Zaregoto Series

Zaregoto Series(戯言シリーズ, Zaregoto Shirīzu) is a Japanese light novel series written by Japanese novelist Nisio Isin and illustrated by Take. The series was published in Japan between February 5, 2002 and November 2005 by Kodansha Books. It was followed by a spin-off series also published by Kodansha Books, Ningen Series, focusing on the Zerozaki clan. The first volume of Zaregoto, Kubikiri Cycle, was released in North America in July 2008 by Del Rey Manga.

Characters

Recurring characters

Ii-chan(いーちゃん)
Ii-chan is the series narrator; his real name is never revealed. He consistently downplays his own abilities, but inevitably ends up solving the mysteries he encounters.

Tomo Kunagisa(玖渚 友, Kunagisa Tomo)
Tomo is Ii-chan's closest friend. She is a brilliant computer engineer with a very eccentric personality. While Ii-chan was in Houston, she led a group of notorious computer hackers.

Jun Aikawa(哀川 潤, Aikawa Jun)
Jun is humanity's strongest consultant, and is invited to help solve the murder on the island. She does not appear until the first novel's epilogue. At the beginning of the book, Ii-chan presumes that Aikawa is a man; she is actually a woman with red hair.

Kubikiri Cycle

Iria Akagami(赤神 イリア, Akagami Iria)
Iria is an exiled heiress, who resides on Wet Crow's Feather Island, the setting of the first novel.

Akari Chiga(千賀 あかり, Chiga Akari), Hikari Chiga(千賀 ひかり, Chiga Hikari), and Teruko Chiga(千賀 てる子, Chiga Teruko)
They are the identical triplet maids working for Iria. Akari, the eldest, is very strict; Hikari, the middle child, is very friendly, and Teruko, the youngest, is easily identifiable by her glasses. Teruko never speaks, and is actually more a bodyguard than a maid.

Rei Handa(班田 玲, Handa Rei)
Rei is the head maid on Wet Crow's Feather Island.

Kanami Ibuki(伊吹 かなみ, Ibuki Kanami)
Kanami is a genius painter and first murder victim.

Maki Himena(姫菜 真姫, Himena Maki)
Himena is a genius fortune-teller who constantly picks on Ii-chan.

Yayoi Sashirono(逆木 深夜, Sashirono Yayoi)
Yayoi is a genius chef, with a tongue that can instantly identify any flavor in a food.

Akane Sonoyama(園山 赤音, Sonoyama Akane)
Akane is one of the Seven Fools, the highest honor available to professors in the E3 System in Houston.

Reception

The series has been selected by Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi! three times as one of the ten best light novels of the year: in 2005 when it ranked second, in 2006 when it topped the list, and in 2007 when it placed third.

Translation of "Zaregoto Series"

Japanese: 戯言シリーズ, Chinese: 戲言系列.