Author: Isuna Hasekura
Illustrator: Jyuu Ayakura
Translator: Paul Starr
U.S. publisher: Yen Press
ISBN: 9780759531116
Released: June 2012
Original release: 2007

Isuna Hasekura’s light novel Spice & Wolf, Volume 6 was first published in Japan in 2007. Yen Press’ English edition of the novel, translated by Paul Starr, was released in 2012. It retains the color pages and illustrations by Jyuu Ayakura found in the original. The first volume of Spice & Wolf won the Dengeki Novel Prize, allowing it to be subsequently published. The novel proved to be popular enough in Japan to spawn a seventeen volume light novel series, both a manga and an anime adaptation, an Internet radio show, visual novel, and plenty of merchandising opportunities. In English, the light novels have been successful enough for Yen Press to license at least the first nine novels. (Initially, the license only covered the first six volumes of Spice & Wolf, but Yen Press was able to extend it.) I have been pleasantly surprised by the series—a light fantasy with both economic and supernatural elements to it—so I am glad to have the opportunity to follow Lawrence and Holo on their journey for at least a little while longer.

Lawrence’s dealings with Eve in Lenos have gone sour. Although he has made it out of the situation alive he is considerably poorer, not to mention physically battered. Eve has taken all of his money and Lawrence has let the opportunity to realize his dream slip through his fingers. Instead of ending his life as a traveling merchant and settling down permanently in Lenos, opening his own business, Lawrence has chosen Holo and her safety over his own goals. Although he has admitted his feelings to her, she is not entirely pleased with his decision. A mortal falling in love with someone who many consider to be a goddess is a complicated matter. Lawrence has promised to accompany Holo on her way back to her homeland of Yoitsu; it seems as though that journey will soon be coming to a close. But first there is the matter of Eve. She has already left Lenos on her way to the port town of Kerube. If Lawrence wants to see any of his profit, he has no choice but to follow. And to have any chance of catching up with her, that means traveling by boat on the Roam River which presents its own set of unique challenges.

One of my favorite parts about the Spice & Wolf series has always been Holo and Lawrence’s relationship and their frequent bantering and teasing of each other. Unfortunately, much of the sixth volume of Spice & Wolf is spent with Holo angry at Lawrence and not even speaking to him. So, instead of Lawrence and Holo spending their time together, it’s Lawrence and Col, a young student—a boy, really—who the two meet on their river journey. Although I did miss Holo and Lawrence’s interactions with each other, the reason for the shift in the story’s focus is abundantly clear by the end of Spice & Wolf, Volume 6. Luckily, I also happened to like Col. He may be young and still fairly naive, but he’s not an idiot. In fact, he proves to be a quick and earnest learner. Col’s past is interesting, and his future should be quite interesting as well. His introduction also allows Hasekura to explore another aspect of the world that he has created—the lives of and trials faced by students and scholars.

The sixth volume of Spice & Wolf relies very heavily on the books that precede it in the series, particularly the fifth volume. There’s not much of a recap in the sixth volume and the references to past events aren’t thoroughly explained. It’s probably best to read the sixth novel soon after finishing the fifth since their plots are closely connected. Unlike many of the previous volumes, the economic elements of Spice & Wolf, Volume 6 play a less prominent role in the story. However, Hasekura acknowledges this in the book’s afterword and promises to make up for it in later volumes of the series. While economics isn’t as critical in Spice & Wolf, Volume 6, it is still included. In particular, readers end up learning a bit about boat and river trade and shipping. The writing style in Spice & Wolf is rather sparse, with short sentences and short paragraphs. Due to this lack of detail, what is obvious to the characters is not always obvious to the readers. Even so, I’m still enjoying Spice & Wolf. The sixth volume may not be my favorite in the series, but there is still plenty of the journey left to go.

Author: Isuna Hasekura
Illustrator: Jyuu Ayakura
Translator: Paul Starr
U.S. publisher: Yen Press
ISBN: 9780759531109
Released: December 2011
Original release: 2007

Isuna Hasekura’s light novel series Spice & Wolf has actually turned out to be a really nice series. I am very pleased that Yen Press continues to publish Paul Starr’s translation of the novels, the fifth volume of which was released in late 2011. Originally, the fifth volume was published in Japan in 2007. Jyuu Ayakura works as the illustrator for the novels. The Spice & Wolf series has an anime adaptation which is also quite enjoyable, but I still think I prefer the original novels. I have been enjoying Spice & Wolf much more than I had initially anticipated. The series is an interesting and sometimes odd mix of economics, light romance, and fantasy, but Hasekura makes it work. The real highlight of the story is the two leads, Lawrence and Holo. If you don’t like them, you won’t like Spice & Wolf. I happen to adore the two, so it was an easy decision for me to pick up the fifth volume.

Although they have been traveling together for a relatively short period of time—Holo, being a wolf spirit, has lived for centuries, after all—Lawrence and Holo have come to enjoy each other’s company. Lawrence’s life as a traveling merchant may have become much more eventful after meeting Holo, his very life being put into danger on several occasions, but it has also become much less lonely. Both Holo and Lawrence are beginning to dread the end of their journey and neither one of them really wants to talk about it. But Lawrence is resigned to fulfilling his promise to Holo to find and accompany her to her homeland in the north, Yoitsu. Their path has led them to Lenos where they hope to discover clues to Yoitsu’s whereabouts in the town’s histories and chronicles. And although it isn’t the point of this particular trip, as a merchant Lawrence always has his eyes and ears open for a profitable trade.

I’ve mentioned this in every review that I have written for Spice & Wolf, and will probably continue to mention it, but my favorite part of the series is Lawrence, Holo, and their relationship with each other. From the very beginning of Spice & Wolf, Hasekura has let their bond slowly, believably, and naturally develop. Well, as naturally as could be expected when dealing with a human and a near immortal. Lawrence is just beginning to realize the implications of that particular situation while Holo, with more years and more experience, has been quite aware of them since the time she first met Lawrence. Similar to the third volume in which Lawrence had to come to terms with how important Holo had become to him, in the fifth volume he must now come to terms with what that exactly means. Their relationship has deepened and matured nicely, but it is still not without its problems.

Compared to some of the previous volumes, there is very little action that happens in the fifth volume of Spice & Wolf, at least externally. Lawrence still has his personal inner turmoil to deal with. (He does still manage to come to bodily harm, though.) He is starting to get used to Holo’s company more and more, which means he isn’t flustered by her quite as easily. But when he is, it is incredibly endearing. I enjoy their mutual banter immensely. Overall, I think Hasekura’s writing and Starr’s translation work continues to improve as the Spice & Wolf series progresses. The narrative and speech in the fifth volume is not nearly as stilted as those in the earlier books and are generally much less confusing. I still find myself puzzling over the meaning of a line of dialogue on occassion, but for the most part conversations are much easier to follow. I continue to enjoy Spice & Wolf and look forward to the next volume in the series a great deal.

Author: Isuna Hasekura
Illustrator: Jyuu Ayakura
Translator: Paul Starr
U.S. publisher: Yen Press
ISBN: 9780759531086
Released: June 2011
Original release: 2006

The fourth volume of Isuna Hasekura’s Spice & Wolf light novel series, illustrated by Jyuu Ayakura, was originally published in Japan in 2006, about a year after the author won the Dengeki Novel Silver Prize for the first volume. Yen Press released the English edition of the fourth volume, translated once again by Paul Starr, in 2011. I enjoyed the first two volumes well enough, but it was the third volume that convinced me that I had made the correct choice in pursuing the series. It’s a light fantasy, focusing more on day-to-day life and economics rather than grand quests and high magic, although there is a little of that mixed in, too. But what really makes Spice & Wolf work for me are the two endearing leads: Lawrence, a traveling merchant, and his companion by chance Holo, a wolf spirit revered as a harvest goddess. Since I particularly enjoyed the third volume, I was looking forward to reading the fourth.

Following the trail of information that they discovered in Kumersun, Lawrence and Holo continue the search for her home in the north, Yoitsu. They have learned of an abbey near Tereo that is said to collect pagan stories. Although it sounds strange for the Church to be involved in something like that, they hope to find out more about what happened to Yoitsu while Holo was away for centuries. On their way to Tereo, Lawrence and Holo pass through the larger city of Enberch, unwittingly setting themselves up as scapegoats for someone else’s schemes. The relations between Enberch and Tereo are strained and it won’t take much for the situation to turn volatile. Unaware of this at the time, Lawrence and Holo continue on to Tereo, quickly realizing their trip was more dangerous than they bargained for.

While the Church has always been a prominent element of the world-building of Spice & Wolf, it is of particular importance in the fourth volume. Holo and Lawrence must deliberately seek out the abbey for more information even though it is much safer for them to avoid the Church entirely, Holo being the wolf spirit that she is. The Church is a powerful economic force, which makes it a powerful political force as well. For a largely pagan town like Tereo, this is very problematic and one of the reasons that Lawrence and Holo are treated with such suspicion. They are outsiders to begin with, but their interest in the abbey is particularly unwelcome. Tereo stands to lose a lot if the Church becomes involved in its affairs and so the less attention the town draws the better.

The relationship between Holo and Lawrence remains my favorite part of Spice & Wolf. In the third volume, Lawrence had to confront just how important Holo had become to him in such a short period of time. In the fourth volume, it is clear that the two of them have grown even closer and are more comfortable with each other. There is still plenty of good natured bantering and teasing, and Lawrence still embarrasses very easily (which I find adorable), but he has also gotten to the point where he can more readily read Holo’s moods and wishes. Life as a traveling merchant is extremely lonely, and Lawrence and Holo’s experiences in Tereo show just how dangerous it can be to be alone. They’ve both come to value each others companionship a tremendous amount. As a reader, I’m happy to watch their relationship continue to develop and deepen.