Turns out I just don't like manga. Maybe the translation's not good enough but I also just don't like the artwork in general. It's too bad because I've heard so many good things about so many manga.

While it's not uncommon for me to read a graphic novel now and again, it is uncommon for me to read manga. I generally don't like the art and layout style that I associate with manga. But the description of this book appealed to me, so I requested a review copy. And not being much of a reader of Japanese comics, I had forgotten that you read manga from right to left, so for the first few pages I was frustrated with the seemingly disjointed story. Once I remembered how one is supposed to read manga, I started again, and of course it made much more sense.

The story: "Twilight" is a master spy, known among the inner circles as someone willing to go deep undercover to accomplish a mission. His new mission is to infiltrate an elite, private school but in order to do so he's first going to have to acquire a family - which may be the most difficult bit of spywork he's ever done.

At an orphanage, Twilight finds a young girl, Anya, who doesn't quite fit in even with the other orphans, and the director of the orphanage can't wait to get rid of the little girl. What Twilight doesn't know, though over the course of time he begins to have suspicions, is that the girl is telepathic. She can read minds and understands that her new, fake, father is actually a spy going undercover. What she isn't able to do is tell him that she knows. She's too young to understand that she is different and has a special ability.

At first Twilight thinks this will be enough to get him to access to the school - a child he would like to have enrolled. But he begins to think that perhaps he should have a wife to present a 'perfect' family, given the elite nature of the school. He happens to run into a beautiful woman, Yor Briar, who needs a pretend husband to meet her family and they decide they can be mutually helpful to one another. But Yor Briar has a secret ... she's an undercover assassin. Anya knows as she immediately reads Yor Briar's thoughts.

Now with his fake family, Twilight still has to pass a rigorous interview process at the academy and must train his temporary wife and daughter how to act like the perfect family.

I found this book to be a complete joy. When I finished this volume my reaction was "That's it? Was this just a 32 page comic?" It read so quickly - I was completely absorbed in the story - and I actually double-checked how many pages I had read and was surprised to see it was more than 200 pages. And as I reflected on all that had happened, it was pretty evident that it couldn't all happen in a 32 page comic. It's just that it read so smoothly!

I liked the characters and both Twilight and Yor Briar have intriguing secrets that make me want to keep reading in order to learn more about them. I was not as interested in the little girl, Anya. I felt very unclear as to who and what she is. At times a spoiled brat, at times intelligent beyond her years, and then suddenly as equally unintelligent.

The artwork was fine. It was consistent and flowed well ... though again, too often scenes with Anya I didn't enjoy as they seemed to change the overall appearance of the book.

This is clearly just the set-up for a larger story, but it works well and I am definitely interested in reading the next volume.

Looking for a good book? <em>Spy x Family, Vol. 1</em> is a manga graphic novel with plenty of action and intrigue. It's hard to go wrong when a spy, an assassin, and a telepath walk into a private school.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Twilight is a master spy. His latest mission involves infiltrating an elite private school. However, he will need a family to do that. He knows the school will want him to have a wife, and a child to send to the school, but he is single. Twilight adopts a child from an orphanage. He doesn’t know her secret, that she’s a telepath. The woman he finds to act as his wife, Yor, is a secret assassin. Twilight has to train his new wife and child to get used to their new life, while they both have their own secret identities.

This was an intriguing plot. Twilight had an important mission, but he had to make some major changes to his life to complete it. It was kind of absurd that he needed a wife to be able to send his child to the school. It was even more suspenseful since the wife and child were hiding their secret identities from him as well.

There were some sexist parts of the story, which I didn’t like, but they were so extreme that they weren’t realistic. The idea that a man would need to have a wife to enroll his child in a school is crazy. Yor’s friends teased her for not having a boyfriend before she met Twilight. There were also some inappropriate questions that were asked during their private school interview about the mother and father’s roles in the household. I didn’t like these sexist parts of the story, but I don’t think they were meant to be offensive to the reader.

I’m curious to see what happens in the next book!

Thank you VIZ Media for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Spy x Family Vol. 1 grabbed me right from the get go and managed to melt my icy heart. The beautiful story is about a spy who’s always worked alone but is forced to adopt a daughter in order to accomplish his most deadliest mission yet. You can only imagine the cuteness that follows. I found the stories within the volume easy to follow and the situations the main character was put in made me chuckle. It was so endearing and I cannot wait to read the next volume of stories to find out what kind of mischief this adorable family will get into next! If you enjoy stories with found family themes you will like this manga.

This is such a funny manga. I really enjoyed it and like that it isn't your typical shonen manga. The characters really grow on and at the end you want to know what's going to happen next. We added this to our manga collection at the library I work at.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Loid Forger is a spy and he needs a family to complete his next mission. Enter Anya, who Loid adopts, and Yor, who also needs a husband as a cover for her secret career. Together, they prepare to infiltrate an elite academy. I found this story very entertaining. The characters are well-written and engaging. I can’t wait for volume 2!

I really enjoyed the this story such an wholesome and fun read,was a tad slow towards the middle. Loved the art style .

It starts off as a seemingly serious spy story that quickly ends up being a hilarious, family-centered story with some action. The premise itself, which involves a spy, assassin, and an esper, is enough to get the ball rolling and keep rolling as this trio starts off as a sham of a family to slowly becoming a real one.
Not to mention the characters are so lively and drive this story as they try, mess up, and stick it out for the real mission behind this setup. The assassin is also a little clueless for being so deadly and the esper is just a little dumb which makes the obstacles to complete this mission even more complicated; making it quite the entertaining story.
Overall it's a series with a lot of potential for more surprises, unique situations, and lots of trouble. Making it a fun, emotional, and refreshing read.

Wow! A new manga series to get lost in!
The characters are fresh and intriguing. The plot is fantastic ... 7 days to get married and have a child. All to complete a mission. LOL
The art is terrific and manages to keep any violence from being too graphic.
I can’t wait for the next issue!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Have you ever thought of reading a manga that holds a similar concept as James Bond from 007 but there was a special spice called a comedy? This manga may be for you! For all the wrong reasons. Maybe. Anyway, may we introduce you SPY x FAMILY!

(Longer review forthcoming on review sites). This is one of the best stories currently running in Shonen Jump, and my personal favorite of the currently running series. It's so expertly done and irreverent, with a surprising amount of heart.

This was such a fun first installment. I was incredibly entertained the whole time, and watching these characters attempt to interact without giving away anything to the others was so much fun.

The summary was more than enough to get me interested and it did NOT disappoint. We touch on fun family dynamics, softer moments that help with character growth, and and an endearing cast of characters.
Another thing I wanted to mention was how much I really enjoyed this art style. It has a good amount of art vs. text and I really enjoyed it.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and VIZ Media for the e-arc for review!
All opinions are my own.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher of this manga for an advanced look in exchange for an honest review.

This is one of the few manga that I have been able to finish, so I guess it gets points for that.
But it is...
Violent.
Abrasive language.
Dysfunctional.
Typical manga except that the women are not exploited on every page.

Thank you Tatsuya Endo, Netgalley and VIZ Media LLC for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this novel. I truly loved it and the illustrations were just amazing. I hope that the final addition is in color but overall it has me at the edge of my seat the whole time while I was reading. I can’t wait for volume 2.

‘Never forget that everyone else’s day-to-day lives are possible because of your blood and sweat.’

Twilight is a master spy (‘a veteran of the battlefield, employing a hundred different faces to survive’) – and thus far, no mission has proved too dangerous or difficult for him to pull off successfully. Until now. Will this latest mission ‘Operation Strix’ be too difficult – and bring his career to an ignominious end? In order to infiltrate an elite private school and home in on his target, he must acquire a wife and a child. But where can Twilight – or ‘psychiatrist Loid Forger’ his latest identity – find the perfect family in time to carry out his assignment?

‘I abandoned my identity when I became Twilight. A father is just another role to play. And I will play it to perfection.’

Adopting precocious Anya turns out to be something of a risky strategy. Anya is hiding the fact that she’s telepathic because her telepathy is as much a curse as a gift. A failed genetic experiment, she’s eager to please her new Papa but she’s also very much a six-year-old child. (She admits to six because she’s read in Loid’s mind that he’s looking for a child that age.) And while Loid might be an expert in espionage, he hasn’t much of a clue about being a parent. He also has too many enemies waiting to ambush him at the slightest opportunity and having a six-year-old in tow makes him so much more vulnerable.

Read the full review at Anime UK News: https://animeuknews.net/2020/06/spy-x-family-volume-1-review/

I really enjoyed this. Although the tropes used were routine, I thought they were brought together very cleverly into an attention grabbing story that felt fresh and exciting.. The featured characters were interesting and complex. I felt each character had their own appeal and when you brought them all together it created a challenging dynamic that I found fascinating. I loved the art style and felt that it helped to showcase the story without overpowering it. I can not wait for vol. 2.

Such a clever, well-executed, fun and funny read! I'm relatively new to manga and graphic novels, but I thought the pacing and character development were excellent, with the art and writing in perfect sync.

Twilight, a master spy, is a little out of his element for his latest assignment of infiltrating an elite academy by getting his child enrolled there. A child he doesn't have. With a wife he doesn't have. First step: acquire a family. By brilliant coincidence, the child he chooses at the orphanage is telepathic. By further brilliant coincidence, the wife and new mother they team up with is an assassin who has quite recently realized that being single isn't good for her cover. None of them know the others' secrets. None of them know how to be in a family. But that's not going to stop them from trying to accomplish this first crucial stage of the mission -- acing the admissions process and getting into the school of none of their dreams.

A complete pleasure to read. Can't wait for volume 2!

Twilight - also known as Robert Loid - is the best spy around.  There's no mission, no challenge he can't complete.  That is, until he's given a mission that requires both a wife and a child, creating the most difficult mission he's ever been assigned.  Will he succeed or will he fail?  

I wasn't quite sure what I was getting myself into with this manga, but boy, I was not expecting this.  Never have I laughed so much or so hard while reading manga.  Twilight is great, he's serious and over-the-top spylike in everything he does.  Smooth, elegant, and always in control, he's the perfect spy and fake husband!  Anya, the telepathic child, is hysterical.  The way she reacts to others' thoughts is often amusing, sometimes sad, but she always manages.  Yor, the fake stepmom and assassin was introduced later in the manga so we don't get to know her too well, but I like her already.  She's not one to wait for Twilight to take care of her.  Instead, she steps right up and handles things as they come.  All said, they are not a family to be trifled with.

Probably the best thing about this story for me was how quickly and easily Twilight falls into the role of 'dad', even though he questions himself constantly.  As a parent, whenever he told Anya, "If we find one on sale" cracked me up.  Because you know, we parents are notorious for saying things like, "if you're good" or "maybe later".  

Overall, this was an entertaining and fun manga.  Can't wait to get my hands on the next volume!

Spy x Family has been on my radar for a long time. I heard about it from a friend and then really wanted to read it! Word of mouth is great for marketing, eh?

This book is absolutely marvellous, and all the fun of a VIZ book! It's thrilling and yet fun, all at the same time. It felt like the fun that Man from U.N.C.L.E. gave me when that film came out.

So, our lead dude Twilight is a spy. He's a great spy, but is suddenly given a very difficult mission: marry and have a kid to complete the next mission. This is not something he is interested in doing, but... ya know, it's the job. He adopts Anya, a super smart six year old from an orphanage who is already finishing crosswords and seeming like a telepath. Things seem to go fine and dandy... until he needs to get a wife too, that other crucial step he forgot about. So he finds Yur Briar, a deadly female assassin and marries her! And thus, the missions begin!

I love this premise! The plot is super fun and fast paced, the illustrations are great and the characters are barrels of fun! There's enough of a mystery behind this story to make this series super intriguing... but also the fake family and intriguing characters (spy, assassin and telepath... not your typical trio).

Also: Briar's Reviews reading about a girl named Briar... Yup. I'm biased. I love it!

Honestly, I really enjoy this book. I hope I can get my hands on the rest of the volumes because this book is so darn good! Such a great read!

Five out of five stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and VIZ for supplying me a free copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

I opened this just to see what it was with no intention of taking much time for it right at the moment and got totally sucked in. Read half the book before I realized I was still reading. Gonna say that I love the story and will need more volumes for sure! Not much in the illustration and pretty side of things, but the story is fantastic. Do want to warn you that you have to start reading on a page at the top right and zig zag backwards than normal english comics are.