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Reviews

The Thursday Murder Club, Books 1-2 by Richard Osman

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Can I resist a mystery series about a quartet of septuagenarians at a peaceful retirement village solving crimes? No, I cannot.

The Thursday Murder Club
Coopers Chase is a posh retirement community nestled amidst the rolling hills of Kent. It’s a bustling place with many activities for the residents to engage in, including the Thursday Murder Club, established by two ladies with a background in law enforcement (one as a detective and the other seemingly as some sort of top-secret government agent). When Penny (the detective) becomes seriously ill and is transferred to the on-site nursing home, Elizabeth (the government agent) approaches new resident and former nurse Joyce with a question about one of Penny’s cold cases and thus, Joyce becomes the newest member of the Thursday Murder Club. As the book progresses and the Thursday Murder Club offers their assistance in a murder investigation connected to Coopers Chase, Joyce’s diary entries are regularly interspersed throughout the narrative.

One reviewer described The Thursday Murder Club as “utterly charming and very, very clever,” and on the whole I must agree. The four members of the Thursday Murder Club—which also includes fastidious Ibrahim and impassioned Ron—are very endearingly drawn, each with their own set of strengths and foibles. I didn’t anticipate that the police characters would also be endearing, but they are! Donna is ambitious and funny and Chris, overweight and extremely self-critical, was a particular favorite. I loved a certain twist about their relationship that comes at the end of the book; with a 25-year age difference I was a little concerned how I’d feel if they got paired off romantically, but happily I needn’t have worried on that score.

The book also doesn’t shy away from acknowledging the inescapable fact of mortality, as Elizabeth tries to cope with her husband’s gradual decline and grief-stricken widowers or soon-to-be widowers figure prominently. You also get passages like, “Many years ago, everybody here would wake early because there was much to do and only so many hours in the day. Now they wake early because there is much to do and only so many days left.” So yes, this book is amusing, but it is also sometimes bleak. At the same time, however, it’s not without hope. These characters are capable and useful and there are some things they can do and get away with precisely because of their age.

The actual mystery itself is rather unnecessarily convoluted, and there were a couple of minor characters whose actions in the past didn’t exactly correlate with their actions in the present. One was simply, “If Joyce’s daughter thought her mother moving into Coopers Chase was a bad idea, then why did she purchase her flat for her?” but the other tied into the murder itself. Also, I didn’t really get why the Thursday Murder Club was going to notify the police about one person but were content to not notify the police about another person. However, I didn’t guess the final solution and was successfully lulled into forgetting about something introduced early on, so kudos there.

In the end, I enjoyed The Thursday Murder Club very much and look forward to not only the sequel but the movie in the works.

The Man Who Died Twice
When Elizabeth’s ex-husband Douglas arrives at Coopers Chase seeking protection from the money launderer from whom he has stolen diamonds worth 20 million pounds, the Thursday Murder Club is thrust into a case that’s equal parts murder (Douglas promptly turns up dead), mafia, inexpertly knitted friendship bracelets, and scavenger hunt.

Until nearly the end, I felt that The Man Who Died Twice was actually a stronger book than its predecessor. Early on, Ibrahim is mugged by some teenagers in Fairhaven, and I appreciated both his subsequent psychological state and that his friends were determined to exact revenge on his behalf. There were some pairings or groups of characters we hadn’t seen before—I quite liked Donna going to talk to Ibrahim about her loneliness—and though the mystery was largely solved by Elizabeth, Joyce had a not insignificant part to play. We learn more about Elizabeth’s background in MI-5, and I was glad this was addressed now rather than continuing to drop hints about it indefinitely. And of course there was the blend of amusing writing and poignant reminders about death and dementia.

But things unraveled just a bit towards the end. The Thursday Murder Club executes their plan to deal with the money launderer, the mafia, the teenager, and the local drug queenpin that Chris and Donna have been trying to nab, and I was surprised by who the killer ultimately turned out to be. But there were also some things that bothered me. One moment, Ibrahim is insistant that he will never leave Coopers Chase again. The next, he’s driving Joyce to go adopt a rescue dog. What did she say to him to change his mind? It had seemed like this was a world without a pandemic, a choice I’d wholly support, but then COVID is mentioned in a joking aside. If you introduce COVID and your protagonists are septuagenarian residents of a retirement community, then that opens up a lot of questions that were totally ignored. Lastly, while the diamonds’ ultimate fate was satisfying, I did wonder why they were not seized as evidence.

On the whole, though, I enjoyed this sequel as much as the first book and eagerly anticipate book three, which looks like it might be out in the fall.

Saint? No! I’m Just a Passing Beast Tamer!: The Invincible Saint and the Quest for Fluff, Vol. 1

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By Inumajin and Falmaro. Released in Japan as “Seijo-sama? Iie, Toorisugari no Mamono Tsukai desu! – Zettai Muteki no Seijo wa Mofumofu to Tabi wo suru” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Meteora.

I had this on my list of new J-Novel Club releases to try out, but I didn’t really have too many high hopes. The author had written a very similar series, Woof Woof Story: I Told You to Turn Me Into a Pampered Pooch, Not Fenrir!, but that one really didn’t grab me at all. So I started to read this book, and I began to laugh. And then I kept reading, and I started laughing a lot. This is a funny book. It has a ridiculous lead character (no, she’s literally described by her brother as ridiculous), her own ridiculous goals in life (and a backstory that might seem familiar to Leadale fans), and a lot of good ridiculous dialogue, though the reader will need to be willing to go along with the standard “I did a ridiculous thing.” “YOU DID A RIDICULOUS THING?!?!?!” style comedy. Basically, this book is hella fun. And, of course, hella fluffy.

Yoshino Kanata spent her entire life in Japan in a hospital bed on life support. She regarded herself as happy because she had the internet, but those in charge of the afterlife think she had SUPER bad karma. As a result, they’re reincarnating her with all the good karma they possibly can. She’s reborn as Kanata Aldezia. Her father is the finest swordsman in the land. Her mother a great sage. She herself has won every award imaginable. And now, it’s time for the ceremony that determines the calling she will have going forward, because isekai worlds only run on RPG logic. Everyone thinks she will be a Saint. She has a different calling in mind. See, in Japan she never got to pet a cuddly animal. And here, she’s so terrifyingly powerful that animals fear her. Therefore, she’s going to be a Beast Tamer and got fluffy animals all around her! One slight problem – Beast Tamer is the biggest loser profession of them all.

So yes, Kanata is a trip, one of those heroines who does not have one ounce of common sense in her head but makes up for it with more power and determination than God. Indeed, as the final scene of the book shows, this is literally true. All she wants to do is leave the city and find fluffy monsters to pet. So far, she mostly has Zagg’iel, aka Zaggy. The former King of Demons, he’s under a curse that has essentially made him into a tubby little cat creature. The interaction between these two is both funny and heartwarming, as she loves him and roots for him even when he’s weak and has no powers. Of course, she never quite manages to leave the city. She beats up on bird creatures, tames dragons, cleans the sewers, restarts magical furnaces, and finally faces off against the new demon king and his army of mind-controlled minions Through all of this, her mindset is set on one thing: Is this fluff? Can I pet it? If not… she’s unimpressed.

So yes, this is better than Woof Woof Story and also deeply silly. I’ll be reading more. recommended for those who love OP ditzes and snuggling small creatures.

Baccano!: 1935-A Deep Marble

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By Ryohgo Narita and Katsumi Enami. Released in Japan by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Taylor Engel.

It’s been a long time since we’ve been here. Oh, don’t get me wrong, we continue to have about three Baccano! novels translated every year. However, the plot in the 1930s, with Firo, Ladd, Jacuzzi, et al can be generally considered the “main” plotline. And since Peter Pan in Chains, the 1934 novel, we’ve seen three books set in the 1700s, two set in the 21st century, and two set in the 1930s but as “side stories” taking place in between events we previously read about. And we still have one more of those to go, I warn you. But for the moment, we’re in the home stretch. The author has stated that the 1935 arc will be the last one set in this time period, with an “epilogue” taking place in 2003. This is the big one. But, as I said, it’s been a while. For English speakers, about three years. For the Japanese readers, over five years. As such, it’s no surprise that this volume, while not exactly a recap, is certainly a reintroduction to most of the main cast.

Several things happen at the start of this book. Isaac and Miria, still trying to not be thieves but also broke, go looking for a job. Jacuzzi’s gang is also broke (I mean, it is 1935), and so he too is looking for work. Ricardo and Christopher are in New York, and are ALSO looking for work. Ladd gets out of Alcatraz prison and reunited with Lua, Graham and Shaft. Another character from a long, long time ago is also released from captivity, and unfortunately ends up right in the middle of things. And of course Huey Laforet is out of prison and therefore back to his usual tricks… which include Chane, who is very happy to be reunited with him but also conflicted due to her love for Claire/Felix. Through all of this, Firo is just trying to run his casino. Unfortunately for Firo, Narita books tend to be “slow burn leading to an explosive climax”, and that explosion is in that very same casino.

This is a fun book to read, despite the fact that it feels like everyone is showing up to do their “bit”. Isaac and Miria are flakey. Jacuzzi cries a lot but also shows gumption. Ladd, Graham and Christopher are incredibly violent, etc. That said, there is an ACTUAL plot going on here as well, involving the Runorata family building their own secret casino and inviting representatives of all the local gangs, including the Martillo and the Gandor ones. They’ve got some heavy hitters in charge, including people you would not normally think would be associated with the dark underbelly of society. And also a new character, named Melvi, who is very interesting to a heck of a lot of people for reasons that only come out at the end of the book… and even then, there’s more of a “how on Earth could THAT happen?” than anything else. Then again, we have seen something like it before with our favorite Big Bad, who is also in this book, albeit in only one scene.

So yeah, it’s all setup, but it’s fun setup. And you’ll be delighted to know that the next book is in fact Part 2 of this arc. So perhaps we can actually keep track of things a little better.

The Applause of Marielle Clarac

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By Haruka Momo and Maro. Released in Japan as “Marielle Clarac no Kassai” by Ichijinsha Bunko Iris NEO. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Philip Reuben.

This is another one of those volumes where all I want to talk about is the last quarter of the book, but I will try to restrain myself. This is not to see the main storyline is not good or interesting, as it’s very good. As you can imagine with that title, the story revolves around the theater, as an acting troupe that Marielle and her husband go to see is suddenly interrupted by a threatening message… from Lutin! Or is it? This doesn’t seem like his style. We know Lutin is around because his master, Prince Liberto, is there to meet his fiancee Henrietta, one of the princesses of the kingdom. Everything seems great there… till Henrietta notices that Liberto always has a mask of “charming smile” going on, and begins to worry that she has no clue how he really things. Marielle needs to solve both these problems, and she does so with her usual talent of getting involved, accidentally stealing evidence, getting captured, and flirting with her husband.

Marielle is growing up in some ways, and I can’t really call her a scatterbrain anymore. Indeed, as we see near the end of the book, her ability to analyze and lay bare the emotional turmoil around romance is second to none. That said, to Simeon’s frustration, she’s always going to get involved in potentially lethal situations, because that’s just the sort of series that the two of them are in. It was amusing to see that, after going undercover, escaping, getting caught and interrogated by Lutin, and falling asleep in a cold room, she finally comes down with a bad cold, something she was proud of never having had before. (I thought at first it might be signs that she’s pregnant, but if that happens it’s not in this book.) She’s the very model of an amateur detective, and everyone has basically stopped trying to discourage her from this and instead they use her as sort of a guided missile of “trouble follows her” to get to the bottom of things.

The mystery is solved way before the end of the book, and we’re left with the last quarter, where everything is taken to another level. Henrietta is having a nervous breakdown over the fact that she can’t tell what her fiancee is thinking, and the solution is apparently to have her (and her allies, including Marielle and Julianne) locked in a tower with only one high window, which Liberto must scale to prove his love for her (and also to show that he can make faces other than “pleasant smile”). This works even better than planned, as Marielle’s plan is essentially to humiliate him until he snaps, and it works beautifully. This is topped by his true feelings towards his fiancee, which are entirely political and not romantic in nature… something she promptly accepts. It wasn’t that she worried he didn’t love her, it was that she worried she had no idea what he thought AT ALL. Now that he’s said what he thinks, a steady foundation can be built.

So all in all an excellent volume, and I don’t even mind that these books tend towards the lengthy. It’s worth it to spend more time in Marielle’s head.

Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James, Books 9-12 by Deborah Crombie

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now_may_weepNow May You Weep
Gemma is invited by her friend and former landlord Hazel Cavendish to a “cookery weekend” in the Scottish Highlands at a bed and breakfast managed by one of Hazel’s old school friends and her husband. Little does Gemma know, however, that the whole event has been arranged to bring Hazel back to the area where she grew up so that she might reconnect and explore her connection with her first love, Donald Brodie. Meanwhile, back in London, Hazel’s husband Tim figures out what’s going on and resolves to do something about it.

The book begins slowly, introducing us to larger-than-life Scottish stereotype Donald and the other guests and lingering quite a while on the history of a pair of local distilleries. (Nothing will ever convince me that whiskey tastes good, and consequently I couldn’t get too interested in this aspect of the book.) Eventually, Donald is shot and killed at point-blank range and Gemma must watch from the outside as a local Detective Chief Inspector takes charge of the case and doesn’t avail himself of her assistance. Of course, she gets involved anyway.

Now May You Weep is a decent book. I didn’t guess the culprit, but I thought some aspects of the conclusion were a bit far-fetched. Revelations that might’ve had impact somehow did not. Too, I was saddened that an element of the supernatural has crept back into this series in the form of Hazel having dreams about her great-grandmother that lead her to uncover the truth behind the feud that kept Donald’s father from approving of their long-ago engagement.

Still, it was sufficiently enjoyable that my enthusiasm for the series remains undimmed.

in_dark_houseIn a Dark House
These columns sometimes take a long time to complete, as exemplified by the fact that over 2.5 years have passed since I finished Now May You Weep. In the interim, I got obsessed with podcasts, but my book fervor has returned and, man, was I ever in the mood for some Deborah Crombie. Thankfully, In a Dark House is very good.

When a body is found in a burned warehouse owned by a prominent politician, Duncan is assigned to investigate. Meanwhile Gemma, traumatized by recently having failed to find a missing child, learns about a missing woman who lived nearby. Could she be the unidentified victim of the fire? But wait, here are two more missing women and a kid, to boot. Of course, everything ends up being related, and past a certain point, some of it was kind of predictable, but it was also satisfying.

I enjoyed spending more time with Duncan’s new Sergeant, Doug Cullen, as well as the introduction of Maura Bell, the local inspector who should’ve had the case before Duncan turned up. I hope to see more of them both in future installments. I continue to love Gemma, and loved that she was able to regain some confidence with this case. I loved that we saw Duncan being kind of an ass a few times, and how there are some unresolved things between them at the end of the book. I also loved that one suspect’s desperate actions due to custody arrangements eventually prompted Duncan to realize there wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do to keep his son, Kit, with him.

I didn’t love that it was super obvious that the case was going to prevent Duncan from making it to Kit’s custody hearing on time. It’s one of those things where you wish you could shake a fictional character. Gemma yelled at him, but not enough, I thought, and then started feeling she’d said too much. It was all very frustrating. I also thought Crombie tipped her hand with one specific character, who gave me suspicious feels the moment they were first introduced. Still, on the whole, I enjoyed this book quite a lot and vow to not let so much time elapse before the next one.

water_like_stoneWater Like a Stone
It was only 1.5 years between books this time. Progress!

It’s Christmas, and Duncan, Gemma, the boys, and the dogs have all made the trip to the cozy town of Nantwich to stay with Duncan’s family for the holidays. On the night of their arrival, however, Duncan’s sister Juliet discovers the entombed body of an infant while working on renovating an old barn for some clients. Meanwhile, she’s contending with her atrocious husband who believes what his slimy business partner has been telling him about Juliet, namely that she’s been unfaithful. Actually, until about the 75% mark, most of Duncan and Gemma’s part of the story is just accessory to family drama, as Juliet’s troubled teen daughter Lally also figures prominently.

That makes sense, of course, since Scotland Yard has not officially been called in to assist with the case. And, happily, the investigative team from Cheshire CID (and here I also include the pathologist) are extremely well drawn and enjoyable characters. I liked them so much, in fact, that if I learned Deborah Crombie was going to start a spinoff series focusing on them, I’d be ecstatic. Before long, another person is murdered, and then we wait for the detectives to put everything together.

I want to emphasize the “we wait” part, because my one major complaint about this book is that the solution to the mystery is pretty easy to guess. Granted, it took me longer than it should have to realize what had happened with the infant in the barn, but the identity of the character whose anonymous and deranged (cruelty to animals warning!) point-of-view we occasionally access was quickly obvious, and I knew that the sporadic mentions of a teenager’s death by drowning one month prior were going to pay off eventually. I still enjoyed the book very much despite this, though!

where_memoriesWhere Memories Lie
Erika Rosenthal, Gemma’s friend, came to England fleeing Nazi Germany. Her father, a jeweler, stayed behind but gifted her his latest creation, an exquisite diamond brooch, though this was stolen before Erika even made it out of Germany. Now it has turned up for auction in London and Erika has asked Gemma to investigate the matter. The day after Gemma makes her inquiries at the auction house, the employee she spoke to is intentionally run down by a Land Rover while crossing the street on her way home. Convinced this has something to do with the brooch, Gemma prevails upon Kincaid to take the case.

As Gemma and Kincaid work the case in the present—assisted by Doug Cullen and Melody Talbot, whose points-of-view I was glad to see, even though Doug is bitter and abrasive—a parallel investigation unfolds in 1952 involving the murder of David Rosenthal, Erika’s husband. I don’t know whether I’ve read too many mysteries in general or too much Crombie in particular, but I found the solution in both cases even easier to guess than in Water Like a Stone. The three chief suspects in the present each appear so thoroughly innocent that one starts to look at background characters. Who could it be that we’ve seen enough for it to be a satisfying solution? Really, there was only one person and from there the whole motive unfurled.

That said, I still really like the characters in this series, particularly Gemma. I’m also glad we got to know so much more about Erika. As the novel begins, Erika’s daily struggle is described as “the balancing of each day’s small, luminous joys against the ever-threatening beast of despair” but Gemma’s efforts afford her not only closure regarding what happened to David but also another lost romantic opportunity, initially “too painful to contemplate even now.” By the end of the novel, Erika seems to be opening herself up to the possibility of love again, and I hope she’s able to find some happiness. The great thing about Crombie is that she’ll be sure to keep us updated—I’m still super grateful she’s never forgotten the cat Duncan adopted in, like, book two.

The Ideal Sponger Life, Vol. 6

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By Tsunehiko Watanabe and Jyuu Ayakura. Released in Japan as “Risou no Himo Seikatsu” by Hero Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by MPT.

The idea of “You have to take a concubine for political reasons” has been around since the start of the series, but Zenjirou and Aura have been deftly avoiding it by essentially being in the “honeymoon” stage of their relationship. Now, however, she’s had a son and they’re trying for another child (trying an awful lot in this book, though as always there’s nothing explicit) and the murmurs are getting louder. Lots of factions are arranging to have their daughters be what is essentially Wife #2. That said, it is still something of a surprise when Princess Freya does the equivalent of a public proposal to him at her introductory event. Indeed, it’s a surprise to Freya’s group as well, particularly her bodyguard Skaji. They’d have been less surprised if they looked at future cover art for this series: The Ideal Sponger Life has 14 volumes out in Japan so far, and Freya features on more covers than Aura. She’s absolutely here to stay. That said, politics…

Negotiating Zenjirou’s emotional state is also an important part of this volume. We’ve seen how he is mostly a very kind, accepting person (indeed, the main reason Freya moves so quickly is that she realizes that if she becomes his concubine she’ll still have some power, as he’s not a sexist like most of this society) but that doesn’t mean that he’s happy with everything that’s happening. Taking another woman into his bed seriously bothers him (it doesn’t happen here, and it’s implied won’t for several books – negotiations, etc.) but he sees why it’s very politically advantageous for their nation. It’s a matter of sucking it up and dealing with it, unfortunately. Which is possibly why Aura basically decides the best way to pacify him for the moment is “lots of sex”. Still, at least he now has his goats, which means he can make CHEESE! And chocolate, more importantly.

The maids are also here at the end of the book, of course. Indeed, their presence is slowly starting to intersect with the main plot, as one of the older maids is married off to the middle management noble we saw in the previous book, and her two fellow maids are also called back home by their families to marry, meaning there’s a need for new trainees. Naturally, our three “wacky” maids are not being called home to marry just yet (and we are forcibly reminded that they are from noble families, something fairly easy to forget), but they do now have to act as teachers to the new girls – and it can be especially difficult given that Zenjirou is nothing like other guys that might need maids. There’s less comedy schtick here than usual, and it’s implied that the three maids are – slowly – growing up. I wonder how long they’ll be in the cast.

So with Freya added to the mix, I assume that we need to head back to fantasy Scandinavia soon, but Zenjirou has to learn more magic to do that without it taking years. And what of Bona, the other really obvious concubinal candidate? If nothing else, you know the next volume will have lots of extended discussion about it.

Also, the cover art is hilarious to me. “Sure, Aura’s got big tits, but check out THIS!” (twerks)

Spy Classroom: To My Dearest Grete

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By Takemachi and Tomari. Released in Japan as “Spy Kyoushitsu” by Fujimi Fantasia Bunko Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Nathaniel Thrasher.

It’s always tricky writing the second volume of what was clearly meant to be a one-volume stand alone. There’s a bit of reshuffling the cards, a lot of “our work is not yet done”. More importantly, we have to find out about the rest of the cast. Spy Classroom 1 was terrific, but it really only gave insight into two of the girls, so we need to get into a few more heads. Here, aside from Lily (who is clearly the ‘main heroine’), we have Grete, who gets the bulk of the heavy lifting and is the planner of the group; Sybilla, who is the straightforward “when all you have is a hammer” type; and Sara, the meek animal lover. Note that none of these are the girl (girls?) on the cover, as she’s elsewhere during the contents of this book, something the author apologizes for. (Indeed, she’s also on the cover of Book 3, which seems excessive.) In any case, these three, plus Lily, get the important mission of helping Klaus take out a spy.

Klaus is not particularly happy about this, as he doesn’t think that any of the girls are ready to do major spy missions – indeed, Lily and Sybilla are poleaxed when they find out that they’re part of the team chosen. As for the mission, well, there’s an assassin going around killing off left-wing politicians. Nicknamed Corpse, he always makes it appear as though they jumped to their death. And next on his list is influential politician Uwe Appel. Grete, Lily and Sybilla arrive at his house pretending to be maids, while Klaus and Sara provide backup. Of course, there are a few tiny problems. Lily is a classic clumsy shoujo heroine, so asking her to be a maid is a reach. The man they’re protecting seems to be angry constantly and find everything wanting, including them. And Klaus really isn’t doing much except giving the occasional piece of advice. Is this really so straightforward?

Of course it’s not – as with the first book, there’s a lot of Christie-style twists that I will try not to spoil. Amusingly, the identity of the villain is not one of them – those are the easy clues left out for the reader to pounce on so that they miss the other stuff. But it’s quite well written (that said, as I’ve noted before,l I tend to be a sucker when I read mysteries, so YMMV). As for characterization, Grete and Sybilla get the bulk of it. We learn their tragic backstories (as does Uwe, who seems to be a lot more savvy than he lets on most of the time) and root for them, particularly Grete, who is not only dealing with her burgeoning love for Klaus but also androphobia (yes, both at the same time). This resolves in a way that made me smile, as the series reaffirms that it’s not gonna be romantic but is instead about family. Which these kids are.

I’m startled how fast I’ve taken to this series. We’re only two volumes in and I’m already putting it up there with my favorite LN series of all time. It’s just a great read, lots of thrilling action and emotional turmoil. And accidental poisoning. All the best light novels have that. In any case, the third book promises to focus on the remainder of the group, and I can’t wait.

My Next Life As a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, Vol. 11

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By Satoru Yamaguchi and Nami Hidaka. Released in Japan as “Otome Game no Hametsu Flag Shika Nai Akuyaku Reijou ni Tensei Shite Shimatta…” by Ichijinsha Bunko Iris. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Marco Godano.

I get the sense that the publisher may be telling the author “can we start to move towards the ending, however little”, because the first half of this book has Katarina finally admit out loud… and more importantly, admit to Jeord and Keith… that the reason she has been bouncing off their love confessions is not because she doesn’t like them or is afraid of their advances. Nor is it because love is not something that she can feel. It’s because she’s gotten so completely fixated on “if I fall in love I will turn into the Katarina of the game and get jealous and evil” that love terrifies her. As explanations go, it’s not too bad, and works within the confines of the series. She still puts them off, saying she has something she needs to do first. That being avoid the ending off Fortune Lover 2. That said, it’s no surprise that fans of Jeord and Keith loved the spoilers for this book much more than everyone else.

Of course, just because Katarina’s love life may be closer to resolution does not mean we still don’t have lots of plot points dangling. The mad relative in the attic that Katarina keeps running into when she visits the palace insists that she’s leading all her love interests on. And the King also wants to discuss Maria and Katarina’s grimoires, but also tell them about the kingdom’s bloody and brutal past, just in case. Fortunately, both handle it well. The second half of the book forcuses on Dewey, who is dealing with both a crush on Maria and guilt stemming from his family back home. The two come together when a letter calls Dewey home and Maria and Katarina follow along… along with Larna, who has her suspicions. Turns out Dewey’s upbringing manages to be even worse than Maria’s. Can Katarina work her magic? Or, for once, is this a job for someone else?

As with all books since the end of “Season 2”, if you’re a fan of Mary or Sophia, you really should give up (and you probably have, judging by what I see on Tumblr). Fortunately, as with the rest of the series, Maria is an exception. Here we see how, as with Katarina, she too is maturing. Sometimes this comes across when she deftly rebuffs any attempts to date her – Dewey asking her out to lunch becomes “and Katarina will come too” so fast it was stunning. She knows who she likes. More to the point, after resolving her relationship with her mother, and gaining confidence from simply being around Katarina, she’s able to try to resolve things with her father, who has been doing the old “I will make them look good by making myself look bad” shtick. That said… boy, that resolution took five seconds. A bit more conflict might have made more impact.

So even as Jeord fans rub their hands gleefully, and Mary fans bite their handkerchiefs, the series itself is caught up with Japan, and Book 12 is not scheduled yet. So it will be a while. Till then, enjoy Katarina using empathy as a superpower again.

Endo and Kobayashi Live! The Latest on Tsundere Villainess Lieselotte: Disc 2

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By Suzu Enoshima and Eihi. Released in Japan as “Tsundere Akuyaku Reijou Liselotte to Jikkyou no Endo-kun to Kaisetsu no Kobayashi-san” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Mikey N.

One complaint a lot of people have about villainess novels it that it seems highly unlikely that the heroine would really be so oblivious not to realize that the original premise of the series went off the rails the moment she started making everyone fall for her/becoming an adventurer or world leader instead/sipped tea in a prison cell while bullying her ex, etc. But let’s face it, when you know the script, it can be hard to improvise. It may be a bad end, but dammit, at least it’s a straight line. So I don’t blame Endo and Kobayashi for thinking that, even though they’ve improved Lieselotte’s life vastly, they still have to deal with the whole evil witch possessing her. Indeed, the first half of the book sets us up for just that. But what follows is… well, it’s a lot less satisfying from the perspective of a game fan, but it’s a heck of a lot funnier for us, the reader.

As I said, the start of the book makes it seem as if the Witch possessing Lieselotte and forcing a bad end is still very much in platy. Toward that end, not only does Sieg have to keep his fiancee happy, but they also have to recruit the other two love interests… only this time without them falling for Fiene, who already has a boyfriend. What’s more, they suddenly realize that if this isn’t a game and they aren’t limited to the school grounds, they can ask actual adults to help! Meanwhile, Endo and Kobayashi are also getting ready for the culture festival, and fending off the idea that literally everyone thinks they’re already a couple. Unfortunately, when Kobayashi’s older sister arrives we get one of those classic “I came in halfway through the conversation and completely misunderstood everything” moments. Can they save Lieselotte AND manage to confess to each other?

I’m trying not to spoil, but I have to admit, possibly the best part of the book is the appearance of the witch, and who she really is. As a climax to an otome game plotline, or a major supernatural battle, it’s abysmally awful, but I was laughing my ass off. This also helps, though, as it makes the final part of the book, back in Japan, be far more about Endo and Kobayashi’s misunderstood feelings rather than about the possessed Kuon trying to forcibly take back his long lost love even if it means destroying the world. I also appreciated the fact that in the end they get to have Lieselotte in THEIR heads explaining exactly what they’re missing… as well as the “witch”, who does sort of help. I guess. It’s a satisfying conclusion to a book that was always meant to be more fun than dramatic.

This is the final volume, which feels about right. Dragging this out would lose the impact. At two volumes, it’s a great read, especially if you’re looking for a villainess novel but also love Twitch streamers.

Accomplishments of the Duke’s Daughter, Vol. 4

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By Reia and Haduki Futaba. Released in Japan as “Koushaku Reijou no Tashinami” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America by Seven Seas. Translated by Andria Cheng.

One problem that a lot of stories brought over from Japan or elsewhere have is that by the time they are licensed, there’s already a known number of volumes out – and many, such as this series, are already finished. Now don’t get me wrong, I know a lot of fans prefer this as they don’t want to get trapped in a “Japan has cancelled your favorite series with no ending, ha ha” scenario, but it does mean that it’s much harder to be surprised. Everything in this book seems to be leading to an ending. Not necessarily a GOOD ending, especially if you’re a romance fan, but an ending. The traitors have been purged, the throne war has been resolved, and Iris and Dean have… well, resolved to live in agonized pain for the good of their country. But of course this is Book 4 of 8, and so there’s always something worse coming along just to make sure that even a bittersweet ending is not going to happen.

The book starts off relatively normally, with Iris inventing Worker’s Compensation and getting proposals from foreign princes disguised as their own messengers. Unfortunately, bad things are happening as well. Her friend Mimosa is engaged to a pawn of Yuri’s, and seems to be very fatalistic about it. The king finally dies, meaning that the succession crisis is happening right now. And there’s a massive flood, causing one domain to be reduced to destitution, and the crown is demanding that over half the recovery supplies be donated by Iris’ domain. Then, finally, Edward makes his move to put himself on the throne. After all, the first prince isn’t even around. What can he possibly do? As for Iris, she’s just missing Dean.

So yeah, Iris finds out what the reader has known for a while, which is that Alfred = Dean. She’s not as shocked as I’d expected, possibly as she finds out in a meeting of all the noble leaders, and also as she’s not the type to faint dead away, but it also fills her with bittersweet feelings. She doesn’t see a path in her life anymore where she is allowed to control her own destiny. If she marries Dean she’ll be happy, but she can only see her own reputation and that of her family getting in the way. (Self-loathing is something Iris just can’t seem to shake off.) If she marries the foreign prince, she’ll basically just be a wife and nothing else. Everyone is trying to tell her “do what YOU want, not what the kingdom needs”, but she just can’t listen to them. Fortunately, something comes up that will postpone all these breakups. Unfortunately, it’s a war.

So overall, quite a roller coaster book, and I didn’t even get into the decline and fall of Yuri, who by the end of the book has lost her mind, but at least no longer has to pretend to be the sweet otome game heroine. Next time I expect a lot more battles and a much higher body count (which is disturbing given this volume already had quite a high body count to begin with).

Slayers: The Dynast Plot

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By Hajime Kanzaka and Rui Araizumi. Released in Japan by Fujimi Fantasia Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Elizabeth Ellis.

After the review of the last volume, I said that I hoped this one would be a bit lighter in tone. It is, but only a little bit. This is still a series where not being Lina or Gourry gives you a high chance of dying horribly or being turned into a horrible monster. Indeed, one of the surprises towards the end of this book is when some of the cast we’ve met along the way *isn’t* killed off. And we also have Luke and Mileena, who are back for this book but, let’s face it, are there to be off-brand Amelia and Zelgadis – indeed, a joke in the final pages has someone mention how much Lina’s companions have changed. But honestly… I don’t think Luke and Mileena have the plot armor that Lina and Gourry do. Still, the end of the arc is still three books away, so in the meantime we have “let’s look into bad things happening” on a more mild level.

After giving her report on the previous book’s events to a very disbelieving sorcerer’s council, Lina and Gourry are forced… erm, asked to investigate a bunch of lesser demon sightings. Much to their surprise, these turn out to have been taken care of by a “white giant” on the mountainside. then, as often happens with Lina and Gourry, they run into a corpse and the murderer of said corpse, who is rather doggedly trying to eliminate witnesses. The they run into Luke and Mileena, who are with a young man, Jade, trying to save his kingdom from a very familiar person who seems to be putting poison into the king’s ear. Can our heroes manage to solve things with a lower body count than usual? Who’s destroying lesser demons up on the mountain? And doesn’t the resolution of this book seem a bit too easy to be true?

I’ve talked before about the author’s total lack of romance in the series, which seems to stem more from an inability to write it well than anything else. This comes up near the middle of the book when Lina, in a rare moment that’s just her and Mileena, asks why Mileena is always traveling with Luke. Mileena’s response is “because I’m very awkward”, which may be the most romantic thing we’ve heard in the series to date. And that’s not saying much, as you can see. As for Lina and Gourry, all I can say is that when Mileena asks about their relationship, Lina likens her and Gourry to a sex worker and her “gigolo”, which made my jaw drop but I can see her thought process. Lina’s making all the money and Gourry is the “guardian”. It makes sense if you completely remove sex or romance from the equation, and it’s clear Lina has done that.

As noted above, our heroes win, but… they win pretty easily. Even Lina suspects something else is going on here. I’m sure we’ll find out more next time. Till then, hooray for me, who managed to write 500+ more words about some very short fantasy books that are mostly fights.

Sword Art Online: Progressive, Vol. 7

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By Reki Kawahara and abec. Released in Japan by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Stephen Paul.

As I was reading this volume of Progressive, I wondered why I was having so much trouble remembering what had happened in the previous book, then it hit me that it’s been two and a half years since the previous book. That said, it did not take long to get back into the swing of things, because as much as I sometimes can’t remember which ones are the two main rival guilds or which player killer we saw last time, as long as I remember Kirito, Asuna, Argo and Kizmel I’m good. This book deals with the seventh floor, a summer weather floor that also boasts a beach, some lovely restaurants, and a casino where you can win big… or lose your shirt. Asuna is not all that happy about having to get involved with the casino’s machinations, but when it turns out that this will also involve the dark elves, she and Kirito are quick to help. Unfortunately, after the events of the last book, they may not get a warm welcome from the elves.

The author mentions in the afterword that the main series has Kirito and Asuna separated in the current arc (Unital Ring), so he’s very happy to have them spend the entire book together like this. Indeed, it’s the bread and butter of the series, whose fans are reading it mostly to see the two be cute and romantic. We definitely get some of that here, as despite the death game aspects of the plot the start of the book could easily be a date by the seaside. We also see that when Asuna has trouble sleeping she goes to Kirito, and being next to him knocks her right out. She may not be verbally admitting anything, but her actions speak pretty loud. As for Kirito, he reminds us again and again that he’s 14, and it feels like it. For the most part he’s still thinking that Asuna needs a larger stage to shine on (i.e. one away from him), but he also feels the need to keep her at his side. It’s cute. Argo agrees with me.

As for the non-shippers plotline, we get more of the other purpose of this series, which is the idea that this is a real world that people have lived in for centuries, rather than a game populated by NPCs. This is not to say that the NPCs can’t be cliches also, as we meet the casino’s manager (a cool collected 12-year-old girl) and her battle maid. As for Kizmel, yeah, things not going so well. Not only is there a prison br3eak sequence, but they’ve got to find a way to get the keys back while at the same time dealing with the quests they have at the casino. There’s so much going on that it’s a surprise it gets fit into one book… OK, no, it doesn’t. There’s a cliffhanger, and we’ll have to wait for Book 8 to resolve it.

Fortunately, Book 8 is on sale this spring, so we will not be waiting another two and a half years. Till then, there’s lots to read about here, but mostly what we want is the cute not-yet romance. There’s plenty of that here.

Bofuri: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt, So I’ll Max Out My Defense, Vol. 4

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By Yuumikan and KOIN. Released in Japan as “Itai no wa Iya nano de Bōgyoryoku ni Kyokufuri Shitai to Omoimasu” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Andrew Cunningham.

I mentioned this in the review of Book 3, but want to go into greater depth here: the differences between this series and its anime counterpart are fascinating, and for once it’s not a case of “one is so much better than the other”. They’re doing very different things. If you were to ask me what genre the Bofuri anime falls under, I would likely say “comedy” very quickly. It’s filled with gags. The light novel does have funny moments, particularly when it’s describing Maple’s… Maple-ness, but for the most part it is an action series that just happens to be using a game as its setting. This volume has the Battle Royale between guilds that wrapped up the first anime season, and there’s quite a bit that’s changed or removed to make the anime pace snappy and funny. And yet… this volume is also quite a lot of fun. And… dare I say it (I’m always wary of saying this)… sometimes I appreciated the narrator explaining the gaming stuff to me.

There’s a new team event for this book. Each guild has an orb to defend, and has to steal orbs from other guilds. It’s an event that obviously favors the larger guilds with lots of players, and not small ones like Maple Tree. But that reckons without the fact that everyone in Maple Tree is a broken monster, and so much of the book is our heroes running rampant all over the map destroying everyone. That said, the top two guilds are made of stronger stuff, and when they end up fighting Flame Empire, with its hotheaded (and slightly embarrassed) leader and The Order of the Holy Sword, with self-proclaimed “rival” to Sally Frederica and the strongest player Pain, they actually have to expend a lot more effort. Indeed, is this where we finally see Maple’s defense not be enough?

I do enjoy the fact that we’re seeing a lot of folks playing and enjoying the game in a normal, sensible fashion, and it doesn’t really criticize them for it. Yes, a lot of folks now want to “think outside the box” the way Maple’s gang does, but they also seem to see Maple as an outlier that should not be counted. The main players that we see from both Order of the Sword and Flame Empire are overpowered as heck, but they’re overpowered in the normal, grinding for skills sort of way you’re supposed to do to get good in this game. That said, while Maple doesn’t get to do everything in this book (which tries to give everyone in the guild a chance to show off), she’s the reason people are reading, and in a volume where she doesn’t have an opportunity to gain new skills it’s nice to see her put her broken OLD skills to good use. She really is an excellent gamer, she’s just… a flake.

So now that we’ve caught up with the anime what new adventures await Maple and company? Should be fun to read. Though I also look forward to seeing what comedic antics will be enhanced in the anime whenever Season 2 rolls around.

Lovesick Ellie, Vol 1

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Lovesick Ellie Volume 1 by Fujimomo

I picked this up on a whim, and I knew I was in for something a little out of the ordinary when I saw the title of the first chapter, “#HoorayforPervs!” The Lovesick Ellie in question is a fantasy twitter account run by Eriko Ichimura, a girl who remains largely invisible to her classmates. She’s decided to dedicate herself to living her best life in her imagination and pretends to be secretly dating the most handsome and popular boy in school, Ohmi.

Lovesick Ellie Volume 1

One day Eriko overhears Ohmi talking in a casual way to one of their teachers, and she discovers that he’s nothing like the smiling polite facade he maintains around everyone else. He’s actually not all that happy about being singled out for so much attention. Eriko is discovered and she promptly runs away, leaving her cell phone behind! Ohmi picks it up and reads her tweets and finds them hilarious. All of this happens in the first few pages of the manga, and the rest of the volume shows Eriko and Ohmi striking up an unlikely friendship. Eriko gradually realizes that Ohmi’s actually lonely. He encourages Eriko to befriend another girl who is as obsessed with costuming as Eriko is with over the top fake date narratives. Eriko’s tweets appear here and there to contrast reality with fantasy. There’s plenty of blushing and over the top emotions in the art, but Eriko isn’t really believable as an invisible plain girl because all the character designs are generally attractive.

Eriko’s twitter asides are genuinely hilarious, as she will take a small detail like a misplaced jersey and spin it out into paragraphs of slightly perverted situations. For Ohmi, it seems like Eriko is one of the few people he can actually be himself around, and while he takes a certain delight in teasing her, he’s actually having some difficulties navigating his own emotions as their relationship develops. For a manga with such a goofy premise, it actually ends up being rather heartfelt. I found myself smiling multiple times reading Lovesick Ellie, which is a great shoujo title for anyone wanting something funny and romantic.

I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level, Vol. 11

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By Kisetsu Morita and Benio. Released in Japan as “Slime Taoshite 300 Nen, Shiranai Uchi ni Level MAX ni Nattemashita” by GA Novels. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Jasmine Bernhardt.

I read this volume immediately after a volume of The Saga of Tanya the Evil, and I highly recommend it, because it probably made the book feel better than it actually is. That said, there are other reasons this is a very solid book in the series. First of all, the stories are slightly longer, which allows for a bit more depth to a series for which depth is eternally absent. Secondly, the side stories at the end move to focus on Laika, and I am far happier to read about Laika at Lillian Girls’ Academy (or whatever its name is here, MariMite is clearly what it’s supposed to be, though) than I ever was with Halkara. Seeing Laika wound up so tightly is both nostalgic and also a bit bittersweet – at least we know she has a peaceful future ahead of her. As for Azusa, well, she’s discovering that just because she’s resolved to take it easy and relax in her next life doesn’t mean she has to do that all the time.

Stories in this volume: our main cast has a moonlight picnic, which unfortunately leads to an existential crisis for the newest cast member Canimeow caused by our other newest cast member, Wynona; Azusa learns that, in fact, this world does have actual physical laws that she cannot break, so a trip to the moon is not happening soon; The cast take a day off by visiting the demon world’s main town, and help Fighsly raise a slime child… pet… whatever; after Azusa is paying too much attention to an injured Sandra, Falfa and Shalsha decide to run away from home; Halkara wondering what it would be like to eat a slime leads to a jellyfish that feeds off negative emotions; the aftermath of that, as Halkara, freed from her base desires, is super annoying; and the entire cast run a relay race.

The most interesting story was probably the relay race. Pecora has been reading yuri romances again, and declares that Azusa and Beelzebub have been “taking their friendship for granted” and not bonding the way that true friends do. Which Azusa is not going to be bonding with anyone anytime soon, she does come to a realization that she can occasionally try her hardest. Her past life doesn’t get a mention in this book specifically, but it’s clearly what has been driving her to sort of half-ass everything in this new life. She literally worked herself to death before. So of course she’s not going to want to do anything that goes near that. But at the end of the race, when she has to run faster and harder than she ever has before, she discovers that sometimes it’s OK. Sometimes you can try your hardest. Hopefully this is something that she can continue to teach her extended family in future volumes.

All this plus Laika at school, where we see her desperately trying to get out from under her sister’s shadow, and only partially succeeding. Despite the excitement of the race at the end, this is still a book for those who enjoy relaxed fare.