Orphen Volume 1

Product Description

The sorcerer Orphen is on a magic-for-hire-mission, and along with his wand-wielding understudy and bone-headed companion, he must retrieve a magical ring from the mansion of a beautiful young woman. This should be no sweat for the seasoned sorcerer, but a sweet-tempered maid with an interest in the black arts will complicate an already sticky situation.

From Publishers Weekly

Originally a series of fantasy novels by Akita, this tale of a young, irreverent and talented sorcerer has been adapted into an anime, a video game and a popular manga, now translated into English for the first time. Orphen was the star student of the Tower of Fangs, a school for mages, until he turned his back on his teacher, Childman. Orphen now lives from hand-to-mouth, using his magic on jobs to pay the bills. He is accompanied by his apprentice, Majic, and the groupie brothers Volcan and Dortin, who spend more time beating up on each other than helping with the job. On one job gone wrong, Orphen’s entourage takes on another member, the cute and clumsy Cleao, who’s intent on meddling with Orphen’s love life. Surrounded by this comic group, Orphen struggles with ghosts from his past, and one in particular: his former fellow student, the beautiful Azalie. The characters and plot are unfailingly generic, but that doesn’t change the fact that Orphen is just plain cool. The take-no-prisoners swagger in his step comes through clearly in Sawada’s hip illustrations. This solidly entertaining manga will undoubtedly appeal to fans of the genre.
(Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up–Krycanelo is a young sorcerer who trains at a school known as The Tower of Fangs. When his best friend makes a grave mistake and is to be hunted down and killed by the other sorcerers, the teen leaves the Tower rather than participate in the search and takes on the name Orphen. He survives by running up debts and taking on odd jobs provided by the mysterious Childman. Though purposely a loner, Orphen can’t seem to take on a quest without being accompanied by a number of children who are motivated by the desire to learn magic from him, or get a cut of his reward. Things are further complicated by the introduction of an older sister of one of the kids, who is presented as a potential wife, and the subsequent memories of his lost best friend, who is missing and is quite possibly the girl he really wants. The series takes place in a vaguely European setting, with lots of magic, fantastic creatures, and devices to make things interesting. Teens will enjoy the mix of adventure, light romance, and rowdy competition among the characters. Readers unfamiliar with manga conventions may be impeded by reading right to left, but the illustrations are clear and well laid out, and the book is a fun read.
–Dawn Rutherford, Kings County Library System, Bellevue, WA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.