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Reviews

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.

The Saga of Tanya the Evil: Omnes una Manet Nox

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By Carlo Zen and Shinobu Shinotsuki. Released in Japan as “Youjo Senki” by Enterbrain. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Emily Balistrieri.

The start of this volume makes it seem like it’s going to be a breather after all the battles from last time, and to be fair there are fewer battles here, but breather is absolutely the wrong word. After nine books, it appears that Tanya and Colonel Lergen are finally on the same page. That’s not a good thing. Especially when they’re saying things like “hey, would you be OK with strafing the government and making it look like an accident?”. Then we get Tanya meeting with first Uger and then von Rudersdorf try to get Tanya to have actual, real human reactions to things and she simply… can’t. She is unable to see why people might be wanting to cry at the fact that the Empire is on the verge of ruin. She gets the danger, and in fact is already thinking of fleeing the Empire for another country, but… the combination of her previous life’s Eliezer Yudkowsky approach to everything and her current self’s being brought up in the Army literally most of her life have led to a broken person.

Now to be fair, after looking at the cover of this volume (whose Latin roughly means “the same night awaits us all”) you might be wondering what the hell I am talking about. But there is a very big difference between Tanya screaming and ranting in her head and how Tanya actually interacts with other people. The cover picture is probably meant to be her reacting to having to deal with Doctor Schugel, who has found a much better way to make mages into guided missiles than he did the last time. While most of the brigade has actual shore leave, Tanya’s core group has to go provide escort over the seas so that General Romel and his men and retreat form the South. Which means taking on a British fleet. Easy peasy. Of course, the ones left behind on shore leave are not having an easy time of it either, as the Commonwealth has decided to do a sneak attack, and the Navy is too incompetent to see through it.

Because I always talk about Visha, let me just say that I find it interesting that, while Uger and von Rudersdorf cannot seem to fathom the way Tanya thinks, Tanya feels the exact same way about Visha, wondering how she is able to blithely take care of things with a smile on her face and a song in her heart. Especially when our little team passes through “neutral” Ildoa, and has it ground into their faces how far the Empire has fallen in terms of offering even the basic staples. Just eating a delicious fish dinner is enough to nearly destroy Tanya, because she understands the message it’s sending. And this also leads back to the cliffhanger, where the Empire is being told to invade Ildoa – a seemingly impossible task. Just how many more seemingly impossible things will they be forced to do? After all, they’re soldiers, not politicians.

As always, this is the opposite of a light read, and as lengthy as ever, but if you can put up with Tanya sounding like she’s posting to “AITA?” on Reddit sometimes, it remains a rewarding series.

Forget Being the Villainess, I Want to Be an Adventurer!, Vol. 1

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By Hiro Oda and Tobi. Released in Japan as “Tensei Reijou wa Boukensha wo Kokorozasu” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America digitally by J-Novel Club. Translated by Kim Louise Davis.

A lot of these Reincarnated Villainess titles are deconstructions of romance novels and games. It’s baked into the premise, really. That said, some are more deconstructing than others, and it’s usually when we see the sharp edges of the original plot poking out that we get the most rewarding reading. Our heroine here is not as eccentric as other villainesses we’ve seen, and she has even revealed her secret to a few people. She’s doing all the right things. But there’s still something that’s really trying hard to have events go the way that they did in the book she read back in Japan. And if that involves breaking reality to “fix” things, well, that’s life. It ups the stakes a great deal. Especially when you realize that there’s a heroine here as well… and she’s not going to be falling in love with the villainess anytime soon. This heroine is going to get her happy ending if it kills her. Or, more accurately, if it kills our protagonist.

Serephione is a young noble girl who has memories of her past life in Japan, where she read a fantasy novel set at a magic academy. In this novel, the commoner girl heroine wins the hearts of everyone around her despite the best efforts of the powerful mage … Seraphione. Yeah. To prevent this, our girl decides she’s going to avoid the magic academy altogether. This is not as easy as it sounds. She’s loaded with powerful magic. She’s bonded with the Heavenly Beast of the West, a powerful familiar. All signs point to her following the book’s plot. But Seraphione is stubborn, and is not above asking her guardian beast to cheat the system. Now the “magicless” Seraphione is at the knight school instead, making friends and breaking all sorts of records because trust me, she’s hella strong too. But has she REALLY avoided her fate?

The other really good part of the book is Seraphione’s grandmother Erza. The Author mentions in the afterword that they had been taken to task in their last book for not giving the heroine a powerful female role model, and that’s certainly what Erza is. Indeed, the entire family seems to be known for being ludicrously OP, so one one is going to think twice about Seraphione being able to do things like one-shot knock out princes from another country with her mad combat skills. I also liked how the grandmother also starts training her other friends up, not wanting to see any knights who are unable to use both their combat power and their feminine wiles to get what they want. Though perhaps training everyone in poison resistance – by poisoning them ALL THE TIME – is a bit much.

I’m sure by now everyone who reads my reviews of Villainess books is rolling their eyes, but it really is a genre that I love. This one especially caught my eye because of the way that the narrative is trying to bend back… which may or may not be the fault of the seemingly naive and selfish “heroine” (who is named Maribella, which is not Maria but close). I’m adding this series to the stack.

Altina the Sword Princess, Vol. 12

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By Yukiya Murasaki and himesuz. Released in Japan as “Haken no Kouki Altina” by Famitsu Bunko. Released in North America digitally by J-Novel Club. Translated by Roy Nukia.

This volume is divided into two parts; the main story, which runs to a little over half of it, and a side story showing us what Jerome has been doing since he left Altina’s side. Gonna be honest, I’m far more interested in the former than the latter, so let’s get Jerome out of the way. He and his men are at the front, where the attacking nation is the one whose beloved princess was just murdered by Latrielle. The main fortress should not have an issue taking them on, but there’s a problem with a small, remote fortress that is trying to protect a city of older folks and kids. What to do? Have Jerome go over there and take charge. This whole section was meant to show off how badass he is, and there is some of that, but mostly it showed me that if a woman is not Altina he will happily punch her unconscious. I’m happy to leave him at that front.

The main storyline starts with Regis managing to reunite with Altina (and thus preventing a bloody battle, as she was quite ready to go to total war over his alleged death). Unfortunately, despite his best efforts with the rumors going around about patricide, he’s unable to prevent the coronation, meaning the dream of Altina ruling the Empire is dead. That said, Altina does not seem particularly put out by this, partly because she’s a bit of a meathead, but also because as long as she can continue to strive towards her ideals she’s fine taking whatever role. That said, she may not have been expecting the role she ends up being given: Latrielle, somewhat backed into a corner by Altina’s feats of war heroism and the presence of Regis (who he tried to have murdered, if you recall) at her side, makes her the head of most of the army.

The most striking scene in the book is probably Latrielle ascending the stairs to his coronation while being haunted by everyone that he had to murder in order to achieve it. There’s a very Shakespearean quality to him, complete with a seemingly tragic past love. He’s mostly blind, still somewhat wounded, and the man he fears could lead to his downfall pops up fine and dandy with the fourth AND third royals at his side. Macbeth never quite had this many obstacles. I did also like the occasional stabs at humor, the best of which was Regis realizing that he forgot to write his sister and let them know he wasn’t dead, and that the fake headless body was even shipped to her. That’ll go well. That said, even the author admits that this book is mostly setup for a new arc, as Altina and Regis head to the south to a new battlefield… with an incognito Britannia princess in their cargo.

And then there’s the cliffhanger, as a woman I’d honestly totally forgotten about pops up asking for help. Altina continues to be a strongly written military fantasy… provided it stays away from misogynistic warriors.

Can Someone Please Explain What’s Going On?! ~The Contract Couple’s Happily Ever After~, Vol. 8

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By Tsuredurebana and Rin Hagiwara. Released in Japan as “Dareka Kono Joukyou wo Setsumei Shite Kudasai! ~Keiyaku Kara Hajimaru Wedding~” by ArianRose. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Tara Quinn.

At long last, one volume until its finale, I think this series has finally learned what is fun to read and what is not fun. This feels like a normal romance novel, and does not contain any of the numerous red flags that previous volumes were infamous for containing. The downside of this is that… well, the book’s a bit boring? That’s to be expected, honestly. The main story has wrapped up. There aren’t many side couples to pair up either, though we do see that Rohtas has, in fact, been in a relationship for some time… but it hasn’t gone further because Cersis keeps him so busy. In fact, the story itself is a flashback of sorts, as Cercis and Viola’s adorable daughter is asking how she was born. Readers may be wondering that as well, given that Viola frequently seems to think of Cercis as an afterthought, and I’m still rather surprised the marriage has even been consummated. Oh well.

Viola’s pregnancy is not the main thrust of this book, which instead deals with what happened just before. She and Cercis are going to a party held by her friend Verbana’s family, which turns out to be another in a string of “please marry my grumpy and willful daughter” parties. It goes about as well as the previous ones have – Verbana doesn’t want to be married right now, especially since her one true love is, in fact, married to Viola, and radiates this from her entire body. But still, they get to see her family’s new estate, have a lot of tea parties, and go to a lot of evening ballroom dances. Unfortunately, this leads to the back half of the plot – at some point between arriving at the estate and that evening’s dance, Viola’s huge sapphire has been swapped out for a fake! Now she and Cercis have to play detective to catch the criminal.

I am pleased that this volume is back to being entirely narrated by Viola’s so we get her amusing and skewed observations about everyone else. Sadly, this also includes her poor self-image, which really takes a starring role here. No matter what, no one can seem to convince Viola that she has the looks of a tall runway model – she’s always going to be the plain stringbean in her own mind. (The funniest part of the book is towards the end, when Viola is about six months pregnant, and she cheers about having “bazongas” at last.) She also does not seem to understand why all the other women of the kingdom flock to her and hang on her every word. Oh well, better that than the alternative. The mystery itself is basically a string of “which family desperately in need of cash would do this?”, but I am quite grateful that for once all the potential bad guys are in fact rich nobles. This is a rarity in a series that tends to praise rich nobility.

The next volume is the last, and will no doubt have Viola giving birth. Till then, it’s nice to see a volume of the series that does what I hoped it would and does not feature evil foreigners or “LOL GAY” jokes.

How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom, Vol. 15

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By Dojyomaru and Fuyuyuki. Released in Japan as “Genjitsu Shugi Yuusha no Oukoku Saikenki” by Overlap Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Sean McCann.

This feels like a volume we’ve been waiting for a long time. Fuuga is still in it, but for once he is not the entire focus of the series. Souma gets to play a large, active role. We even get to see the Empire again, and get a sense that Maria is unhappy but very good at hiding it. All of this leads up to one of the better volumes in some time, even as it takes on an issue that the author was a bit wary of doing when they were writing the webnovel. Yes, it’s a pandemic, though this is not a viral infection like COVID-19 and is more parasite oriented. And of course there’s the revelations we get about Souma’s summoning, which feels like it’s been a long time coming. It makes a lot of sense given what we’ve known about this world, and also explains why some of Souma’s reforms have gone so smoothly. Oh yes, and in case you were worried, MORE BABIES!

The story starts with us getting a look at one of the few nations we haven’t dwelt on yet, the Spirit Kingdom of Garland. They have not made a good impression in the series so far, being high-elf supremacists and also driving out their reformer Merula. That said, they have a more pressing problem: the demons have overtaken one of their two islands, and they want Souma’s help to get it back. Unfortunately, the negotiations go badly. They go badly with Maria as well. Fortunately… or not… Fuuga can see an opportunity to conquer more lands, and agrees, planning to overthrow the current kingdom and install a puppet state (something that gets a big boost when the royal princess of the Spirit Kingdom falls head over heels for one of Fuuga’s aides). Unfortunately… there’s a sickness going around the spirit kingdom.

Realist Hero has never been known for its subtlety, and this book in particular is a bit on the nose with its insistence that all countries must put aside differences and unite when there is a pandemic that could kill us all. Fortunately, unlike Machiavelli’s teachings (which do come up here a lot as well, no fear), I am 100% behind this. I also appreciated Souma lecturing on the danger of making ideas too simple and that it might lead to people accepting conspiracy theories. (*cough*) That said, my favorite part of the book was the big summit which unites the three main powers in the world. This gives Maria a chance to talk with Liscia, and drop several unsubtle hints that Liscia nevertheless completely fails to pick up on. “Gosh, I wish someone else was ruling the Empire! Oh hey, Souma even has rulers from other countries as his wives! Nudge, nudge, wink, wink.” I don’t think Souma is going to take over the Empire anytime soon, but I also don’t think it will be long before Maria becomes part of the polycule, somehow.

By now everyone knows the kind of series Realist Hero is, and those who don’t are certainly arguing about it on anime forums, as the second season is currently running. But for novel readers, this should give you a lot of what you want.

So I’m a Spider, So What?, Vol. 13

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By Okina Baba and Tsukasa Kiryu. Released in Japan as “Kumo Desu ga, Nani ka?” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Jenny McKeon.

This volume might be frustrating for some fans, as it is in many ways a recap of what happened in Books 3-5, only from the POV of the other side. I do not have this problem. For me, the recap is greatly appreciated as I can barely remember what happened in Book 12, much less nine books ago. More importantly is the fact that this is from the other side’s POV means we get a lot of White in this book, and she’s just as funny/terrifying (don’t delete where applicable, she’s both) as ever. She doesn’t care at all about many things that we cared a lot about, but she’s also very interested in things that had appeared minor or unimportant. Here we see her and Ariel finally making their plans to kill Potimas. Yeah, I know, I’ll believe it when I see it. Still, they’re even getting help from the Church! We also get a lot more insight into exactly how she and Ariel are trying to save the world, and how it’s still a gamble.

To no one’s surprise, White turns out to be the mastermind behind most of the baffling things that happened in the previous books, such as the downfall of Shun’s kingdom and his becoming Public Enemy Number One. Her matter-of-fact reasons for doing this are cool and logical and make you a bit ill, to be honest. That said, she is not without emotion… I was particularly amused at her observance of Katia literally blowing herself up to escape the brainwashing, and then Shun bringing her back from the dead. It was a combination of “Holy shit, he can do that!?” combined with “just fuck already!” that left me laughing. We do also get a look at White from other people’s point of view, particularly the Pope, who is well aware that Ariel may be the Demon Lord but White is the one who is changing the entire world.

As for the rest of the cast, it was nice seeing the humans again, if only from a distance – because this is mostly White’s POV, we barely get to talk to them. I liked the contrast between Shun’s “this is all I can do right now, why am I not as powerful as my brother” and White’s “HE’S GOT TOO MANY CHEATS CHRIST”, and indeed a lot of the plotting and scheming that she does is to try to plan for all the extra special hero stuff he can pull out of his ass. We also finally get a good look at Sariel, the goddess currently wired into the system and giving out all those game bonus stats. Not a pretty site, but at least it leads to the one big battle in the book, as White fights what are basically security robots and is actually challenged for once… mostly as if she goes all out it would destroy the system, which is what she wants but not like this.

So, a lot of setup, but it does promise that the next volume will finally catch us up to where the two sides left off in book… 5, was it? Till then, congratulations, there’s a lot of spider in this book.

Sabikui Bisco, Vol. 1

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By Shinji Cobkubo and K Akagishi. Released in Japan by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Jake Humphrey.

I admit that I was a little wary of this title. It got a HUGE amount of buzz when it first came out and when it was first licensed, which is all very well and good, but the last two times that happened it was The Detective Is Already Dead (which I bounced off of hard) and Osamake (which people stopped demanding the license of once they actually knew the plot). Not to mention that, let’s face it, this does not feel like a Dengeki Bunko light novel, it feels like a shonen manga. Even after I finished the book, I wanted to see what Jump or Magazine title it was novelizing. But no, it’s a real live light novel. It’s just loud, and boisterous, and action-packed, and stars two guys who feel like they could definitely be popular Shonen Jump characters. And, of course, there is one other reason why it reminded me of some of the more popular titles like, say, Reborn or Haikyu!: the two male leads are about as gay as you can possibly be without actually saying it.

Sometime in the future, and try not to be too shocked by this, a huge disaster has leveled Tokyo and left the other prefectures around it in an arid, desert state. What’s worse, people can get infected with rust, which spreads and eventually kills. Rumor has it this is all caused by the Mushroom Keepers, who have control over mushrooms and have gone underground after being accused of destroying the world. Our hero, Bisco, insists that in fact the mushrooms are what can save people! Now he must team up with a naive yet determined panda… erm, doctor named Milo (there’s a big cookie naming theme going on here, in case you didn’t get it) and try to get a cure for the rust before it kills off Bisco’s old mentor and Milo’s sister. This is not being helped by the many people trying to kill Bisco… including Milo’s sister.

This is definitely one of those “gets better as it goes along” books. It starts slow, and I tweeted after about a third of it that I thought it was trying too hard. But around about the time when the pink-haired mercenary who’s also been following them around spouts off every single cliched line in the world in one paragraph, I began to feel its vibe, and the last half flies along. It’s helped by its two leads. Milo bonds with Bisco immediately, and though Bisco takes longer to get used to Milo’s concentrated niceness, by about halfway in they’re both sacrificing their lives for the other. Milo even literally confesses “I love you” to Bisco. I suspect it may have made the editors uncomfortable, as Milo will occasionally try to tell Bisco how hot his sister is and how big her breasts are. It would be sad if it weren’t so funny – the tacked-on feel of it makes it hilarious.

There is one other big problem with this book – it’s a perfect one-shot. Which is an issue, as there’s currently 8 volumes and counting. Contest winner, I expect. In any case, that’s for future Sean to worry about – this volume, for once, actually deserves its hype.

My Friend’s Little Sister Has It In for Me!, Vol. 5

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By mikawaghost and tomari. Released in Japan as “Tomodachi no Imouto ga Ore ni dake Uzai” by GA Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Alexandra Owen-Burns.

This series has a tendency to be very metatextual, and we certainly get a lot of that in this book. Everyone may not think that they’re in a light novel series, but they certainly know the way said series tend to go, and they’re noticing that all the things happening around Akiteru pretty much line up with those sort of plots. That’s not good news for him, as he’s supposed to be fake dating Mashiro, who has already not-fake confessed to him. His uncle is clearly very aware of the things going on in his life, especially the presence of Iroha, but for now seems to be content to give him enough rope to hang himself as long as he keeps making Mashiro happy. (Even if he is jealous of the little bastard.) As for Iroha herself, she should be reassured, given that in light novels her type tends to win rather than Mashiro’s type, but she is not. Are the others, a year older than she is, really going to abandon her?

So yes, Mashiro’s father, and Akiteru’s potential benefactor, has noticed that the fake dating part of the books has been left by the wayside almost since it began, mostly as Akiteru can’t quite bring himself to do it knowing she loves him for real. They’re going to have to try, though, and the upcoming festival seems like a good chance. Before that, though, Akiteru needs to continue his quest to find Iroha a friend who can take his place in her life (not realizing that this would be devastating to her). He may have found one in Sasara, Iroha’s classmate who is a classic “always comes in second to her” rival character who is also socially awkward. He may be on to something here. But that’s for later. For now, he has to pay attention to Mashiro on their fake date and not be a “piece of shit”.

First of all, the best possible news about this book: Sumire’s barely in it at all. Which means we get precisely zero shotacon jokes. Hooray! More seriously, Mashiro gets the focus for the first time since the second book, and she has all the hallmarks of the sweet, low-confidence girl that always comes in second in these harem genres. She’s trying her hardest here, determined to get stronger than she was as a kid (when she went to the same festival with Akiteru) and to outshine Iroha. But she may be running a bit late on that, because now that he’s suddenly realized that Iroha *can* be cute, Akiteru is leaning towards her almost unconsciously. Honestly, if it weren’t for the presence of Iroha’s mother, who will no doubt be the final boss, I’d say this series was ready to end by the next book. But that’s not happening.

So yes, fans of Mashiro will enjoy her here, and fans of Iroha… well, Iroha is the other protagonist, so you’re always happy. In any case, this remains a fun romcom, with Akiteru trying his best to logic love to death and failing.

Suppose a Kid from the Last Dungeon Boonies Moved to a Starter Town, Vol. 8

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By Toshio Satou and Nao Watanuki. Released in Japan as “Tatoeba Last Dungeon Mae no Mura no Shonen ga Joban no Machi de Kurasu Youna Monogatari” by GA Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Andrew Cunningham.

Because this series is such a broad comedy, I sometimes forget that it is actually trying to have a plot too. There’s more plot in this book than in any of the previous others, as we get a lot more information… well, OK, a little more information… about the Japanese research group that apparently kickstarted whatever this world is, and where they are now. Unsurprisingly, there’s mostly a bunch of loud awkward guys, even if here they’re powerful demon lords. On a more disturbing note, Alka continues to be the gift that keeps on giving even when we don’t want her to. The revelation of her past with the hero was fine. Even hearing that Lloyd is essentially a replacement for the man she once loved, I mean, at least that explains the obsession. But in a series filled with thirsty women, Alka remains the thirstiest, with a line here that made my jaw drop. It’s not welcome.

Despite the cliffhanger from the last book, this volume has the least amount of Lloyd to date, as until the very end he’s reduced to simply standing around and reacting to others. The volume essentially consists of two things: 1) Allan muddling his way through life despite everyone misunderstanding him, and 2) the actual competition to see which clan gets to be the leader. The first part is amusing inasmuch as Allan is a schlub – if you like schlubs trying to blurt something out but failing, you’ll enjoy it. He does gain a demon lord. And a wife. Meanwhile, the competition is where most of the volume’s broad comedy comes out, as we manage to work in swimsuits, cavalry battles, loincloths and farming. The final battle is Allan vs. Lloyd, which Allan is pretty sure he will not survive, but it’s OK, as it’s interrupted by – I’m not making this up – a GIANT CRAB BATTLE where you must hit its weak point for massive damage.

Most of the forward movement in this book happens away from our main cast, who pretty much all act as you would expect them to. The supporting cast, though, are more interesting. Half of them are still recovering their memories, or simply getting used to being impossibly powerful. Alka and Eug are still on opposite sides, though it’s now being made clear that there’s someone trying to play both sides against each other. And we also meet a new player in the game at the very end, who (as with damn near everyone in the cast) is accidentally awoken by Lloyd, who just wants to use the bathroom. Despite all this, there’s a lot going on but the book feels fairly light. The setup comes out in odd bits and bobs, and the main plot is so “wacky” that a lot of it bounced off me.

Oh well, at least this arc is over, though given Allan is married now I suspect we’ll be seeing the newly introduced cast stick around for the next arc. In the meantime, this works best if you don’t think about it.

Adachi and Shimamura, Vol. 8

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By Hitoma Iruma and Non. Released in Japan by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Seven Seas. Translated by Molly Lee.

There was a three-year gap between the previous volume and this one, and you can sort of tell. There’s a bit of a priority shift in the way the story is being told. For one thing, while Adachi still gets the occasional POV scene, the book has finally admitted that it should be called “Shimamura and Adachi”. Shimamura gets 90% of the first-person narrative, and the entire book is about forcing her to confront how she feels about Adachi, what she wants to do in a relationship with Adachi, and what they mean to each other. The answer will not surprise you, because the book begins with a flash-forward to ten years later, when we see the two of them living together and planning a trip to San Francisco. Given the ‘alternate universes’ of the previous volume, I was expecting ‘it was all a dream’ or something similar, but no. That said, there is one sad part. Sorry, toy shippers, Yashiro and Shimamura’s little sister is not gonna happen. She’s perpetually ten.

The non-flash-forward part of the book is also about a trip – the school trip, which is going to Kitakyushu. Naturally, Adachi is a combination of nervous wreck and jealous child, but for once we don’t really dwell on her. Instead we focus almost entirely on Shimamura, who is dealing with several problems. She’s in a group with Adachi and the three girls she briefly made friends with at the start of the school year, and things are… awkward, mostly as her new relationship is not nearly as secret as she’d like. Yashiro has stowed away in her backpack like a Doraemon invention. And an evening at a hot spring means that she is suddenly very aware that Adachi not only loves her in a romantic way but loves her in a sexual way. Being Shimamura, she’s not sure what to do about any of this, but she does come away with one thing – she wants to be with Adachi for the foreseeable future.

As noted, this book came out after a three-year gap, and it shows in the writing (and not just because Yashiro throws in a Demon Slayer reference). For one thing, Shimamura is asked point blank if she’s a lesbian, something I don’t think would have happened in this series even a few years earlier. (As you might guess, she doesn’t give a straight answer, but it leans more towards “Adachisexual”.) In the same conversation (it’s the best part of the book, and it did not escape my attention that that may be because Adachi’s not in it) Shimamura is also called a “hot mess”, and I laughed because it’s true. But she’s actually trying to fix that in real ways, being more tactile with Adachi, suggesting things like holding hands or snuggling, and trying to tease her without having Adachi take it the wrong way. As for Yashiro… well, if you don’t like her, this is not the book for you. She’s in this more than any other book, and she even has some good philosophical advice for Shimamura. She’s part of the writer’s world.

The flash-forward does show that Adachi is no longer a ball of vibrating gay whenever she’s around her girlfriend, which is good, though I hope I don’t have to wait ten years for that to kick in. In the meantime, Shimamura has gone from a creature who tries to emulate human emotions but can’t work up the energy to a real live human being. I can’t make fun of her anymore.