Manga Review: The Heiress and the Chauffeur, Volume 2, by Keiko Ishihara

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shojo Beat (VIZ Media)

Release Date: August 2, 2016

Volumes: 2.

Spoilers?: Some.

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

Volume: 1.

Goodreads Synopsis:

At an all-girls school during the Taisho Era of Japan, rumors swirl that heiress Sayaka Yoshimura is having a forbidden love affair with her chauffeur, Shinobu Narutaki! Sayaka scoffs at the rumors, but could a romance between master and servant actually be brewing?

Sayaka’s father arranges for her to marry the son of an earl! Meanwhile, Sayaka has started to develop special feelings for Narutaki… But with such a huge divide between their social standings, is it even possible for Sayaka and Narutaki to be together?

Review:

Even if the ending of this series is unbelievable to some, or inaccurate to the times, or whatever—I don’t care. I still enjoyed it and found it at least somewhat plausible, and even then that’s not the point to me.

Sayaka gets a real suitor for marriage, and even though their first meeting goes terribly, she sparks something in him and he decides to work for real. It’s competition for her chauffeur. Thankfully, this doesn’t go far, though. Sayaka isn’t the type to go along with something she doesn’t really believe in, or to pretend when she doesn’t believe in it.

Which is why it makes sense for her to finally accept her feelings for Narutaki, and how things continue from there. Her feelings for him are more important to her than anything else, and it’s the same for him, so it’s sweet to see them finally together. But that doesn’t mean she’s going to run away or lie or give in to disagreement from others, so I think that the ending fits quite well.

I enjoyed this short series, the artwork is very pretty, and I don’t really care about any inaccuracies. I would read more.

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

Manga Review: The Heiress and the Chauffeur, Volume 1, by Keiko Ishihara

Rating (Out of 5): ~4
Publisher: Shojo Beat (VIZ Media)
Release Date: May 3, 2016
Volumes: 2.
Spoilers?: No.
Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf.
Volume: 2.
Wishlist Thursday.

Goodreads Synopsis:

At an all-girls school during the Taisho era in Japan, rumors swirl that heiress Sayaka Yoshimura is having a forbidden love affair with her chauffeur, Shinobu Narutaki! Sayaka scoffs at the rumors, but could a romance between master and servant actually be brewing?

Sayaka wears a crimson ribbon that signals she is at the top of her class, and her classmates all revere her. So when Narutaki ignores decorum and breaks school rules to protect Sayaka, will she stand by him or dismiss him as the school demands?

Review: 

This is a historic series, and while I’m not usually a historic reader, I don’t mind it here. Though the setting isn’t given a lot of depth, and might not even be fully accurate. That’s not a big deal to me. Mostly we get the clothes, little technology and modern ideals, and more modesty in society. It is very pretty, too.

Sayaka goes to an all-girls school, and spends a lot of time with her chauffeur Shinobu, making people think indecent things. Even when Sayaka is being bullied and unsure of things, she still stays strong, though. Even when everyone around her scolds them for her chauffeur going where he shouldn’t, and questioning whether they have an intimate relationship, she doesn’t back down. She stays strong and defends him and herself. I do admit that Shinobu saves her more than he should, but I kind of think it’s a fault on him and his protective instinct, not because she can’t defend herself.

I particularly admire that when Shinobu is forced to be punished, she even takes that on herself so no one else can do it, in a way to protect him. Her inner strength and smarts is nice to see. I’m really looking forward to picking up the next and final volume and seeing how it ends.

There’s also a one-shot at the end of the volume, and it’s a cute story about siblings forced to repay a debt and trying to get out of it. It had a relatively surprise ending that I appreciated.

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

Wishlist Thursday[157]: The Heiress and the Chauffeur by Keiko Ishihara

The Heiress and the Chauffeur 1 by Keiko Ishihara

Publisher: Shojo Beat (VIZ Media)

Release Date: May 3, 2016

Volumes: 2.

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

Volume 2.

Goodreads Synopsis:

At an all-girls school during the Taisho era in Japan, rumors swirl that heiress Sayaka Yoshimura is having a forbidden love affair with her chauffeur, Shinobu Narutaki! Sayaka scoffs at the rumors, but could a romance between master and servant actually be brewing?

Sayaka wears a crimson ribbon that signals she is at the top of her class, and her classmates all revere her. So when Narutaki ignores decorum and breaks school rules to protect Sayaka, will she stand by him or dismiss him as the school demands?

Why?:

I pick up pretty much all shojo beat manga, and at this point pretty much all shojo series licensed. I’m not usually a historical fan, but I do seem to have a thing for butler stories… and I’m always willing to try. This one sounds interesting, and I look forward to picking up the first volume.

What's on your list?