The Ancient Magus' Bride Vol. 1

Chise has not had the easiest life, her mother died when she was young and she's been passed around by family members ever since. They all think she is just a little weird as Chise can see things the rest of us cannot, she has always seen this ability as a curse and when a trafficker approaches her to literally sell herself Chise goes for it. It cannot possibly be worse than the life she's already led. Little does Chise know that the person who will purchase her is one of the last mages on Earth and Chise herself is a truly rare being a Sleigh Beggy with the ability to become a witch. The other thing she doesn't know is that Elias plans on making her his bride! If you watched the anime you'll know that this is by far one of the most beautifully animated/drawn series. The art is just simply breathtaking. There are scenes both in the anime and the manga where everything is just so detailed that you absolutely want it to be real. I am more than positive that there are quite a few people who have centered their "cottage core" aesthetic around the art from this series, it's just that well done. In terms of the story, I love that we only get a tiny bit of Chise's background at a time. I think that many authors would want to have justified her being okay with taking part in what amounts to a slave auction right off that bat because well, slave auction. However, I appreciate that Yamazaki choose not to here, I'd much rather watch her heal from her past and learn of it through that process than just be bombarded right away with what will be a sad story. I also love Elias and especially his chibi version! My favorite part of this volume has to be meeting the dragons though, it's such an important conversation to have in terms of death and Yamazaki does a truly wonderful job at addressing a difficult conversation with beauty and dignity. Overall, just a fantastic series that I've been looking forward to reading for quite some time!

This series hits everything i like and nothing i don't. You have an instantly interesting protagonist Chise, who sold herself into slavery and was bought by a mysterious mage named Elias, who intends her to be his apprentice (and bride, hence the name). You get faeries and other mythological creatures, a cast of likable characters and beautiful art alongside the story.