Manga Review: V.B. Rose, Volume 11, by Banri Hidaka

5 of 5 Stars

Publisher: Tokyopop

Goodreads Synopsis:

Ageha gets the job of a lifetime - making her sister's wedding dress. Ageha loves making handbags and other accessories, so when one of her sister's dress makers hurts his hand she jumps right in to help! And thus begins Ageha's adventures at the fashionable Velvet Blue Rose.

On a whim, Ageha asks how Yukari and Mitsuya first met, leading to a heart-pounding and hilarious story! And as close as they are now, it's hard to imagine that these two friends started off on the worst possible foot. But, boy, was Yukari extra-cute back in the day. Plus, the history of Mitsuya's long relationship with Tsuyu is finally revealed...but is it too late to make amends!

Review:

I've read all of the books in this series that was released before Tokyopop closed down. I don't want to talk too much about Tokyopop closing, because I want to talk about the book. But I am still upset about it, I haven't gotten over it yet. Even if I was upset at them for some of the things that they did, I still bought several of their manga, and I followed a couple series very closely. V.B. Rose is one of them that I'd been buying since around the time that they started releasing them. The series didn't have me at the first volume; it took a couple, but once it had me, I was always super excited to get the next one. It's a very cute, funny, shojo series. And I love it.

It has my kind of humor, so that I'm always laughing at it, and I love the characters. I've read the two other series of Hidaka's that have been released over here, or at least the other two that CMX released before closing. And I liked them as well. I'm not going to go too into them either, since I might still review them, but I really liked I Hate You More Than Anyone, and am still upset at not getting to finish it. But I have high hopes for it, because we see the main characters in V.B. Rose every once in a while.

I am super bummed at not getting to finish this series, as I love it so much, and I want to know what happens so bad, and there are only a couple of books left in the series.

Anyway. In this volume, most of it is about how Yukari and Mitsuya met. They've known each other for a long time, and it was nice to finally see how they came to be so close. And it was especially funny. After reading all the books, I'm attached to the characters, and it has my type of humor, so the chapters could be about pretty much anything and I would love it.

In the beginning, Ageha asks how long they've been together, and they both protest at the way she asks. There's some bickering, and then Mitsuya tells her how they met, so it goes to a flashback. This takes up about three chapters. Yukari is very adorable as a little kid. And he's so mean to Mitsuya when he first talks to him, by ignoring him and then later hitting him. He's mean through most of it, until Mitsuya goes to the studio and sees him working, where he's loud and aggressive, which is contradictory to his delicate image. And we get to see Yukari's father, who looks like an older version of himself, and who is very fun and hyper-active, and we see more of Ririko, his step-mother.

Yukari and Mitsuya work on some dresses, and they fight and then make up, and then it's back to Ageha and Mitsuya talking in the present. I liked seeing how different they both are, how much they've grown, and especially how older, more manly, Yukari looks. Anyway, Ageha swoons over them, and then Yukari gets a bit upset that Mitsuya told her all that.

In the last two chapters, we see Tsuyu, the bead maker, and Mitsuya's background. Why they are the way they are to each other, and what happened between them. Some of it, at least.

Tsuyu and Mitsuya were close and liked each other, and were getting closer, when Tsuyu has to move in with her father. So she has to reject him, and Tsuyu feels terrible about it, and Mitsuya's still hurt from it. It's terribly upsetting, and they've never really talked about it. And the volume ends with Ageha freaking out on Mitsuya and smacking him as she tells him that Tsuyu has to go to an arranged marriage meeting, and then Mitsuya passes out because he hasn't been feeling well.

There's also a cute scene between Ageha and Yukari. Within the last couple volumes, there haven't been too many chapters for just them, which I was looking forward to seeing more of. I love them both and I love them together and I want more of them together. More swoon-worthy, cute scenes. Although Yukari can be full of swoon all on his own.

There are other characters that we didn't get to see in this volume, but that I will mention because of my lack of volumes to come. Like Mamoru, Ageha's friend, and her brother, Nat-chan, who kind of loves Ageha. And Sakura, Yukari's little brother, who looks like a little Yukari, is practically cuteness made into a little boy. And Kana-san, who is a little rough around the edges, and a little distant, but I like her nonetheless.

I love this series. I want more of this series. I miss this series, so much. This is the main series that I'm upset about after Tokyopop closed, especially because the release dates were already pretty tentative and spread out. Now I won't even be able to find out what happens next. I really want another company to pick up this series, or any of Banri Hidaka's other series'. She makes such good characters, and stories, and her artwork is so pretty. It's very elegant, gentle.

I don't know if I'm going to go back and review some of the previous volumes. Probably not, but I might review volume 12. And I will probably be reviewing some of the other series that Tokyopop left hanging, as well as some of the other companies that closed recently.

Review: Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

4 of 5 Stars

Publisher: Speak (Penguin)

Goodreads Synopsis:

One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, Will Grayson crosses paths with . . . Will Grayson. Two teens with the same name, running in two very different circles, suddenly find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, and culminating in epic turns-of-heart and the most fabulous musical ever to grace the high school stage. Told in alternating voices from two YA superstars, this collaborative novel features a double helping of the heart and humor that have won them both legions of fans.

Review:

I've read John Green's other books, but only David Levithans books with Rachel Cohn. I've enjoyed them all, and was looking forward to reading more. I should have read this a while ago, but I kept putting it off. I'm glad I finally got to it, though.

The book is mostly about two boys by the same name meeting. But it's about more than that. They are both having problems with themselves and love. And the book is also about Tiny Cooper.

I didn't particularly feel a big connection to either Will Grayson, but I did really like them both. John Green's Will Grayson has problems accepting love, and he's conflicted about things, and emotional with everything. But in the second half of the book, some good stuff happens with Jane, and then he talks with Tiny, and I liked him even more. Especially because of his talk with Tiny. David Levithan's will grayson has depression, so he's also emotional, but he has a hard time dealing with emotions, and people. So really, Will Grayson is emotional and conflicted and will grayson is moody, and they are both a bit self-centered. But they are also both entertaining.

Will Grayson has John Greens interest if things, so it has lots of Will Grayson thinking about things and realizing things. And will grayson is very funny while also a bit harsh.

Will Grayson has Tiny Cooper, and then Nick and Gary and Jane. They're all good. I like Jane for him, she was fun and works with him. And will grayson has Tiny Cooper and Maura and Gideon, and Simon and Derek. Simon and Derek are entertaining, but we don't see them a lot. Maura I didn't like, because of what she did to will grayson, but I spent most of the book thinking that we were going to get some insight into her and see that will was wrong about her, so I wasn't trying to not not like her. Now I'm still a bit conflicted, because I feel there's something more there, and that we didn't enough closure with her, but I still don't particularly like her. And Gideon, even though we didn't get a whole lot of him, I did like. And he's good for will grayson.

Now, Tiny Cooper. Tiny Cooper is gay and big and energetic. He has had way too many boyfriends that have lasted way too short, and he writes a musical about himself which he changes to be about love. He wants appreciation and he wants to do something good for other people. He tries to set up Will Grayson with Jane, and he tries to be good to will grayson. And he's also the main reason that the rating is as high as it is. Because of the musical, which is brilliant (I wish my school did plays that good and the people were that enthusiastic about it,) and because of what the will grayons' do for him. It was infinitely sweet and also funny. It was awesome.

I did quite enjoy this book, and I'm looking forward to reading more of theirs, as John Green's will be out in a couple of months and David Levithan already has several out.

Manga Review: MeruPuri, Volume 2, by Matsuri Hino

5 of 5 Stars

Publisher: VIZ Media

Goodreads Synopsis:

After Aram's elder brother Jeile fails to lift the spell on him, Aram is forced to stay with Airi. Meanwhile, an unsuspecting Airi recites Aram's full name in front of the mirror and is magically transported to Astale! But to Airi's dismay, the citizens of Aram's kingdom give her the cold shoulder. What do they know about her secret bloodline...?

Review:

In this volume, Aram has to go back to Astale, the kingdom through the mirror that he's from. He doesn't want to go, and so he protests and puts it off and refuses, but Airi talks him in to going back. They're both upset about it, but he goes. And then Airi end up saying his name and going through the mirror and into his world.

Lei, through all of this, and through most of the book, is against them. He doesn't think it's a good idea, and he lets them know this. Aram likes Airi, and he doesn't hide it from anyone. Airi is struggling because she likes him but doesn't want to like him, mostly because he's so young and from a different world, and this does not match up with her ideal. And Airi's however-many-great's grandmother was a traitor of Astale however many years ago, and so no one in Astale will accept her.

Anyway, she gets sucked into the mirror and stick in Astale, and then thrown out of the castle while trying to find Aram, and then gets to the festival thing that is being held, which is the reason that Aram had to go in the first place, and Aram sees her when she yells at him and he picks her up and the elders all protest. And she finds out that Aram is arranged to be married to a girl that is his original age. And she gets to taken to this court thing where the elders all decide that she's a traitor and should be thrown into the eternal prison, but then Aram breaks in and she kisses over his heart and cheek to turn him back to little Aram and thus vows to marry him, creating a mark on his chest, which saves her from prison. All while in her pajamas.

She doesn't know what to do about this whole marriage thing, as she can't wrap her mind around it, but then Aram talks to her, and kisses her chest, making a mark over her heart. Which is all very cute and sweet.

They get sent back to Airi's world after that. Where she goes to school and Raz, Aram's cousin, transfers, and then Aram transfers there. As well as Jeile starts as a teacher, and Lei does as well. They go on a school trip, seaside school, at the beach and all that. There are some awkward moments where Aram turns from big to little and then little to big. Raz keeps causing trouble for them, as does Nakaoji, and Lei doesn't like Airi much. And the volume ends with Airi and Aram hidden in a closet, Aram only in a towel and them almost kissing, as someone is opening the door.

I'm still having a hard time with Aram's age, because I believe it is mentioned in one of the sidenotes, that he's in around second grade. That is just way too young. But I still love them together, so I'm struggling to accept this.

Also, I love Matsuri Hino's artwork. It's very pretty and well done. Although there are some scenes, or just some panels every once in a while, that looks like she didn't go back and edit them fully. But aside from that. And I like that her characters all look different. I've read some of her other stories, and the characters don't all look the same; they have differences, so you can easily tell them apart.

I still love this series, even after all this time. I'm noticing different things about it now, but I still love Aram and Airi's relationship. I'll probably be posting the review for the next book soon, but I'm trying to not put them all up at the same, while also wanting to read them all at once.

Review: I Now Pronounce You Someone Else by Erin McCahan

4.5 of 5 Stars

Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books (Scholastic)

Goodreads Synopsis: 

Here Comes the Bride — If She Can Pass Chemistry.Eighteen-year-old Bronwen Oliver has a secret: She's really Phoebe, the lost daughter of the loving Lilywhite family. That's the only way to explain her image-obsessed mother; a kind but distant stepfather; and a brother with a small personality complex. Bronwen knows she must have been switched at birth, and she can't wait to get away from her "family" for good.
Then she meets Jared Sondervan. He's sweet, funny, everything she wants — and he has the family Bronwen has always wanted too. She falls head over heels in love, and when he proposes marriage, she joyfully accepts. But is Jared truly what she needs? And if he's not, she has to ask: What would Phoebe Lilywhite do?

Review: 

I love this book. I love it so much. Everything about it, really, even the parts that almost made me cry. (Which is something of a feat, I will admit, because I don't cry easily.)

Bronwen Oliver is the main character. Only she doesn't want to be Bronwen Oliver, she wants to be Pheobe Lilywhite, or Bronwen VanHorn, or maybe Bronwen Sondervan, She doesn't particularly get along with her mother, which is understandable because her mother doesn't try very hard and doesn't like to talk about things. She got along with her step-father at one point but is mostly just a little distant with him now. Her father died when she was little, but she isn't stuck on it even if she misses him. And she sees Jared Sondervan again, who is an old friend of her brother. Oh, and her brother Peter is Jesus, at least in her mothers mind.

Bronwen is trying to find herself, and accept who she is and trying to deal with that her mother won't accept who she really is. I'm a bit more cynical than she is, or a lot, really, but I still felt a connection with her. She's already figured out the relationship thing. You know, the one that says relationships are always good in the first few months, and you don't really get to know a person until that phase is over, and so you shouldn't say you love them until then. In the beginning of the book, she goes through this type of thing with Chad Dykstra, who just wants to have sex with her and so claims to love her. She doesn't fall for it, and I liked that.

She has a best friend, Kirsten, who gushes over everything with her. She's also very wary about Bronwen and Jared's relationship, and she talks about it with Bronwen. It might cause some problems between them, but I still liked this about her. Because she's a really good friend. (And, yea, I'm a bit envious.)

A big thing goes down near the end with Bronwen's Mother and Whitt, her step-father. Her Mother is kind of really terrible. I have a mother somewhat similar, not nearly as bad, but similar in the not listening thing. But I kind of hate her, especially because of what she did to Bronwen and Whitt. Whitt, however, is kind of awesome. He's sweet and he cares and he's funny. And it's not his fault for what happened, it's her Mothers.

Now, Jared. I love Jared. So much. He's so very sweet. And he loves Bronwen. They get along so well, too. The conversation between them is so easy, and he just goes along with all of her jokes and makes his own. They're just so cute together. He holds back kissing her for a while, and he wants to get to know her, and he loves her and wants to marry her. I love him, and I love their relationship. I want their relationship. As well as Jared's family. They care and are fun and love Bronwen like she's their own.

This book is very much about finding love as it is finding yourself. Because Bronwen finds herself, accepts herself, and she falls in love with Jared. There's a part near the end with Jared that almost made me cry, because it's so sad and I love them and they need to be together, but I know it was coming and it needed to happen because they weren't ready. But it's still heartbreaking to read.

The writing in this book is in Bronwen's point of view in the future, so she's talking about it all as she remembers it. It adds to the element of her learning all of these things. It's very smooth and calm and a bit heartbreaking.

I love this book. So very much, as I've already said. I have a bit in common with this book, and I would love to have even more in common with it. (Like Bronwen and Jared's relationship.) I think just about every teenage girls should read this book, it is that good.

Sidenote: One thing that bothered me about this book, was what it says on the back cover/inside flap, about 'if she can pass chemistry', because that's very misleading. School has very little to do with this book. It starts at the end of her junior year, then goes into the summer, and then through her senior year, and yea there's a bit about her going to college. But that doesn't have a whole lot to do with her relationship with Jared. Where she's going to college does, but she's already pretty set on that, and there isn't anything about her not passing. Very little of time is spent with her even at school. The cover is cute, though, even if the books don't have a lot to do with the story.

Manga Review: MeruPuri, Volume 1, by Matsuri Hino

5 of 5 Stars

Publisher: VIZ Media

Goodreads Synopsis:

On the way to school one morning, Airi loses her mirror - one that had been passed down to her through generations - and suddenly finds herself in a bizarre situation. Never in her wildest dreams did she expect Aram, a little boy from a magical kingdom, to have emerged from the mirror in the short time it took her to track it down!

Review:

I read this series a long time ago, probably around the time it came out, or a little after it did. It's one of my favorites, and I'm going to be reviewing it book by book as I re-read it. I'm not really sure if this volume is worth five stars, but I'm going to give it anyway. It's more the whole series is worth five stars, because I love all of them, and I don't know if I'll be able to rate each volume differently.

The book starts out with Aram waking up and hurrying into a mirror because Jeile is trying to put a spell on him. He goes through the mirror and into the human, or normal, world, as opposed to his magical kingdom, and into Airi's world. Airi thinks he's a weird kid but lets him stay at her house. By the end of the first chapter and into the second, we find out that Jeile, who is Aram's older half-brother, has put a spell on Aram to turn him old, only it messes up and instead he ages when in the dark. Mostly he ages into an older teen, around or older than Airi's freshmen of high school, while Aram is normally a little kid. It's not specified how old he is, but I'm going to assume it's around middle grade. Hope that it's around middle school age, because that wouldn't be too much older than Airi, even though she seems older. And the only way for him to turn back to his normal self, is by a maiden's kiss, who Aram decides is Airi.

Airi has very high standards for a boyfriend, because she's set on finding her soul mate like the one on a drama show that she's obsessed with. Even though this is ridiculous, I still quite like her. She doesn't give in to everything, and she doesn't just blubber and whine, and even though she isn't particularly strong, she isn't weak.

Nakaoji is a boy from her school that likes her, and she's just now starting to like him. He's sweet and gets embarrassed, and if the book was about him and not Aram, and if there was more focus on him, then I might like him more. But Aram wins that battle. Nakaoji has confessed to Airi, and she keeps getting interrupted from telling him her feelings.

Aram is adorable. He's still a little kid, mostly, for right now. He's a prince, and has had to deal with his older brother tormenting him all his life, so it's not too big a surprise that he's a bit more mature than most would be at his age, even if it's not specified. When he's little, he's very innocent and adorable. When he's big, he's still quite innocent and cute, but he's also very sexy, as the author put it. The age difference doesn't bother me too much. It didn't when I read it before, but that's mostly because I didn't pay any attention to it, and I was much younger then. It's kind of bothering me now that I'm thinking about it, but I'm trying not to let it, as well as trying to think of what age he is and how big of an age difference there is between them. I hope, and want to believe, that it isn't too big. And Aram has a servant, Lei. Lei doesn't say a whole lot, he's a little stoic and devious, and I like him.

Within chapter four and five, we officially meet Jeile. He's tormented Aram, and put several spells on him, and either has a hard time or won't reverse them. Upon meeting Airi, he calls her a mountain lily maiden and decides to take her as his 25^th wife, claiming her to be his first lady. She immediately objects. At the end of the fourth chapter, he kidnaps her. Jeile is very eccentric, and he is very entertaining when he argues with Aram and spews out odd things. I don't mind him, but there are other times that he bothers me. I want to say that, at least from the picture at the end of the fourth chapter, he gives me a bit of the feeling like the phantom of the opera. This isn't a very good comparison, I know, because the phantom of the opera is much more sinister and evil and creepy, and there is probably a better comparison that I can't think of, but it's the one that comes to mind. Just the way that he dresses and kidnaps her... But, whatever.

Aram fights with Jeile, and then Jeile reverses the spell, only we find out that it didn't work and so Aram gets to stay with Airi a bit longer.

There's an obvious attraction growing between Airi and Aram, and I'm excited to see it grow even more. I've already read the series, so I know where it's going, and it's only four books, so there isn't a lot of space to let things drag on into. But I'm still looking forward to reading the rest of the books and seeing all of the little moments between them all over again.

Review: Shift (Shade, Book 2) by Jeri Smith-Ready

3.5 of 5 Stars

Publisher: Simon Pulse (Simon & Schuster)

Goodreads Synopsis:

Aura’s life is anything but easy. Her boyfriend, Logan, died, and his slides between ghost and shade have left her reeling. Aura knows he needs her now more than ever. She loves Logan, but she can’t deny her connection with the totally supportive, totally gorgeous Zachary. And she’s not sure that she wants to. Logan and Zachary will fight to be the one by her side, but Aura needs them both to uncover the mystery of her past—the mystery of the Shift.
As Aura’s search uncovers new truths, she must decide whom to trust with her secrets…and her heart.

Review:

 

The first book in this series, I read around the time that it first came out, and I was expecting it to be a one-shot. I've done this several times it seems, but now I'm more wary and kind of assume that books are in some kind of series. Recently, most have been. And despite the huge cliffhanger ending, I really enjoyed the book. This one, I didn't enjoy as much. I still liked it, but it wasn't as good as I'd hoped it would be.

One thing that bothers me about this series, is Logan. For more reason than one, really. I really like him, actually. In the first one, I was really rooting for Zachary (not to say that I wasn't in this one), and I wanted Logan to pass on already. It bothered me that he was still around, because he wasn't going to be able to come back alive, and by staying around, he was just dragging out the heartbreak of everyone else. It was keeping everyone from trying to get over it and move on. Not to say that they were all supposed to forget him, but that they needed to move on from his death and onto the rest of their lives. It was just dragging out Aura's feelings, and keeping her from moving on. In this one, it felt like she was forcing herself to move on, which in a way she should do. And near the end of the book, it feels like she's trying to move forward, and that she's almost there, but that she still feels something for him. If she was supposed to have already moved on completely from him, then I do feel that that was too fast for her.

Another thing that bothers me about Logan, or rather upsets me about him, is that I like him. He's very much a character that I would swoon over, and that I did swoon over. I wouldn't let myself do it completely, because he has to move on eventually, he can't be around forever, because he's dead and it just wouldn't work.

Zachary is also a character that I would swoon over. And I did swoon over him, but I think I did more of it in the first book than the second. I remember liking him more than I did when reading the second book, and I kept trying to get myself to like him more. But I think I like Logan more, which upsets me because he has to move on, and so therefore isn't really a choice. I still liked Zachary, and there were certain parts where I liked him a lot, but the swoon-worthy scenes just didn't really get me as excited as I'd hoped they would.

Aura is alright. I like her enough. Her struggle with Logan and Zachary frustrated me some, because of how she kept going back and forth on them without really making a decision. And at certain parts, she seemed particularly full of herself. Like with Logan and the band, she kept mentioning how that would affect her. And how he could slip up and say something, since he can't lie. I understand why she would think these things, as they make perfect sense. And it would suck if something he, or someone else, did that would ruin things for her, but I felt like she was thinking that everything was about her, almost. Like, yea, Logan won't be there to deal with all of the repercussions, and yea he's a ghost and draws attention to himself, but he also deserves to move on how he wants, even if he should have done it a while ago. And, yea, the book is kind of about her, since she's the main character and everything is happening around and to her, but it seemed a bit too self-centered. I might think this, though, because it wasn't written out as well as it could have been, and because it was usually about Logan. And I like Logan more than I do Aura.

I like the band, a lot. Megan and Mickey, and Dylan, and Siobhan. I wouldn't have minded a little more of them. I would read a book just centered around them, I like them that much. 

The writing was pretty straight forward. It wasn't particularly pretty, and it was all in first person in Aura's mind. It didn't particularly keep me attached to the book, which might have been because of my feelings for Aura, but it didn't bother me or anything.

The story progresses pretty well. It's very mainly centered on Aura and Zachary and Logan, but there's some of the main plot line in there as well. We find some more things about Aura's parents, and the shift and shine thing, and get some more possible theories of why the shift happened. I am looking forward to finding out what happens with that plot in the next book.

The ending is a little open, but I have an idea of what will happen next. I'm hoping that I fall for Zachary again, and that I like Aura more. There was some major swoon-worthy events in the last half of the book with Aura and Zachary, which I didn't fall for completely but I that there's more of it in the next book, and that I like it more.

Review: Ballad: A Gathering of Faerie by Maggie Stiefvater

3.5 of 5 Stars

Publisher: Flux

Goodreads Synopsis:

In this mesmerizing sequel to Lament: The Faerie Queen's Deception, music prodigy James Morgan and his best friend, Deirdre, join a private conservatory for musicians. James' musical talent attracts Nuala, a soul-snatching faerie muse who fosters and feeds on the creative energies of exceptional humans until they die. Composing beautiful music together unexpectedly leads to mutual admiration and love. Haunted by fiery visions of death, James realizes that Deirdre and Nuala are being hunted by the Fey and plunges into a soul-scorching battle with the Queen of the Fey to save their lives.

Review:

I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. I've read the first one, Lament, and thought it was pretty good. It was amazing, and I didn't particularly feel for the characters, but I liked them. I liked the characters a lot more in this book.

James is awesome. He's very sarcastic and snarky, and also kind of adorable. I liked his conversations with everyone, all of his comebacks. I felt bad for him because of Dee, and how Dee treated him. I liked her in the first book, and I kept trying to like her still in this one, but I kind of sided with Nuala on how she felt about her. Mostly, I really felt all of the things that he did, and related to him quite well.

Nuala is a faerie, a Leanan Sidhe, who is a muse for humans and in return takes years from their life. And she only lives sixteen years before she burns up on Halloween and starts a new with no memory and looking mostly the same age, but her looks change to fit her current artist. She's very harsh and mean to most people. But I liked her a lot as well.

I liked the plot line, and the ending was very good. Much more satisfying than the ending of the first book. At least for James. I'm not totally sure what all happened to Dee. I have an idea of what went down, but I'm mostly confused on the Luke thing, like if it was really him or not. I did like how things worked out for Nuala, too. I don't want to spoil too much, but I think things worked out very well for them, and I'm glad the ending wasn't left too open.

I also really liked Sullivan, James' teacher. He was fun and sweet, and I'm a little upset at how things worked out for him, but I guess they kind of make sense. I feel like the last scene with all of them wasn't done as well as it could have been, as it seemed a little too cliché, but the outcome worked out well. And I liked Paul, James' roommate. And the school that they're all going to, a musical boarding school called Thornking-Ash, is fantastic. Even if some of the teachers are crazy and the school opened for a not so good reason or in a not so good place, I would still totally go there.

The writing was especially pretty in this book. I've talked about Stiefvater's writing before, with how lyrical and pretty it is and all that, but I think that it's especially so in this book. In her small faerie series, because of the music element, it adds to things for her to describe and make pretty. And she definitely accomplished it in this book. It was all so very gorgeous.

Review: Last Breath (Morganville Vampires, Book 11) by Rachel Caine

4.5 of 5 Stars

Publisher: New American Library

Goodreads Synopsis:

With her boss preoccupied researching the Founder Houses in Morganville, student Claire Danvers is left to her own devices when she learns that three vampires have vanished without a trace. She soon discovers that the last person seen with one of the missing vampires is someone new to town—a mysterious individual named Magnus. After an uneasy encounter with Morganville’s latest resident, Claire is certain Magnus isn’t merely human. But is he a vampire—or something else entirely?

Review:

I've been debating on how to review this series for a while now. (Or, you know, for as long as I've had this blog, which isn't all that long.) I've thought about doing it from the beginning, book by book. Or two or three books at a time. Or maybe just doing the last couple of books. I even started a review. Obviously, though, I decided to just start with the most recent book, since it just came out.

I started this series a couple years ago, when only a couple of the books were out. I almost immediately loved it. And my feelings for the series, and the characters, have only grown the more I've read.

The main story with the series, is that Claire starts college in Morganville at sixteen and gets bullied and moves into the Glass House with Eve, Shane, and Micheal. She finds out about the vampires that run the town, and finds her way quite close to the higher ranks. A lot of stuff happens within the other ten books, but I'm not going to talk about all of that, since there's a lot.

I like how mature this series seems. Claire is in college, so she's more mature, or just smarter, than most, plus she lives in a house with three people already out of high school. There aren't any parents around, and they all have jobs and all that. Mostly the fact that they're all out of high school and on their own, or only have each other, makes it seem more mature to me. Either way, though, I like this aspect to it.

I love Claire. She is my favorite character. I love how smart she is, and that she's in college at such a young age. And she's smart, while also being insecure. And I love Shane. He's so sweet to her, but he's still an actual boy. He has characteristics of an actual boy; he's emotional and violent and intense and sweet and confused by certain things. Their relationship has lots of swoon.

All of the characters are good, really, and different from each other, unique. Eve is emotional and dramatic but tough. Micheal is kind of complicated, and kind of the head of the house. Amelie is powerful and the Founder of Morganville, and untouchable. And Myrnin... Myrnin is Myrnin. He's crazy, not completely sane, dangerous, and quite random with all of the modern things he finds. I love his and Claire's relationship, with how they are mostly equals in how they feel for each other. And they love each other, but in a complicated way.

There are others, but I'm not going to list any more.

In this book, there's something wrong with the vampires. They keep disappearing, and Amelie decides to have them all pack up and move to some other place, because whatever is coming after them is serious. His name is Magnus, and he's not a vampire, he's a draug, which is a water thing. I understand how they works, but I don't really understand why they would be a big enemy to vampires. They're dangerous to them, yea, but the elemental thing didn't really make sense to me.

I wasn't sure what to expect with this book. Several books ago, when the Bishop story line ended, there have been more one-book story lines. Which is okay, only it doesn't add as much suspense. And it makes it seem like there are just books coming out for the sake of making more books because the series is popular enough. Not that I'm saying that's what's happening, because that's not how I look at it. And I love the series, so I'm perfectly happy that the series is continuing. And there have been serious plot points happening in each book, even if some of it is more character development things; that is perfectly okay.

Aside from the draug thing, there's a big thing that happens with Claire. Which I totally didn't see that coming. I was surprised and horrified. I don't know if I like it or not, but I am wondering if something big is going to come from that. I don't want to say to much and give it away, but I'm wondering if what happened is going to affect her later, and the house.

And something big also happens with Amelie at the end. Well, something happened with Amelie and Oliver, which everyone knew was a long time coming, but not that. I was kind of wondering if it was going to be her, but I was still surprised. I'm glad that she didn't go out being a coward, because she was fighting instead of running away. But I'm wondering if that's really going to be it for her, or if there's going to be some twist in the next book. I'm a bit upset at what happened, but it would be a little too cliché for something to save her in the next book.

In the last book, Caine added Shane's point of view, and she also added Micheal, Eve, and Amelie's point of view. I didn't mind theirs, but I like Claire and Shane's most. They were all done very well, and I'm glad that everyone has their own voices, but I personally enjoy Shane and Claire more. I find it odd, though, that Claire's chapters are done in third person, while everyone else's are in first. I'm assuming that it's because she started it in third, and when she wrote the other characters later put them in first. But I wonder if that's tricky, or if it just seems natural.

I am excitedly anticipating the next book. I always am, though, since I love the story and characters so much.

Manga Review: Tail of the Moon, Volume 1, by Rinko Ueda

3 of 5 Stars

Publisher: VIZ Media

Goodreads Synopsis:

Sometimes it seems like Usagi is hopeless. Sure, she's good with healing herbs, but she's the granddaughter of the leader of a prestigious ninja village and she's such a klutz that she's never made it out of the kiddie class. Finally frustrated with Usagi's lack of progress, her grandfather sends her to marry a local lord and have lots of ninja babies. But the lord has no interest in her or her child bearing potential! After years of goofing around, Usagi is finally determined to reach her goals--she's going to become a ninja and capture her true love's heart!

Review:

I've read Ueda's more recent series, Stepping on Roses, but I hadn't gotten around to read this series when it was first released. It sounded interesting, but not immensely so.

The series is about Usagi, the daughter of some big ninja family, who's quite hopeless when it comes to being a ninja. So far, I'm not a big fan of Usagi. Within the first chapter, she's going on about becoming a good ninja, only she skips practice. And then her grandpa tells her that she's not good at being ninja, to which she whines, and then he tells her that she's going to have to go and have a child with some man. She protests wildly, and then immediately leaves for him when told that he's handsome. Some of these things could be done for comedy, but they just bothered me. She has a very weak will, and she's not particularly smart. She got a little bit better near the end of the manga, but not enough for me to actually like her.  

The guy that she is supposed to marry, Hanzo, doesn't seem so bad. He's very against marriage, which is explained a little bit later in the book, but he obviously has a growing affection for Usagi. And we meet Yuri, who also intends to marry Hanzo. I don't really mind her, and hope we see more of her, as we probably will.

And we meet Hanzou, who is a flirt, but who loves Sara, who does not like his flirtatious ways. I like both of them, and hope that they make up soon. And that Hanzou grows up a bit from his flirtatious ways. And Hanzo is also in love with Sara, which is very obvious.

Usagi has a servant like person that follows her, Mamezo. He's a rookie ninja, and is adorable. He's just a little kid, and he gets a little piglet, who is also adorable. Yuri has a servant like person as well, who is around her age, if not older, who is also cute. In a different way. I hope that we see more of him, and that he gets an actual character, but I'm unsure on if I believe that we will or not.

Through out the book, Usagi goes and meets Hanzo, and instantly falls in love with him, to which he declines her proposal. And Yuri is in the same position as her, only she has known him longer. In the second and third chapters, Yuri makes an effort to poison Usagi, which doesn't work because Usagi takes a lot of medicine, that I guess cancel out the effects of it. And Yuri ends up poisoning herself and is sick for the rest of the book. 

(I'm thinking that Ueda has a think for marriages, and problems with them. Because the main problem for the main character in this story is that she has to and wants to marry Hanzo, only he doesn't want to, and she has several competitors. And in Stepping on Roses, the main character gets kind of forced into a marriage. I don't know if this bothers me or not...)

Throughout most of the book, Usagi is practicing her ninja skills, and she doesn't seem to be making a lot of progress. Hanzo finds out that Usagi can make medicine, and a lot of townspeople want some, so she stays up late making some because of some stupid promise she made. Because she gets sick a lot, which I think is kind of psychological, because apparently she fakes it before starting to actually feel it, it makes sense for her to be able to make medicine for herself. And at least she's good at something.

We meet Hanzou and Sara, and they get into a fight, and Sara stays with Usagi and Hanzo, and Usagi discovers that Hanzo loves Sara. And in the last chapter, Hanzo and Usagi have a fight and he kicks her out, and she stays outside the village for a little bit but it starts raining and so she heads back to her hometown village. Where she sees Goemon with some woman, where he's giving lessons, I guess, to the younger girls. Maybe they actually did things like this, but I have a hard time believing that. Or I just don't want to.

She kicks them out of her room because she's tired, and then Goemon makes a move on her and the book ends. I'm a little curious to find out what happens next, but not anxious for it. I don't particularly like Usagi, which is probably the main reason for this, but I will pick up the next book when I'm able to.

Manga Review: Black Butler, Volume 6, by Yana Toboso

3.5 of 5 Stars

Publisher: Yen Press

Goodreads Synopsis:

Just a stone's throw from London lies the manor house of the illustrious Phantomhive earldom, its master one Ciel Phantomhive. Earl Phantomhive is a giant in the world of commerce, Queen Victoria's faithful servant...and a slip of a twelve-year old boy. Fortunately, his loyal butler, Sebastian, is ever at his side, ready to carry out the young master's wishes. And whether Sebastian is called to save a dinner party gone awry or probe the dark secrets of London's underbelly, there is practically nothing Sebastian cannot do. In fact, one might even say Sebastian is too good to be true...or at least, he is too good to be human...

Review:

I haven't been totally loving this series yet; it's mostly been entertaining at some point, and I've been hoping for it to get better. This volume was much better than the previous ones, and I found it kind of hilarious.

The whole volume mostly focuses on the circus. They have a case pertaining to missing children, and think that the circus has something to do with it. They visit the Undertaker in the first chapter, and he hasn't seen any of them, which means that it's not underground type of stuff doing it. I like the Undertaker. He's interesting, and odd, and I wouldn't mind seeing more of him. After visiting him, they go to the circus, to which Sebastion gets called up, and they end up joining it undercover. They try investigating, only they aren't allowed past a certain point because they're rookies. And we see 'Suit' (I can't remember his name from the previous volume he was in...), who's a grim reaper, and Sebastion's roommate, and they don't get along very well. Ciel also has a different roommate, 'Freckle Face', who I don't believe we actually learn his name, but who is quite adorable.

During a performance in the last chapter, Ciel starts sneaking around, and at the end he appears to have been found by one of the circus members. I'm not anxious to find out what happens next, but I am eager to read more.

There's a lot of small, funny moments throughout the book. Like Ciel has to do something for the Undertaker to make him laugh, and when they visit the circus, Sebastion gets bitten by a tiger, only he likes cats but Ciel is allergic to them. And there's a lot of them after they join the circus, with Sebastion being very impressive with all he can do, and Ciel not being very useful since he's a Phantomhive, and doesn't know how to do any tricks or housework. And they call Ciel 'Smiles', which is funny all on it's own. I'm really glad that I found this to be as funny as I did, because it hadn't been as fun before, and I hope that the next volumes are just as good as this one.

Despite the funny, though, I do feel a little bad for Ciel at one point. Just cause he's having such a hard time, and he's so cute...

Also, the circus members. It appears that there's something not right going on with them, or at least a few of them, but I hope that not all of them have to do with the missing children. Because I really like them, actually. They cause a lot of entertainment, especially with Ciel, but also with each other.

The artwork is very pretty. It's kind of eccentric, but that might be partly because of the time period the series is set in. But I love all of the clothing; the costumes are so pretty. Especially with the circus chapters, because they have such flamboyant outfits, and they are done so very well.