospherus. Unexpectedly, the Gohran army, lead by a brash young general, follows the five escapees across the river and into the land fit for demons.

As much as I adore Guin as a character, I was thrilled when Istavan the Crimson Mercenary was revealed to be one of the main protagonists. He is only briefly introduced in The Leopard Mask but plays a very prominent role in Warrior in the Wilderness. At the moment, Istavan may be my favorite character in The Guin Saga—he’s such an ass. Concerned first and foremost about his own self-preservation and an excellent fighter, he provides tension within the group since no one is quite sure where his loyalties lie. Istavan doesn’t automatically get along with his companions of chance (or perhaps of fate) and his moral character is ambiguous to say the least. Amusingly enough, his constant cursing provides valuable understanding of the The Guin Saga‘s pantheon. All in all he’s not such a bad guy although it’s sometimes hard to tell, which is what makes Istavan so interesting.

I enjoyed Warrior in the Wilderness quite a bit more than The Leopard Mask. A reader new to the series could probably even start with the second book without too much of a problem since most of the major plot points from the first volume are at least mentioned. In general, the narrative flow and pacing of Warrior in the Wilderness is much better and less awkward than in The Leopard Mask. Guin still has the tendency to remember information when happens to be needed, something that strikes me more as convenient rather than mysterious. The other characters, and therefore Kurimoto, are aware of this habit but it has yet to be satisfactorily explained. Still, Guin remains a captivating and intriguing badass. Warrior in the Wilderness ends with a cliffhanger so I am looking forward to continuing The Guin Saga with the next volume, The Battle of Nospherus sooner rather than later.

Author: Kaoru Kurimoto
Illustrator: Naoyuki Kato
Translator: Alexander O. Smith and Elye J. Alexander
U.S. publisher: Vertical
ISBN: 9781932234817
Released: December 2007
Original release: 1979
Awards: Seiun Award

The Leopard Mask is the first book in Kaoru Kurimoto’s epic light novel series The Guin Saga. Kurimoto began the series in 1979 and as of the author’s death in 2009, she had published one hundred forty-seven Guin Saga novels, making it one of the longest works written by a single author. So far, only the first five novels of The Guin Saga, consisting of the first major story arc, have been released in an English translation. The Guin Saga, Book One: The Leopard Mask, translated by Alexander O. Smith with the assistance of Elye J. Alexander, was first released by Vertical as a hardcover in 2003 and then in a paperback edition in 2007. The English releases include the wonderful illustrations by Naoyuki Kato. In Japan, The Guin Saga is a very popular and highly influential work. I have seen numerous authors, mangaka, and creators cite Kurimoto and the series as a source of inspiration for their own work, including Kentaro Miura and his manga series Berserk. Additionally, The Guin Saga received a Seiun Award in 2010 for Japanese Long Fiction.

Twin brother and sister Remus and Rinda are the last remaining members of the royal house of Parros. Wandering the extremely dangerous Roodwood on their own in an attempt to escape their pursuers from the Mongauli army, they come across a fierce and frightening warrior. The man is nearly naked, wearing only a loincloth and a strange mask shaped like head of a leopard that seems to have been magically affixed to his own and which he is unable to remove. He has no memories of who he is, where he comes from, or why he is injured and alone in the Roodwood. He remembers two words: Guin, which he believes to be his name, and Aurra, which remains a complete enigma to him. But no matter who Guin really is, he may be the only chance for the twins survival.

At least for me, the most interesting character by far is Guin, even though hardly anything at all is known about him. The mystery shrouding Guin and his past intrigues me, not to mention his form and martial capabilities. One thing that did bother me, and something that Remus comments on about halfway through the novel, was that for someone claiming to be an amnesiac, Guin tends to remember some fairly important information when it’s convenient for the story. I have a feeling and hope that this may be further explained in later volumes. I found the twins to be slightly annoying; Rinda especially comes across as somewhat of a spoiled brat. I liked most of the side characters, particularly Istavan and Orro, even if he did gain and lose his accent from one appearance to another. Towards the end of The Leopard Mask, Kurimoto does some really nice things with the character of the Black Count, who is more complex than he might first appear. Characterization in the novel is mostly based on the character’s actions and reactions rather than really getting to know their thoughts or feelings.

The Leopard Mask is a good hook for the rest of the series, introducing the world and characters, but it doesn’t stand as well on its own; it really seemed more like a prologue to me. The prose can be overly dramatic at times, but that is more an indication of the genre rather than the fault of the translators. (In fact, I think that Smith and Alexander did a fine job with the translation.) It’s almost as if the story would be best read aloud or performed. The action and fight sequences are particularly well done and exciting. Kurimoto does have a tendency to “rewind” the chronology from scene to scene and sometimes it can be difficult to get a good sense of the passage of time. The best descriptions in the text are reserved for Guin as well as for the other freakish and bizarre things in The Leopard Mask. Overall, the world has a very dark atmosphere to it. While I eventually enjoyed The Leopard Mask, I wasn’t really taken with the book until close to the end. However, I’m still looking forward to giving book two of The Guin Saga, Warrior in the Wilderness, a try.