When I reviewed Ohkita Hiroko’s Hadashi no Chimera, I was distressed at the overall damage, both physical and emotional, inflicted upon the characters. It comes as no surprise, therefore, that I was ambivalent about picking up her next book,  Tsuki to Doro (月と泥). While I would hardly consider this book perfect, it is much less bad in that regard.

Unfortunately – or perhaps fortunately – the title story follows the pattern of the previous book, with a wounded girl, and unlikely relationship and a murder. After that story, the tone shifts. Yes, there’s still a lot of physical and emotional damage, but more of the characters take control of their lives on their own and for their own reasons – reasons which may or may not become clear during the stories.

I enjoyed this book much more than the previous one, but I think Ohkita could do even better. A little more storytelling and a little less torture would go a long way.

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – Variable, from 4-6
Characters – 6
Yuri – 6
Service – 4

Overall – 6