Soulless: The Manga, Vol. 1 (The Parasol Protectorate (Manga))

by Gail Carriger

Paperback, 2012

Status

Available

Call number

741.5973

Collection

Publication

Yen Press (2012), Paperback, 224 pages

Description

"Alexia Tarabotti is laboring under a great many social tribulations. First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette. Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire -- and then the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate. With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high society? Or will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plain embarrassing? Finally, who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?"--Amazon.com, viewed February 23, 2012.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member beserene
It was refreshing to turn to something quick and light with this manga adaptation of the well-beloved (at least here in the 75ers group) manner-steam-para-punk-romance novel, Soulless. If you have read that novel, I hardly need detail the plot here. (If you haven't read that novel, why the heck
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not? It's jolly good fun.) The manga adds sleek, attractive illustration to the mix, resulting in visualized characters (looking much younger than one might expect) that "show" what the novel previously had to tell. The fashions, whether loosely limned in black and white or richly illustrated in the few color pages at the front, were particularly delightful to see.

The greatest fun of this adaptation, however, is the expression on the characters' faces and through their bodies during particular interactions. Mutterings, eyebrow-raisings, flirtations, are all rendered in clean lines alongside the quirky dialogue. Alexia's substantial bosom has never been so readily apparent, for example... and Lord Maccon's observations of that endowment have never been so hilarious. Though the interpretation of the characters delivers audience appeal over descriptive accuracy, I found the images to be a fine fit and a pleasant way to expand the novel's demographic. That said, I don't think this is a substitute for the novel; its purpose seems to be to collect teens into the growing coterie of Carriger's readers, and just in time for the soon-to-be-released YA series she's been working on. For the rest of us, this is a worthy diversion that offers an hour's entertainment and some actual LOLing. What more could one ask?
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LibraryThing member SophieCale
I loved, loved, loved the Soulless novel and I was unbelievably excited about the manga. They finally got them in our local bookstores and read it on the commute home.

The Good Stuff:
I liked the round and organic feel of the art, it didn't have that overly sharp and angular art that I'm not too
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fond of in a lot of manga.The backgrounds were gorgeous, and it was lovely to see little steampunk touches here-and-there, like bizarre bikes in the the park, dirigibles randomly in the sky, The Vampire Hive background detail was amazing, the glassicals (which were a little underemphasized imo). I can only imagine how fun it must have been to come up with the clothing designs. There are some pretty intimate scenes in the novel, and they were translated quite tastefully- it added to the humour to see the artist's efforts to cover up Lord Maccon's private bits towards the end. The Vixi Man was appropriately gruesome, more so than I had imagined him even, and the villains were quite creepily rendered. And then there's Lord Akeldama! not as I imagined him, but I still loved him anyway: I only wish he was in colour so that we could get the full effect of his...particular fashion sense. It was nice to see a fully realized world of Soulless, and as a fan of the series, I really enjoyed it.

The Not-so Good Stuff:
I was a little disappointed in how short it was. I didn't think the entire novel would fit into a single manga volume, and I wish it had been at the very least, two volumes. It does have this rushed feel to it, and I think that if you are not already familiar with the series, some parts of the world and the plot points of the story can be confusing. Also, if it had been split, there might have been more time to focus on things that I felt were grievously underemphasized, like the aforementioned glassicals, the marvellous butler Floote, Tunstell was only in 1 or 2 two panels, and Ivy's hats! They were far more underwhelming than I would have liked. As far as complaints go, these are minor gripes. The only REAL problem I had was Lord Maccon's hair. It was too short! I could accept everyone else's differences, but his hair bothered me to the point that I might even draw over it.

I enthusiastically recommend it to fans, but for those who are new to the series, I would urge you to read the novel first to get the best out of it.
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LibraryThing member MichelleL_15
First of all I love the cover. And the artwork inside is just as amazing. Some characters (Maccon and Lyall) are not what I imagined them to look like, but I don't mind because they look nice. There wasn't as much steampunk depicted as I expected. And also this being set in Victorian London I
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expected Alexia's clothing to be more conservative. But in every scene it looks like her boobs are about to pop out of her dress. This book is definitely more suited towards older teens and adults. There are a few scenes where she is naked (and some where Maccon is naked). Although you don't see everything this really isn't appropriate for kids.

I love that this follows closely to the actual story instead of cutting out half the plot. I already read Soulless awhile back so I knew what would happen, but that doesn't mean it would be boring. It was a good refresher that was short, simple, and quick. If I ever need to reread Soulless I could just read the manga instead. And for people who haven't read Soulless before I think the story is easy enough to grasp and there shouldn't be any confusion.

I will definitely be reading the next volume of this when it comes out.
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LibraryThing member DarkFaerieTales
Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: Hits all the high points of the novel without any of the fluff. Soulless translates well into the Manga form with snappy lines and quirky characters.

Opening Sentence: Mama, it says here that a new gentlemen’s club opened last week in Mayfair.
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The Review:

I’m going to start off my review with this note. If you are a manga fan, I highly recommend the Soulless Manga: Volume 1. It is funny, it’s quirky, and it hits all the high notes of the novel without any of the filler. There are a few things that may cause problems for true fans of the Parasol novels. In the manga, all the characters are pretty and young (minus the wax-like man) and boob-alicious. I always saw Professor Lyall as middle aged but here he looks like he is barely twenty. I did feel like one thing was missing from the manga, since you weren’t given the characters thoughts, it was hard to understand character motivations. The novel is full of each characters inner thoughts so it did feel like something was missing. Alexia never really complained about her Italian heritage or her father. Lord Maccon only mentions once that he is Scottish later in the manga, otherwise you would never know. I did read the novel and the manga back to back so I just filled in the gaps from memory.

The manga also starts off differently than the novel. Alexia and her family are at the breakfast table reading about Alexia’s adventures the night before from the paper. Although her family doesn’t realize that the paper is talking about her. The vampire attack is played as more of a flashback in Alexia’s mind, where you learn about Alexia’s abilities as a Soulless. Her Soulless abilities allow her to negate supernatural powers, temporarily turning them human as long as she is touching them skin to skin.

As I stated before, since there is barely any filler, the manga is a fast paced a fun read. This manga is a fantastic translation of the novel, scenes and dialogue match the book exactly. Lord Akeldama’s flamboyancy translates perfectly into manga form (his character was definitely made to be drawn!). Soulless Manga, Volume 1 is a must have for the fans of the Parasol Protectorate series.

FTC Advisory: Yen Press provided me with a copy of Soulless: The Manga, Volume 1. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
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LibraryThing member ObsessiveLady
Soulless: The Manga, Vol. 1 is, as with anything adapted from a novel, a much more concise telling of the story it is based on. However, this is by no means detrimental to it. It still tells a very good story, keeping all the key points and flowing well. Having read the book I was perfectly happy
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with the retelling and did not feel anything important was left out. It also means that it is not necessary to have read the books beforehand, but I would recommend them to you if you do read and enjoy this.

For those who do not know the story from the novel, it is set in an alternate Victorian London where werewolves and vampires are accepted members of society. Our protagonist is Alexia Tarabotti, a half-Italian spinster who is a preternatural: a person without a soul. Whenever Alexia comes into physical contact with a supernatural being, she renders them mortal, which doesn’t make her very popular with a number of the supernatural crowd. Of course, there are exceptions, one fabulous one being the incredibly flamboyant vampire Lord Akeldama, and another being alpha werewolf Lord Conall Maccon, although he finds Alexia frustrating in other ways.

The story is a comedy of manners, with a good bit of romance and plenty of mystery and excitement, especially in the latter half. The artwork is stunning! The artist captures the world and the characters brilliantly. Okay, yes, Alexia does not have her trademark Italian nose or quite as much stature as she does in the book, but I think that comes with being a manga. There are some things that will be lost. This reader was personally very pleased with the way Lord Maccon looked since it was very close to what was pictured in her head, and the amount of panels to feature his naked backside made for very pleasant reading. If you enjoy the books, or if you like romance, urbane fantasy, or very naked werewolves you should definitely pick it up. Really, I think you should pick it up anyway because it is a very good read and I doubt you would regret it.
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LibraryThing member krau0098
This was a very well done graphic novel retelling of the Soulless novel (1st novel of the Parasol Protectorate series). I enjoyed it a lot. Lots of humor and action, along with a Victorian and Steampunk flavor. There is also quite a bit of romance.

Miss Alexia Tarabotti is a soulless or
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preternatural and finds herself attacked by a rove vampire at a ball. She refuses to be dismissed and insists on helping Lord Conall Maccon solve the mystery behind the appearances of more and more rove vampires. Alexia may be headstrong and smart, but is she strong enough to stand up to the attention and flirtation of Lord Maccon without becoming too emotionally involved?

This was a very fun read, it was engaging and I loved the illustration style. The illustrations are absolutely stunning. The costumes are extremely intricate and beautiful and I never had any trouble following the characters or story. The style is very manga-like but the book is read from front to back, left to right in American style.

I actually think this manga retelling was even more fun than the original full length novel. It hits all the best points of the story, there is a lot of humor, and the dialogue is witty and fun. This is the first time I have really read a manga that focused more on romance than action (although there is plenty of that). I actually really enjoyed it, it was just so much fun (I know I keep repeating fun...but it really was a fun read).

Alexia and Conall are a bit more light-hearted and goofy than in the original novel. Alexia is portrayed as much prettier and lady-like than I imagined her to be from the novels, still the slight shift in character worked really well for this manga style graphic novel. I loved Lord Akeldama, his overdone and flamboyant characterization translates perfectly into manga format and was incredibly well done.

Really this is one of those manga’s that was incredibly well-balanced. We are introduced to wonderful characters, there is an intriguing mystery, a solid world, action, romance, and beautiful illustration throughout. I really really enjoyed it.

I would recommend to older YA or adult readers. There is some nudity in here as well as some steamy scenes. Aside from that though the story doesn’t really have any swearing or horrific violence or anything like that.

Overall a stunningly beautiful and highly entertaining graphic novel. I really loved it. I would definitely recommend to fans of the Parasol Protectorate series. I would also recommend for those who love humorous manga that have witty dialogue, steampunk elements, and romance. I can’t wait to see what happens in the next book!
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LibraryThing member ladycato
After reading a terrible, awful, no good very bad book, I needed something fresh and happy. I've had this manga in my to-read pile for ages, so it seemed a good time to grab it. Wise choice.

It's been several years since I read the novel for Soulless, the first book of Carriger's Parasol
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Protectorate series. I was excited that it came out as a manga. Steampunk is a visual feast for the eyes--the technology, the fabulous clothing, the dramatic settings--and REM is an incredible artist. The novel translates to comic format incredibly well. There is that initial shift where the way I imagined the characters has to accept the artist's rendering; this was especially true for Lord Maccon.

Really, the whole way it was laid out was perfect. The wit and plot flow at a good pace--it's a very fast read. I remembered the basics of the novel but it had been long enough that I was still surprised by some of the developments.

In all, an excellent read that does justice to the novel and perhaps adds more through its gorgeous artwork.
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LibraryThing member mmtz
The graphic novel is as good as the prose novel.
LibraryThing member ngoldfdf
They illustrations were really lovely, for the most part aligned with what I envisioned the characters to be when reading the book. As much as I enjoy manga, after reading the book I can't help but miss all the little story lines they took out. I so wanted to seen more of Ivys hats ! and they
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didn't mention the Floote dynamic either. And a lot of the backstory information was left out, especially with her family. But as usual I loved the Alexia-Conall dynamic, and Prof. Lyall was lovely as usual. I hope they incorporate more of the steampunk that is so apparent in the texts in the mangas to come, especially when we get to meet the multifaceted Madame Lefoux (im sorry but thats a horriby cliched french name). I know that not everyone cares for the series, but it is nice cozy bit of fun, all be it not of the highest calibre.
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LibraryThing member LibraryGirl11
Yen Press does a really nice job with manga adaptations of novels and Soulless is no exception. My only complaint is "tracts of land" were wildly out of proportion by the end of the novel. She's described as being sturdy, not a freak of nature.
LibraryThing member Tmyres77
I have long been a fan of graphic novels and, to a lesser degree, manga. So when I heard that Soulless would be produced as a manga, I was intrigued.

After getting my hands on a copy, I can say I'm impressed, both by how well the text translated over to manga and by the art. To say REM's work is
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incredible is an understatement. The expressiveness of the characters, the Victorian setting and costumes, the backgrounds - absolutely breathtaking. Condensing the book into a manga couldn't have been easy, but the volume easily tells the story without leaving out anything vitally important.

Manga wouldn't be manga with sexual overtones, but I think REM kept it extremely tasteful and in line with Carriger's books.

I definitely recommend this to any manga or Parasol Protectorate fan. It's top notch!
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LibraryThing member niajane
Travel back in time to Victorian London - though not quite the Victorian London you learn about in your textbook. As well as people, vampires and werewolves are members of society - but the threat are the roves, the individual vampires and werewolves that are not as civilized as the others. Enter
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Alexia Tarabotti and her deadly parasol - not to mention her touch, one that neutralises supernaturals, all due to the fact that she has no soul. Roves aren’t the only concern on Alexia’s mind, though: a suspicious new club in town, and the fact that she is still not married! A handsome alpha werewolf, while pulling Alexia out of various reputation-wrecking troubles, could take care of that problem.
Beautiful artwork accompanies an engaging story to produce this book - a great read. Victorian fashion comes to life before your eyes with the artwork, and the story keeps you turning the pages.
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LibraryThing member michellebarton
This steampunk style paranormal romance graphic novel based on the Parasol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger is a fun, sexy little story about a feisty female in Victorian England who is unhappy with the restrictions placed on her gender. Bursting with curiosity and especially interested in
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scientific discoveries and inventions, she is constantly pushing against the social boundaries of her time. I loved the artwork, the fantastic facial expressions, the romance, and the interesting characters!
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LibraryThing member akmargie
A solid adaptation. Not sure the book needed one but the art was good and hit all the major plot points of the book.
LibraryThing member pussreboots
Soulless: The Manga, Vol. 1 by Gail Carriger is the first of a five volume adaptation of Gail Carriger's Parasol Protectorate series. Volume 1 covers the same plot as Soulless the novel.

The original series is full of wacky, memorable characters, supernatural happenings, mystery and adventure. It's
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a naturally visually oriented book. It's perfectly suited for a manga adaptation. Heck, it's perfectly suited for an anime adaptation — and if there were one, I'd watch it!

The manga version is paired down to the most basic elements and the silliest moments. There's plenty of time to see Conall lose his patience and fall in love with Alexia. Lord Akeldama is resplendent in his best attire. The wax men are creepy, nightmare fuel.

I've read the second Soulless manga and have the third book on order at my local indie. I plan to read the entire series both in both prose and manga forms.
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LibraryThing member callmecayce
Out of morbid (perhaps) curiosity and a love of the Parasol Protectorate series, I picked up the library's copy of Soulless: the Manga. I don't regret it for a second. I love the books, but the graphic novel proved to equally as enjoyable. Manga seems to suit the series quite well and Carriger did
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a fantastic job cutting her story down to the important bits. I'm eagerly awaiting the next installments.
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LibraryThing member ThothJ
A delightfully witty manga version of Gail Carriger's novel "Soulless". It was everything that the wonderful book was....but with pictures to boot! It is both a great introduction to the series and an excellent addendum for those who are already familiar with the Parasol Protectorate Series of
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novels. I simply cannot wait for Vol. #2!
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LibraryThing member ThothJ
A delightfully witty manga version of Gail Carriger's novel "Soulless". It was everything that the wonderful book was....but with pictures to boot! It is both a great introduction to the series and an excellent addendum for those who are already familiar with the Parasol Protectorate Series of
Show More
novels. I simply cannot wait for Vol. #2!
Show Less
LibraryThing member ThothJ
A delightfully witty manga version of Gail Carriger's novel "Soulless". It was everything that the wonderful book was....but with pictures to boot! It is both a great introduction to the series and an excellent addendum for those who are already familiar with the Parasol Protectorate Series of
Show More
novels. I simply cannot wait for Vol. #2!
Show Less
LibraryThing member ThothJ
A delightfully witty manga version of Gail Carriger's novel "Soulless". It was everything that the wonderful book was....but with pictures to boot! It is both a great introduction to the series and an excellent addendum for those who are already familiar with the Parasol Protectorate Series of
Show More
novels. I simply cannot wait for Vol. #2!
Show Less

Original publication date

2012
2012-03-01

Physical description

240 p.; 6 inches

ISBN

031618201X / 9780316182010

UPC

971486344721
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