I did not connect with this story at all. It felt rushed and the characters and their interactions lacked depth.

I enjoyed Ocean of Secrets and shared it with a number of my students who have also really enjoyed it. Our biggest beef with this book is that we have to wait so long for volume two!

An interesting read. I really enjoyed this, and can't wait to read more!

'The Ocean of Secrets' by Sophie Chan is a first book in a series. It's a magical tale told in a manga style that seems pretty familiar.

Lia is an orphan who lives with a family. When Lia goes out on a boat ride, she ends up falling overboard and being rescued by a most unusual duo. Moria and Albert seem to be able to use magic. They also are from a magical kingdom in the air and their ship can fly. Lia finds herself with a group of people who seem to really care about her. Will Lia sacrifice herself to help them?

The art style is pretty standard. The story has some potential and I liked where the author was going, but the story ended pretty abruptly. I don't know if I care enough about the characters to read more, but I thought it was ok.

I received a review copy of this manga from Tokyopop, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this manga.

This is the manga that convinced me not to get more manga/graphic novels from Netgalley. The watermark was SO big on this it obscured both art and words making it an unpleasant chore to read. I know the publisher doesn't want online readers stealing the art but there had to be a better way to do this.

As part of my reviews of this medium I usually rate the art which was hard to do when I couldn't clearly see most of it. It did seem to be mostly nice but awkward in places (But this is a debut so there's room for improvement).

I liked the story and the characters over all but as other s have said, there's not much new here. Lia has been swept away from her adoptive family by a storm at sea and she's rescued by Moria and Albert, runaways with a magic ship and a false accusation of killing the queen and kidnapping her daughter Anemone.

Lia, of course, turns out to be part of their magical world and not the mundane one she was raised in and in that sense it's like half the YA fantasy books out there when we find out the protagonists is really the long lost someone or other of great importance in this other world. For that trope, it is well done but it has the feel of being a bit worn, a bit too we've seen this all before.

So I liked it but it didn't stand out in the crowd for me.

Book – Ocean of Secrets, Vol 1
Author – Sophie-Chan
Star rating - ★★☆☆☆
No. of Pages – 160
Cover – Gorgeous!
Genre – Comic, Manga, Teen, Graphic Novel, Fantasy


** COPY RECEIVED THROUGH NETGALLEY **


To be honest, this one had so much promise but it just didn't work for me.

The story is full of gorgeous illustrations, but sadly they're completely ruined by the huge watermark stamp plastered across the page. If it was a little more faded or discrete, it would have let me see the images better, but it felt really intrusive.

As for the story, I found myself unable to get into it, with the incredulous and obvious plot, along with the additional small graphics at the top of certain pages that had nothing to do with the story and didn't make sense (such as page 62/63). Pages 50-51 also didn't make sense, since the characters were in two different places, but having a conversation; an ability that wasn't apparently allowed within the plot arc.

The illustrations also varied a bit too much between scenes, sometimes being shown in great detail and at others appearing more Chibi/cartoonish.

Overall, the story had hints of steampunk/fantasy, with magic, mentioned and links to the Bermuda Triangle, was just a little too contrived and obvious. The whole framed for murder and long lost princess concept was simple and didn't feel well explored for the amount of pages.

A good read, not that fantastic. I loved the cover art.

This was a really interesting little manga. Lia, living with her adoptive family, remembers nothing of her life before adoption. When her sister takes her out in their uncle's boat, Lia discovers a world of secrets she could never have anticipated.

Just as she thinks she's going to drown, Lia is caught and saved by Moria and Al, sailing... through the sky. They teach her about the kingdoms floating in the sky, right in the middle of the mysterious Bermuda Triangle. And they tell her about the magic they wield, like the other citizens of the three sky kingdoms.

But Al and Moria can't go back to their home. They sail around instead, avoiding capture; Al was accused of a crime involving the Queen and Princess of Lyronaz, which he had no part in. So now they are forced to roam around the skies alone.

The Peacekeepers finally catch on, though, and Al is captured. Can Lia borrow enough of Moria's magic to rescue him? Or will she fall back to earth - to her death?

At the end of the volume, the King is finally reunited with his beloved daughter. Al is finally accepted as innocent, but is now determined to discover who is responsible for framing him.

The art is pretty nice, relatively simple and clear. There were a few grammar and spelling mistakes, but in general it was written quite well. If the next volume is available for review on NetGalley then I may request it.

A really interesting idea. I like the idea of the kingdoms banished to the sky. 3.5 stars.

Absolutely beautiful artwork, and an intriguing storyline. A poignant, interesting read.

For some reason, I just couldn't get into this manga. There was too much by way of infodumps. The artwork is lovely and I'd definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a YA manga.

TokyoPop is trying to make a comeback in the manga world. And to be honest I would much rather see new original content then bastardized Disney stories. In this debut Lia is just another orphan girl. Ten years ago she was adopted. But there seems to be some strife with her adopted sister, and on a boating trip she ends up drowning. Lucky for her, Al and Moria fly by on their ship. Lia is rescued, and discovers that magic still exists in the world, and humans just know it as the Bermuda Triangle. The rest of volume one tells the story of a missing princess, the death of a queen, and the imprisonment of Al. The story is nice, but very mushed together. It feels like it should be drawn out more. The artwork is classic and fits to the story.

Ocean of Secrets, Sophie-chan’s manga debut, is delightful. As it is only the first volume, it introduces the premise but doesn’t go deep into the story. There are three floating kingdoms where magic is an Integral part of life. A decade ago, a queen was murdered and her daughter lost. Since that time, Moria and Al have lived on a flying ship, evading capture and seeking the truth. Chance brings the rescue of Lia, a human orphan caught in the ocean during the storm. Life becomes far more complicated for Lia in a world where magic is essential to survive.


The artistry is good, but not exceptional. The story progresses a bit too quickly, but I believe that is because Sophie-chan is using this as a prelude. From here there are really two possibilities - the story develops more depth and complexity (I hope) or it moves quickly and simply forward. I liked the premise. It has a great deal of potential. I rate this a 3.5 but I will round up to 4. Reading the next volume will give me a better idea of what to expect for the remainder of the series.


4 / 5


I received a copy of Ocean Of Secrets volume 1 from the publisher and Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.


--Crittermom

Very nice. I would like to read more of this graphic novel (manga).

Ocean of Secrets is volume 1 in the series.

I quite liked this story and it was a quick read. But I felt that it was a bit rushed and things were happening too quickly. Overall, a good read and looking forward to the next volume.

While this is a quick fun read with an exciting premise the story feels a little disjointed in parts and overall a little awkward. The story doesn't quite feel ready to me, at this point I'd suggest many more manga titles before this one to someone looking to get into graphic novels.

I really enjoyed this first volume. The story is unique and the artwork is really eye-catching. I did find some of the pacing between panels hard to follow. At times, it felt like there was a page missing or even just a panel. I would definitely pick up the second volume.

Sadly I didn't loved this Manga as much as I hoped to.
I didn't hate everything, but everything just seemed okay to me.
The story wasn't boring, but just not really gripping as well.
I didn't love the characters, but didn't hate them as well.
I kind of liked the art, but just not enough to continue on with this Manga Series.

I really liked this manga and cant wait for the next one to come out. It was a fast and interesting i couldnt wait to read the next page. I was sad i didnt have tge bext one to read.

This was a really unique story with very interesting and lively characters. I really enjoyed the art and wil be looking forward to the next book.

When Lia, an orphan, falls into the ocean during a storm, she is rescued by Moira and Albert. Not only did she fall into the sea, but she fell into a different world. Moira and Albert are runaways who stole their ship. They show Lia the secrets of their mysterious world, and solve the mystery of the King's long lost daughter.

This story is simple. It moved very slowly. There could have been more details to make it more exciting.

I liked the twist at the end, when they discover the identity of the lost princess. However, the story was so short, I wasn't really invested in the characters. The idea behind the plot was good. However, if it was more detailed, I would have felt more of a connection to the story and the characters.

This review will be posted on my blog on May 17, 2017.