Manga Review: Everyone's Getting Married, Volume 6, by Izumi Miyazono

Rating (Out of 5): ~3-3.5

Publisher: Shojo Beat (VIZ Media)

Release Date: September 2017

Volumes: 8+

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. RightStuf.

Volume: 1. 5. 7.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Opposites attract—but should they get married?!

Successful career woman Asuka Takanashi has an old-fashioned dream of getting married and becoming a housewife. After her long-term boyfriend breaks up with her to pursue his own career goals, she encounters popular newscaster Ryu Nanami. Asuka and Ryu get along well, but the last thing he wants is to ever get married. This levelheaded pair who want the opposite things in life should never get involved, except…

Review:

I enjoyed the first half of this volume quite a lot. There was some more drama regarding them as a couple, and their living situations, and their differing wants and how someone else wants to fulfill Asuka's.

Though I am enjoying all of this, and I do really like the mature relationship in this series, some of this drama is starting to feel very repetitive and a bit annoying.

While this series has mostly felt more mature in how it handles things, some of that has seemed to waver a bit lately. When Asuka starts worrying a bit about her family finding out about Ryu, and what happens when her brother meets him. Mostly I'm annoy that Asuka is an adult and can do whatever she wants with her life.

Aside from that one point, I liked the progress in their relationship in this volume. They took a few steps forward, I think, and did their best to prove and decide what they want with each other, and why they're good together. Even if I didn't care for the brother plot line, I do think it made them think about some of these things, or acknowledge them at least.

This volume was a bit weak, but otherwise I liked it.

Manga Review: Nisekoi. False Love, Volume 24, by Naoshi Komi

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shonen Jump (VIZ Media)

Release Date: November 2017

Volumes: 25.

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. RightStuf.

Volume: 1. 23. 25.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Love triangle! Comedic antics!! Gang warfare?!

Love triangle! Comedic antics!! Gang warfare?! You won’t want to miss out on Shonen Jump's laugh-out-loud feel-good manga series! It's hate at first sight when Raku Ichijo first meets Chitoge Kirisaki. But much to their chagrin, the two are forced into a false love relationship to keep the peace between their feuding gangster families.

A meteor shower that comes only once in 50 years is said to bring lovers together, so both Chitoge and Kosaki want to declare their love to Raku when they all gather to watch the night sky! Meanwhile, Raku still hasn’t come to terms with his own feelings… What truth will shine on this starry evening?

Review:

At the beginning of the volume, we get a realization from Ruri regarding her feelings. It's a bit cheesy, but expected. Nothing is quite done about it yet, though.

While there are no confessions quite yet, we get several revelations in this volume, regarding their own and their friends' feelings. The main triangle gets rather tangled, annoyingly so. Chitoge decides to make a big move to let her friends be happy, and it's just not great. It's not a great decision, it's frustrating, but it's also quite cheesy. It does make sense, though.

After all this, we get a couple of reveals of information, both for the book they read as kids and for the keys and the place it happened. It's all leading up to the cliffhanger, going into the finale for the next book. Not a whole lot is actually said yet, so it should be interesting to see how it all wraps up. I know who I want, and I think it's leaning that way.

We'll see.

 A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!

Manga Review: Don't Be Cruel: Akira Takanashi's Story by Yonezou Nekota

Rating (Out of 5): ~4.5

Publisher: SuBLime (VIZ Media)

Release Date: March 2017

Volumes: 7+ (+extras)

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. RightStuf.

Volume: 1&2. 3&4.

Goodreads Synopsis:

A Don’t Be Cruel spin-off story featuring Maya’s cousin Akira and his love affair with playboy med student Shimagawa!
In this Don’t Be Cruel spin-off story, Maya’s cousin Akira Takanashi is burned by love. To cope, he requires that his adult comfort come with no strings attached. But his lover, med student and notorious playboy Shimagawa, has other ideas.
Polite and proper college student Akira Takanashi has a secret. Back in high school, he fell deeply in love with his teacher but was spurned. Now, whenever the pain of his heartbreak gets to be too much, he finds comfort in the arms of med student and notorious playboy Shimagawa—very adult comfort. Shimagawa would gladly go out with him, but Akira’s past heartbreak means he insists on keeping things strictly physical—that is, until his obsessed younger brother Jutta arrives to disrupt this comfortable routine!

Review:

This volume follows the fourth volume of the original series. In that one, we got a glimpse of Shimakawa, and here we get to see when they met and what led them here. In that volume we also met Akira's old teacher and first love, and what Jutta is doing to him. Thankfully we get to see Akira deal with that in this volume, from his side at least.

Akira has been holding onto this hurt for quite a long time, and it's hurting him and harming his potential relationship with Shimakawa. I liked seeing how Shimakawa tried to help, and how Akira took it. Shimakawa and Akira get along quite well, and they have really good chemistry. I liked seeing how Shimakawa would push Akira, but how he also knew when to stop and not to go too far. It was nice to see Akira learn more about himself in their relationship, and to see him stepping outside of his box a little.

I'm seriously hooked on this series. I liked seeing this little side story, and I really look forward to reading the next one and seeing where the story goes next. It's obvious that Jutta still has something coming to him.

Teaser Tuesday[265]: I Hate Everyone But You by Gaby Dunn & Allison Raskin

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

-----------------------------------------------

I Hate Everyone But You by Gaby Dunn & Allison Raskin

Genre: YA Contemporary

Publisher: Wednesday Books (St. Martin's Press)

Release Date: September 2017

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Dear Best Friend,
I can already tell that I will hate everyone but you.
Sincerely,
Ava Helmer
(that brunette who won’t leave you alone)

We're still in the same room, you weirdo.
Stop crying.
G

So begins a series of texts and emails sent between two best friends, Ava and Gen, as they head off to their first semesters of college on opposite sides of the country. From first loves to weird roommates, heartbreak, self-discovery, coming out and mental health, the two best friends will document every moment to each other. But as each changes and grows into her new life, will their friendship be able to survive the distance?

Excerpt:

“I'm losing my mind. I can't tell up from down. I've started scratching a thin line into the foot of my bed every night to keep track of the time.” (Hardback, pg. 94)

What are you reading?

Manga Review: Waiting for Spring, Volume 1, by Anashin

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: July 2017

Volumes: 8+

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. RightStuf.

Volume: 2.

Goodreads Synopsis:

A sweet romantic story of a soft-spoken high school freshman and her quest to make friends, Waiting for Spring will delight fans of earnest, fun, and dramatic shojo like Kimi ni Todoke and Say I Love You.
Mizuki is a shy girl who's about to enter high school, and vows to open herself up to new friendships. Of course, the four stars of the boys' basketball team weren't exactly the friends she had in mind! Yet, when they drop by the cafe where she works, the five quickly hit it off. Soon she's been accidentally thrust into the spotlight, targeted by jealous girls. And will she expand her mission to include... love?

Review:

Mitsuki is at a new school, because she wants a new start. But she's struggling to make friends. In a failed love confession, she ends up forming a friendship with the four most popular boys in school, though she has a hard time accepting this at first. When she makes some female friends, she also has to get around some prejudices before settling into these new friendships.

Mitsuki is a pretty normal girl, and while she struggles at times with other peoples' opinions, she ends up forming a stronger stance on these things. I do really like Asakura, and I think the rest of the guys are fun as well. I think we're slowly getting to know each other character and learning their personalities, and I like that. By the end of the volume, I felt like I had an idea who each person was. I also enjoyed the variety, and how the one girl friend that she finds, has a BL mindset.

This was a much more fun volume than I expected, and I'm really looking forward to reading the next one. I'm intrigued by where that cliffhanger is going, in particular.

Manga Review: Yona of the Dawn, Volume 8, by Mizuho Kusanagi

Rating (Out of 5): ~~3.5

Publisher: Shojo Beat (VIZ Media)

Release Date: October 2017

Volumes: 25+

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. RightStuf.

Volume: 1. 7. 9.

Goodreads Synopsis:

A red-haired princess loses her family and her kingdom… Now she must rise and fight for her throne!

Princess Yona lives an ideal life as the only princess of her kingdom. Doted on by her father, the king, and protected by her faithful guard Hak, she cherishes the time spent with the man she loves, Su-won. But everything changes on her 16th birthday when tragedy strikes her family!

Jaeha, the Green Dragon, joins Yona’s party after their harrowing adventure together in Awa. Now the group must find the Yellow Dragon—the last dragon from the prophecy that Ik-su told Yona! Meanwhile, Su-won visits Chishin Palace and tells General Geun-tae, chief of the Earth Tribe, that he should hold a mock battle and festival. But what could be the true intent behind Su-won’s proposition?

Review:

In the first quarter of this volume, we get to meet the fourth dragon, and get settled a little with Yona and the group. At the end of the volume, we also get to see how she's dealing with her interaction with Su-won, and how Hak is reacting as well.

Aside from that, though, the rest of the volume is taken up with Su-won visiting one of the palaces. He acts like a good guy, not very serious or smart, when he's really manipulating everything without them all noticing, up until the end. Mostly it's for good reasons, at least that we know of so far. It's an interesting plot point, which was important and makes sense. But it was also boring to me and took me forever to finish, both because I don't care for Su-won, and because I had already seen it in the anime.

Hopefully we'll get something new next, and I can't wait to get back into this.

A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much! 

Manga Review: Black Butler, Volume 24, by Yana Toboso

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Yen Press

Release Date: October 2017

Volumes: 26+

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. RightStuf.

Volume: 1. 23. 25.

Goodreads Synopsis:

A mysterious cult mesmerises legions of spectators with glorious rituals of song and dance. But the unbridled passion it inspires in its followers gives Queen Victoria cause for concern, and she urges Earl Ciel Phantomhive and his expert butler, Sebastian, to do some digging. Ciel has his own reasons for taking this lot to task, but the discovery of the cult's penchant for blood means the Queen's watchdog must make an immediate move. And when Sebastian goes probing behind the stages and into the shadows, he's met by a girl standing in his way, her sword ready to meet him head on...

Review:

Both this plot line is taking forever, and it's longer between volumes. It's very frustrating, when I so badly need to know what's happening to Lizzie! I need to know she's going to be safe. Urgh, it's frustrating!

So, in this volume, we find out some of what the organization is actually doing with people. What they're experimenting on and what they've discovered. Ciel and Sebastian make some discoveries and Ciel makes some business decisions regarding it. I do think his decision is fun, but it also feels like we're prolonging this plot line.

While we make some discoveries, and we even get to see Lizzie for a short period, it feels like very little happened. It makes sense, though, because these little steps will lead to bigger things and that's important.

Just frustrating! I need to know more.

Manga Review: Dreamin' Sun, Volume 2, by Ichigo Takano

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Seven Seas

Release Date: July 2017

Volumes: 10.

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. RightStuf.

Volume: 1. 3.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Home Is Where the Heart Is

When Shimana fails to work up the courage to ask Asashi out on a date, she decides it's time to get a makeover as part of her self-improvement plan. But when she calls Asashi to come check out her new look, she's too preoccupied with his own crush to pick up the phone. Is her transformation all for nothing? And what are those weird heart palpitations Zen's getting every time he looks at Shimana? It's a full house of unrequited love and self-discovery in volume 2 of this slice-of-life romance!

Review:

In this volume, there's a makeover, a couple love confessions, and in the end, Shimana throws a fit and runs away.

This series is very... cheesy? It could be that I just don't like Shimana very much. She's a bit dramatic, and in this volume she makes a big deal over getting a makeover to impress Asahi. At times, her actions get on my nerves a bit. She also gets jealous when her possible friends from school start fawning over her roommates. She's just not really my kind of character.

But on the other hand, Zen is great. He's embarrassed easily, and awkward, and quite adorable. There's also the maturity of some decisions made in this series. The plot isn't very slow, which is nice, but it's not rushed or anything. I like that there are two important love confessions in this volume, plus another character admitting his feelings.

This series is iffy for me at the moment. I really like some points, and others bother me a little. The plot seems a little childish and cheesy sometimes, but then at other times it's smart and mature. It's up and down for me, but I'm going to give it a few more tries, I think, because I want to like it more.

Teaser Tuesday[264]: Emmy & Oliver by Robin Benway

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

 

------------------------------------------

Emmy & Oliver by Robin Benway

Genre: YA Contemporary

Publisher: HarperTeen

Release Date: 2015

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Emmy’s best friend, Oliver, reappears after being kidnapped by his father ten years ago. Emmy hopes to pick up their relationship right where it left off. Are they destined to be together? Or has fate irreparably driven them apart?

Emmy just wants to be in charge of her own life.

She wants to stay out late, surf her favorite beach—go anywhere without her parents’ relentless worrying. But Emmy’s parents can’t seem to let her grow up—not since the day Oliver disappeared.

Oliver needs a moment to figure out his heart.

He’d thought, all these years, that his dad was the good guy. He never knew that it was his father who kidnapped him and kept him on the run. Discovering it, and finding himself returned to his old hometown, all at once, has his heart racing and his thoughts swirling.

Emmy and Oliver were going to be best friends forever, or maybe even more, before their futures were ripped apart. In Emmy’s soul, despite the space and time between them, their connection has never been severed. But is their story still written in the stars? Or are their hearts like the pieces of two different puzzles—impossible to fit together?

Readers who love Sarah Dessen will tear through these pages with hearts in throats as Emmy and Oliver struggle to face the messy, confusing consequences of Oliver’s father’s crime. Full of romance, coming-of-age emotion, and heartache, these two equally compelling characters create an unforgettable story.

Excerpt:

“'Oh, there you are,' he said. 'Emmy, your parents are worried about you.'” (Hardback, pg. 118)

What are you reading?

Manga Review: Tokyo Ghoul, Volume 14, by Sui Ishida

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: VIZ Signature (VIZ Media)

Release Date: August 2017

Volumes: 14.

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. RightStuf.

Volume: 1. 13.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Ghouls live among us, the same as normal people in every way—except their craving for human flesh.

Ken Kaneki is an ordinary college student until a violent encounter turns him into the first half-human half-Ghoul hybrid. Trapped between two worlds, he must survive Ghoul turf wars, learn more about Ghoul society and master his new powers.

As Kaneki and the fiercest fighter in the CCG, Arima, finally face off, several investigators launch an assault on Yoshimura, unaware of the danger that awaits them. The massive battle takes a turn for the worse when the One-Eyed Owl appears, leaving the fate of Kaneki and the CCG hanging in the balance.

Review:

This volume is a lot of all over the place—we get a big mix of backstory and present time, different fights, different characters. There's a lot going on, some deaths and some reveals. It very much feels like an ending volume, with a climax coming and this final fight growing to an end.

The two most important parts to me were the fight between Amon and Kaneki, because it has been needing to happen for a while. There was a lot leading up to it. Second, was the reveal between Kaneki and Hide. That one was... very sweet, and needed for both Kaneki and the readers, amidst all the horror.

This was a very big volume, and I would have enjoyed it more, I think, if it actually felt like an end. Cause it leads up to a big climax, and the ending even works. But then it... doesn't end. And leads very clearly into the next series. It's almost a little disappointing to me, honestly.

Saying that, though, I do still want to read the next series. I'm not in a rush for it, but I'm intrigued to see what happens next.

A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!

Novel Review: The Geek's Guide to Unrequited Love by Sarvenaz Tash

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance; Geeky

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Release Date: 2016

Spoilers?: Yes.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy. Archie and Veronica. Althena and Noth.…Graham and Roxy?

Graham met his best friend, Roxy, when he moved into her neighborhood eight years ago and she asked him which Hogwarts house he’d be sorted into. Graham has been in love with her ever since.

But now they’re sixteen, still neighbors, still best friends. And Graham and Roxy share more than ever—moving on from their Harry Potter obsession to a serious love of comic books.

When Graham learns that the creator of their favorite comic, The Chronicles of Althena, is making a rare appearance at this year’s New York Comic Con, he knows he must score tickets. And the event inspires Graham to come up with the perfect plan to tell Roxy how he really feels about her. He’s got three days to woo his best friend at the coolest, kookiest con full of superheroes and supervillains. But no one at a comic book convention is who they appear to be…even Roxy. And Graham is starting to realize fictional love stories are way less complicated than real-life ones.

The Cover:

I think this cover is super cute. It's definitely what attracted me to the book in the first place, but I always lean toward the geeky books. I think that the title is done really well, in that fun comic font, and that the boy on the cover just sells the image.

Review:

I think my biggest problem with this book was that I wanted something different from it. Which is my problem more than the books'. But, really, I just love a good childhood-friends-to-lovers romance, and that's what I wanted.

So, spoilers, there.

Graham has been in love with Roxy for forever. They've been friends for forever. And he's finally decided that he's going to romance her, and he's going to do it at comic-con. He has a few things planned out, but several of them keep falling through. And then, while it's all falling apart, so does his confession. Because it happens, only she's not really into him that way?

I will say that I loved all of the geeking, and the comic-con dressing and makings friends and the speed-dating. Graham meets a girl at comic-con, and the friendship forming there was nice. I also liked the two best friends that tagged along to the con. Roxy and Graham also have pretty cool families, though Roxy's is more strict.

I liked the book, and it was fun. All of the parts were good. I just wanted something else from the romance, is all, and I was hopeful at the beginning (because I did read the synopsis and the warning in it), but disappointed at the end. It was still good, though, and I will probably try another book of hers.

Manga Review: Say I Love You, Volume 17, by Kanae Hazuki

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: February 2017

Volumes: 18.

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. RightStuf.

Volume: 1. 16. 18.

Goodreads Synopsis:

LOVE AT A DISTANCE

Mei is now in a vocational school to become a preschool teacher, and Yamato is in college with the aim of eventually becoming a professional photographer. But as they get more involved in their individual pursuits, they have fewer chances to see each other, putting a strain on their relationship. To make matters worse, an unsettling message about Yamato and Yamato’s new female friend at his college have brought doubt into the future of Mei and Yamato’s relationship. Meanwhile, Meg continues to struggle with her modeling career in Paris, but a shocking discovery forces her to make a big decision…

Review:

Mei and Asami are struggling with their high school boyfriends. They aren't in the same place anymore, and they're having a hard time staying close and communicating and staying connected. Asami seems to be in a worse state, but she's trying to do something about it or get it over with. Mei, on the other hand, finally talks with Yamato. Yamato seems to realize what he's doing wrong, though, and corrects some of his actions, thankfully.

Megumi, on the other hand, is just struggling. She's having a hard time finding work, and now her boyfriend cheated on her. She's on her own, in an unfamiliar place, floundering to be herself and succeed. I'm still rooting for her and Kai, but it also seems like going to Japan might be best for her anyway. Or at least, somewhere aside from France.

I'm enjoying this series, but the romance and the plot lines aren't seeming very intense or memorable. I think that the slower release dates aren't helping this. I guess there's only one volume left, though, so I'm interested to see how it all wraps up.

Manga Review: In/Spectre, Volume 2, by Kyo Shirodaira and Chashiba Katase

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: January 2017

Volumes: 7+

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. RightStuf.

Volume: 1. 3.

Goodreads Synopsis:

EX FACTOR
Kotoko investigates the mysterious death of former idol Karin Nanase, who now terrorizes the sleepy town of Makurazaka as Steel Lady Nanase. But with Kur missing and the threat of the Steel Lady potentially causing harm to the Makurazaka s citizens, Kotoko is left with no choice but to team-up with Kur s ex-girlfriend, Saki. And later, as the Steel Lady strikes again, the origins of Kuro s bizarre powers are revealed.

Review:

This is a relatively short light novel adaptation that I think is really well done. Sometimes they're a bit weak in character development, but this one really isn't. I quite like all of the characters, and the mystery plot is interesting as well.

Saki is trying to better herself and get past her previous relationship. Having Kotoko show up has not helped her do this. Kotoko is adorably shameless and obnoxious. She's trying to show off to Saki, but Kuro doesn't help when he doesn't seem all that in love with her. The poor guy, honestly.

I really like Kotoko; she's refreshing and definitely my favorite character. I like her relationship with Kuro and think he balances her out, but I do want to see more of their dynamic. After the time skip, it's hard to see where they stand in their relationship.

One particular high note in this volume was seeing Steel Lady Nanase's back story. She starred in some seriously cheesy movies, and I think it was cheesy and funny in the best way.

We also got a back story on how Kuro became what he is, what his family did leading up to him. It was rather disturbing, honestly.

This is a really interesting series to me. The mystery is intriguing, but there's also a lot of depth into the characters' and their stories and personalities. I really want to see how this continues.