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The Hero and the Sage, Reincarnated and Engaged, Vol. 2

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By Washiro Fujiki and Heiro. Released in Japan as “Eiyū to Kenja no Tensei Kon: Katsute no Kōtekishu to Konyaku Shite Saikyō Fūfu ni Narimashita” by HJ Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Joey Antonio.

It can be very difficult to combine comedic stuff with serious stuff in the same series, and frequently the balance is off in some way or another. That’s why I was pleasantly surprised by this second volume of Hero and Sage, which I enjoyed more than the first. For the most part this is content to show our lead couple being ridiculously flirty and at ease with each other, and it’s also not afraid to go full on silly with scenes such as Kristia, the nation’s princess and Eluria’s childhood friend, forcing Raid to participate in a game show to determine who loves her best. But it also has a serious core, as the two of them are trying to work out why she died in the past and who is trying to kill her in the present. And then there’s the entire subplot with Lufus, which is almost all serious and made me wonder if this fluffy series might actually kill a cute kid off.

After the events of the first book, The Magicians’ Association really, really want to expel Raid, but can’t find a good enough reason to, so he is neither rewarded not punished. That said, there are exams coming up, and they will make sure to make them extra impossible for him to do. In the meantime, those exams will happen with the rest of their core team… including Fareg, whose flunkies are still on medical leave, so he needs to be part of their group. They also meet Lufus, the young redhead who was briefly seen in the first book. She’s very proud of her skysteel dragon, Lafika, but more importantly, she can apparently summon four Guardian dragons, which is very unusual. In fact, a bit too unusual. And when Raid and Eluria discover Lufus’ mother is Very Disappointed with her, they realize that things may be more dangerous and potentially tragic than they expected.

I mentioned in my review of the first book that Eluria’s new best friend Millis is comic relief – she even calls herself comic relief – so I was relieved to see that, appropriately, that’s not ALL she is. When she busts out her inscribing skills halfway through the book I was waiting for the punchline, but no, it’s just something that a lot of college kids have dealt with: just because you’re fantastic at something doesn’t mean you want it to be your career. Millis wants to be a magician. And from what we see in the exam, she’s very good at it (after having the crap beaten out of her by Raid and Eluria as part of training). Likewise, Kristia is introduced as a big goofy joke, which lasts just long enough to be funny and then is replaced with an interesting revelation and also shows us how much of this is a deliberate act. This is what I meant by the comedy and drama being well balanced.

The cliffhanger is 100% making me thing “child from the future”, but that’s the third book’s problem. In the meantime, this book is fun and cute – mostly.

A Surprisingly Happy Engagement for the Slime Duke and the Fallen Noble Lady, Vol. 3

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By Mashimesa Emoto and Kasumi Nagi. Released in Japan as “Slime Taikō to Botsuraku Reijō no Angai Shiawase na Konyaku” by HJ Novels. Released in North America by J-Novel Heart. Translated by Minna Lin.

I get the feeling there’s another story that we’re missing here, especially towards the end. I remember when I was reading Accomplishments of the Duke’s Daughter and we took two books to learn about her mother’s backstory. Maybe we need that sort of thing here, because all of a sudden Slime Duke is feeling like a sequel series to the main one that starred Adele, a villainess who was shunned by her fiancee and moved to another kingdom, only for the Emperor’s son to fall in love with her. Then we get this series, which is about what happened to the main character’s younger sister, who was always worried about but never actually seen in the main series. Now, as far as I know that’s not what actually happened, I think this is indeed the main series. But it also possibly explains why I’ve found this series a bit mid-tier when it comes to Japanese romances, especially Japanese romances with slimes. Best duck romance, though.

It’s time for Gabriel and Francette’s wedding, and we spend the entire book getting there. There are two main worries. First, they want her wedding dress to have fancy pearls, and unfortunately the country that gave everyone fancy pearls is having a shortage due to the royal relatives being toxic jerks. So the two of them decide to try and make their own pearls in Gabriel’s land… but this proves easier said than done. Secondly, Francette’s mother and sister will be coming to the wedding, and she’s very worried about finally seeing them, especially since she really did not tell them “by the way, I’m now living in poverty in a slum”, which is where she was at the start of the series. Fortunately, their reunion works out. Unfortunately, we then get a wacky sibling switch leading to a less wacky kidnapping.

I’m used to dealing with heroines with a sense of self-esteem so low it’s on the floor, but this is a rare series where the entire family suffers from this problem. Everyone is very quick to credit everyone else for all the solutions to life’s problems. That said, those crediting Francette are more right than others, as she really pulls off a lot here. That said, the solution on how to make the pearls is one that I was expecting to be the FIRST thing they tried, so it felt a bit underwhelming to come up with it after exhausting everything else. Second, we get a second absentee dad, though at least the series tries to explain how it’s walking a fine line between “they should be allowed to love life the way they want” and “that doesn’t mean they’re forgiven”. And, as noted, I want to read Adele’s story. And Emilia’s, to be honest. Probably more than Francette’s.

This is the final volume, so well done. At least we’ll always have the attack duck.

Manga the Week of 11/20/24

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SEAN: November continues to be Almost Christmas.

ASH: So close and yet so far away.

SEAN: Airship has a print bonanza, as we see The Case Files of Jeweler Richard 9, The Condemned Villainess Goes Back in Time and Aims to Become the Ultimate Villain 3, Loner Life in Another World 10, Survival in Another World with My Mistress! 7, and Too Many Losing Heroines! 2.

ASH: Always love a plethora of print.

SEAN: And the early digital releases are Reincarnated Into a Game as the Hero’s Friend: Running the Kingdom Behind the Scenes 3 and The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash 8.

I missed this last week, so already out is The Complete Poe Clan: The ’70s from Fantagraphics, a repackaging of the two hardcover releases in a nice box. Highly recommended for any student of manga.

ASH: Oh! I had missed that, too! I love that this series is available in English.

ANNA: Ooh, I think I got the first volume but not the second.

SEAN: Ghost Ship gives us 2.5 Dimensional Seduction 12 and Ero Ninja Scrolls 7

For mature Seven Seas titles, there’s a debut, The Second Alpha (2ban-me no Alpha), a BL title from Be x Boy Omegaverse. (Should I classify Omegaverse as BL, or is it a separate genre by now?) A man finds his destined omega, and they have sex after said omega goes into heat. Unfortunately, said omega is also married?

ASH: It’s definitely its own sub-genre at the very least.

SEAN: We also see Remnants of Filth: Yuwu 5.

J-Novel Club has 3 print titles: Hell Mode: The Hardcore Gamer Dominates in Another World with Garbage Balancing 6, My Instant Death Ability Is So Overpowered, No One in This Other World Stands a Chance Against Me! 6, and Reborn to Master the Blade: From Hero-King to Extraordinary Squire 4.

Debuting digitally from J-Novel Club is Dimension Wave, from the creator of Shield Hero but apparently far less emo. A young man’s sisters win a ticket to the debut of a popular VRMMO, and give one to him. But he’s been tricked – his character is a girl! Oh well – it’s time to fish and enjoy the slow life.

J-Novel Club also gives us Butareba -The Story of a Man Turned into a Pig 5, Dagashi-ya Yahagi: Setting Up a Sweets Shop in Another World 2, From Desk Job to Death Beam: In Another World with My Almighty Lasers 2, From Two-Bit Baddie to Total Heartthrob: This Villainess Will Cross-Dress to Impress! 2, Haibara’s Teenage New Game+ 7, I’m a Noble on the Brink of Ruin, So I Might as Well Try Mastering Magic 4, Peddler in Another World: I Can Go Back to My World Whenever I Want! 9, the 3rd The Reincarnation of the Strongest Exorcist in Another World manga volume, and Zilbagias the Demon Prince: How the Seventh Prince Brought Down the Kingdom 3.

ASH: That’s a decent amount.

SEAN: Kaiten Books has a digital volume, Loner Life in Another World 11.

No debuts for Kodansha. In print, we see Grand Blue Dreaming 20, Suzume 2, To Your Eternity 21, and Vampire Dormitory 12.

ASH: I’ve been collecting To Your Eternity but need to make the point to actually catch up on reading it.

SEAN: Digitally we see And Yet, You Are So Sweet 10, Hozuki’s Coolheadedness 23, Lightning and Romance 6, Parasyte Reversi 2, and You’re My Cutie 9.

From One Peace Books we see Parallel World Pharmacy 6.

Seven Seas debuts a manhua based on a danmei novel, but for once it doesn’t seem to be supernatural. I Ship My Rival x Me stars two actors who find that A03 is doing some RL shipping of them! (OK, it’s probably not explicitly AO3.) Are the shippers onto something?

ASH: Could be!

SEAN: We also see Yes, No, or Maybe? (Yes ka No ka Hanbun ka), the manga adaptation of the BL light novel also released by Seven Seas. It runs in Dear+.

ASH: I feel like I read that one; did I read that one?

SEAN: Also from Seven Seas: Citrus+ 6, Gravitation: Collector’s Edition 3, The Ideal Sponger Life 17, The Lady and Her Butler 2, Re-Living My Life with a Boyfriend Who Doesn’t Remember Me 2, and Reborn as a Barrier Master 7.

Square Enix debuts Dragon and Chameleon (Ryuu to Cameleon), a Gangan Joker title. A veteran manga artist ends up switching bodies with a bitter, untalented rookie. Now he’s got to work his way back up to the summit.

ASH: Hate when that happens.

ANNA: It sounds complicated!

SEAN: Also from Square Enix: Just Like Mona Lisa 3 and The Villainess’s Guide to (Not) Falling in Love 3.

Steamship has a 2nd volume of Alpha Wolfgirl x Omega Wolfboy.

Tokyopop debuts a villainess light novel that spawned the manga they’ve already been releasing, Her Royal Highness Seems to Be Angry (Oujo Denka wa Oikari no You desu). A talented young woman, after losing her family to war, takes her own life… and wakes up a thousand years later in the body of a pathetic villainess type who’s being cheated on. What’s worse, the magic 1000 years later is TERRIBLE.

There’s also an award-winning one shot, A Smart and Courageous Child (Kashikokute Yuuki Aru Kodomo), which ran in Torch. A young couple are happily awaiting their child, when suddenly, days from birth, the mother hears about the assassination attempt of Malala Yousafzai and goes into shock. Can her husband be there for her? This is an experimental manga with rave reviews.

ASH: A well-received experimental manga, you say?

ANNA: Alright!

SEAN: This Reincarnated Countess Is Trying to Escape From Her Prince (Tensei Hakushaku Reijo wa Oji-sama kara Nigedashitai) is a manga based on an as yet unlicensed light novel. A princess awakens to her past Japanese memories, and realizes she’s got a horribly tragic and awful life ahead if she marries the prince. Solution: Don’t marry the prince. HOWEVER…

They’ve also got Let’s Eat Together, Aki and Haru 2.

Debuting from Udon is Ottoman: Henshin Hero Husband, a Weekly Young Jump title. A salaryman is infected by an alien… but that’s OK, as his wife is in danger from the forces of evil! He and the alien will have to join forces to win.

Udon also has My Stepmom’s Daughter Is My Ex 2.

Viz Media debuts After God, an Ura Sunday title about a young woman who gets caught up in the God-Killing Institute’s machinations. (Note: Gods are evil aliens here, think Titans and the like.)

ASH: I’m curious about this one. That cover is very striking.

SEAN: Also from Viz: Asadora! 8, Battle Royale: Enforcers 2, Gokurakugai 3, Hirayasumi 3, Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt 22, Trillion Game 2, and Twin Star Exorcists 32.

Two debuts from Yen On. Festival of Heresies is a book that I can find almost no information about. It’s a one-shot, but is also the first in the “Sasaki Agency” series. It seems to be horror. A young woman can’t tell the living from the dead, and thus has trouble keeping a job. Her worried brother turns to a mysterious agency…

ASH: Speaking of striking covers; I could pretty easily be convinced to read this.

SEAN: In a World of Lies, I Fell into an Unforgettable Love (which I also can find little about) is from the author of Even If This Love Disappears Tonight. It’s one of those “I’m dying, so let me have one last bittersweet teenage love” stories.

Also from Yen On: Classroom for Heroes 3, The Contract Between a Specter and a Servant 3, Days with My Stepsister 4, I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level 15, Ishura 8, Liar Liar 5, Sugar Apple Fairy Tale 7, The Trials of Chiyodaku 2, The Unimplemented Overlords Have Joined the Party! 3, and You Are My Regret 3.

And Yen Press has a pile. Agents of the Four Seasons: Dance of Spring (Shunkashuutou Daikousha – Haru no Mai) is the manga adaptation of the light novel already released by Yen. It runs in LaLa.

MICHELLE: This is the first thing on the list that really made me perk up my ears.

ANNA: Agreed!

SEAN: All or Nothing (Ichika, Bachika) is a one-shot BL title from B’s-LOVEY. Two boys come out and reveal they’re now a couple. And now the other two boys in their friend group are looking at each other and going “hrm”.

Brunhild the Dragonslayer (Ryuugoroshi no Brunhild) is the manga adaptation of the light novel already released by Yen. It runs in Shonen Ace.

Candy: Shou Harusono Art Collection is an artbook from the Sasaki and Miyano creator.

Dracula’s on the Night Shift (Dracula Yakin!) is a one-shot manga that ran in my nemesis, Comic Alive. A vampire who works the graveyard shift at a convenience store comes across a blonde vampire hunter… and now they’re living together?

ANNA: What would happen if Sean’s nemesis Comic Alive was a person, and then they were living together?????

SEAN: …please do not ship me with Comic Alive. This is not Hark! A Vagrant.

mono is a manga from the creator of Laid-Back Camp, and it runs in Manga Time Kirara Carat. Two clubs in danger of shutting down join into one club, and go around taking exciting photographs.

Oshi No Ko also gets an artbook, 1st Illustration Collection: Glare x Sparkle.

Praise Me When I’m a Good Boy (Ii Ko ni Dekitara Hometekure) is a one-shot BL manga from B’s-Lovey Recottia. A submissive teacher whose fiancee just left him tries a dating app, and finds his male dom… is a former student?

The Teen Exorcist (Shounen Onmyouji) is based on an as-yet-unlicensed light novel, and runs in Young Ace. It’s ancient Japan, and our hero, the grandson of Abe no Seimei, wants to surpass him!

The War of Greedy Witches: 32 of the Wickedest Women Duel to the Death (Majo Taisen: 32-nin no Isai no Majo wa Koroshiau) is from the creator of Kakegurui, and runs in Comic Zenon. Do you want a death game tournament battle featuring hot evil women? Starring Jeanne D’Arc? Great news.

Also from Yen: The Abandoned Empress 9 (the final volume), Apocalypse Bringer Mynoghra 2, Associate Professor Akira Takatsuki’s Conjecture 5, Bungo Stray Dogs: The Official Comic Anthology 2, Cheeky Brat 12, Cross-Dressing Villainess Cecilia Sylvie 6, Game of Familia 5, I Cannot Reach You 8, I Want a Gal Gamer to Praise Me 3, I’m Quitting Heroing 7, I’m the Villainess, So I’m Taming the Final Boss 4, In the Land of Leadale 6, K-ON! Shuffle 2, Oshi no Ko 8, What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim? 6 (the final volume), and Why Raeliana Ended Up at the Duke’s Mansion 8.

ASH: Is it a Yen week? It doesn’t seem to be enough for a Yen week.

SEAN: It’s a lot! Are you drowning? Did you bother to read to the end?

To Another World… with Land Mines!, Vol. 1

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By Itsuki Mizuho and Nekobyou Neko. Released in Japan as “Isekai Teni, Jirai Tsuki” by Dragon Novels. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Yen-Po Tseng.

Yeah, I know. So I had a brief gap in my insane reading schedule, and a friend had mentioned this series as one I might be interested in circling back to. I had skipped it in 2022 when it came out as I was trying to cut down on isekai stuff. But I’m a big fan of Management of a Novice Alchemist, by the same author, so I figured why not give it a try. And how is it? Well, that’s an interesting question. I think how you feel about it will depend on your answer to the following: Can something be good and yet very boring? If you say no, by definition boring things are bad, then don’t read this series, please move on to something with lots of cool things happening. If your answer is yes, it can be good, it depends on what the author is trying to do and the nature of what is boring, then I think, like me, you’ll get something out of this.

Another reason that I never read this when it first came out in 2022 is that I thought it was gonna be about someone whose skill is explosive mines, kinda like the godawful Death Beam story. It’s not. The land mines are metaphorical. A bus full of students apparently is in a fatal accident (we only hear about this secondhand) and are now meeting with a self-titled “evil god”, who wants to put them all in another world, no reincarnation necessary, and offers then some cool skills. Nao, our POV character, selects the ‘help’ skill in order to help him choose better… and discovers that some of the cooler sounding skills have lethal consequences! Those aren’t cool skills, they’re land mines! (Hence the title). Now he and his best friends Haruka and Touya are in this new world, and are finding that it’s not quite like the light novels said it was.

So this is sort of a combination of “isekais should be more realistic, let everyone grubbily struggle to survive” books with “if *I* was in an isekai I wouldn’t do all those dumb things that make interesting stories, I’d be smart and rational”. You’d expect that at least one of our main protagonists would be a loose cannon to justify the title, but no, we have smart, sensible Haruka, nebbish generiguy Nao, and hotblooded Touya, and even Touya listens to Haruka and does what she says. They don’t get any weapons, and their magic (Haruka and Nao are elves, Touya is a beastman) is either basic or nonexistent, and needs to be learned. They gather. They experiment. It’s interesting as a thought experiment, and I want to see what happens next, but as a book it struggles. Nao is especially weak right now, and I hope he gains character development.

So if you skipped this when it came out, you can probably keep skipping it. But I enjoyed it enough to want to read another one when my schedule is free again.

Bookshelf Briefs 11/12/24

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Blue Box, Vol. 12 | By Kouji Miura | Viz Media – Of course, I was right. This is the confession volume. But that’s not really a spoiler, because the nature of this book—it’s still half sports, in case anyone has forgotten—is not going to allow it to wrap up here. Indeed, the nature of both their lives and their current living situation means they actually have to hide their budding relationship. Still, just because we know that further complications and torment will be coming along does not mean that we cannot revel in this sweet and earned confession, which ends up being even sooner than either had anticipated thanks to the sort of coincidence that always happens in manga. They’re really good kids, and I’m glad they’re together. Now, let’s have basketball and badminton angst. – Sean Gaffney

The Guy She Was Interested in Wasn’t a Guy at All, Vol. 1 | By Sumiko Arai | Yen Press – The sheer amount of buzz this title got was ridiculous—possibly the most I’ve ever seen for a yuri series—and I am delighted to say that it absolutely lives up to the hype. A trendy high school girl has a crush on the guy who works at her favorite used CD store, who shares her taste in 1990s American rock. What she doesn’t know is that this “guy” is the nerdy girl who sits next to her in class! It’s amazing what a face mask and hoodie can do. Some series play up the handsomeness or beauty of a character and the art never quite captures it. That’s not the case here—Mitsuki is absolutely 100% hot, and you immediately see why Aya falls for her. Add to this the green color scheme, which makes the art pop, and you have a total winner. – Sean Gaffney

Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun, Vol. 15 | By Sorata Akiduki | Yen Press – Given the type of series we are in, it’s not a big surprise that Ryousuke and Miyako are unsure whether they’re dating, even after a confession. As you can imagine, it takes a lot of wacky gags for them to actually get to the “we *are* dating” point. As for the other couples, situation much the same. Seo and Wakamatsu are sorta kinda there, Hori and Kashima have to deal with an accidental first kiss but can’t help but turn every single event of their lives into theater improv, and Sakura… well, Sakura knows that any resolution for her and Nozaki is going to have to wait till the final chapter of the manga, and at the moment the manga doesn’t show a sign of coming to a close. So Sakura is the same Nozaki-centric stalker we know and love. Worth the wait. – Sean Gaffney

My Hero Academia, Vol. 39 | By Kohei Horikoshi | Viz Media – I have made no secret of the fact that I ship Izuku and Ochako. That said, I’m not militant about it, and this volume isn’t for that pairing, despite Ochako literally saying she loves Izuku out loud. No, this is for the Togachako shippers, and oh my God, what a way to go out. Toxic yuri becomes redemptive but still ultimately doomed yuri, it’s as if he read the minds of all the fans as to their favorite AO3 tags. Oh yes, and in case you don’t care about those three, there’s also the Todorokis, who have their own little doomed but redemptive thing going on, as everyone kills themselves (almost literally) trying to apologize at Dabi harder. So much going on it’s hard to remember that we also get All Might’s powered suit, with its attacks based on 1-A hero names. Fantastic. – Sean Gaffney

Otaku Vampire’s Love Bite, Vol. 1 | By Julietta Suzuki | Viz Media – It took a while for me to warm up to this one, as it very much leans hard on the otaku side of the equation at first. This despite the heroine being named “Hina Alucard.” Ironically, whereas a lot of these supernatural series find an innocent human unaware her friend is involved with the supernatural, here Hina is already a vampire, she just doesn’t know that her new best fan friend/possible love interest is already being loved by other vampires and the like. That changes in one scene where one mook tries to kill her off, not realizing that she’s not just ANY vampire. When she points to her feet and says “Now kneel,” I went OK, we’re back, everyone. Definitely want to read more of this, which seems to be very fluffy, as fits its author—with a sharp edge, as fits its author. – Sean Gaffney

Pink & Habanero, Vol. 1 | By Mika Satonaka | Yen Press – Although the premise of this series didn’t immediately grab me, I will pretty much give anything published in Margaret a chance. And it’s true that Pink & Habanero is largely paint-by-numbers shoujo. Mugi Miyao has just started high school and would like a boyfriend. She discovers that the prickly hottie in her class, Kei Kosuke, has a part-time job at a knight café, and subsequently proves to him that she’s a good person by not even considering divulging his secret, leading him to defend her from creeps (twice) and help her make a friend when she’s been struggling to do so. While much of this first volume was predictable, I liked their dynamic, especially that Mugi continues to be forthright in her communication with Kei, heading off tiresome plots built on misunderstandings. I will be back for volume two! – Michelle Smith

Tales of Wedding Rings, Vol. 14 | By Maybe | Yen Press – So much for the victory lap. Well, not true. Nefritis’ first time went swimmingly, and Hime ended up coming along for moral support/extra sexiness. Saphir just isn’t into Satou in that way, so doesn’t care. And Amber is also mostly in the “whatever” category. That leaves Granart, and she is finding that getting across to Satou that she wants the same sexual relationship that he has with Hime and Nefritis is going very badly. She’s simply too aggressive, and attempts to try a softer, more subtle attempt at his heart also fail miserably, leading to her running away in despair. Satou is still not really getting the “harem” part of this harem, to be honest, though I do appreciate that there are wives who are just in it for the politics. That said… in the end, Granart gets what she wants. Ecchi fun. – Sean Gaffney

Tamon’s B-Side, Vol. 5 | By Yuki Shiwasu | Viz Media – Last time I said this wouldn’t get an anime, and whoops! They’ve announced one for next year. This possibly explains why we come close to ending the series with this volume but back away, ending up resetting things after a confession that almost, kinda, but not quite gets through to our heroine who for once isn’t dense about it—she doesn’t WANT to “get it” as it will interfere with the roles she has in her head. That said, if there is an anime the best part will be the comedy and not the romance, as this is still hysterical. At one point Utage gets so excited she jumps THROUGH the ceiling, and in the next panel we see Tamon sponging the blood off her head. Given that Nozaki-kun is not a shoujo book despite appearances, this may be the funniest shoujo running right now. – Sean Gaffney

This Monster Wants to Eat Me, Vol. 2 | By Sai Naekawa | Yen Press – I kinda guessed that there would be more to Miko than it seemed, what with her mysterious absences from school all the time and her possessiveness towards Hinako, but I wasn’t quite sure what sort of monster she would turn out to be. That ends up being the big reveal of the second volume—not that she’s supernatural, but what type. As you can imagine, when you have two very possessive monster girls fighting over the one they love, sparks are going to fly. I do appreciate, though, that the series never gets away from its core premise, which is that Hinako has a lot of suicidal thoughts, and those don’t magically go away when she meets Shiori any more than they do when she met Miko. This is still compelling, and is apparently getting an anime soon. – Sean Gaffney

The Troublesome Guest of Sotomura Detective Agency | By Sakae Kusama | TOKYOPOP – It’s been a long time since I’ve enjoyed a BL one-shot as much as I enjoyed this one. (It took me about halfway through to remember I’d read something else by Sakae Kusama long ago.) Serious and high-strung Kei Matsuda runs a detective agency and when a case brings him back in contact with high school acquaintance and serial freeloader Ryouji Kamiko, the two embark upon a physical relationship that gradually becomes something more. The romance angle is certainly good, but I loved that the cases Matsuda and Kamiko investigate receive even more page time than the steamy scenes and are genuinely interesting. This is one of those times where part of me wishes there were just plain more of a story, even as I concede that the ending here is wholly satisfying. Heartily recommended. – Michelle Smith

A Tale of the Secret Saint, Vol. 7

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By Touya and chibi. Released in Japan as “Tensei Sita Daiseijyo ha, Seijyo Dearuko Towohitakakusu” by Earth Star Novels. Released in North America by Airship. Translated by Kevin Ishizaka. Adapted by Michelle McGuinness.

Sometimes I enjoy a good bit even if it’s obvious. Indeed, sometimes I love it because it’s obvious. And Secret Saint is, let’s face it, a series that runs on comedy, tragic backstories aside. So I have to inform you that I was smiling gleefully all through the main plot of this series, which was a perfect combination of Fia being intuitive and clever based partly on her instinct and partly on her past knowledge, and Fia being a complete dimbulb who has no idea how the world of 300 years later works and doesn’t bother to find out. There’s also an extended scene between the captains which basically serves as an excuse for Desmond to scream for 65 pages or so at the top of his lungs. That said, by the end of the book I had noticed that, despite having supposedly been the start of a brand new arc to move the story forward, not a hell of a lot happened and there were side stories galore.

Fia returns from her extended vacation to find that all the other new knights have met with the King, which is something that happens with all the first-year knights. Fia, having been absent, now has to have her turn. The king, Laurence Nav, looks about as you’d expect. What is perhaps unexpected is that he has THREE court jesters, all of whom take the opportunity to pour scorn on and belittle Fia. Ah ha! This must be one of those tests! It is indeed, and as you’d expect Fia breaks it wide open. After this, the captains all have a meeting to discuss the strange and terrifying events of the last few books – all of which deal with Fia. And then Fia is asked to meet with the current Great Saint, who is supposed to be marrying the king. That should go well. After all, Fia is a knight, not a saint.

So, apologies for giving away the obvious gimmick of this book, one of the jesters is the real king, and the other two are his closest advisors. Fia figures this out due to a combination of 300-year-old knowledge and her magical saint powers, but it’s the way she carries it off that makes this so fun to read. She’s forced to play a poker game that’s really an excuse for the king to wave his secret identity in front of the knights’ faces without giving it away, so is rather upset when Fia, in fact, figures it out and wins in her own way. I really enjoy this sort of Fia, and hope we see more of her in the next book, which I suspect may get a bit Villainess-ey. I admit I’m not as fond of Fia not realizing that her powerful dragon familiar disguising himself as a chibi-version does not really count as a disguise, or once again not understanding that things are very, very different 300 years later. But you can’t have one without the other, really.

I’m not sure when we’ll get Book 8, but I won’t have to wait long to read more about Fia. Or rather, about Serafina. Tales of the Secret Saint’s getting a prequel series, and it’s out soon. Till then, this was fun.

Pick of the Week: Office Romance and Lots of Josei

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SEAN: I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed Sweat & Soap, so I’m thrilled to see a new romance by the same author, even if it’s only a single volume. Home Office Romance is my pick.

MICHELLE: There are quite a few interesting titles out this week! I’m also interested in Home Office Romance, but Sanctify is really calling out to me.

ANNA: My pick this week is all the josei! So much coming out this week!

ASH: Right?? I’m tempted to just say, josei, too. But I’m also very interested in Home Office Romance. (Being only a single volume, it should be difficult to fall behind in reading it!)

The Otome Heroine’s Fight for Survival, Vol. 3

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By Harunori Biyori and Hitaki Yuu. Released in Japan as “Otome Game no Heroine de Saikyō Survival” by TO Books. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Camilla L.

Much as this series seems most of the time to be ignoring the whole otome heroine part of the title in favor of the fight for survival, it never quite forgets about it altogether. There’s always one or two scenes reminding us that not only is Alia supposed to be the “heroine” of this otome game (and has memories that are not hers of life in Japan), but there’s also another minor villainess who is reincarnated – and is terrified of Alia, to the point where its thrown her relationship with the “main” villainess, Elena, off. That said, the next volume of the series would appear to delve more deeply into that plotline, so rest assured it will be relevant soon. But not yet. For this volume is all about Alia’s ability to fight and fight and fight some more, and the various ways she wins against all sorts of enemies and monsters that should be too much for her to handle.

Alia has gotten a bit of a reputation, as we first see her here taking out a team of slavers who’ve been working together for ten years, and she is now known as The Ashen Princess, Lady Cinders. She’s also returning to the city where the first book happened, and running into the same cast, who inform her that there’s an Orc General, 4 Orc Soldiers, and about 50 Orcs who have infiltrated an abandoned village, and they’re on the verge of invading inhabited human cities. It’s time for Alia to do something ludicrous, like take them all on. After this, she’s met by Viro, who has a job offer that she really can’t refuse: kill Graves. Unfortunately, not only has Graves also been training really hard and leveling up since he last tried to kill her, but he’s also brought in a killer panther monster.

The author says that this book is about strength, and that’s certainly true. Alia may not be as strong as the enemies that she’s facing, but to us, the reader, she ludicrously strong – as she is to the residents of that city, as the old blacksmith who gave her her first knife stares in awe at what she’s been doing to wear it out. The author also says this is about “why people and monsters fight”. Alia is very surprised, at the end of the battle between her and the Orc General, when he speaks to her, asking her name and asking why she’s doing this. In that case she has to, as otherwise the human settlement would be destroyed. But later, with the panther monster, she’s more ready to communicate and compromise, and while that doesn’t help with her actual mission – alas, the main villain lives to fight another day – it gets her a friend and familiar. Who is also a killer monster. Even if it sleeps in a cardboard box.

Still full of stats, still full of fights, still strangely compelling. Will definitely read more.

From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman: My Hotshot Disciples Are All Grown Up Now, and They Won’t Leave Me Alone, Vol. 4

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By Shigeru Sagazaki and Tetsuhiro Nabeshima. Released in Japan as “Katainaka no Ossan, Kensei ni Naru: Tada no Inaka no Kenjutsu Shihan Datta noni, Taisei Shita Deshitachi ga Ore o Hōttekurenai Ken” by SQEX Novels. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Hikoki.

What is the audience for this series? Honestly, it’s primarily “people who just like to read light novels”, followed by “people who are curious if the series will ever end with him choosing a girl or will it go poly’. That said, I wonder if there are actually any kendo practitioners who might be reading this, because a lot of this 4th volume seems to be written to those students, telling them not to forget the basics. Well, and also reminding muscleheads trying to teach newcomers that “do everything I did without knowing the reason behind it” is a great way to be a terrible teacher. But just maybe the audience for this series is guys who are Beryl’s age who just like to fantasize about still being able to do all the cool athletic things they could do when they were young. Because once again, Beryl is awesome.

After the events of the last book, Beryl is once again left with some free time, and so Lucy asks him to drop by the magic academy to look at the sword magic course taught by his old student Ficelle. Unfortunately, she’s apparently not the best teacher, so Beryl is asked to come by to see if he can help. Since Mewi is also in this class, Beryl agrees, and finds that Ficelle’s teaching is far to spartan and hardcore. Trying to teach the five kids in the class a little less evilly, while offering advice and words of praise, Beryl not only earns the love of the students but also reminds Ficelle of what she was like when she was a student herself. Unfortunately, not all the faculty is happy to see Beryl, and he’s warned to NEVER GO IN THE BASEMENT. Take a wild guess what the climax of the book is.

I have to admit, this is a lot more meandering than the previous books. You get the sense the author realized that Ficelle is the only former student who they never really circled round and gave more depth, so they wrote a book to fix that. Unfortunately, Ficelle is not only a meathead but a stoic meathead, so it can sometimes be hard to get the character development she desperately needs. The best moment was probably the pat on the head. There’s also a group of students who have “spinoff volume” written all over them, especially the ludicrously genki Cindy, who reeks of the protagonist of some other series. The big dramatic climax of the book is not that great, as it barely gets any setup besides that one annoying teacher. I was, I admit, amused by Beryl achieving the impossible without actually knowing it. Someone needs to get him together with the star of Der Werwolf and have them self-deprecate rap battle.

The next volume’s cover suggests it will be for Yotsuba fans… erm, Curuni, I guess that’s her name. And not Yotsuba from Quintuplets. (looks at Vol. 5 cover art) Christ, even the ribbon is the same, only blue. In any case, if you like swordfighting, old men, and no romantic resolution, you’d like this.

The Oblivious Saint Can’t Contain Her Power: Forget My Sister! Turns Out I Was the Real Saint All Along!, Vol. 4

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By Almond and Yoshiro Ambe. Released in Japan as “Mujikaku Seijo wa Kyō mo Muishiki ni Chikara o Tare Nagasu: Imadai no Seijo wa Anede wa Naku, Imōto no Watashi Datta Mitai Desu” by Earth Star Luna. Released in North America by J-Novel Heart. Translated by Dawson Chen.

Every volume of this series has me being fairly ambivalent about it, so it feels very appropriate that, when I read the afterword to this 4th and final volume, my first thought was “yeah, you should have gone with your initial instinct, it would have felt far more real and in character”. But I suppose it wouldn’t be Oblivious Saint if it wasn’t hitting all the really obvious beats. And thus Flora, who is really fascinating in the first part of the book as we see her literally consume herself with desperate rage to the point and death, ends up suddenly realizing how horrible she’s been her whole life after realizing how much Carolina looks like their late mother. It’s a head-tilting swerve, and is 100% unironic and, if I’m being honest, 100% out of character. But I guess the author’s right. Ending dark would subvert the very basic story being told.

It’s time for the big Saint Competition final, and there are twenty-three candidates competing. That said, the only ones the reader has to worry about are Carolina and Flora. Carolina is told to stop holding back, and she certainly does so, wiping the floor with everyone else. Meanwhile, Flora is also doing very well, but it’s clearly killing her – literally. She ends up having to have her life saved by her sister, the ultimate humiliation. Anyway, in a plot point so obvious I’m not worried about spoiling, Carolina wins and is now the Saint of all, with full approval of the church. Hell, she even grows SIX angel wings when she goes all out to heal Flora. Now she has only two things to worry about: going back to her birthplace for a festival, and trying to actually consummate her marriage.

I had anticipated that Ed and Carolina’s lack of a sex life would end up being a plot point, and I was mostly wrong – there’s no “you aren’t really married, ha ha!” twist, and Gilbert’s obvious love for Carolina is dealt with (surprise) in a very straightforward and earnest way. That said, the best part of the book is Ed confessing his worries to Teodore – that he is so aflame with passion that he will only end up hurting his new bride with his fiery, violent lovemaking. To which Teodore, rightly, calls Ed a massive coward and says that all his worries are complete and total bullshit. Teodore’s sarcastic, biting remarks have been a high point of each book, so I was pleased to see him point out that Carolina has obviously also been wanting to have sex with him and, if Ed keeps this up, may simply think he doesn’t love her like that at all. Rest assured, by the end of the book they have done the deed, and Carolina is fine – in fact, she worries he was so gentle HE wasn’t satisfied.

In the end, this was a bit too on-the-nose for me, and I sort of wish Flora got the unhappy ending she longed for. There are better saint books.