Tag: Fantasy

FANGS, Vol. 2

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FANGS, Vol. 2 by Billy Balibally
Series Name: FANGS
Genres: BL, Fantasy, Vampires
Intended Age Group: M 18+
Publisher: Tokyopop
Edition: Paperback 
ISBN: 978-1-4278-7187-9
Rating: 3/5
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Description from the Book

As the sole survivor of a vampire attack, En wakes up to find that his hair has gone white as snow…and, worse, that he’s developed a craving of his own for blood. Since then, he’s been living with Ichii, his handsome guardian and mentor, who works with the vampire health and welfare organization FANGS. Life is good…except En can’t quite figure out what to make of his relationship with Ichii. There’s certainly mutual attraction, devotion, playful teasing, and yet — he can’t shake the sense that Ichii is hiding something from him.

The more the naïve and outgoing En learns about the lonely reality of his new existence, the more isolated he feels among his fellow jaded vampires. Without knowing the secrets of Ichii’s dark past, can En trust in him enough for the two of them to become paired partners?

Personal & Info

I can’t help noticing how good of a job this series does drawing hands and toes. Those are difficult, and there are several panels that show close-ups of them. They look great. I aspire to be able to draw hands and feet so beautifully.

The censorship method used in this book is different than the first one. The first book uses the “light saber” method. This one occasionally uses that, but usually shows more of the shape of things and colors them in with gray to avoid showing any details.

Content Warnings

-Depression
-Dubious consent

Characters

En is the main character. He’s a homeless nineteen year old who was lucky, or unlucky, enough to survive a vampire attack. En is the first new vampire in approximately fifty years. He now lives with Ichii, and is currently in the process of adapting to his new life as a vampire.

Ichii is the love interest. He’s so old that other vampires occasionally refer to him as grandpa. His job is to oversee the criminals and troubled clientele of the community. He does things like wellness checks and supplies them with blood.

Utsugi is one of the first vampires En meets. He’s paired with Aogiri, but apparently has a history of cheating.

Aogiri is paired with Utsugi. He’s a plastic surgeon, and incredibly dedicated to Utsugi.

Sugi is a grieving vampire. He was a bit of a wreck in volume one, but seems to be doing better in this one. He’s no longer cooped up in his house alone.

Umesaki is high up in the vampire community. She is present at vampire related crime investigations, and she helps produce specialty vampire items.

Story & Thoughts

I like this, but I think the first volume is better. It feels like volume one covers more things, but that makes sense, because all of the most important characters have to get introductions in that one. There are a decent number of characters, so now that all of them are covered, the story is focusing more on En coming to terms with life as a vampire.

My review for the first book states that this is a depressing story. If you are hoping it gets cheerier as it goes, it doesn’t. En struggles with his feelings throughout the entire volume. Now that he’s met everybody and learned a little about vampire life, he has concerns. He’s starting to understand what he’s in for, and on top of that, he’s unsure about Ichii, the one person he feels he can trust. The romance continues to be mostly physical as they figure things out.

In the mean time, the story is taking a bit of a crime drama direction. The true culprit responsible for the party that led to En becoming a vampire is likely still out there. As the only survivor of that party, En might potentially be in danger.

If you read the first volume, you know everyone constantly makes baby jokes about En. This book pushes those jokes harder. They’re one of the primary sources of comedy in the series, but this one shows En in a baby style of art much more frequently. Most of the time it’s fine, but sometimes it feels oddly placed.

I heard this volume ends in a cliff hanger, and that is correct. I won’t say what it is, but it definitely throws a wrench into En and Ichii’s relationship. Volume three was recently announced, but there is no date for it, yet, so anyone reading the series will have to be patient.

A Court of Thorns and Roses

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A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
Series Name: A Court of Thorns and Roses
Volume Number: 1
Genres: Enemies to Lovers, Fae, Fantasy, Magic, Romance
Intended Age Group: Adult
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Edition: Paperback
ISBN: 978-1-63557-556-9
Rating: 2.5/5
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Description from the Book

When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a terrifying creature arrives to demand retribution. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she knows about only from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not truly a beast, but one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled her world.

At least, he’s not a beast all the time.

As she adapts to her new home, her feelings for the faerie, Tamlin, transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie she’s been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But something is not right in the faerie lands. An ancient, wicked shadow is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.

Personal & Info

I originally added this book to my to-read list back in 2018. Not long after, I started to see the series explode all over the internet. It wasn’t a priority for me, though, so I thought nothing of it. More recently, one of my closest friends discovered it, and has been encouraging everyone to read it. Because of that, I’ve found myself with a free copy, which saves me some trouble, because it’s not likely to be available from my local library for a very long time.

This author is apparently known for using odd word choices and contradictory descriptions.

Characters

Some characters might contain spoilers or are more interesting if the book handles the introduction, so I’m only going to list the most important ones that are around for the beginning or majority of the story.

Feyre is the main character. The story is told in her perspective. She is the youngest daughter in her family, and she has two older sisters. Her favorite hobby is painting, and she’s good at hunting.

Elain is the middle child in Feyre’s family. She likes flowers and enjoys looking lovely when they can afford it.

Nesta is the eldest daughter in Feyre’s family. She comes off as snobby, selfish, and mean. I think the book says she is older than Feyre by three years.

Tamlin is the love interest. He is a High Fae Lord with a shape changing specialty and a beastly demeanor.

Lucien is Tamlin’s emissary. He handles diplomatic relations between the seven kingdoms on Tamlin’s behalf. His attitude is generally snarky.

Alis is a maid who tends to Feyre’s needs, and helps answer some of her day to day questions.

Story & Info

My thoughts about this book are a little complicated to put into words for a review, but I’m going to try. There are things I like about it. The world is interesting, and I can see plenty of promise for building off of it. Seven vastly different kingdoms based on the seasons and times of day with eternal weather is pretty appealing.

The book is written in first person. That’s a common thing I know many people tend not to like, but I think it’s done well here. It doesn’t feel like the writing is full of the word, “I,” constantly, and the writing has a nice flow to it. After a few paragraphs, I practically forgot about it being a first person perspective. The only negative things I noticed about the writing were the occasional indecisive contradictory descriptions, and some likely plot holes.

Characters are where things start to get messy for me. All of the characters that I like are side characters. The two lead characters for the romantic couple, Feyre and Tamlin, that’s where my biggest problem is. I don’t mind Feyre. She’s okay, but she has some personality traits that rub me the wrong way, and I don’t agree with some of her perspectives and wants. At the end of the day, I don’t mind her, but she isn’t my ideal of a main character.

Tamlin, on the other hand, he’s about as interesting as a rock. He is stereotype handsome and exotic, because of his beast traits, but that is literally all he has going for him. I can’t bring myself to care about him. If I don’t care about him, why would I want the main character to be with him? It takes so much away from the enjoyment of the story when the love interest is not interesting. It genuinely feels like the only reason Feyre falls for him is because he shows her kindness, which is something she hasn’t experienced much of in her short, sad life.

Aside from the characters, the other big issue is pacing. The book is a little over four hundred pages, but the whole thing is a slog. I couldn’t handle more than maybe thirty or so pages at a time before I had to put it down for a break.

The process of reading the book genuinely feels like a whole lot of nothing is happening for the majority of the story. It’s like a retelling of Beauty and the Beast, but for the parts where that movie would do the cute and fun montages to show adapting to life living with the beast, we get a slogfest instead. Granted, I completely understand the process of events that had to occur, but it does not make the book fun to read.

For the majority of my reading, I felt like the book was a solid two. As the story progressed, and more characters were introduced, and I got to know them better, my opinion went up by a half. I like some of the side characters so much that they practically carried the book for me.

Based on this book alone, I probably wouldn’t be interested in reading more of the series. However, the whole series was gifted to me, and I have been recommended to at least read the first two books before making a final decision. So, I will be reading volume two at some point in the near future, before I decide if I want to commit to the entirety of the series.

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 7

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Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 7 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: 978-1-9747-3620-1
Rating: 4/5
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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?

After all the dangers the examinees have faced, passing the first-class mage exam will come down to a simple interview with Serie, whose intuition will determine success or failure. Then, Frieren, Fern, and Stark set out again on the road to Aureole, the land where souls rest. The journey provides new challenges – though the most challenging thing Stark and Fern may have to face is a date with each other!

Personal & Info

I bought this at the same time as volume six, and read them one after the other after my reread of the series. At this point, there are ten volumes available, so I’m still a little behind. When I eventually get caught up, I plan to try to keep up better with the current releases.

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, but tends to be easy to scare.

Story & Thoughts

This one felt long. It’s not, but the pacing makes it feel like both a lot and nothing are happening in a way that makes the volume feel lengthy. I think the beginning and end sections were the best parts.

The first part of the volume covers the third part of the exam, picking up where the previous book leaves off with Fern. The rest of the examinees are then evaluated. If you read volume six, you know that this part of the test is simply Serie choosing to pass or fail them based on reactions or questions. I found this part amusing, because Serie’s questions and judgements about who passes and fails says a lot about her personality. It’s an interesting way to learn more about her character.

After the exam, there are the goodbyes to all the friends everyone made during the test. Some are seen again on the road, but things mostly get back to the travel montages and various flashbacks of things from Frieren’s past.

The part that excites me, and probably other readers with ships, is the latter end of the book. Stark and Fern actually go on their first date. It’s cute, but don’t get your hopes up too high. No drastic changes or improvements to their relationship occur during or because of the date.

There isn’t much action now that the exam is over, but this is still a good volume. I found myself smiling at multiple parts throughout the story. Despite the series starting off on a depressing note, I think it’s very heartwarming. It’s a comfortable and cozy feeling to read almost any volume.

Negima! Omnibus, Vol. 1

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Negima! Omnibus, Vol. 1 by Ken Akamatsu
Series Name: Negima! Magister Negi Magi
Genres: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Ecchi, Fantasy, Magic, Romance
Intended Age Group: 16+
Publisher: Kodansha
Edition: ebook 
ISBN: 978-1-61262-820-2
Rating: 2/5
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Description

Negi Springfield is a young graduate fresh out of a magic academy. The next step in his education is a work study. His assignment is to be a teacher…at an all girls junior high!? Can he balance a job as a child teacher and manage to attain his goal of becoming a great wizard?

Personal & Info

Amazon does not appear to have an active listing for this book, so the link leads to the series list where volumes two and up can be found.

I don’t really know anything about this series, aside from that it was wildly popular at one point.

This is the first 3-in-1 omnibus edition of any manga I’ve ever read. I wasn’t sure how I was going to format the review, because I wasn’t sure if the volumes have clear dividers. It turns out they do, so I’ll be reviewing each individual volume, as well as the omnibus as a whole.

Individual ratings for the volumes:
Volume 1: 2/5
Volume 2: 1/5
Volume 3: 3/5

Characters

Negi Springfield is about 10 years old, and a graduate from a magic academy. He’s from Wales, and his school assigns him to be a teacher in japan at the all girls school, Mahora Academy, for the purpose of working toward his chosen career.

Asuna Kagurazaka is a blatant bully, and most likely the love interest. She’s also Negi’s roommate/guardian.

Konoka Konoe is the Headmaster’s granddaughter, and Asuna’s roommate.

Konoemon Konoe is the headmaster. He is aware that Negi is a wizard, and his head is shaped like a pear.

Takamichi Takahata is the teacher Asuna is crushing on. Negi takes over his class, and Takamichi is not around much after that.

Shizuna is one of the school guidance councilors.

Ayaka Yukihiro is the class representative. She has a rivalry with Asuna that dates back to when they were small.

Negi’s entire class makes up the main cast, so I’m not going to list them all. They are all rather unique and quirky. Their names and general information can be found on a page that shows the class roster. More detailed information about each can be found between chapters where they list student bio information in small groups. The characters I chose to list here are the ones I feel are most important or are not included in the roster because they are faculty.

Story & Thoughts

Volume 1

My first impression is that this is a very dated type of humor. It doesn’t appeal to me right now, but it’s probably absolutely hilarious to twelve-year-olds. The main character, Negi, repeatedly sneezes girls’ clothes off throughout the volume. I wouldn’t mind it so much if there were a logical reason behind it. The way it’s done makes it feel forced just to have an immediate comedic effect.

There is a huge amount of fan service in this. I don’t think I’ve ever read a manga with this much fan service in it that was not intended to be explicit. This has way more ecchi in it than any other teen series I’ve ever read. That’s what stands out the most, but there are some good things I like.

There’s a large cast of characters. The entire class all has names. It’s not one of those series where most of the students are nameless blobs that only exist in the background. The cast size isn’t important to me. It’s more impressive that they bother to show the class roster with everybody’s names and activities on it next to their photos. That’s a good page to reference if anyone ever needs a refresher on who is who.

Aside from that, I like one of Negi’s quotes. “Courage – even a little bit of it – is the real magic.” It’s simple, but inspiring. It’s also probably Negi’s only solid teacher moment in the entire volume one section.

As for the story itself, the concept is simple and straight forward. Negi must be a teacher at this all girls school until March to meet the study requirements for his magic school. Nothing goes according to plan, because he’s younger than the class, and the little bit of magic he can do both causes and remedies problems. Plus, he has Asuna as his own personal bully.

I’m hoping there will be more to the story than all the nonsense and fan service. It’s apparently a romance, and I can only guess that Asuna and Negi are going to be the pairing. That’s a little strange due to their age difference.

I see plenty the story can build on for plot points, already. There’s a part where Asuna seems to be the only person immune to a spell that effects the whole class. I hope there is an actual reason for this that gets addressed later. Negi didn’t seem to notice, but it has to mean something.

Volume 2

The more I read this, the more problems I notice. One of the big things is Negi is too close to his students. He allows them to call him by his first name. He’s more of a friend to his students than a teacher. It would be wise for him to set some boundaries.

I have an issue with the ongoing types of humor and fan service. They’re highly inappropriate, and quite frankly, give me the ick. The story thus far is full of scenarios that surround Negi with naked girls and regularly shove people’s faces into boobs. This is a normal type of comedy for the time period, but the ages involved make it gross, and there’s just far too much of it.

Negi says he is in his tenth year, which makes him actually nine. All of his students are approximately six years older than him. It’s disgusting for teenagers to act this way. They keep saying he’s just a kid, but realistically speaking, he’s old enough that he should not be treated like he’s still a toddler when it comes to nudity.

The story itself is pretty weak. Negi is supposed to be doing a normal non-magical job as a teacher, but he resorts to magic for everything. We find out in this volume that all of his athletic ability comes from his magic. He literally cannot function without it. He becomes a child that needs to be coddled if he can’t use it. Not only that, but whenever a problem arises, he thinks he should use magic to fix it. Maybe he will grow to stop relying on it so much as the series goes on. I would hope that he does.

I did like the concept of Library Island. It’s strange that a library like that would exist and nobody would question it or think it odd, but it’s still an interesting idea. I don’t think teenagers should be the ones doing expeditions for it, though. I think I would have enjoyed this section more if it wasn’t also riddled with fan service. Adventure and lore about the library could have been interesting enough if made the main focus of the dungeon delve.

To be perfectly honest, I considered abandoning this omnibus maybe halfway through. Finishing this section was difficult, but I’m determined to complete the book. I’ve heard enough about the series over the years to know how popular it was, so I want to be able to say I gave it a fair shake by getting through the first three volumes.

Volume 3

This is the best volume in the omnibus. The fan service is downplayed significantly compared to the other two sections. It’s actually a relief. The addition of a perverted animal seems redundant when the series already has a ton of fan service as it is, but thankfully that behavior dies down after the character’s introduction.

There is much more to like about this section than the previous two. The story itself stands out now that the fan service is tamped down. We learn information that creates questions to actually try hooking the series better. A magic system regarding a mage and a combat partner gets an explanation, which leads us to magical combat.

The battle was enthralling. Renewal of the contract seemed pointless, but I guess it functioned as a way for Asuna to distract Chachamaru while Negi fought the vampire. I finally found some comedy that actually appealed to me in this part, too. The speech sounds people make when they get hit or knocked around during a fight are hilarious.

If the whole series were more like this volume, I’d like it better. This is what the series should be like. Volumes one and two are horrible introductions.

Overall

This series gives me Love Hina vibes, but with a younger age group. That’s not a compliment. I don’t like Love Hina.

As a whole, it gives me the ick. Negi is nine, because he claims to be in his tenth year, and according to the character information between chapters, Asuna is approximately five or six years older than him. That kind of romantic pairing is gross, and the amount of nudity thrown at Negi is abhorrent.

This is supposed to be a comedy, but I don’t find it funny. The comedy types and tropes are dated and probably appeal better to a younger audience. I didn’t get a laugh until part 3, and it came from the noises people made when being hit or knocked back. I doubt I would have enjoyed this series back when I was in the target age group, either. The comedy seems to be on the level of twelve year olds, but the series is recommended for sixteen and up.

If the whole series was like volume three, I would be interested in reading more. Unfortunately, I can’t predict if the series is more like the first two or the third. Only one good volume out of the first three doesn’t bode well, so I don’t plan on looking into it any further.

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 6

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Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 6 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: 978-1-9747-3400-9
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?

The mages begin the second stage of their certification exam: a dangerous expedition into the innermost depths of the ruins of the king’s tomb. This time, there are no teams and it’s every mage for themselves. Whether they want to team up or not, the challenge they will face – their own clones – will push their skills to the limit.

Personal & Info

I haven’t been keeping up with this series as well as I should. There are long gaps between some of my volumes getting read, and I don’t buy them as often as I would like. I did a reread of volumes 1-5 before reading this one, because it’s been more than six months since I read anything from the series. The reread was worth it. It made the transition to my newer volumes smoother and refreshed my memory.

Everybody probably knows this already, but there’s an anime for this series available now.

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. Her skill shines during the exams.

Kanne and Lawine are both third-class mages. They were 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 were Fern’s teammates for the first part of the exam. Übel apparently learns magic via empathy and she’s pestering Land because she wants to learn his ability.

Denken, Laufen, and Richter are mages from a team in the first part of the exam. Richter appears to run some kind of store. Denken comes from an imperial mage background, and Laufen gets treated like she’s his granddaughter. Richter and Denken are second class mages while Laufen is third class. Denken is their leader.

Scharf, Ehre, and Wirbel are mages from a team in the first part of the exam. All three are second class mages. Wirbel appears to be their leader.

Sense is a first class mage, and the proctor for the second part of the exam.

There are more characters, but these are the ones that are most significant due to having played important parts in the first part of the exam. They are also the ones who get the most screen time in this section. Others mentioned in the book get less time, but may still be important.

Story & Thoughts

This is a great volume. The second part of the first class mage exam begins. It’s much simpler in comparison to the first part. Catching the stille was convoluted compared to this. For the second test, the goal is simply to make it to the end of an unmapped dungeon. What they don’t tell you is it’s not an ordinary dungeon.

Much like the the previous book, there’s a lot of magical combat. This is paired well with more information about various types of magic. So, if you like learning about how the magic of the world works, it’s pretty interesting.

I didn’t like Übel at all when she was first introduced, but the more screen time she gets, the more I like her. She’s a little psychotic, but sometimes the best characters are. I’m looking forward to more content with her if she makes any appearances after the exam.

The third exam is also in this book. It’s pretty pitiful compared to the first and second, but Fern’s turn makes me giggle. Her reaction must have felt so insulting, and then the volume just ended right there.

Overall, this volume was really good. It has comedy, strategy, competition, magic battles, and magic lore. I was torn on giving it a five, but I don’t think it was quite perfect. I’m enjoying the exam section a lot, but I also miss Stark. We’ve hardly seen him since the exams started. Poor guy can only wait around and kill time while the girls are taking the test.

My Happy Marriage, Vol. 4

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My Happy Marriage, Vol. 4 by Akumi Agitogi, Rito Kohsaka, Tsukiho Tsukioka
Series Name: My Happy marriage (Manga)
Genres: Fantasy, Historical, Romance
Intended Age Group: Teen
Publisher: Square Enix
Edition: Paperback 
ISBN: 978-1-64609-248-2
Rating: 3/5
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Description from the Book

Miyo Saimori, the eldest of her clan and yet unblessed by the supernatural talent that graced her father and half sister, is sent off to marry into the Gifted Kudo clan. The young and aloof clan leader, Kiyoka Kudo, finds himself intrigued by this girl who stands worlds apart from the spoiled, social-climbing women who usually vie for his hand.

All too soon, Kiyoka comes to regard Miyo with affection and they make their engagement real and official, but Miyo still worries she lacks the training to be a wife worthy of the Kudo clan. Enter Kiyoka’s older sister, Hazuki, who takes it upon herself to tutor Miyo – and tease Kiyoka along the way!

Suddenly Miyo and Kiyoka cross paths with a mysterious man named Arata Tsuruki. What does he want, and what connection does he have to the enigmatic and powerful Usuba clan that Miyo’s mother hailed from?

Personal & Info

I bought this at the same time as volume three, and I read them back to back. Unfortunately, there is no word of the existence of, or any plan for, volume five. I hope the manga continues, but in the mean time, I’m going to work on getting the light novels. The light novels seem to be still ongoing with new releases.

Characters

Miyo Saimori is the leading lady. She has a long history of suffering abuse at the hands of her own family. Now that she’s out from under their roof, she can finally start to heal.

Kiyoka Kudo is the male love interest. He has high political and military standing as well as wealth, and he is the current head of the Kudo family. His job is getting very demanding.

Yurie is Kiyoka’s housekeeper. She has taken care of him since he was young, and he trusts her implicitly. She is a kind older woman and she is fond of Miyo.

Hazuki Kudo is Kiyoka Kudo’s older sister. We learn more about her history in this volume.

Yoshito Godo is a young man who works as Kiyoka’s aide in the grotesquery military branch. We see him frequently in this book as Kiyoka spends a lot of time at work.

Arata Tsuruki is 24 years old, and the heir to the Tsuruki family, which owns a trading company.

Story & Thoughts

This seems like a plot building volume. Miyo’s immediate family problems are behind her and no longer a threat to her health or wellbeing. The story is moving forward with Miyo’s education and dealing with her trauma.

Her biggest problem in this book is her nightmares. The cause is unclear, but they’re obviously related to her trauma. She’s not receiving scathing verbal abuse from her family anymore, so her mind is supplying it while she sleeps. While she’s struggling with that, Kiyoka spends most of the volume busy with work.

Some important and interesting things go on in this volume. I can’t say I’m satisfied with it, though. It’s good for the story progression, but I also feel like it’s a step backwards. Miyo’s health is deteriorating, again, and she hasn’t learned how to make her needs or struggles heard. She still has a long way to go when it comes to recovering from her family’s abuse.

The things I like most about the volume are that we learn more about what Hazuki’s life has been like, and Kiyoka finally makes some progress on research regarding the Usubas. There’s enough new information to draw me in for reading the next book when it eventually becomes available. It would be more interesting if we could see the side of Kiyoka’s job that isn’t just paperwork, but maybe that will come along later.

To Ease the Pain of Loneliness

This is a bonus novel style chapter. It stars Hazuki reminiscing with Miyo about the time when Kiyoka decided to leave home. She ponders what he needed from the house in which he currently lives, and what similar aspects she sees in Miyo that makes Kiyoka enjoy her company. It’s written with Hazuki’s perspective. I think it gives her a little more depth to add onto the little we’ve learned about her.

My Happy Marriage, Vol. 3

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My Happy Marriage, Vol. 3 by Akumi Agitogi, Rito Kohsaka, Tsukiho Tsukioka
Series Name: My Happy Marriage (Manga)
Genres: Fantasy, Historical, Romance 
Intended Age Group: Teen
Publisher: Square Enix
Edition: Paperback 
ISBN: 978-1-64609-156-0
Rating: 3/5
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Description from the Book

Though Miyo Saimori has found a place as Kiyoka Kudo‘s potential bride, the fact remains that she is untouched by thee supernatural power that defines both the Saimori and Kudo clans.

While Kiyoka seems willing to accept her as she is, Miyo is unsure and bewildered – she has never known such warmth in all her life…

Just as Miyo dares to believe she may have found happiness at last, her jealous half sister, Kaya, kidnaps her and locks her in a storehouse. Kaya’s eyes are red with rage as she declares her intention to dissolve Miyo and Kiyoka’s engagement and take Miyo’s place as his fiancée herself!

Will Kiyoka’s otherworldly abilities deliver her from Kaya’s clutches in time?

Personal & Info

I reread the first two volumes before reading this. It had been a while since I read them, and I was a bit late in getting volume three. I bought volumes three and four at the same time, so I’ll be caught up on the manga after reading both. Volume five is not yet out, even though it was rumored to release October of 2023.

Characters

Miyo Saimori is the leading lady. She has a long history of suffering abuse at the hands of her own family. Now that she’s out from under their roof, she can finally start to heal.

Kiyoka Kudo is the male love interest. He has high political and military standing as well as wealth, and he is the current head of the Kudo family.

Yurie is Kiyoka’s housekeeper. She has taken care of him since he was young, and he trusts her implicitly. She is a kind older woman and she is fond of Miyo.

Kaya Saimori is Miyo’s younger half-sister. She received everything Miyo did not growing up, and has been conditioned to want to be better than Miyo at everything and always have better than her.

Koji Tatsuishi is Miyo’s childhood friend. He is engaged to Kaya as an arrangement to become the next head of the Saimori family since they don’t have any sons.

Hazuki Kudo is Kiyoka Kudo’s older sister.

Masashi Okaito is the forty-year-old Major General in charge of the Grotesquerie unit.

Story & Thoughts

The first chunk of the book finishes the events from volume two. It shows Miyo’s side of things while Kiyoka is breaking down the gate. She stands up for herself against her family’s wishes for the first time in her life. I’m so proud of Miyo for not surrendering when it matters most. She’s had a lot of growth in a short amount of time.

Miyo’s family is absolutely insane. They shouldn’t have set her up with Kiyoka Kudo in the first place if they were going to decide she wasn’t good enough for that kind of life. They probably expected him to immediately throw her out.

The rest of the volume is more relaxed. Miyo wants to continue her cancelled education from her childhood, so Kiyoka’s older sister, Hazuki, is arranged to be her tutor. She seems super nice, and interacting with her will likely be good for Miyo.

New events are set in motion as Kiyoka receives a serious job order involving dangerous ghosts, and some interestingly foreboding foreshadowing predictions about Miyo. Something has been happening with her while she sleeps, so I wonder if all of these things are connected.

With her family out of the way, I’m curious to see what will happen next. I don’t like this volume as much as the first two, but it seems like it’s a transitional volume, so that’s normal. Either way, it’s still pretty good, and I’m looking forward to reading more of the series.

Rain

This is another bonus short story chapter written like a light novel. It focuses on an unpleasant memory of Miyo’s as a dream. The point of it seems to be Miyo realizing she can finally let out the repressed emotions she’s hidden away for so long, while speculating about whether it ever would have made a difference if she’d bothered to cry before. I think it shows more of her growth from healing to finally be able to let herself feel all the things she’s been repressing. The hope that one day she might not think about any of those traumatic experiences at all is promising.

Crystal Keepers

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Crystal Keepers by Brandon Mull
Series Name: Five Kingdoms
Volume Number: 3
Genres: Adventure, Fantasy, Isekai
Intended Age Group: 8-12
Publisher: Aladdin/Simon & Schuster
Edition: Paperback 
ISBN: 978-1-4424-9707-8
Rating: 3/5
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Synopsis from the Book

Cole Randolph still can’t believe the way his life has turned inside out. Stuck in a strange land far from home, he has found his friend Dalton and has survived the first two kingdoms of the Outskirts, but none of that has prepared him for the magnetic highways and robotic bounty hunters of Zeropolis.

Ruled by Abram Trench, who stayed loyal to the evil High King, the government of Zeropolis uses advanced technologies to keep tight control. Luckily, the resistance in Zeropolis is anchored by the Crystal Keepers – a group of young rebels with unique weapons.

On the run from the High King’s secret police, Cole and Dalton hope to find more of their lost friends and help Mira locate her sister Constance. But time is running out for Cole to uncover the secrets behind the Zeropolitan government and unravel the mystery of who helped the High King steal his daughters’ powers.

Personal & Info

I found myself in great need of something fantasy that does not involve vampires or romance, so I circled back around to this series to scratch that itch. This book was just what I needed.

Content Warnings

Slavery is a big industry in the Outskirts. If you don’t like elements of slavery in your stories, this series is not for you.

Mira and her sisters have more years than they look, but not in a creepy way. They are children, and think of themselves as children, despite their number of years. Any crushes regarding these characters are not intended to be creepy. The idea is they are as old as they claim to be, because they have never been any other age. I can see how this might still upset some people, so just use your own discretion.

Characters

Cole Randolph is the main character. He’s in sixth grade, and shorter than most in his class. His weapon of choice is a jumping sword. Unfortunately, he doesn’t get to use that at all in this book.

Jace was a scout for the Sky Raiders. He’s moody, arrogant, and rash, but has a good heart. His current hobby is pranking and bullying Dalton, likely as a form of hazing. His weapon of choice is a rope that he doesn’t get to use in this book.

Mira, also known as Miracle Pemberton, is an eleven year old girl who has been hiding from her father for decades. She is one of the High Shaper’s daughters, and did not age during the time her powers were missing.

Dalton is Cole’s best friend. He stresses easily and tends to be anxious. He can create seemings, but that ability does not work in Zeropolis.

Joe is a member of the resistance, also referred to as the Unseen. He’s originally from Monterey, California. We get a little more of his backstory in this volume.

Constance, or Costa, is the princess the group is trying to locate in Zeropolis.

Roulette is a Crystal Keeper. She’s the one we see most often.

Googol is one of the leaders of the Unseen in Zeropolis, and their chief tinker.

Nova is the leader of the Unseen in Zeropolis.

Blake Daniels is one of the kids abducted in Sky Raiders. He’s not exactly a friend to Cole, but Cole still cared enough to inquire about him. Blake has a one of a kind technomancer ability that makes him very useful.

The Hunter is a character who has been silently pursuing the group since they entered Elloweer in Rogue Knight. He’s been a background concern, until now.

Sidekick is an intelligent robot in the guise of an old cleaning bot.

As usual, there are plenty more characters that are not listed here, but these are the ones I feel are most important.

Story & Thoughts

The story picks up where the last leaves off, like usual. However, getting started, it feels slow in comparison. Things are happening and the group is going places, but it really just feels like a lot of nothing and running around. There’s a significant amount of trying to get from A to B, just to find out that B is a problem, which means going to C instead.

I think this is probably the weakest book in the series, so far. That doesn’t mean it’s not good, though. It’s just a little different. I’d describe it as a transitional volume. There’s a lot of information gathering, and heavy focus on Cole doing things alone.

Cole himself is the main focus of the whole book. The group is constantly splitting up, most often with Mira going a separate direction from all of her friends. Cole even goes on his own adventure, without anybody else. Some sections feel like we’re missing out on the interesting bits because we’re following Cole around, but other times it’s very important that he’s doing these things alone. Most of it is important plot building, despite the drag of some sections.

Zeropolis is pretty cool. It’s the high tech area of the Outskirts, and their shaping is basically technomancy. We get to see some cool exoskeleton action suits and various other high tech gizmos. There are some artificial intelligence supercomputers and robot characters. My favorite character in the whole book is actually one of the bots, Sidekick. Sidekick has a charming personality, and they play a huge part in the story, even though they are just a small bot.

I can’t help thinking that Abram Trench must not have been thinking when he helped create Roxie. What he did to make her seems like a very dumb idea. With the public history of Zeropolis being what it is, he should have known better.

Dragon Ball: That Time I Got Reincarnated as Yamcha

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Dragon Ball: That Time I Got Reincarnated as Yamcha by Dragongarow Lee
Genres: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Isekai
Intended Age Group: Teen
Publisher: Viz/ Shonen Jump
Edition: Paperback 
ISBN: 978-1-9747-0371-5
Rating: 3/5
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Description from the Book

A Dragon Ball fan’s Greatest dream is getting to live in the Dragon Ball universe and fight alongside Goku and his friends! One particular fan thinks he’s living the dream when he suddenly dies and is reborn in the Dragon Ball world, but he’s in for a rude awakening when he realizes he’s been reincarnated as everyone’s favorite punching bag, Yamcha!

Personal & Info

I grew up watching Dragon Ball religiously and playing all of the games I could get my hands on. It had a huge impact on my life, but these days I’m not interested in anything made after the release of GT. This book was given to me as a gift, and it was the first time I was excited about anything Dragon Ball related in a long time.

I think this manga is more likely to be enjoyed by people already familiar with the Dragon Ball universe. It would be more difficult to follow story elements if the reader doesn’t know anything about the series or the original plot.

Characters

Yamcha is the main character, or in this case, an unnamed protagonist in the body of Yamcha. A Dragon Ball superfan, to be more specific.

Several characters appear throughout the book, but most of them only have brief appearances since the story focuses on Yamcha. If you’re familiar with Dragon Ball, just think of the gang from the Saiyan Saga, and that pretty much covers it.

Story & Thoughts

This was actually more serious than I was expecting. I thought it was going to be a hard core comedy, and I would have been okay with that. It’s not super funny, but it does have some laughs. The focus is more about Yamcha crushing on Bulma and using his fan knowledge of the series to try hard not to die in any of the events that would normally threaten his life.

Part of me was hoping that Yamcha would overcome Goku’s level of power and steal the show somehow, but realistically, that’s not possible for a human. Wishful thinking, I guess. I was a little worried when I heard Yamcha’s intentions, at first. Trunks is one of my favorite characters in the series. If Yamcha succeeded in what he wanted, then my favorite character would no longer exist. I don’t know if I would like a Dragon Ball world where Trunks was never born.

I never read the manga for Dragon Ball or Dragon Ball Z, but I get the feeling this uses the terms and names from that version. Some are spelled different than the TV versions or just completely different words (probably the Japanese ones).

Overall, I give this manga a soft three out of five. I like it enough to say that I enjoyed it. The story is so fast paced it covers Dragon Ball, the saiyan saga, AND the Cell saga, all in one tiny book. I think if it were longer, it could probably make a really good action drama romance series. That’s a spin on the series I would love to see. Regardless, the book is a fun and quick read that triggers all the right kinds of nostalgia. It almost makes me want to collect the manga for the parts of the Dragon Ball universe that I know I like.

The Lightning Thief

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The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Series Name: Percy Jackson and the Olympians/ Camp Half-Blood Chronicles
Volume Number: 1/1
Genres: Adventure, Contemporary, Fantasy, Mythology
Intended Age Group: Middle Grade
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Edition: Hardcover
ISBN: 978-078685629-9
Rating: 3/5
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Description from the Book

Percy Jackson is about to be kicked out of boarding school…again. And that’s the least of his troubles. Lately, mythological monsters and the gods of Mount Olympus seem to be walking straight out of the pages of Percy’s Greek mythology textbook and into his life. And worse, he’s angered a few of them. Zeus’s master lightning bolt has been stolen, and Percy is the prime suspect.

Now Percy and his friends have just ten days to find and return Zeus’s stolen property and bring peace to a warring Mount Olympus. But to succeed in his quest, Percy will have to do more than catch the true thief: he must come to terms with the father who abandoned him; solve the riddle of the Oracle, which warns him of betrayal by a friend; and unravel a treachery more powerful than the gods themselves.

Personal & Info

This is a reread review. I think I first read this back in 2018. I wanted to read it again to have a fresh memory to see what the differences are between the book and the new Disney+ series adaptation. The first episode of the series already aired by the time I got around to finishing, and I think I’ve already seen episode four by the time I’m typing this. My thoughts on the show will not be included in this review. I’ll be focusing on the book.

As far as the rating goes, I think it’s about the same as it was for my first read. It’s a solid three or possibly three and a half or somewhere between.

I love that this series has ADHD and Dyslexia representation. That’s not something I commonly see in books. Another series that has some good fantasy representation of a disorder is Michael Vey by Richard Paul Evans. I don’t have any reviews for that series on here, yet, but I do plan to reread it eventually, since it has more volumes now. The Micheal Vey series has a main character with Tourette Syndrome, and it focuses on kids that have electric powers. I definitely recommend it.

Characters

Percy (Perseus) Jackson is the twelve year old lead character. He’s a demigod son of Poseidon. Anyone who has heard of the series already knows that, and it’s revealed early on in the story, so it’s not a spoiler. His parentage makes him a big deal, because he’s a child of one of the “big three” Greek gods.

Grover Underwood is Percy’s best friend, and the comic relief throughout the book. He’s the food obsessed character. He’s also prone to anxiety, and often bleats like a goat, because he’s a satyr.

Sally Jackson is Percy’s mom. She’s lived a rather unfortunate life, but her dream is to be a novelist.

Gabe Ugliano is Sally’s husband and Percy’s step father. Percy’s nickname for him is Smelly Gabe, and the pun of his last name speaks for itself as to what kind of person he is.

Annabeth Chase is around twelve, just like Percy. She’s the demigod daughter of Athena, and she has five beads on her camp necklace, which means she’s been there for five years. Her relationship with her human family is a bit tenuous and complicated. Annabeth is the smart character.

Mr. D, the camp director, is the god Dionysus. He runs the camp as a punishment, and he’s not great with kids.

Chiron, as in the centaur of Greek myth, is one of the people who runs camp half-blood. He helps train the demigods and gives them guidance.

Luke Castellan is nineteen, and a son of Hermes. He’s also the best swordsman at camp, and leader of the Hermes cabin. Annabeth has a blatantly obvious crush on him, but he thinks of her as a little sister.

Clarisse La Rue is a demigod daughter of Ares. She’s not terribly important in this book, but she plays a bigger role in some of the other volumes. She mostly plays the role of camp bully in the early parts of the story.

Of course, various Greek gods, demigods, and monsters also make appearances in the story or get significant mentions.

Story & Thoughts

Upon first reading this book, there are a few strong thoughts. Those primarily being, I don’t like Annabeth, and the children having to carry on the grudges of their parents is ridiculous. Now, for the reread, I can’t actually remember why I disliked Annabeth so much right away.

My memory says I consider her a bully, but she doesn’t actually do anything significantly mean in this book. There’s a little bit of name calling, but it doesn’t seem as mean spirited to me as I remember. I still think the kids carrying on parental grudges is silly, though. Annabeth, of all people, should certainly see it that way, because she’s supposed to be the smart one. If she were truly wise, she wouldn’t buy into all that.

One of the great things about this book is you don’t have to know anything about Greek mythology to read it. Any time something relevant comes up, like a god or a monster, they tell you the story. For example, Medusa makes an appearance at some point. They explain the most important parts of her story so you know who she is and why she is how she is. It’s like you get mini lessons while reading an enjoyable story.

The writing is all around great. The flow of the words makes the book feel like a comfort read. All of the descriptions are relatable and easy to understand, which makes forming a mental picture simple. Whether it’s monsters, places, or character descriptions, they’re all well done.

I also like the foreshadowing. Using the Oracle to give an extremely vague layout of the plot structure is pretty clever. The reader and the heroes both get a chance to figure out the meaning as the story progresses. The chapter titles are also wonderful. They give you insight into what happens in each chapter without spoiling anything, but they’re also silly enough to garner interest.

One more important good thing about it. The story has a serious plot, but the adventure has a lot of laughs. The kids don’t stop acting like kids just because things are serious.

The book is generally good, but as much as I praise it, it’s not perfect. It does feel like it drags in some areas, and Annabeth having a crush on the cool older boy is such a stereotype. Nothing bogs the story down too much, though. It’s well worth the read.