By Kori Hisakawa and Airumu. Released in Japan as “Haikei Mishiranu Danna-sama, Rikonshite Itadakimasu” by Media Works Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Carley Radford.
This sure went places. Judging by the cover art and title, I was expecting a certain type of book, and I definitely got it, but it went to some odd and spiky areas. Speaking of which, I will put in a brief content warning that this book has what might be framed as a “reluctant” first time, and there is also discussion of an (off-screen) rape of a man by another woman. There is also an abusive husband and father, though he is very quickly “reformed”, by which I mean he gets the crap beaten out of him. We see, throughout the book, the rumors swirling around our main character that she is a loose cannon, and also a loose woman. She shrugs off the rumors because they suit her purposes, but once they no longer do that they become the toxic nastiness they’ve always been. And, as always, our two leads don’t talk to each other at all, so have to guess what the other is thinking, and it always goes badly.
Byletta Holland is horrified to find that her parents have engaged her to some soldier. After an Academy life where she gained a horrible reputation, all she wants is to start her own business and make a name for herself. However, as a noble’s daughter, she has to marry, and she’s now headed off to the Swagwan estate, where she will marry Arnald, the eldest son. She arrives… to find that war has gone badly, so Arnald went off to the front, leaving a message that his wife can do what she wants. Realizing that this could work in her favor, she accepts the marriage and decides to stay… and quickly finds that her father in law is a drunken lout who beats his second wife and menaces his 6-year-old daughter and the servants. Something will have to be done.
Byletta is the main reason to read this book. She’s smart, does not suffer fools gladly, and can beat her father in law so badly in a sword fight that he actually sobers up and stops hitting his family. (This is probably unrealistic, but given the alternative I handwaved it. He remains a jerk, though.) In the eight years between her wedding and her husband returning home, she does start a highly successful business, she has connections all over the city, and she is ready to be divorced. Sadly, her husband is one of those “what are these things called emotions” types, and when he hears the rumors about her, he assumes she’s sleeping with half the town. After their first night together, he realizes he was wrong, and starts to actually observe his wife more closely… and realizes that she’s his ideal woman. Unfortunately, these two don’t talk to each other, and it’s frustrating. They also have enemies, who set up the cliffhanger of this book. It’s definitely on the “potboiler” end of the spectrum.
This is nine volumes and counting in Japan, and it appears it will have a lot more drama in the future. If you like the genre, and don’t mind a bit more non-con than these books usually get into, this is a very good read.