Manga Review: Graineliers, Volume 1, by Rihito Takarai

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Yen Press

Release Date: December 2017

Volumes: 3+

Spoilers?: No.

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Volume: 2.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Rihito Takarai (Ten Count) pens anything but a garden variety fantasy! In a world where the seeds of plants are imbued with power, the wheels of fate begin to turn for Luca, an illegal seed cultivator, when the government-sanctioned Graineliers come to take away his father, who in turn hands Luca a rare and powerful seed...!

Review:

I've only read Takarai's yaoi series, Ten Count, which I enjoyed but I know was met with some issues. This seems to be a very different kind of series, though, and I'm pretty sure it's not labeled yaoi, at least.

We're introduced to a dystopian world, where plant seeds are hard to find and illegal to grow on your own, and very expensive. Luca does what he can to make money, even growing some plants and selling them on the blackmarket; he lives with his dad, who he doesn't see much of, and who he knows is doing something bad, but he's not sure what. It all goes downhill very quickly, though, when the police show up and he swallows a seed that makes him black out for two years.

This is an intriguing world, though the seed thing is a little weird. The effect it has on Luca, in particular, is very odd. And then we meet this little girl, who might be similarly odd, though she could be a whole different matter as well.

I'm very intrigued. I don't feel like we got enough in this volume, and yet there was a lot explained in this volume, and we got to know the characters relatively well. I was a little unsure at first, but I might pick up the next one. I kind of want to know where this goes next. And I do rather like how Takarai develops characters, and the humor put in.

Manga Review: Wake Up, Sleeping Beauty, Volume 6, by Megumi Morino

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: September 2018

Volumes: 6.

Spoilers?: No.

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Volume: 1. 5.

Goodreads Synopsis:

This funny and heartrending romantic manga set in modern Tokyo is not the fairy tale you remember! This time, Prince Charming is a teenage janitor, and this Sleeping Beauty's curse is a supernatural, gender-bending dream that threatens to pull them both into a deeper and deeper slumber…

SWEET DREAMS

After a hectic summer, Shizu and her mother welcome a calm autumn in their home. Every day, Shizu grows more certain of herself, but after meeting the living daughter of one of her ghosts, she realizes it all comes at a price. The spirits within her know they are existing on borrowed time, and no one is more worried than Shizu. As a newfound loneliness creeps into her heart, she finds out the hard way that there is plenty to gain in letting go…

Review:

The last bit of closure for the series is the ghosts inhabiting Shizu's body. They need closure in order to move on, and Shizu and Tetsu decide to find it. Haru is the biggest surprise, both sad and sweet. Shizu forms a friendship with his daughter in the search, though.

Shizu gets to continue discovering herself. Finding out who she is and what she likes, and what she wants. I really like these kinds of plot lines/characters to begin with, and it's nice to see Shizu figuring these things out. She's getting out there and making friendships, going after what she wants, and growing her relationship with Tetsu along the way.

The ending for this series was really sweet. It wrapped up all of the loose threads, including Shizu's relationship with her father and Tetsu's mother's status. Some a little open, but on the way to getting better, I think.

This was a really sweet series, and I'm glad I followed it.

Manga Review: Blue Exorcist, Volume 21, by Kazue Kato

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Shonen Jump Advanced (VIZ Media)

Release Date: January 2019

Volumes: 23+

Spoilers?: Light.

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

Volume: 1. 20. 22.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Rin and his exorcist classmates are caught in a secret war against the forces of darkness.

Raised by Father Fujimoto, a famous exorcist, Rin Okumura never knew his real father. One day a fateful argument with Father Fujimoto forces Rin to face a terrible truth – the blood of the demon lord Satan runs in Rin’s veins! Rin swears to defeat Satan, but doing that means entering the mysterious True Cross Academy and becoming an exorcist himself.

An attack on Tokyo by a huge demon that is visible to almost everyone marks the start of an unprecedented outbreak of demonic activity around the world. While the Knights of the True Cross and the Japanese government scramble to contain the damage, Lightning’s investigation into the Illuminati has pushed the Knights of the True Cross—and Yukio—just a little too far. Now Yukio rushes to confront Mephisto, determined to hear the truth of the circumstances of his and Rin’s birth. Yet Mephisto, aloof as always, still seems to be pulling everyone’s strings. For Yukio and Rin, there will be no easy answers…

Review:

There's something going on with Yukio and now everyone knows it. But because of how he's acting, no one is sure of what it is that's wrong. This all comes to the forefront when there's an attack and normal people start seeing the creatures that hang around everywhere and cause chaos.

I will admit that I didn't see this coming, and yet it makes sense. There's always been a distance between Yukio and Rin, no matter how Rin tried to bridge it and even ignore it was there. Yukio has always kept everyone away from himself, and that included Rin. And now that he might be forming powers of his own, of course he's decided to hide it and figure it out on his own.

It was harsh seeing Rin have to confront Yukio and try to help him, but it wasn't surprising how Yukio reacted. It was sad, and hard being on Rin's side during it.

After all of that, Rin then has to deal with his own powers exploding inside him. Since they're both descendant from Satan, it makes more sense that their powers would be fighting them and taking over in these ways. It's almost been too easy till this point, and now the brothers have to face what's happening as it becomes too much.

There was a true surprise in Shiemi's powers here, though I'd always hoped we'd get to see more of her.

There's a lot going on right now in this series, and I'm looking forward to seeing what develops next.

Manga Review: Beastars, Volume 1, by Para Itagaki

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5-4

Publisher: VIZ Signature (VIZ Media)

Release Date: July 2019

Volumes: 15+

Spoilers?: Yes, for the very beginning of the volume.

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Volume: 2.

Goodreads Synopsis:

At this high school, instead of jocks and nerds, the students are divided into predators and prey.

At a high school where the students are literally divided into predators and prey, it’s personal relationships that maintain the fragile peace. Who among them is a Beastar—an academic and social role model destined to become a leader in a society naturally rife with mistrust?

Review:

I went into this volume not knowing much about it. So seeing the death at the beginning of the volume was a surprise, and definitely set a tone for the series. It perfectly warrants the worry and terror and suspicion that follows.

This is set in an animal world, where animals are separated by prey and predator, and yet are going to school together. This is a boarding school, and our main character is a wolf. He's tall and quiet and brooding; he's a tech guy for the drama club. And now the drama club is dealing with the new prejudices and suspicions, and yet still putting on this play.

It's hard to know who to trust, because the predator student who killed that sweet prey animal could be any of them. It's hard to know whose side to be on, who to help or root for.

Meeting the sweet bunny sets a potential dynamic, but it could be good or very bad for our leading wolf.

I can't deny the reference to Zootopia here. I love that movie, only now we're following the predatory animal. There's also a lot of quiet moments and thoughtful scenes, and we get to see both sides of the animal here—the sweet and the scary. And the artwork is very particular—it's a bit sketchy of a style, and yet very pretty, and I really like it.

I'm definitely intrigued. I liked this first volume, and I want to see where it's going next.

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

Novel Review: Defy Me (Shatter Me, #5) by Tahereh Mafi

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Genre: YA Supernatural Romance

Publisher: HarperTeen

Release Date: April 2019

Spoilers?: Only for previous book.

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

Goodreads Synopsis:

The gripping fifth installment in the New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestselling Shatter Me series. Will Juliette’s broken heart make her vulnerable to the strengthening darkness within her?

Juliette’s short tenure as the supreme commander of North America has been an utter disaster. When the children of the other world leaders show up on her doorstep, she wants nothing more than to turn to Warner for support and guidance. But he shatters her heart when he reveals that he’s been keeping secrets about her family and her identity from her—secrets that change everything.

Juliette is devastated, and the darkness that’s always dwelled within her threatens to consume her. An explosive encounter with unexpected visitors might be enough to push her over the edge.

The Cover:

I love these covers. I love how they all match and go together, and also are different enough. They're gorgeous, and so eye-catching, and give such a good feel for the series.

Review:

It isn't usually so obvious to me, but this very much felt like a middle book in a series. While there was a lot of stuff happening, there was a lot of time recovering from the previous cliffhanger, and leading up to the new cliffhanger.

Since Juliette has been kidnapped, the characters are separated for most of this book. Juliette has to figure out how to deal with her new situation, learning her new surroundings and the people around her and what they're doing to her. She's still processing everything, when she's taken away from everyone she knows and basically tortured.

I will admit that I love how she recovers from it all. Juliette is kick ass, and she ain't afraid of these people any more, oh no no.

It was interesting how Warner and Kenji dealt with her being missing, and how the group had to come together and figure out how to proceed from their end of things. With Juliette gone, they have to step forward and figure out how to keep their people safe and not lose everything they've done to this point.

Not to mention the surprise characters who show up and potentially ruin everything.

I know some people don't like that this series continued (this is a common feeling for a lot of series), but I'm all for it. I'm really into this series still, and am finding these new developments really interesting, and very hard to put down, honestly. I can't wait to see how this all wraps up in the next and final book.

Manga Review: Takane & Hana, Volume 10, by Yuki Shiwasu

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shojo Beat (VIZ Media)

Release Date: August 2019

Volumes: 15+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 9. 11.

Goodreads Synopsis:

A strong-willed high school girl and a hot young scion of a business empire can’t help trying to outwit each other every chance they get… But could these opposites be conning themselves out of the perfect match?!

After her older sister refuses to go to an arranged marriage meeting with Takane Saibara, the heir to a vast business fortune, high schooler Hana Nonomura agrees to be her stand-in to save face for the family. But when these two utter opposites pair up, get ready for some sparks to fly!

When Hana’s childhood friend Okamon confesses that he’s in love with her, Hana goes into a total panic! Can she possibly return his feelings? And once Takane finds out, all bets are off on how he’ll react to the news!

Review:

Okamon's confession throws Hana and Takane for a loop in this volume. It takes Hana completely by surprise (cause she's dense), and it makes Takane consider their current relationship and how it mistakenly might be affecting Hana.

After all of that drama, we get to see how Takane and Nicola met. And it's super adorable. Nicola is such a happy-go-lucky guy, he loves everyone and doesn't even mean to be a playboy. He just thinks everyone is great. And then he meet Takane. His determination here makes perfect sense, and really explains how they became friends. He had to wear Takane down.

Things kind of calm down in the second half of the volume, up until that ending. Super cute, though.

This series is honestly one of my favorites at this point. Whenever a new volume arrives, I need to read it immediately. And I really get a kick out of the comedy in this volume, and how Takane and Hana tease each other. It's just a lot of fun.

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

Manga Review: Black Torch, Volume 4, by Tsuyoshi Takaki

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shonen Jump (VIZ Media)

Release Date: May 2019

Volumes: 5.

Spoilers?: No.

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Volume: 1. 3. 5.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Ninja and animal lover Jiro Azuma’s life is changed forever when he finds himself in the middle of a war of ninjas vs. demons.

Jiro Azuma is descended from of a long line of shinobi, and he also can talk to animals. One day, he rescues a very unique black cat named Rago, a supernatural being, and is dragged into a secret supernatural war.

In order to save Jiro’s life, Rago pledges loyalty to Amagi, his sworn enemy! But Rago has no intention of letting his power be used by evil forces, and so when he joins Amagi, he leaves all his power behind in Jiro. Outraged at the unexpected betrayal, Amagi unleashes his wrath upon Rago!

Review:

As the other Mononoke are clearly after Rago and want to separate Rago from Jiro, they have to decide how to attack back. Rago wants Jiro to be okay, and Jiro wants to fight everyone. Rago throws in a surprise here, though, that not even the mononoke had considered.

With this new power, the bureau is having a hard time keeping hold of Jiro, and Jiro needs to train to figure out how to handle it all.

Jiro meets a new mononoke in the second half of this volume. It's a mononoke woman, who has made an agreement to live peacefully and unbothered in this forest, along with her husband who used to be human. I really liked getting to see their dynamic and history, how they came to be in this position. It's a really sweet story, and I was pleasantly surprised to meet these characters. I kind of want more of them.

The next volume is the last, which seems to mean that there isn't a romance in the forefront, and I appreciate that. Jiro only formed some light friendships with all of the characters, including the women, and I like that. The plot line was more important to him, at least.

Now, saying that, I kind of ship Ichika and Roren? It's so odd to me, and yet I'm kind of into it.


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

Novel Review: Crossing the Line by Simone Elkeles

Rating (Out of 5): ~2-2.5

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance

Publisher: HarperTeen (HarperCollins)

Release Date: June 2018

Spoilers?: No.

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

Goodreads Synopsis:

A high-stakes story of star-crossed lovers from Simone Elkeles, the New York Times bestselling author of the Perfect Chemistry series

To escape his abusive stepdad, bad boy Ryan Hess runs from his tiny Texas border town to Mexico. But his plans to keep his head down and stay out of trouble are shattered the minute he meets the beautiful and totally out of his league Dalila Sandoval.

Dalila Sandoval shouldn’t even know someone like Ryan Hess. The daughter of one of the wealthiest lawyers in Mexico, Dalila is focused on studying and planning for her bright future. Ryan is only a distraction from her dreams, but she’s never felt more alive than when she’s by his side.

Ryan and Dalila are wrong for each other in every way. And yet they can’t resist the sparks that fly when they’re together. But their love is like a flame burning too close to the fuse.

Something is going to explode. Will their love be strong enough to survive? Or will it burn them both?

The Cover:

Meh. It's very typical romance couple. The title is really the only interesting part about it, but still nothing really catches my attention or makes me want to pick it up. Aside from expecting/wanting more intense of a romance.

Review:

I've enjoyed Elkeles' books in the past, quite a lot really. So I didn't expect this, or to feel this way about it.

I will admit that the beginning of this book reminded me a bit of All the Pretty Horses, which is a book I hated when I read it in high school. Most of the book didn't really have that feel, though, once I got into it.

I don't want to spoil how any of this happens, but I will say this book does not have a happily every after. I didn't expect it to go this way for most of the book, even really until the end when it happened. It doesn't happen often, and I really don't care for tragedies. They're not my kind of thing.

To be fair, though, I also didn't really feel much for this book. The characters were okay, but I wasn't all that into the romance, I wasn't even really feeling the chemistry. In the beginning it felt okay, but instead of getting better, the plot just seemed to drag on. They were put in a pretty impossible situation, including where some adults could have helped and instead decided to keep them out of the loop on everything. And how it all wrapped up and the big surprise bad guy (which wasn't terribly surprising) ended up seeming rather unrealistic.

I really wanted to like this book, but I just don't think it was meant to be for me. It had a lot in the way of it, it seems. And I can even, kind of, maybe, see how that ending was okay. But mostly I'm just not happy about it.

Manga Review: Yona of the Dawn, Volume 18, by Mizuho Kusanagi

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shojo Beat (VIZ Media)

Release Date: June 2019

Volumes: 30+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 17. 19.

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!

A Kai Empire soldier fatally strikes Zeno, but he doesn’t die! Yona and her friends are shocked by the Yellow Dragon’s power as well as what he reveals about both his past and the Crimson Dragon King…

Review:

This volume was an unexpected side-trip for me. We finally get to see what Zeno's power is, and thus what his history is. It's much more than I expected, and takes us on quite a journey. It makes me respect his character a lot more, and makes me want to give him a hug—so it's nice that all of the characters, especially Yona, give him several in this volume.

This is also one of the first times in this series that the violence was truly felt. The dragons and Hak have been in several fights before this, but truly seeing the way that Zeno gets cut up, is horrific. It's perfectly fitting and gives a really good impact, given the story and the other characters' reactions. Yona's horror, in particular, is very real.

It's been a long time since we've been reminded of what the crimson dragon means, and what the potential of it for Yona could mean. The back story on this was very interesting, and the path that Zeno takes to meet the current dragons and the new crimson dragon, makes me really curious where this is leading next. It's a lot of potential for Yona to grow into.

I'm excited to see where the story goes from here. This was a lot of important information, with some key moments. And getting to see the dragons—mainly the Blue Dragon, but also Gija—as little kids makes me so happy. They're so cute!

Manga Review: Kaguya-sama Love is War, Volume 8, by Aka Akasaka

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shonen Jump (VIZ Media)

Release Date: May 2019

Volumes: 16+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 7. 9.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Two high school geniuses scheme to get the other to confess their love first.

Two geniuses. Two brains. Two hearts. One battle. Who will confess their love first…?!

Will Miyuki’s hormones keep him loyal to Kaguya or lead him astray? Meanwhile, Miko is interpreting everything she observes in the student council as risqué. Then, a shojo manga makes everyone romance crazy. Somebody actually, finally asks somebody out! And Kaguya and Miyuki accidentally get locked inside a room together…

Lovesick: figure of speech or actual ailment?

Review:

Now that Miko Ino is part of the student council, she gets to settle in with the cast and find her place. And the others aren't setting a great impression.

She's still too strict, and somehow idolizes Chika. Chika in turn tries to make her loosen up, get her to relax some of her uptightness. But then there's all this talk of love, and she's starting to think Miyuki is a sexual deviant. She's beginning to think this student council isn't the place for her. When she talks to her best friend about it all, that changes her opinion completely, and now she might be on Yu's side, actually.

Some of the plots between Miyuki and Kaguya are getting a little tiring, mainly because I think I want some progress. Plus, the chapter where they got trapped in the gym closet—it would have made more sense if they'd worried the other person thought they'd fixed this up themselves, as opposed to assuming the other one had done it.

But I do still enjoy the craziness of this series, and I like the addition of Miko Ino. She's an interesting character to me.

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

Manga Review: Hatsu*Haru, Volume 5, by Shizuki Fujisawa

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Yen Press

Release Date: February 2019

Volumes: 13.

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 4. 6.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Kai just can't shake his feelings for Riko, no matter how hard he tries (or how many other girls he dates). When it comes to first loves, though, Riko knows better than most how hard it can be to let things go. With Suwa and Akemi's wedding fast approaching, will Riko be able to finally tell her most important people a heartfelt "Congratulations"...?

Review:

Riko is upset by how Kai has suddenly reverted to his playboy ways, but doesn't know why. And Kai is reacting to what he thinks is happening between Riko and Takaya. Which means Takaya has to do something—thus, the pretend romance trope of Takaya and Ayumi. I can get behind this.

Riko and Kai both have to figure themselves out for a bit here, and come back to a middle ground of friendship. Around this time, the wedding has arrived, and Riko has to figure out her feelings about that, and get some closure.

Given the previous cliffhangers, we'll see what this one adds up to. But I'm hopeful.

I'm really enjoying this series, still. It's cute and fun, and uses the normal tropes in a mostly fresh and fun way. The characters and friendships are a lot of fun, in particular, though.

Manga Review: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Volume 4, by Akira Himekawa

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Publisher: VIZ Media

Release Date: September 2018

Volumes: 7+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 3. 5.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Once upon a time, wizards tried to conquer the Sacred Realm of Hyrule. The Spirits of Light sealed the wizards’ power within the Shadow Crystal and banished them to the Twilight Realm beyond the Mirror of Twilight. Now, an evil menace is trying to find Midna, Princess of the Twilight Realm, and the fragments of the Shadow Crystal to gain the power to rule over both the Twilight Realm and the World of Light.

Link and Midna head for Death Mountain to dispel the darkness that is plaguing the Gorons and hopefully obtain another shard of the Shadow Crystal. If they can recover the shard they’ll only need to find one more piece of the Crystal. But their journey is far from over—shadows are gathering at Hyrule Castle and there are still many grave dangers and terrible foes to face!

Review:

We find out where Ilia has shown up, only to discover she doesn't remember anything. It's an interesting side story, and a bit of a surprise for Link. He doesn't really know how to pretend, though, and act like he doesn't know her. That's a bit outside of his repertoire.

Aside from that, Link fights a few bosses and continues traveling around, trying to find the pieces and save the kingdom. There's a bit of a cliffhanger at the end here, as Link and Midna finish one quest. This will probably only complicate things in the mean time, though.

I don't mind following this series, but it's mostly just okay. That's probably how it works when you adapt a video game, though, even if it's done pretty well. 

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