Category: Reviews

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 5

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Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 5 by Kanehito Yamada, Tsukasa Abe
Series Name: Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End
Genres: Adventure, Elves, Fantasy, Magic
Intended Age Group: Teen
Publisher: Viz/Shonen Sunday
Edition: Paperback 
ISBN: 978-1-9747-3007-0
Rating: 4.5/5
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Description from the Book

Elf mage Frieren and her courageous fellow adventurers have defeated the Demon King and brought peace to the land. But Frieren will long outlive the rest of her former party. How will she come to understand what life means to the people around her?

Frieren and Fern have ended up on different teams in the highly competitive first-class mage exam. Capturing a rare bird is required to pass, but personality clashes among teammates are making things difficult. Everyone soon realizes there is more at stake than mere success or failure – for some of them, the exam could be a matter of life and death.

Personal & Info

I’m slowly catching up on this series. I want to be up to current volumes before I watch the anime, which is supposed to come out sometime this fall. This is a great series, and I highly recommend it to fans of elves, magic, or Dungeons & Dragons.

Characters

Frieren is an elf mage famous for defeating the demon king with her companions around 80 years ago. She’s a bit of a slob and rather lazy. Her hobby is collecting any and all types of magic spells, no matter how useless they may seem. Her perspective on magic is that the pursuit of the art itself is the greatest joy.

Fern is Frieren’s mage companion and apprentice. She seems to take a motherly role in caring for both Frieren and Stark.

Stark is Eisen’s apprentice. He has great skill as a warrior. He doesn’t get much screen time in this volume, since it focuses on the Mage exam.

Kanne and Lawine are both third-class mages. They are Frieren’s teammates for the first part of the exam. Both of them attended the same academy of magic, and are good friends, despite how often they fight.

Übel and Land are third and second class mages. They are Fern’s teammates for the first part of the exam. Little is information is given for them. Übel is no stranger to murder, which was made clear in volume four.

There are plenty more characters in this volume, as there are several teams for the exam. I think Fern and Frieren’s teams are the most important, so those are the ones I’m choosing to list.

Story & Thoughts

I think this is the best volume in the series, so far. It has comedy, strategy, competition, and magic battles. All wonderful elements for a great volume.

The book starts off by jumping straight into the exam. The teams assigned at the end of book four are gathered at the location for the first-class certification exam’s first test. It is here where they are given a small cage, and the rules and conditions of the test are explained. To pass, teams must catch a special bird, a stille, and have it in the cage at the end of the time limit, with all three team members also present. Generally anything goes, as long as nobody leaves the testing area, which is basically impossible to leave anyway.

The entire volume focuses on this portion of the test. There are ten chapters, and only the last two take place outside of the test. Those final chapters are mostly relaxation and enjoying time with friends as everyone relaxes before the second part of the test.

There is a significant amount of magical combat compared to all of the previous volumes. The birds for the exam are hard to catch, so most opt for trying to steal from others. I actually love the combat, because we get to see more varieties of mage capabilities and spell preferences. Frieren and Fern like to keep things simple, so it’s nice to see how other casters do things.

We still see flashbacks from Frieren’s past, as usual, but I feel like this volume has so much more meat to it than others. I think a big part of that is the number of characters. Generally speaking, there are several fun new characters in this volume, and they all seem to have strong personalities or character quirks that make them engaging and entertaining.

The large number of people is handled well. The ones who are not important are seen in the background or only in a few panels, while the ones that matter get just the right amount of screen time.

I’m looking forward to reading the next volume to see how the second part of the test goes. The competing characters are interesting enough that I actually care to find out who all passes the tests, and hope certain ones don’t perish.

The Apothecary Diaries, Vol. 8

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The Apothecary Diaries, Vol. 8 by Natsu Hyuuga, Nekokurage, Itsuki Nanao, Touco Shino
Series Name: The Apothecary Diaries (Manga)
Genres: Drama, Historical, Mystery, Romance
Intended Age Group: Teen
Publisher: Square Enix
Edition: Paperback 
ISBN: 978-1-64609-134-8
Rating: 4/5
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Description from the Book

Sly tactician Lakan’s attempts at provocation lead to his own downfall when Maomao challenges him to elephant chess, only to outplay him in a game of wits! In a stupor from drinking “poison” as punishment for his loss, Lakan dreams of a long-lost past, his affair with a beautiful courtesan, and meeting her daughter for the very first time. Upon waking, he finds himself at Verdigris, where he is pressed to buy the freedom of a girl of his choosing and take her home as his wife! But will any of the flowers there catch his eye when his heart is in love with a memory?

Personal & Info

I keep a close eye on the release dates for this series. This volume was originally planned to release in May. Unfortunately, it was delayed until July, so it’s been a full six months since the last book. Things have been rather hectic for me lately, so I didn’t have time to re-read the previous volumes. Hopefully I remember enough to keep up with the story.

Characters

Maomao, my favorite character in the series, continues to be eccentric in all the best ways. We learn more about her origins in this volume.

Lakan is probably the most unlikeable character in the series. Despite previous hinting, he’s not as terrible as implied, but he’s still pretty bad.

Jinshi, always intrigued by Maomao, realizes he is a cat person.

Other characters also appear, but these three consume most of the screen time.

Story & Thoughts

The book starts off by diving into Lakan’s backstory. There is a preview of this at the end of volume seven, so I was expecting it. None of it justifies anything he does, but it gives some insight into understanding why he does things. It’s weird to see him more humanized after the series painted him to be an insensitive jerk of a tactician. I get the feeling the story is trying to emphasize that he’s not really a bad person, just different, and often misunderstood.

Out of the six chapters, four of them focus on backstory. Maomao and Lakan are the main focus of the volume, and their connection finally gets an in depth explanation. We even get to see Maomao’s mother. Most of the information has been hinted at throughout the story, so these chapters just solidify everything. The part that got me was the reveal of who Luomen, Maomao’s Pa, really is. That was something I never saw coming.

I’d been wondering about Maomao’s nightmare from an earlier volume. That’s one of the things that gets an explanation in this book, so I’m pretty happy about that. Maomao has certainly had an interesting childhood.

The last two chapters are more fun. There aren’t any blatant mysteries. It’s just life getting back to normal after the Garden Banquet.

Maomao and Jinshi seem to have what could be a moment in this volume. It lasts for maybe a second. They seem to have potential romantic moments scattered throughout the series, but they never last long, and quickly devolve into comedy. I can’t help wondering if one of these times one of those moments will be different.

I did notice an issue that confounded my brain. There was a sentence in the book where, I’m not sure if it’s a translation error or editing problem, but the text was confusing. The wording was strange enough that I didn’t exactly understand the intended meaning of what it was trying to say. I muddled through, but I had to re-read the sentence multiple times and guess at the intention.

Wait Until Midnight

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Wait Until Midnight by Amanda Quick
Genres: Historical, Mystery, Romance
Intended Age Group: Adult
Publisher: Jove/Berkly/Penguin Group (USA)
Edition: Paperback
ISBN: 0-515-13862-2
Rating: 3/5
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Description from the Book

Gentle Reader,

It could have been a scene from one of my novels. As a rule, respectable ladies do not accept calls from Mysterious Gentlemen on business of the most grave importance – but I confess that I was possessed of a lively curiosity. The past three years had been so determinedly dull, I hoped Mr. Adam Hardesty would offer a tiny respite from it. Indeed, upon first glance, Mr. Hardesty had such a formidable, thrilling presence, he quickly became the model for the villain in the sensation novel I was currently writing.

Imagine my shock and distress then, when Mr. Hardesty accused me of being party to a plot of murder, blackmail, and general villainy! I knew nothing of such occurrences, and proclaimed my innocence. Unfortunately, Mr. Hardesty left unconvinced, and I had an uneasy feeling over what his search would uncover. You see, Gentle Reader, though I live a most uneventful life now, my past contained a Great Scandal that would be ruinous if resurrected. To protect my secrets from Mr. Hardesty’s investigation, I concluded that I would need to conduct an inquiry of my own, and if that meant sharing my findings with Mr. Hardesty, so be it. And my course of action had nothing whatsoever to do with the illicit, passionate feelings that he aroused in me – feelings that propriety would definitely frown upon…

Yours most sincerely,
Caroline Fordyce

Personal & Info

While I only gave this three stars, it’s a good three stars. I consider books from this author to be comfort reads.

This stand alone book has psychical themes, but there are no real psychics in it. It simply takes place during a time when seances and psychic demonstrations were popular. They are all parlor tricks, so if you’re not into paranormal, it should still be fine for you to read this book.

The character list for this book is very long. I did my best to list all of the ones I feel are important, and the ones I recall making any kind of appearance that might be significant. There are more named characters than the ones I listed here. If I forgot to put them down, they likely were not important. Whether or not the murderer’s name is on the list, I will not say.

Characters

Caroline Fordyce is the leading lady. She’s a sensation novelist whose stories are published weekly in the Flying Intelligencer.

Adam Hardesty is the leading man. He comes from a poor background, which gives him a unique set of skills. Julia, Jessica, and Nathan are his adopted siblings.

Wilson Grendon is a wealthy, elderly widower. He took in Adam and his siblings and passes them off as his own distant relatives.

Emma is Caroline’s aunt and only living blood relative. She dresses plainly and presents a tall and severe appearance, with a matching personality.

Milly is Caroline’s aunt, but not a blood relative. She is short and wears brightly colored clothing, which matches her optimistic and cheerful personality.

Julia is Adam’s adoptive sister. She is married to Robert, the Earl of Sourthwood, with two children.

Robert is the Earl of Southwood. He is married to Julia, and they have two children. Robert is essentially a quiet and thoughtful man.

Mrs. Plummer is Caroline’s housekeeper.

Morton is Adam’s butler.

Elizebeth Delmont is the initial murder victim. She is spiritualist who hosts seances and spends time at the Society for Psychical Investigations.

Julian Elsworth is a fashionable practitioner of psychical powers. People consider him to be very attractive. He conducts his business in private homes in only the most exclusive circles.

Durward Reed is the President of the Society for Psychical Investigations and publisher of the newspaper New Dawn. He owns the mansion, Wintersett House, that the society uses as its headquarters.

Harold Filby is Adam’s fashionable and bespectacled man of business. He runs all kinds of errands and gathers information.

Ned is Adam’s coachmen. He’s worked for Adam for a long time.

Irene Toller is another spiritualist. She is Elizebeth Delmont’s rival in business.

Bess Whaley is Irene’s housekeeper and assistant.

Mr. Spraggett is Caroline’s publisher, described as a nervous, wiry, and balding man.

Gilbert Otford is a correspondent for the Flying Intelligencer. He wrote an article about Caroline claiming she has psychical powers.

Story & Thoughts

This book took way longer than I intended to read. No fault to the quality, I’ve just had a lot going on. As with most books by this author, this is a murder mystery. The murder is introduced at the beginning and the whole book is a romance based around the investigation.

It’s actually pretty interesting, because the majority of books I read by this author are about psychics. Psychics with actual talents, I mean. This book is only about frauds, psychics who use tricks and mechanisms to make people think they have powers. It’s an interesting flip from the usual content.

The book also follows the author’s standard storytelling formula. There’s both a murder and a backstory issue. Both get resolved by the end of the book. Some people don’t like writers who have a consistent formula for their stories. If that’s you, then consider this your warning so you know this author, and all her other pseudonyms, uses a consistent formula. I think that’s one of the things that makes them feel like comfort reads, but I understand not everyone relates to that.

The whole of the story is pretty straight forward, so I don’t have much to say about it. I do think it’s important to note that I had no idea who the villain of the story was until the story pointed them out. While it’s not always a bad thing to know who the villain is early, it’s nice to be surprised at the end. It really had me going, thinking I knew who the culprit was, then threw a curveball. Although, the more I think about it, the more I realize there were clues that pointed to them that I didn’t connect until after. So, there is the possibility to figure things out earlier than I did.

I think the most amusing thing in the story is how fixated Adam gets on the fact Caroline finds him inspirational for the villain of her novel. He doesn’t read her novel, but he can’t help thinking of the villain as literally himself whenever someone talks about it. It offends him to no end, and he can’t help interjecting possible hopes for the character or disgust for any unjust actions. The whole situation had me giggling whenever it came up, and during the first half of the book, it’s quite frequent.

My Best (♀) Butler, Vol. 1

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My Best (♀) Butler, Vol. 1 by Souko Masaki
Series Name: My Best (♀) Butler
Genres: Comedy, gender-bend
Intended Age Group: Older Teen
Publisher: Kodansha
Edition: ebook
ISBN: 9781646596515
Rating: 4/5
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Description

Rui Aoto’s family has fallen on hard times. It’s up to her to take care of her younger brother Kyo, and she refuses to be a burden on friends or family. When Rui cross-dresses to be able to work at a host club, things go awry. A rich boy, named Tohma, comes to her rescue, and her life changes drastically. To amuse Tohma, Rui agrees to a wager, and must now serve as Tohma’s “male” butler until next march. If she can do so, without exposing her true gender, Tohma will give her $10,000.

Personal & Info

I absolutely could not decide what to read for this week. Normally, I choose random numbers by rolling dice to decide which ebook on my list to read, but this time I was not satisfied with any of my choices. I ended up asking friends for random numbers instead, and then narrowing it down randomly from there. For some reason, I was more satisfied with that end result than my own. Anyway, this is the book that was chosen via coin flip after all others were eliminated.

This is one of the ebooks I got for free from a BookWalker sale. It does not appear to have any physical copies in English, yet.

Depending on your preference for consent, this book might irk you. There is crotch grabbing and peeking up skirts. That’s pretty much the only thing I recall seeing that is worth mentioning for any kind of warning.

Characters

Rui Aoto is the main character. She is Kyo’s older sister and considered flat chested.

Kyo Aoto is Rui’s younger brother. He dropped out of school after a confession to a male classmate went wrong.

Moka seems like Rui’s best friend. She is the daughter of the bakers who take Rui and Kyo in at the start of the book.

Benny is Moka and Rui’s friend.

Tohma is a bored and lonely rich kid. He has a bit of an attitude, and a severe allergy to women.

Saginuma is Tohma’s driver and butler, because they have yet to replace the previous butler. He’s been with Tohma’s family for a long time.

Yoinomiya and Ohgi are the two guys Tohma requested to watch over Rui at school.

Mr. T. Bear is a handmade teddybear from a series of children’s books. Mr. T. Bear is very important to Tohma. Kyo and Tohma are both fans of the Mr. T. Bear books.

Haruki is Tohma’s cousin, and the despot of the school. He has an anger problem.

Hatarai is Haruki’s butler.

Goryoba and Watatsumi are student council members. Goryoba is apparently very strong, and Watatsumi is “elitist.”

There are an abundance of characters with names throughout the book. I know I did not mention them all, and that is intentional. Several of them are insignificant, or only appear once or twice, so are not worth mentioning here.

Story & Thoughts

I went into this manga blind, and I’m pleasantly surprised that it’s a gender-bend. Those are some of my favorite kinds of manga. Yes, I know, the lady butler part should have made that obvious, but I wasn’t looking too closely at it.

Anyway, the setting is a little generic. The city they live in is divided into ten wards, which divide the people by wealth. Ward ten, where Rui and her friends live in the beginning of the story, is the poorest. Ward one, where Tohma lives, is the richest.

The host club job Rui’s friend Sera sets her up with is super creepy. The employees, who are teenaged boys (this is where the cross-dressing comes in), sit in a lobby where they can eat and drink from the club menu as much as they want. The facility has one way mirrors, where clients can see the employees to choose one to request for a private sitting. It’s supposed to be conversational entertainment, but the clients are all apparently older, and usually creepy, men.

Rui is warned before her shift starts that she should never leave the building with a client, because it’s unsafe, but that’s practically the first thing she does. It’s like she has no survival instinct. She definitely does not come off as an intelligent character early on.

The day to day life adventures Rui has as Tohma’s butler are amusing. She has much to learn, and must learn everything quickly. Reputation and perception are extremely important to do her job, as well as knowing how to use her resources to her advantage. The simple and ridiculous ordeals she has to deal with make good comedy. The people and places are definitely not entirely normal, either.

I have some suspicions about the Mr. T. Bear stories. I think they’re more than just a series of children’s books that Tohma likes.

There is a tiny bit of romance, but I don’t know if it’s enough to label the book as romance. Rui has a crush and gets flustered, but it doesn’t seem romantic to me. It could escalate to be more romantic later, but I won’t know for sure unless I read more.

I do intend to read more of this series eventually. It bugs me that it’s only available digitally. I’m going to have to figure out which source I would prefer to use, because I don’t usually commit to any digital manga.

A Condition Called Love, Vol. 1

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A Condition Called Love, Vol. 1 by Megumi Morino
Series Name: A Condition Called Love
Genres: Romance, Slice of Life
Intended Age Group: Teen
Publisher: Kodansha
Edition: ebook
ISBN: 9781646593415
Rating: 5/5
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Description

Hotaru Hinase is a normal girl who doesn’t care much for the idea of love. It’s just not for her, or at least that’s what she thinks. Change is set in motion when a simple act of kindness wins the heart of school heartthrob Hananoi. A trial run at dating might be just what Hotaru needs to find out what love means to her.

Personal & Info

My life has been high stress as of late, so I’ve been unable to get much reading done. I’m reviewing this digital manga as my book for the week, because one manga is all I can manage right now.

I got this for free from a BookWalker sale, but unlike other manga I’ve gotten this way, this one is actually available in print.

Characters

Hotaru Hinase is the leading lady. She’s a first year student in high school, and she is convinced love is not for her.

Hananoi is the leading man. He’s a good looking guy, but girls seem to always be disappointed when they get to know him, because they have different ideas of what he should be like based on his looks.

Kyo is Hotaru’s best friend.

Hibiki Keigo is Kyo’s boyfriend. He is the one who asked her out.

Kagari, I think, is Hotaru’s older sister.

Tomo is Hotaru’s little sister. She figure skates.

Story & Thoughts

I chose this at random on a day when I absolutely did not feel like reading anything. It was a great choice, though, because instead of trudging though it, I actually enjoyed the story immensely. This series is definitely going on my wish list of things to get for my physical shelf.

The art is beautiful. It has a unique charm that I can’t find the words to describe. I love the facial expressions. Hotaru’s thick eyebrows are fantastic, too. I don’t see many characters drawn that way.

The characters are interesting. Hananoi is a bit intense in an insane way. He’s kind and sweet and considerate, but he goes over the top on everything to the point of changing himself or to the detriment of his health. He just doesn’t know where to draw the line on doing anything for the one he loves.

Hotaru is a good compliment to his personality, because she acts as a sort of ground. She insists he does not change himself for her sake, and she doesn’t want him doing anything for her that is bad for his health or well-being. It seems like Hananoi isn’t used to people liking him for who he is or caring about his health. I think they are good for each other. They are each what the other seems to need.

As for the story itself. It’s so sweet and wholesome. It follows Hotaru as the main character. She doesn’t think love is for her and she is okay with that, but she sees what it’s like for other people who have someone, and she is open to finding out if she is capable of that connection. As the story progresses, she starts to learn what love means to her. Her initial thoughts about it were more than likely because she didn’t fully understand it. Hananoi likely had a point when he said she simply lacked experience.

This is a great manga. I smiled and laughed while reading it. It has sweet moments that make me go, “aww”. The characters are engaging and interesting. I love everything about it. Hananoi still seems to have some mystery about him, so I still see things for the story to build on as the story progresses. This is a series I definitely plan to read more of at some point.

The Spindlers

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The Spindlers by Lauren Oliver
Genres: Adventure, Fantasy
Intended Age Group: 8-12
Publisher: Harper/Harper Collins
Edition: Paperback
ISBN: 978-0-06-197809-8
Rating: 3/5
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Description from the Book

When Liza’s brother, Patrick, changes overnight, Liza knows exactly what has happened: The spindlers have gotten to him and stolen his soul.

She knows, too, that she is the only one who can save him.

To rescue Patrick, Liza must go Below, armed with little more than her wits and a broom. There, she uncovers a vast world populated with talking rates, music-loving moles, greedy troglods, and overexcitable nids…as well as strange monsters and terrible dangers. But she will face her greatest challenge at the spindlers’ nests, where she must pass a series of deadly tests – or else her soul, too, will remain Below forever.

Personal & Info

This is a children’s stand alone novel. I’m always on the lookout for good children’s books, because when I was a child, I could never find anything interesting to read. Stand alone novels are a good way to try things, because there is no commitment to buy more volumes of a series, and if they end up being good it gives me an author to keep an eye out for.

I didn’t know anything about this when I grabbed it. I basically just skimmed the first paragraph of the description, and checked online, where I saw it compared to Alice in Wonderland and Gregor the Overlander. At 246 pages, I don’t see any harm in trying something new. Books that short can easily be read in a day, especially children’s books.

Characters

Liza is the main character. The story follows her perspective throughout the entire adventure. She’s the oldest of two children.

Patrick is Liza’s younger brother. He seems to have a moody personality, but his sister loves him anyway.

Mrs. Elston is Liza and Patrick’s mother. She’s always sitting at the table dealing with piles of bills and scolding Liza for telling stories.

Mr. Eltson is Liza and Patrick’s father. He doesn’t appear much, except to indicate he can’t find his glasses.

Mirabella is an eccentric rat. She guides Liza on her adventure in the Below realm.

Anna is never actually in the story, but it mentions her several times. She is Liza and Patrick’s favorite babysitter, but she is away at college.

Story & Thoughts

This is a cute stand alone adventure. I can see why people compare it to Alice in Wonderland. It has that whole, “down the rabbit hole,” thing going for it. I think this is a great book for children. It’s written in a way that I think makes it a good book to possibly read out loud to them, or for them to read themselves. As an adult, I think it could be improved upon, but for the age group it’s intended for, it’s probably fine.

Liza’s former babysitter, Anna, would apparently tell the kids about fantastical creatures and teach them games. The kids wholeheartedly believe everything she tells them, to the point that they recite a charm every night before they go to bed. It turns out it’s all true, and for some reason, Liza knows exactly where to go to find the place Below.

The book has some real nightmare fuel going for it, but not so much that it would be horror. I don’t recommend it for anyone who has arachnophobia. The main bad monsters are a type of extra horrific spiders. Their description is creepy and unsettling to imagine, and the lore of what they do is actually surprisingly horrific for a children’s book.

I like the creativity of the world Below. The creatures are interesting, and the landscape is vivid. The story is rather simple, but the descriptions and conversations about the terrain and landmarks make the world come alive. I get the impression the important chunk of the story is the journey, not the end. Liza and Mirabella both learn important lessons along the way. A running theme along the journey is Liza’s close-mindedness. She tends to judge things by how they appear at a glance, and as the story progresses, she learns better.

The Titan’s Bride, Vol. 3

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The Titan’s Bride, Vol. 3 by ITKZ
Series Name: The Titan’s Bride
Genres: BL, Fantasy, Isekai
Intended Age Group: Mature
Publisher: Seven Seas
Edition: Paperback 
ISBN: 978-1-68579-331-9
Rating: 4/5
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Description from the Book

Koichi has made the painful decision to return to his world. With their agreement satisfied and his decision made, Caius begins the magical process of sending him back. However, as the process begins, Kouichi watches as Caius’ physical form begins to fade. Unable to help him or ask why, the couple is dragged apart. What is wrong with Caius, and who, if anyone, will be able to help Kouichi in his hour of need?!

Personal & Info

It’s essentially a smutty romance, and not the censored kind, either. There are no black bars, blurring, or bright lights to block anything out. Do not read this manga if you don’t think you would like the smut sections, because there are a significant amount of them. You must be prepared for that going into it.

Characters

Kouichi Mizuki is a basketball star and very popular with the ladies. He is the one who gets summoned to another world.

Caius Lao Visteil is the prince of Tildant, the kingdom of titans. He summons Kouichi to his world because he must marry someone not of his own world.

Dr. Malthu is the palace doctor.

Baro Barrows is a canine beastman from Foval. He now works for Dr. Malthu as an assistant, and his nickname for Kouichi is Tiny.

Reiquerd Carlsine, also known as Reil, is an elf who chooses to study sex.

Dyne is Reil’s assistant. He appears to be a Titan, and does not show his face.

Story & Thoughts

This volume focuses significantly more on story than smut. It doesn’t bother me, but people reading it primarily for the smut might be a little disappointed. The first chunk of the book obviously relates to Kouichi’s decision, and finalizing whichever choice he makes.

After Kouichi makes his final decision, he and Caius try to settle into life together as a royal couple. Caius must resume his princely duties, and his busy schedule puts a strain on their relationship. On top of that, Kouichi feels inept at pleasing Caius. He lacks the capabilities necessary to keep up with Caius’ sexual drive and satisfy him. The second half of the book focuses on them tackling this issue.

The story finally introduces an elf character, and tells us more about elf culture. Reil is rather amusing. He comes off as sex obsessed and curious. I’m not sure I trust him, though. The few panels shown after they leave the Gate to the Spirit World make me suspicious. I have a feeling Caius and Kouichi are about to be angry after Reil’s last action. He likely doesn’t know what kind of offense he is doing, but it’s likely to be taken seriously by Caius and Kouichi.

I love that Baro basically becomes Kouichi’s best friend. They study and play basketball together. I think it’s amazing Baro is crushing on Kouichi, too, but he doesn’t want to break up the relationship with Caius. Baro’s had a lot of character growth in a short time. I hope he sticks around as a main character. Kouichi seems to like him as a friend, so an ongoing best buds relationship for them would be great.

The sections that show what is happening back on Earth make me sad. It’s unfortunate the universe has to heal itself in this particular way. The bonus comic relevant to these parts with the button is really sweet, though.

The Titan’s Bride, Vol. 2

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The Titan’s Bride, Vol. 2 by ITKZ
Series Name: The Titan’s Bride
Genres: BL, Fantasy, Isekai
Intended Age Group: Mature
Publisher: Seven Seas
Edition: Paperback 
ISBN: 978-1-68579-331-9
Rating: 4/5
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Description from the Book

Kouichi and Caius have been caught up in a beastman’s trap! While traveling through Foval looking for the illusive Raisa fruit that will cure Kouichi of his raging illness, Caius certainly doesn’t expect an ambush. Some shady beastmen think they’ll be an easy heist, but unfortunately for them, stealing Kouichi away was the worst choice these thieves could ever make. As a captured Kouichi still suffers through the unbearable heats brought on by the Karina fruit, he’s left to wonder – will he and Caius ever reunite and return home?!

Personal & Info

It’s essentially a smutty romance, and not the censored kind, either. There are no black bars, blurring, or bright lights to block anything out. Do not read this manga if you don’t think you would like the smut sections, because there are a significant amount of them. You must be prepared for that going into it.

This volume has some more interesting images for the smut. It uses some transparent style images where you can see through Caius to get a visual of what’s going on with Kouichi. And what I mean by that is you can see how far he is stretching and see inside.

Characters

Kouichi Mizuki is a basketball star and very popular with the ladies. He is the one who gets summoned to another world.

Caius Lao Visteil is the prince of Tildant, the kingdom of titans. He summons Kouichi to his world because he must marry someone not of his own world.

Dr. Malthu is the palace doctor.

Baro Barrows is a canine beastman from the later parts of volume one. He plays a bigger role in this one. His nickname for Kouichi is Tiny.

Story & Thoughts

This volume holds up well after the first one. It continues where the cliff hanger leaves off, and finishes the events in Foval. There is some sketchy consent again in the early parts, so use your own digression to judge if that bothers you. It seems like it’s a horrendous act at first, but the story makes it clear a little later that it was a cultural misunderstanding.

I love that this one goes more deeply into the lore of the world. Kouichi is curious to learn more about the community of Tildant and how the world of Eustil works. The system for prosperity is explained in a little more depth, so some things Kouichi heard Caius say in the first book make a little more sense. There also appear to be another type of people not yet named that are shown a little in this volume. They look like angel or bird people. Maybe we’ll learn more about them later.

Caius and Kouichi are finding their stride, and they seem good together. They’re more comfortable around each other, and they both care significantly about the other’s well-being. That’s a positive, but there’s also the negative that Kouichi is starting to miss his friends and worry about his family.

We see more glimpses of Kouichi’s backstory connecting the relevance of his worries. The first volume has a tiny flashback without much context. We get all the context for it this time. It becomes more relevant to the story as Kouichi explains to Caius what his life is like back home, and because it will affect his decision. He makes a choice, but nothing is carried out, yet, so I doubt it’s the final one.

I’m enjoying everything about this series. The lore is great, the romance is sweet, the smut is, well, smutty. I like the world and the characters. It’s all engaging enough to keep me interested. I’d generally describe the series as cute, funny, and erotic.

The Titan’s Bride, Vol. 1

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The Titan’s Bride, Vol. 1 by ITKZ
Series Name: The Titan’s Bride
Genres: BL, Fantasy, Isekai
Intended Age Group: Mature
Publisher: Seven Seas
Edition: Paperback 
ISBN: 978-1-63858-810-8
Rating: 4/5
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Description from the Book

Senior Kouichi Mizuki is about to take his final exams and graduate from high school, when he suddenly finds himself in a world of titans. Not only is he no longer anywhere near home, but one of these giants, Prince Caius, has claimed Kouichi as his bride! Thanks to a disturbing, world-ending prophecy, the prince’s upcoming nuptials cannot be with anyone of his world. Since Caius has no plans to send Kouichi back to earth, he is wholeheartedly set on taking Kouichi as his “wife”!

Personal & Info

This was on my list of things to read that I never thought would get localized. I’m glad it did, though, because now I can read it without having to import it or wait until I learn Japanese.

I knew going into this that it was explicit, and it very much is. It’s essentially a smutty romance, and not the censored kind, either. There are no black bars, blurring, or bright lights to block anything out. However, I had no idea what to expect from the story.

I can never tell if an explicit story is going to be good until I read it. A large number of them tend to focus too much on the smut, and not enough on the story quality. For me to enjoy explicit stories, I need to like the characters and engage with the story. This one is definitely worth the read, in my opinion.

Do not read this manga if you don’t think you would like the smut sections, because there are a significant amount of them. You must be prepared for that going into it.

Characters

Kouichi Mizuki is a basketball star and very popular with the ladies. He is the one who gets summoned to another world.

Caius Lao Visteil is the prince of Tildant, the kingdom of titans. He summons Kouichi to his world because he must marry someone not of his own world.

Medina Nall Rosas is Caius’ former fiancée, and one of his closest friends.

Dr. Malthu is the palace doctor.

Story & Thoughts

The setting is interesting. It’s not a world where titans are dominant instead of people. It’s a fantasy world, by the name Eustil, with multiple kingdoms and races. The main three types of people mentioned are titans in Tildant, elves, whose kingdom is not named in this volume, and beast men in Foval. The story implies humans, also known as halflings, were around at one point, but are no longer common, if they are around at all.

It has sketchy consent in the beginning, so use your own judgement regarding that. But, almost immediately, it’s clear the romance is sweet. Caius is caring and affectionate, and Kouichi wants Caius to be happy, even if it means being with someone else. The story is full of sappy stuff like that, and the characters are genuinely likable. It makes a good counterbalance to the smut.

If there’s something to complain about, I think it would be the pacing. It seems like both a lot and nothing are happening at the same time. They set a time limit of a month, and that month just seems to fly by. It might’ve been cool to learn more about the culture of the titans in that month. Some is mentioned, but not a whole lot. More of Kouichi adjusting to the culture and standard size difference would also be nice.

Maybe Kouichi trying to make friends, too. It seems like he doesn’t really know anyone there and doesn’t make an effort to. I don’t blame him for wanting to go with Caius when he has to travel. He would have no one to talk to, and what would he even do? Of course, most of these things are likely to get expanded on as the story progresses in other volumes.

There are little pictures between the chapters as some added details and funny bits. Between those and the sweet and adorable story, I find myself smiling while reading this. Obviously the smut doesn’t hurt, either. I will definitely be reading more of this series. Beware the cliffhanger at the end of the volume.

Kingdom Hearts (LN)

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Kingdom Hearts by Tomoco Kanemaki, Tetsuya Nomura, Shiro Amano
Series Name: Kingdom Hearts (Light Novel)
Genres: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Intended Age Group: 8+
Publisher: Yen On/Yen Press
Edition: Paperback 
ISBN: 978-0-316-26019-0
Rating: 3/5
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Description from the Book

On the Destiny Islands, three children – Sora, Riku, and Kairi – live out their peaceful, carefree lives while yearning for whatever lies beyond the great ocean. But one night, an unexpected disaster takes place, and the three are torn from each other and their island home. Meanwhile, at Disney Castle, Donald Duck and the other castle residents are in an uproar upon discovering King Mickey has suddenly gone missing. When fate brings them together, Sora, Donald, and Goofy set out on a grand Disney adventure to find their friends!

Personal & Info

This is a light novel adaptation of the popular game Kingdom Hearts. Adaptations are never one hundred percent accurate, so don’t expect this book to be. I’m always curious to read adaptations for things I like, because I want to see what’s different.

I’m not going to lie, it took me forever to get through this book, because I just was not in the mood for it. It was a slog to get halfway through, and then I pushed myself to finish the last hundred pages in one day.

Six color pictures of random events throughout the story are at the front of the book. All images in the book are illustrated by the same artist as the manga adaptation. Some of the black and white pictures look a little strange to me, like the one on page 62, because it looks like they tried to layer part of the picture, and it just looks weird where the parts overlap.

There are a few pages of character information after the table of contents. They cover some of the most significant characters, but they leave many out. Strangely, Donald, Goofy, Sora, Kairi, and Riku all have two entries. Based on the descriptions and art chosen, I get the feeling this novel is intended for people already familiar with the game.

Characters

Sora is the main character. He is exclusive to the Kingdom Hearts universe. Well, except for his Smash appearance. He’s basically your average joe with a heart of gold.

Donald and Goofy are popular Disney characters associated with Mickey Mouse. All three of them have been around for several decades, and they’re kind of the face of Disney, so it makes sense they would be main characters for this kind of story.

Mickey Mouse is a king in this universe, because he is the ever constant mascot of Disney. Donald is his court wizard, and Goofy is his head knight.

Riku and Kairi are also completely exclusive to the Kingdom Hearts universe. Riku is the cool edge lord loner type. Part of his relationship with Sora is Riku is always better than him at everything, but that changes a bit as the story progresses. Kairi is essentially the girl next door Sora and Riku are crushing on.

Various Disney and Final Fantasy characters make appearances throughout the series. The number of Final Fantasy characters is small, but the Disney quantity is high since almost all of the worlds are from Disney movies.

Story & Thoughts

Honestly, I think this book could have been at least twice as thick, or two or more volumes. The book is for ages eight and up, but I’ve read plenty of books for the same age group that were written much better than this.

My biggest complaint is there is not enough detail, for literally anything. If you don’t already know everything from the game, you likely won’t visualize anything correctly. Every time they describe one of the bosses, it doesn’t sound accurate. Whenever they describe a Heartless, it’s left mostly left to your imagination, even though there are canonical appearances for them. There is no picture index of Heartless to make up for the poor descriptions.

If you don’t already know all the appearing characters, you likely wouldn’t picture them accurately either. Their descriptions are overly simple, and the pacing makes them feel flat, because they aren’t around long enough to get to know them. Donald’s description doesn’t even tell you he is a duck. You can tell by the cover, and the fact he quacks, but that’s about it. There is zero mention of his unique way of talking, either. Everyone knows he has a weird voice, except those who grew up without any Disney television in their lives.

I really think that because this is a novelization of the game, it should go above and beyond in quality to try reaching audiences who don’t play the game or watch any Disney.

There are a significant amount of differences in this adaptation. Some of them are good changes to improve the flow of the story, like conversations on the gummi ship, because those feel like they add a little more depth as the group tries to figure things out. But, there are bad changes, too, and plenty that seem pointless.

Four whole levels are cut from the story. Olympus Colosseum, Atlantica, Halloween Town, and 100 Acre Wood. That means Ursula, Hades, and Oogie Boogie are cut from the group of villains. Even the manga adaptation doesn’t cut that many levels.

Some events, like boss fights and encounters, are seemingly pointlessly moved to other areas, basically in a different room than they are originally in. There are also boss fights cut completely, so some levels only have one. The entire book lacks summons. There are a total of none, so I’m curious how that will affect if Simba knows Sora in KH2.

It also seems like there are some plot threads that are quickly dropped, as if the game function of those plot points are inconvenient for the novel.

I know it probably seems like I’m ragging on the novel, but it’s actually not that bad. I like it well enough, and it does do some things well. Some of the dialogue looks like it is literally taken word for word, or at least as closely as possible, from the game. At a quick glance, the few pages of Ansem’s report that they read also look like they might be word for word, so points for accuracy on that.

The chapter, Fragments, on page 227, is a nice addition. It’s a scene where Riku finds himself in the realm behind the door, before Sora even finds the door. I don’t remember if that part is in the game, but I don’t think it is. Assuming it isn’t, I think that part is a nice little addition. There are a ton of little things, like transition parts, or what someone is thinking, that make improvements to the flow of the story.

There’s also progression to represent the level up growth of the game. It’s not specifically tracked, but the story includes parts where each of them learn abilities that you would equip in the game, or get boosts in power from something. The most obvious is Sora learning various new ways to use the keyblade, like throwing it.

I can’t help but laugh at some of the things they leave the same as the game. Anyone familiar with Kingdom Hearts knows the jokes about Donald never healing Sora. That’s still a running gag in this book. Donald never heals Sora. I’m not sure if he even knows a cure spell. Every heal in the game involves Goofy giving someone a potion.

If I had to choose which adaptation to read, between the novel or the manga, I’m actually not sure which I would choose. They’re both good in different ways, and they both cut things. Regarding just the light novel, though, I don’t recommend it for people unfamiliar with Kingdom Hearts. I think I feel the same as I did with the manga, where I think it’s a good book to use to scratch that itch if you’re in the mood for Kingdom Hearts but don’t want to play the game. As far as adaptations go, I say this one is mediocre, but not in a bad way.