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Shannon Wants to Die!, Vol. 1

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By Ao Satsuki and falmaro. Released in Japan as “Shinitagari no Shannon” by Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Olivia Plowman.

This book screams out to a certain kind of reader. And yes, I was that sort of reader. Did you read Wandering Witch? Did you want to read the story of a mage going from city to city and meeting various people in an anthology format? And did you stop reading it because the protagonist was a hideously insufferable little shit? Of course. We all did. This book is the antidote for that. I won’t say that Shannon is not occasionally a bit full of herself, but it’s about 1/10 the attitude Eliana has. For the most part she’s nice, wants to help people, and is pleasant to be around. We want to see her daily life. That said… this book is not for everyone. As the title may have hinted. The premise of this book is about an immortal mage trying to find a way that, after centuries, she can actually die, as she is tired of what she has now. If this would bother you, move on.

Shannon looks like a buxom 20-year-old in a mage’s outfit. In fact, she’s immortal, and has spent years and years wandering the world looking for her master, the man who caused this to happen to her. She’s also trying to see if anything will kill her. In this volume, she a) stays at a quiet village, talks with a cute young man, and tries to get eaten and digested by a dragon; 2) she meets a man trying to save a dying girl from a disease with no cure, and volunteers to drink poison antidotes till they find one that’s not poison; 3) She and an old adventurer go to a dungeon no one has ever come back from, to try to find the remains of his son; 4) she meets another young mage, who is trying to help her dying mother, and whose mentor may be the man who cursed Shannon with immortality in the first place.

I’m going to get the big negative out of the way first, as it’s just my personal preference, because the writing is fine. This artist has featured in a lot of series that come out over here in English, and I can’t stand their work every time. They have a heavy fanservice style, and tend to use the same poses. Basically, skip the art. Other than that, I enjoyed this a great deal. As I said, Shannon is very likeable. If she’d actually acted morose and depressed, the way the title suggests, this book would be unbearable. Instead, she’s well aware of the near-impossibility of her task, and is perfectly fine, while she’s searching, with helping people out every now and then… provided, of course, that helping them out might lead to a new way for her to be killed. Not to spoil the premise, but at the end of this volume, Shannon does not, in fact, die. The search continues.

Unfortunately for Shannon, it’s been two years since her last volume. Still, if she ever does come back, I’ll happily keep her company on her wandering journey. (not you, Eliana.)

Manga the Week of 2/12/25

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SEAN: It’s the week of Valentine’s Day, and a reminder that you should be very careful what manga you give your partner. Check their tastes!

Three print volumes for Airship, as we see Adachi and Shimamura: Short Stories, There’s No Freaking Way I’ll be Your Lover! Unless… 6, and True Love Fades Away When the Contract Ends 2.

And in early digital we get Loner Life in Another World 11 and The Strange Adventure of a Broke Mercenary 10.

Cross Infinite World stuns us all by releasing a digital series away from the last day of the month. Love & Magic Academy: Who Cares about the Heroine and Villainess? I Want to Be the Strongest in this Otome Game World (Renai Mahou Gakuin: Heroine mo Akuyaku Reijou mo Kankeinai. Ore wa Otome Game Sekai de Saikyou wo Mezasu) is a light novel for those who wondered what a male Yumiella from Villainess Level 99 would be like. Though perhaps not quite as weird as Yumiella.

Ghost Ship has The Hungry Succubus Wants to Consume Him 2.

J-Novel Club has three print releases: Ascendance of a Bookworm Manga Arc 2 Volume 9, Infinite Dendrogram 21, and the 6th Tearmoon Empire manga.

ASH: I really should try the manga adaptations of Ascendance of a Bookworm and Tearmoon Empire at some point; I’ve enjoyed their counterparts!

SEAN: J-Novel Club’s digital debut is Mercedes and the Waning Moon: The Dungeoneering Feats of a Discarded Vampire Aristocrat (Kaketa Tsuki no Mercedes: Kyuuketsuki no Kizoku ni Tenseishita kedo Suteraresou nano de Dungeon wo Seihasuru) had its manga debut two weeks ago, and here’s the light novel. A young woman knows that once her father picks a successor she’ll be abandoned, so knows what to do: dungeon crawl.

Also from J-Novel Club: The Banished Former Hero Lives as He Pleases 4, By the Grace of the Gods 15, A Cozy Life in the Woods with the White Witch 2, the 4th The Reincarnation of the Strongest Exorcist in Another World manga, and the 12th The Unwanted Undead Adventurer manga.

Kodansha Manga has one print debut: Fall In Love, You False Angels (Koiseyo Mayakashi Tenshi-domo), a shoujo manga from Dessert by the author of Hoteri Hotette First Kiss. A beautiful “perfect” girl is chosen to be class president, and her vice-president is a handsome “perfect” guy. Except she’s secretly a martial artist, and hiding her true face behind a mask. Is he the same? Wait, isn’t this Kare Kano for the new generation?

MICHELLE: In fact, the blurb on Amazon references Kare Kano, too!

ANNA: I mean, I did enjoy most of Kare Kano.

ASH: And I do have a soft spot for secret martial artists…

SEAN: Also in print: The Fable Omnibus 6, Grand Blue Dreaming 21, Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms 10, and Pass the Monster Meat, Milady! 7.

Digitally we get Gang King 26, Giant Killing 47, I Have a Crush at Work 8, Nina the Starry Bride 14, Parasyte Reversi 3, That Beauty Is a Tramp 4, With You and the Rain 7, and Yozakura Quartet 32.

MICHELLE: Woo, Giant Killing.

ANNA: Yay for Nina the Starry Bride!

SEAN: One Peace Books has the 3rd volume of Kurokiya-san Wants to Lead Him Around by the Nose.

Seven Seas has a bunch of debuts. Choking on Love (Museru Kurai no Ai wo Ageru) is a shoujo manga from Dessert. A straight-laced graphic designer. A free-spirit musician. Can they get along? Can they find love?

MICHELLE: I’m guessing they can.

ASH: A musician and a “chaotic encounter at a ramen shop” — yeah, that’s absolutely something that I’d give a try.

SEAN: I Want to Escape from Princess Lessons (Hikyouiku kara Nigetai Watashi) is a shoujo manga based on the light novel released by J-Novel Club, and it runs in Comic Pash!. A woman who’s been trained to the point of abuse for ten years to be a royal finds her fiance with another woman and immediately breaks the engagement, runs away from home, and flees to a far-off piece of the middle of nowhere. Sadly for her, her love interest is a shoujo love interest circa 2006. She’ll NEVER get away…

ANNA: Rooting for her!

SEAN: King the Land is a webtoon Korean manwha inspired by a K-drama, and thus really far outside my wheelhouse. Two childhood friends are ripped apart by tragedy. Now it’s years later, and all there is is bitterness.

ANNA: I watched part of the drama but didn’t make it through the full season.

SEAN: The Too-Perfect Saint: Tossed Aside by My Fiancé and Sold to Another Kingdom (Kanpeki Sugite Kawaigeganai to Konyaku Hakisareta Seijo wa Ringoku ni Urareru) is the manga version of the light novel Seven Seas has already released. It runs in Comic Gardo.

In danmei news, Seven Seas has Case File Compendium: Bing An Ben 4.

ASH: I am sadly behind in most of my danmei reading.

SEAN: Also from Seven Seas: A Certain Scientific Railgun 19, Crossplay Love: Otaku x Punk 11, Even Though We’re Adults 10 (the final volume), Gravitation: Collector’s Edition 4, The Lady and Her Butler 3, Sheep Princess in Wolf’s Clothing 5 (the final volume), Stay By My Side After the Rain 3, and Tomo-chan is a Girl! Omnibus 2.

MICHELLE: I hope to read Even Though We’re Adults in one swell foop (sic), now that it’s complete.

ASH: Looks like that’s what I’ll be doing, too!

SEAN: Somehow I missed that Square Enix had their Perfect Editions of Soul Eater and Soul Eater Not! both end this week until just now, so they should have been on last week’s list. Yet another reason to never trust me. Vol. 17 and 3, respectively.

ASH: The reprints do look pretty snazzy.

SEAN: In titles actually out next week, there’s The Otaku Love Connection (Otaku mo Koi mo Rensa suru), a shoujo manga from Gangan Pixiv. A guy is perfectly happy to ship the gorgeous couple of his class, but for all his shipping desires he never realizes the attention he gets himself.

We also get Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?! 13 and My Isekai Life 17.

ASH: I’m still enjoying Cherry Magic!, though I do have some catching up to do.

SEAN: A debut from SuBLime: Palace of the Omega (Kouguu no Omega), an omegaverse title from Cheri+. A prince is not only 13th in line for the throne, but also – the horror! The shame! – an omega, so he’s married off to another kingdom. Then he finds his husband is… not spoiling the manga in the blurb for once. I hate it when husbands do that.

Tokyopop has been piling on lately, and we get three MORE debuts next week. A Lovestruck Cat Wants to Be Petted (Koisuru Neko wa Naderaretai) is a one-shot BL title from Comic Marginal. A cat has a crush on the pet shop owner. Then… he suddenly becomes human?!

The Margrave’s Daughter & the Enemy Prince (Urareta Henkyou Haku Reijou wa Ringoku no Outaishi ni Dekiaisareru) is a josei title from COMIC ROOM. A tomboy princess who wants to lead men in battle rather than deal with royalty finds her kingdom taken over and her father killed. Now she’s been “given” to the enemy prince… but it’s fine. She’ll get her revenge.

ANNA: Rooting for her too!!!!

ASH: Likewise!

SEAN: White Liar is a one-shot BL title from LiQulle. A jaded hairdresser has vowed never to fall in love. But then he meets an up and coming actor…

MICHELLE : Hm.

SEAN: Tokyopop also has the 3rd volume of Boys Gilding the Lily Shall Die!?.

Viz’s debut is Pokémon: Scarlet & Violet, a sequel to Sword and Shield. It runs in Corocoro Ichiban!.

Also from Viz: Akane-banashi 10, Fly Me to the Moon 27, Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End 12, Hayate the Combat Butler 45, I Wanna Do Bad Things with You 4, I Want to End This Love Game 5, My Hero Academia 40, and Sakura, Saku 6.

MICHELLE: It has literally been five years now since I reviewed a volume of My Hero Academia. Now that it’s drawing to a close, I should probably get back on it.

SEAN: And that’s it, as Yen Press must wait till next week. Till then, who’s your true love?

ASH: Could it be… manga? (Or maybe sleep…)

Tearmoon Empire, Vol. 14

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By Nozomu Mochitsuki and Gilse. Released in Japan as “Tearmoon Teikoku Monogatari” by TO Books. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Madeleine Willette.

One thing I appreciate about Tearmoon Empire is that, unlike a lot of other current light novel series, it’s not really trying to be a mystery – or at least, not a mystery where the reader is supposed to figure things out. All of the things that are going to be happening a hundred pages from now are helpfully signposted before we get there, and even when Mia doesn’t really figure something out someone else does (Rina has been a godsend for this series, as she’s allowed to be the bitter cynic Mia can’t be). And, most importantly, the answer to every “how on earth could this happen” is always the same answer: it’s those Chaos Serpents again. Indeed, this time we get a woman who’s been a Chaos Serpent for a very long time as the main villain of this volume, and she’s not only out to destroy Mia’s alliance but she has a grudge against Mia personally… as well as the girl who looks a LOT like Mia’s grandmother.

We pick up with the plot we started in the last book, as Mia has created a horsemanship tournament to try to help Ruby get our of her arranged marriage… and possibly to get Vanos some glory so that Ruby’s crush is more likely to actually appeal to her father. Naturally things don’t quite go the way Mia planned… but honestly, they mostly do, and while Ruby still can’t quite work up the nerve to confess, for the most part it’s a happy ending. Unfortunately, there’s no happy ending in Tearmoon Empire that can’t be erased by the next arc, as Bel comes by with shocking news… Ludwig’s future diary says that Mia is going to be betrayed by… Sapphias! This is baffling, as any reader who remembers Sapphias… which may not be many, to be fair… will recall he’s firmly in Mia’s corner. What’s going on here?

Much as I’ve talked about Mia’s character growth in the books as we’ve moved along, I do appreciate that she can sometimes be caught absolutely flat-footed, as she is here with the identity of the latest Chaos Serpent traitor. It’s pure coincidence that Mia’s love of weird mushrooms just happened to vibe with Citrina’s “oh, those are basically used for confessions” knowledge to save the day. Mia’s real skills, which she’s always had but have been honed over these books, are improvisation – the narrative calls it “riding the wave”, but that’s a talent a lot of people just don’t have – and her increased empathy, as honed by the guillotine. Mia may have been ignorant of the Serpent plot here, but her goals for the cooking party – get closer to Sapphias’ fiancee, then try to work things out without accusations or violence – shows she may actually be a very good politician as an adult almost despite herself. It’s no longer “her selfish cowardice was misunderstood by everyone”.

I enjoyed this volume so much I will forgive the one or two mild fat jokes I spotted near the start. Hopefully next time Mia can finally solve the problem of her grandmother, who is desperately sad but can’t show it because of abusive indoctrination. That said, Tearmoon is (mostly) lighthearted, so hopefully the solution won’t be as bad as the end of Book 11.

Meals Made to Order: How to Domesticate Your Dragon with Delicacies!

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By Yoneori and LINO. Released in Japan as “Misuterareta Ikenie Reijou wa Senyou Skill “Otoriyose” de Jaryuu wo Ezukesuru” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Alexandra Owen-Burns.

This is one of those titles that feels like a much better read when you realize it’s complete in one volume. Admittedly, I’ve said that before and then been startled with a Vol. 2 popping up a year or so later, but there’s no ‘1’ on the cover or the copyright, so I feel I can treat it as a standalone. Which is good, as the main issue with this volume is that it had a tendency to get a bit boring. If I was supposed to want to read more of this story, I’m not sure that I’d want to get the next book in the series. But as a stand-alone, it does its job. Abused child who slowly realizes how abused she is and overcomes it. Found family out the wazoo. No real romance per se (notice it’s not a J-Novel Heart imprint book), instead concentrating purely on our heroine escaping a bad situation and finding herself in a much better one.

Francheska is in a very familiar position at the start of this book. Her father hates her, her mother is dead, her stepmother loathes her, and her sister has seduced her fiancee (the prince) and is now pregnant with his child. So, after years of training to be royalty, she is instead going to be sacrificed to a dragon, something that happens every fifty years or so. And she’s better be grateful, the little bitch. A VERY familiar position, especially if you read this genre on the regular, as I do. See, she (groan) doesn’t have a good skill. She has mana off the charts, can teleport, do fire and water magic, etc… but who cares, she doesn’t have a special whosis. Or rather, she does but no one knows what it is. Then the shock of all this awakens (groan) her memories from Japan… and it turns out her skill is ordering food online with free delivery.

Which, I have news for you, we’ve ALSO seen in another light novel before this. Except he at least had access to an Amazon expy, Francheska is limited to food. In any case, once she gets past the murderous monsters that have been killing every sacrifice (by using her magic), things look up. The dragon turns out not to eat anyone, and while he’s a bit grumpy, he’s mostly pretty nice, and handsome once he turns sort-of human for her. She meets various mythical spirits, who turn out to not be so mythical. The job of everyone else in the cast is to reassure Francheska that she has value and that it’s OK to value herself. The goal of the book is to tell us about what the cast are eating, in long, lingering detail. It’s pretty good at both of those.

If you didn’t order this already, I’m not sure I’d tell you to get it, unless you’re a disgraced noble completist. If you got it and read it, though, I don’t think anyone will regret it. It’s decent. And she lives happily ever after eating lots of food with her incredibly powerful friends on their remote island nowhere near her abusive family. (Except granddad. Sorry, granddad.)

Invaders of the Rokujouma!?, Vol. 46

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By Takehaya and Poco. Released in Japan as “Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!?” by HJ Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Warnis.

This series has a lot of influences, of course, but I have to wonder if one of them might have been Mahou Sensei Negima. A series that famously started when Ken Akamatsu wanted to write a shonen battle manga but his publisher told him to do another fanservicey harem comedy, he ended up tricking them by starting off as a harem and then gradually over the course of the series moving it to a battle manga anyway. Takehaya may also be thinking along those lines, though I don’t know if they’re getting any pressure from Hobby Japan. This is a series that started off as a mishmash of genres, but above all it was a comedy harem series, and most of its action revolves around a bunch of girls trying to win over a clueless guy. Now, 48 volumes later, the girls are all banding together to potentially sacrifice their own life just to make sure that he doesn’t have to have a mental breakdown by fighting in a long, drawn-out war. It’s just a BIT different.

Maxfern has come up with a clever plan. (Well, not really, Maxfern has behaved like a cartoon villain, but there is, at least, a plan.) Everyone knows that the brains behind the giant polycule that is the Blue Knight’s allies are Kiriha, Clan and Ruth. As a result, killing them off would not only devastate him but also get rid of all of their schemers and planners at once! It just so happens that they’re all flying to a conference by themselves, so it’s the perfect opportunity! The Grey Knight seems a bit more doubtful, but he hasn’t done anything lately! Strike while the iron is hot! It’s just, um, they are going up against three women known for being clever. it’s just POSSIBLE that they’re the ones walking into a trap.

Sorry for spoiling the early reveal, but I don’t count it as a spoiler if you can figure it out immediately: Kiriha, Clan and Ruth planned this, without telling Koutarou, in order to try to scope out Maxfern’s position and hopefully shorten the time needed to wage war. There is a brief moment when they’re in actual danger, but for the most part we’re not too worried. I suspect far more dangerous things will happen in the next book, which promises to be more Grey Knight-focused. Oh yes, and technically Koutarou proposes. Well, not really. He’s manipulated into saying he wants to spend the rest of his life with the girls. But they take it as a big victory. So there’s still a BIT of romcom to this. But for the most part this is another relatively serious volume, as it has been ever since Maxfern’s takeover. I think the humor is being saved for the short story books.

Surprisingly, we get a third book in a row with actual plot next time. Perhaps the author is trying to wrap things up with vol. 50? Till then, if you haven’t read any of this series to date, Vol. 46 is definitely not the one to start with.

Pick of the Week: Yona Meets the Horrors

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SEAN: The obvious choice, Pet Shop of Horrors, was not my bag back in the day. So I’ll go for Yona of the Dawn. It’s never a bad time to pick Yona.

MICHELLE: I am definitely excited about Pet Shop of Horrors, but I might actually be more excited about the conclusion to Usotoki Rhetoric. I liked this low-key historical mystery series, and look forward to seeing how it ends.

ASH: Debut-wise, I’m looking forward to giving Pet Shop of Horrors a try and so will make it my official pick. I missed the series the first time around but know many people who remember it fondly.

ANNA: I’m glad that Pet Shop of Horrors is back in print, but I’ll always pick Yona of the Dawn if given a chance!

KATE: I’m excited to see a new edition Pet Shop of Horrors; the young’uns need to know what their elders were reading back in the day!

The Reincarnator and the Goblin Maiden’s Happily Ever After: Using a Past Life to Keep a Joyful Wife, Vol. 2

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By Shinten-Shinchi and Tokima. Released in Japan as “Goblin Reijō to Tensei Kizoku ga Shiawase ni Naru Made: Konyakusha no Tame no Zense Chishiki no Jōzu na Tsukaikata” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America by J-Novel Heart. Translated by Geirrlon Dunn.

So this book, like the first one, is overall a good, solid volume, and I really like some of the character work within, as well as some of the writing choices. Unfortunately, as with the first book, some of the writing choices made me want to claw my hair out. I’ve talked before about a lot of shoujo light novel titles starting with an “eat your vegetables” section, where we have to see the low ebb of our heroine before we get to the good stuff. In this book, the vegetables are the main course, and the middle third of the book is just a never-ending stream of me screaming at the male lead “GODDAMMIT, DO NOT DO THIS, YOU DUMBASS!” Spoiler: he does it. In fact, not really even much of a spoiler, as it’s one of the scenes chosen for color pages. Fortunately, the wraparound makes it worth the slog. Just.

Gino and Ana start off the book blissfully happy. She’s grown more confident thanks to having the love of her fiance. He’s dutifully researching the way to find a cure for her curse. The research leads him to lean more strongly towards this world being his own far in the future, rather than an alternate world. The two of them are even able to watch Gino’s tomboyish and somewhat ditzy sister manage to find the fiance who’s right for her, rather than picking whatever appeals to her at that moment. Unfortunately, a chance conversation with Ana’s father, and Ana trying to avoid offending the royal family in public by giving vague answers, leads Gino and Ana to play “I hate myself” and “no, I hate myself more” for the next 120 pages.

I’m going to ignore everything about Gino breaking up with Ana, torpedoing his reputation, and fleeing to a dive bar, as I never want to think about it again. Instead, let’s talk about the good things, most of which are more character than plot driven. For all that I absolutely hated Gino’s choices, the book is very careful to lay out in great detail why his upbringing in his previous life led him to have the kind of mindset that means this was the first thing that came to mind for him. I also loved the fact that, after six months and much anguish, the two are reunited… and Ana begins seeing a therapist, in order to get help from the mental anguish she’d been in. More light novel therapists, that was great! I also loved the scene of Ana at the singles dance, being very carefully railroaded into becoming the first prince’s concubine and even more carefully managing to get out of it. Yes, a lot of it was her mother’s plan, but it was brilliantly executed.

You may have heard me say this before, but here it is again: this book ends with the second volume, except there’s a third. I don’t know if it will be short stories or if it will continue to try to throw our now newlywed couple into annoying situations (please don’t end with them being the King and Queen, I beg of you). That said, I will grit my teeth and read more, because I do enjoy this series. Except when I don’t.

A Late-Start Tamer’s Laid-Back Life, Vol. 12

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By Yuu Tanaka and Nardack. Released in Japan as “Deokure Tamer no Sono Higurashi” by GC Novels. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by A.M. Cola.

These books are always fairly long, but this one didn’t feel that way, mostly as it packed a lot of stuff into its pages. Alyssa even screams at one point about how Yuto keeps accidentally discovering vital, game-changing information every single day, and for the most part it’s not on purpose. (She almost has a complete breakdown when for once he arrives to sell information and says she’ll be shocked. He’s normally so blase.) As usual, we get Yuto gaining a new tamed monster here, and we also get him accessing places no one has been before, going to areas no other players are allowed, and accidentally helping to awaken ancient darkness a lot sooner than the game developers planned. That last, at least, is worrying. Oh, and his celebrity status also helps struggling musicians trying to sell their real life songs as game characters to sell out just because he bought them. It’s a good thing this is so G-rated, or we’d be in trouble.

The first part of the book is mostly Yuto doing Yuto things, like having his tamed monsters evolve in odd ways, planting special fertilizer in his garden to see whether it will lead to fantastic plants (it does), and making Alyssa scream. He also gets help to get to Zone Ten, a huge city which, among other things, has a continuation of a quest he did a while back that leads him to get a new monster… a horse! No, wait, this is Yuto, everything he does is extra, so it’s a super rare Moon Pony. After learning the riding skills necessary to make his new monster (Carro) useful, he then accidentally stumbles into another huge quest just by staying at an inn with nice stables, and this one leads to an NPC whose sword seems to interest a mysterious figure shrouded in black fog. Could this be one of the rumored demons?

I’ve joked before about this being the male Bofuri, but it really, really is. Especially when it comes to its lead characters. Neither Bofuri nor Late-Start Tamer would work if Maple or Yuto were in any way doing this deliberately, or planning it in any way. Likewise, the main reason they aren’t insufferable (well, mostly – Yuto can occasionally make you roll your eyes) is that they’re such ditzes. Seeing Yuto still – STILL – unaware of his own reputation and playstyle, as he stuns Alyssa over and over again and accidentally turns a minor music festival by poor artists into a huge moneymaking thing by just… wandering by and seeing his cute monsters get into the music. And I mean, come on. If I was into death metal and I saw that it had cute adorable creatures headbanging to it, I might get a copy as well. The power of cute is strong.

But is the power of cute strong enough to stop whatever this new event is, one that seems to have NPCs interacting with each other only for the benefit of the reader? For those who wish Bofuri was about a bishy guy but otherwise exactly the same.

My Happy Marriage, Vol. 8

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By Akumi Agitogi and Tsukiho Tsukioka. Released in Japan as “Watashi no Shiawase na Kekkon” by Fujimi L Bunko. Released in North America Yen On. Translated by David Musto.

I seem to have run into an awful lot of short story collection volumes lately. This is another one, as after finally getting to the ‘happy’ and ‘marriage’ part of the title, Miyo and Kiyoka are taking the time to have some leisurely microstories that were online web exclusives, or else more serious titles written for this volume specifically. You can probably guess what I’m going to be talking about the most. Still, overall it’s a good, solid volume, with a tragic flashback at the start followed by some romantic schmaltz. There is a suggestion we may get a darker present-day story later on, but even that ends up being a romantic schmaltz sort of thing. Which is great, frankly. I’ve been complaining forever about the fact that these volumes are too damn dark, particularly in the last one, and it’s nice to just see these two do things like accidentally get drunk, or get scared by a thunderstorm and a power outage. Couple goals.

The first story is written for this volume, and takes up almost half the book on its own. It’s a flashback showing Kiyoka’s college years, as he struggles between his powers and the destiny everyone wants him to grasp and his own dreams of being a research nerd. We then get a series of microstories arranged in a chapter, showing things that happened when Kiyoka was sick (mostly Hazuki fangirling over Miyo), Miyo showing off her skill at cooking and distracting Kiyoka from work, Miyo accidentally getting drunk by eating a liquor-laced sweet, in the best anime tradition; etc. The other story written for this collection has our happy couple staying at the main estate for a bit, only to have to deal with a moody Fuyu, who is upset over a broken gift from her husband. We then get a second series of microstories, which is actually mostly one story, showing Kiyoka and his subordinates going out to drink and running into Kazushi.

Every story with a strong, powerful spirit-user who always seems in control and together needs a doomed mentor somewhere in its backstory to explain how he got that way, and it’s now My Happy Marriage’s turn. It’s easily the best story in the book, showing how sometimes tragedies are not really the fault of one person, but also that sometimes, yes, the fault can indeed be spread around. And, honestly, it also shows that this is the sort of world where it’s for the best that Kiyoka did NOT become a research nerd. His mentor, Itsuto, is exactly what you’d expect the moment I said “doomed mentor”, but that’s not a bad thing. The other original story has a lot of Miyo and Kiyoka being adorable (and almost having wake-up sex, but they’re interrupted), but it’s also about interpretation. Kiyoka sees his father as controlling his mother and spying on her every move, while Miyo sees the fact that his mother is aware of it as meaning the gesture is about protection and love. Both interpretations are, in a way, correct – Kiyoka’s family is pretty messed up – but it’s clear Miyo is the best thing that could ever have happened to Kiyoka,

The 9th book in the series is scheduled but not out yet in Japan, so it will be a while till we get more. Despite being a short story collection, every fan of the series should enjoy this.

Sasaki and Peeps: The Gang Heads to School and Ends Up in a Friendly Little Romcom ~Who Will Get Their Hands on True Love?~

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By Buncololi and Kantoku. Released in Japan as “Sasaki to Pi-chan” by Media Factory. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Alice Prowse.

(This review discusses the dialogue in Sasaki and Peeps 8, which uses several sexual slang terms, and I mention them towards the end. Be warned.)

This is my own fault, I suppose. Last time I suggested that the middle part of the volume was a bit boring, and I said that Sasaki and Peeps was at its best when it was ridiculous rather than down to earth. Given this volume takes place at Kurosu’s school, I was perhaps not overly optimistic. Oh, foolish past me! This is easily the most off-the-rails volume of the series to date. I’ve also talked before about how the series is a harem series that doesn’t really have its lead be interested in anyone, and that’s done away with here as well. Sasaki manages to have a libido. When you add to this horny middle school students, numerous people being paid or threatened to act as “honey traps”, and a truth serum that also doubles as an aphrodisiac, and you have all sorts of no. On the bright side, at least for me, this volume is easily the shippiest he’s gotten with Futarishizuka, who, in age and compatibility, is Best Girl.

Type Twelve wants to experience school life so she can learn about humanity – and, in particular, she wants to learn about love. So they fake her family register, change her name to Twelve Sasaki, and she transfers into Kurosu’s school. Along with Sasaki, her new math teacher. And Futarishizuka, her new English teacher. And two of the other new teachers are Mason and Inukai, the ones working with the magical girl. Oh yes, and the magical girl they’re working with also transfers in. Naturally, with so many World’s Most Wanted girls in one location, every single enemy sends their minions to kidnap Twelve, kidnap Kurosu, kill Sasaki, etc. And that’s not even counting the pink magical girl, who as always, wants to kill all psychics.

There’s quite a bit of death and gore in this book, mostly due to the magical girl, who is here to kill psychics and chew bubblegum and she’s all out of bubblegum. the final scene with her and Futarishizuka is actually very sweet, and possibly the nicest Futarishizuka has ever been. Kurosu, aka neighbor girl, also gets a much larger role than usual, though for once she’s too busy being the straight man (and tsundere, as Twelve correctly notes) to try to get into Sasaki’s pants much. Unlike many other women in this series, who are trying to seduce him for money, because their parents are being threatened, or because all their inhibitions are down. And then there’s Type Twelve, who is the reason that I think this book needs a bit more of a content warning than other books. She’s trying to figure out human love, and is very good at making boys her “simps” – but when she gets an actual confession, and uses truth serum to verify it, things go bad fast – and we find out that Kurosu’s classroom is a hotbed of sexually active teens. In addition to simp, ‘fuckboy’ is used here, and there’s also mentions of spanking and anal sex, though only in conversation, not in actual content. Basically, teens are horny and awful.

Fortunately, this seems to have stopped Twelve wanting to learn what gangbangs are (oh yes, that’s mentioned as well). She now wants to drop out of school. Where to next? We shall see. Honestly, I would not mind going back to isekai world for a while, which seems a bit less unhinged. Till then, boy, this will be fun if ever animated.