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Déjà Vute: Betrayal Begets New Beginnings, Vol. 1

By Minami Kashiwa and Suzunosuke. Released in Japan as “Imouto ni Subete o Ubawareta Reijou wa Kon’yakusha no Uragiri o Shiri Kaiki Suru” by PASH! Books. Released in North America by J-Novel Heart. Translated by Jessica Speed. This is the second debut in a row that features a “Cinderella” story that focuses heavily on the abuse of the main character by her evil stepmother and stepsister, and this one leans more heavily into the romance part of the equation. (For details on the first, which focuses on the abuse itself and the recovery, see my review of Keep Me Close). This one also features that ever popular plotline, getting killed off and then waking up years in the past to fix everything. That said, Déjà Vute struggled throughout its first…

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Keep Me Close: Finding My Home in You, Vol. 1

By Morrinmomo and whimhalooo. Released in Japan as “Watashi ga Kaeritai Basho wa ~Ibasho o Nakushita Reijou ga “Tokenai Hyouzou” to Uwasa Sareru Ryoushu-sama no Moto de Shiawase ni Naru made~” by DRE Novels. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Amy Osteraas. Generally speaking my reviews don’t have continuity, and you should not have to read them day by day to get the gist of what I think. Sometimes, though, timing plays a major role. This week saw the release of two shoujo LNs with, if not similar plots, at least similar framing devices – the evil stepmother and stepsister, and years of horrible abuse. And they came out within two days of each other, so I am reading them one right after the other. Theoretically I…

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Manga the Week of 11/11/26

SEAN: Election Day has passed! That’s good! Or bad! Delete where applicable! ASH: Stressful, is what that was. SEAN: Airship has a print debut. When It Rains, It Pours (Futtara Doshaburi) is a BL light novel from the creator of Yes, No or Maybe?. A guy and his girl are growing apart. Another guy has an unrequited crush on his male roommate. Can these two become friends by venting to each other? ASH: There’s a good chance, I would suspect. SEAN: They also have Magical Buffs: The Support Caster is Stronger Than He Realized! 3. And for early digital, we get The Condemned Villainess Goes Back in Time and Aims to Become the Ultimate Villain 9, A Tale of the Secret Saint ZERO 6, Too Many Losing Heroines! SS, and…

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Housekeeping Mage from Another World: Making Your Adventures Feel Like Home!, Vol. 10

By You Fuguruma and Nama. Released in Japan as “Kasei Madoushi no Isekai Seikatsu: Boukenchuu no Kasei Fugyou Uketamawarimasu!” by Ichijinsha Bunko Iris NEO. Released in North America by J-Novel Heart. Translated by Hengtee Lim. Last time I said we were caught up with Japan and I wasn’t sure when we’d get the next book in the series. Well, it turned out to be about a year and a half. And since we’re caught up with Japan again, it may be another year and a half before Book 11. On the bright side, unlike some other slow-burn romances I could name (coughDahliacough), this one is actually realizing that it’s going to be ending with Book 11 or 12 and doing something about it. The meeting with Alec’s brother, which we’ve…

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From Bumbling Prodigy to Villainess: Will the Duke’s Love Go Unnoticed?, Vol. 2

By Saki Ichibu and Yukako Fujimura. Released in Japan as “Munou Saijo wa Akujo ni Naritai ~Gimai no Migawari de Totsuida Reijou, Koushaku-sama no Dekiai ni Kizukanai~” by Dengeki no Shin Bungei. Released in North America by Cross Infinite World. Translated by Joshua C Shupp. I have, inevitably, mentioned this before, but it is still interesting how, due to translations having to actually be translated and not just literally ported over, “Villainess” is having to get redefined in these books. Sometimes it does mean someone who is capable of doing evil things, ranging from murder to throwing wine on someone’s dress. Sometimes it’s someone who enjoys sleeping around, or toying with other men. But sometimes the “bad woman” merely means “strong woman”, and one reason why transposed Japanese otaku, or…

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The Villainess’ Journal: Newlywed Life of an Obsessive Researcher, Vol. 1

By Len Kagizaki and Akira Shigaraki. Released in Japan as “Akujo Nisshi -Otaku na Akujo (?) no Shinkon Seikatsu-” by Maple Novels. Released in North America by Cross Infinite World. Translated by Emma Schumacker. This review does spoil the biggest reveal in the book, sorry about that. When I saw this was coming out one month after From Bumbling Prodigy to Villainess debuted, I was somewhat puzzled. Let’s face it, the two have a premise that’s so similar it’s almost eerie. But after reading it, I can see the differences that make this one stand out. For one thing, Bumbling Prodigy has one normal guy trying to deal with his very sheltered, eccentric, somewhat autistic nerd of a wife, with help from snickering servants. Whereas this title has the exact…

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The Fearsome Witch Teaches in Another World: I’ll Show You That All Races Are Equal

By Mitsuru Inoue and Suzuno. Released in Japan as “Isekai Teni Shite Kyoushi ni Natta ga, Majo to Osorerarete Iru Ken” by Earth Star Luna. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Gierrlon Dunn. It’s always a bit of a bummer when you’re reading a series and the author makes a decision about the book that you don’t like. And it’s even more annoying when it’s the entire plot of the book. This book picks up where the fourth book left off, with Aoi trying to get the guy who bullied Solare so hard he became a shut-in to apologize… only very quickly that becomes secondary to what these books always end up being about, which is how overpowered Aoi is and how her magic is super duper…

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Observation Records of My Wife: The Misadventures of a Self-Proclaimed Villainess, Vol. 5

By Shiki and Wan Hachipisu. Released in Japan as “Jishō Akuyaku Reijō na Tsuma no Kansatsu Kiroku” by Regina Books. Released in North America by Hanashi Media. Translated by Ethan Holms. I did enjoy this volume a lot more than the previous one, let’s get that out of the way. With that said… there is a point at the start of this book where Charles tells Cecil that he’s going to have to do something that might look very suspicious to others, and Cecil wonders out loud “shouldn’t you tell your fiancee?” The trouble is that what this involves is a minor bad guy who’s been sleeping around and getting women pregnant, and the men in this series all want to shelter their significant others from the horrors of that….

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Repeated Vice: I Refuse to Be Important Enough to Die, Vol. 5

By Kuroakawa Hitsugi and Kushiro Kuki. Released in Japan as “Repeat Vice: Akuyaku Kizoku wa Shinitakunai node Shitennou ni Naru no wo Yamemashita” by HJ Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by piyo. While amusing, it can also be a pain in the ass when I decide what I’m going to base a large chunk of my review on and then have the author, in the afterword, say what I was going to and that they are well aware of it. So yeah, let’s just get this out of the way: for a harem series, Lilka has been getting a lot more attention than the rest of the girls. This is especially true in this book, where Fol and Yusurika are basically absent, and much of the…

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