The Voynich Hotel


The Voynich Hotel is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Seiman Douman. The series utilizes storytelling akin to an episodic chronicle and focuses on supernatural and surreal situations. It was serialized in Akita Shoten's Young Champion Retsu magazine from October 2006 to March 2015 and published in three volumes.

Plot

The series revolves around the supernatural Voynich Hotel which is on a lone island located in the South Pacific. The protagonist, Kazuki Taizou, resides at the hotel to flee from his yakuza past. Many characters are given episodic roles, highlighting the island's abnormal nature. Kazuki Taizou forms close connections to the maids of the Voynich Hotel, especially Berna, who plays a critical role in continuing her lineage being the only witch naturally alive. Once Kazuki's past comes to haunt him, Berna arrives to protect him.

Publication

Written and illustrated by Seiman Douman, the series began serialization in Akita Shoten's Young Champion Retsu magazine on October 17, 2006. It completed its serialization on March 17, 2015. The series' individual chapters were collected into three tankōbon volumes.
In September 2017, Seven Seas Entertainment announced that they licensed the series for English publication.

Reception

Rebecca Silverman of Anime News Network praised the characters and setting, though she noted the series "often feels too deliberately weird". Silverman also praised Seven Seas Entertainment's allusion to the Eagles' 1977 song "Hotel California" on the back of the book. A columnist for Manga News praised the use of horror and comedy in the story. He also compared it to the works of Kōji Kumeta and Tim Burton.