Archive for the Light Novel Category


I’m in Love with the Villainess: She’s so Cheeky for a Commoner, Volume 1

February 3rd, 2023

Two girls in fantasy school uniforms, with red jackets and frilly white blouses are surrounded by pink flowers and flower petals. From below a girl with dark brown hair looks up at and holds a hand out to a haughty blonde with long hair in huge banana curls and a red bow who stands with her arms crossed and a dissatisfied expression. The title "I'm In Love With The Villainess: She's So Cheeky For A Commoner" is set off by a heart shape border on the left side and rendered in gold and silver letters. Black letters on the right hand corner read "Written by inori" "Illustrated By hanagata" and Novel 1. In 2020, I first read and reviewed what we now think of as I’m in Love With the Villainess, Volume 1 of the Light Novel series. In that review I speak of things like world-building and character voice because those two qualities are critical for me to enjoy a series. One of the most enjoyable things about the initial light novel series is Rae’s voice, which is at odds with her apparent goofy personality. As we have learned, there are several very good reasons for that.

Naturally, my top priority for I’m in Love with the Villainess: She’s so Cheeky for a Commoner, Volume 1 (out now as a digital edition and in print at the end of the month) is that Claire’s voice is likewise preserved from the original, which I reviewed last spring. In that review I discussed the character aspect of this novel. Having fully developed the main characters in the five novels of the original series, inori-sensei here gives time to supporting cast including developing Pepi and Loretta, Claire’s henchicks. Both of them – and Claire’s heretofore-unseen roommate – are fleshed out and made whole in ways that I guarantee will be even more remarkable as the series continues.

We’ve all read “opposite perspective” stories. My first was probably Grendel by John Gardener (which sent me down a deep rabbit hole of villain perspectives when I was very young. ^_^) Here, since “the villainess” is our protagonist, everything is already topsy-turvy, and the novel just runs with that, throwing us off constantly from our previous expectations.

I have one small complaint about the entirety of the book which, again, has to do with voice. There is a line I love from Dorothy L. Sayer’s Murder Must Advertise, in which Miss Meteyard says, “Some people can be funny without being vulgar, and some can be both funny and vulgar. I should recommend you to be either the one or the other.” I use this line quite often and also believe it is true for being rude. Some people can be rude without being vulgar. It is my opinion that Claire François, daughter of the Minister of Finance of the Kingdom, would not be vulgar when she is being rude. So, when she used the phrase, “bat for the other team” I object. This is a vulgar phrase even now. Where might Claire have heard it? How would she have understood it? Do they even have a bat and ball game in Bauer? It has been pointed out to me that the phase is a holdover from that first volume translation, with which we had several issues. There were so many ways to indicate that she was being rude without her being vulgar that this was just an unfortunate choice.

As an aside, I am kindly begging all manga translators and their editors to never use or allow this phrase to be used unless the person speaking is an uncouth lout who is expected by the people around them to be gross.

After that little hiccup, I found that Claire’s voice was otherwise well handled. She was haughty, a tad naive, good-hearted and, ultimately, cute. It was much easier for me to understand why Rae fell so hard for Claire after meeting Claire directly. For all of this, I credit translator Kevin Ishikawa. The Claire we meet here is lovable. As are her henchchicks, the aforementioned Pepi and Loretta, even if their enthusiasm is misplaced, and her roommate, Catherine Achard. Believe me when I tell you, that Catherine is going to be someone you care deeply about.

Ratings:

Art – 7 hanagata’s art is  much more confident now
Story – 10 Outstanding writing
Characters – 10 Extraordinary character work
Service – 3? 4? A bit, sometimes
Yuri/LGBTQ+ – Super complicated question! Rae’s feeling are not returned, but the queer content is still totally there.

Overall – 10

Every single moment with this novel added to what we know, why and how it would affect the larger story. There will be more of that as the series continues. This is no mere “opposite perspective” but a whole new view of what is a complex and interesting story right to the very end. 

The digital edition of Heimin no Kuse ni Namaikina! Volume 2 (平民のくせに生意気な！) is available on Amazon Kindle in Japanese and JP Kindle. Volume 2 of She’s So Cheeky For A Commoner does not yet have a release date. I’ll be sure to let you know when it does.  In the meantime, I know you’re side-eyeing this spin-off. Just go read it, it’s worth it. ^_^





The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady, Volume 3

December 26th, 2022

Where do I even begin with The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady, Volume 3? It…was good! seems like the best place to start.

This novel took a trope I strongly dislike and gave it a genuine reason to exist, then resolved it beautifully. In almost every series where the plot hinges upon the fact that the main characters can’t, don’t or won’t have a conversation, my teeth begin to grind. Not so here, in a set-up that set Anis and Euphie at odds with one another in a way that could not be compromised, in order to protect the other. They really could not have it out in the usual way. So when they do, in a reasonably epic manner…it made actual sense!

Then, in the fallout of the epic scene, they do address the Yuri in the room and that, too, makes sense.

Then there is a ridiculous handwave, which was 1000% acceptable because this is an Isekai LN and even I am not so philistine as to require everything be practical. ^_^

When I reviewed Volume 1 of this series, I gave it a 7 and said that it “had a lot of room to grow.” I don’t appear to have reviewed Volume 2 of the manga, which wrapped up the first arc. I understand why I did not. It does resolve the plot, but to do so focuses more on Anisphia’s relationship to her brother and father, than to Euphyllia.

Here in Volume 3, Euphie and Anis are front and center, the entire plot wrapped around their feelings about their life goals versus life roles and about each other, in an immensely satisfying way. The story gets emotionally heavy in the most honest and useful way possible, that sets the stage for the next novel. The next two novels, in fact, notes Sr. YNN Correspondent Sean G, who pointed out that Tensei Oujo to Tensai Reijou no Mahou Kakumei (転生王女と天才令嬢の魔法革命) Volume 4 and Volume 5 are out in Japan. Volume 4 in English is slated for a June release from Yen Press…and, I find myself looking forward to it. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 5 As usual, rather irrelevant to the story
Story – 8
Characters – 9
Service – 1 Hardly any this time
Yuri – 8 Euphyllia and Anisphia are now a great couple

Overall – 8 Satisfying conclusion and a great opening gambit for the rest of the series to continue

I want to know what Anis and Euphie will do with themselves now that all of …/flailing hands/ this…is out of the way. ^_^





Watashi no Oshi ha Akuyaku Reijou -Revolution-, Volume 2 (私の推しは悪役令嬢。-Revolution-)

November 10th, 2022

As we all wait breathlessly for the formal announcement of an anime for I’m in Love With the Villainess, today I am looking at the Japanese print edition of Watashi no Oshi ha Akuyaku Reijou -Revolution-, Volume 2 (私の推しは悪役令嬢。-Revolution-). As a reminder, this series came out in print in English before it made it to print in Japan. So the edition you have read is the English translation of the webnovel which was put out digitally by GL Bunko. The series was licensed for print by Ichijinsha. Volume 1 of the JP print edition was reviewed here on Okazu last spring.

This will make the third time I have read this volume, having read it in the GL Bunko novel and English language editions. Because this is a new, deluxe version, with extra stories that have been written since the webnovel was initially licensed, there was quite a bit of new material tucked in between things with which we are already familiar.

There are several key elements to this content, even aside from the new content.  Lily becomes a major player on the board and we eventually learn several secrets regarding the Royal Family and their advisors. Rae explains her former life and tragic first love to her friends. Claire’s class consciousness is awakened when they visit Rae’s hometown. Manaria arrives and forces Rae and Claire’s relationship to change during the Scales of Love arc, which coincidentally completed in the December issue of Comic Yuri Hime as grandly as I had hoped. ^_^

So while the Yuri goes up significantly, with the addition of Manaria and her boyish charm, as well as the Love Scales, the LGBTQ rating stays high with open discussion of complicated queer lives, once again.

Ratings:

Art – 7 Still portraits of the people rather than the scenes.
Story – 9
Characters – 10
Yuri – 10
LGBTQ –10
Service – Rae’s obsession about Claire shifts more to her moods than her body, but there’s still some body commentary, Let’s still say 2

Overall – 9

The board is set now for what is to come. In Volume 3, what is to come will be…revolution.





The Executioner and Her Way of Life, Volume 5: The Promised Land

October 26th, 2022

In Volume 4, we left everyone in this series rushing towards “The Holy Land,” about which we have been told very little. In The Executioner and Her Way of Life, Volume 5: The Promised Land, we are convinced that this is because there is very little to say about it.  It is small, white, has no hotels or restaurants, just some churches that may house pilgrims and is, in every sense of the word…a complete flim flam. The Holy Land is a distraction to hide the two secrets of this world.

Nonetheless, everyone in this story has arrived at the Holy Land. And, dull as it is, it is playing host to the prelude to the climax of this series. A climax that has not so much as been hinted as as, well, basically the narrative has giant pointing fingers, in case you didn’t pick up on things.

Menou has a first round against her master, Flare. More than one Human Error is involved in this volume and by the end, and in the middle of the hurley and burley, Momo’s scenes were the most interesting. Because this volume was mostly focused on reveals of things that were fairly obvious, the only thing I demanded of the story was that one of the priestesses, Hooseyard, be alive by the end. Killing her off would have been been like killing a dog – unacceptable collateral damage. The only spoiler I will give you is that Hooseyard lives. At least this time.

There are no more secrets now. The next volume will have to wrap this arc up, or it will be annoying. ^_^

As with previous volumes, Mato Sato spends a lot of time re-describing things already described and, as previously mentioned, the Holy Land is very dull, so details tend to sort of fade into the word count. I did very much like the extended scene in which Flare lit and smoked a cigarette merely to irritate herself. That’s some dedication to purgatorial description.

nilitsu’s art is much less mannerist in this volume, which is kind of nice. Jenny McKeon does her absolute best with the translation, props to her wading through a lot of simplistic declarative phrases.

Ratings:

Art – 5
Story – 5
Characters – 7
Service – Implied more than actual, but lingering on the edges
Yuri – Akari loves Menou, Momo loves Menou…

Overall – 7

All the pieces are on the board, all of us know who is where, and what they can do. It remains to be seen what the author envisions as the grand finale. I know what *I* envision it as, we’ll see if there is any overlap. ^_^ And whether, in the end, this is indeed, Yuri.

 





I’m in Love With the Villainess, Volume 5

August 4th, 2022

“What if you had the chance to remake the entire world in order to save the person you love…and learned that the world was never what it seemed?” is what I said when I reviewed Watashi no Oshi ha Akuyaku Reijou. Volume 5 (私の推しは悪役令嬢。) in Japanese. And, now, you have had the chance to read I’m in Love With the Villainess, Volume 5 and can, I hope, understand what I meant. ^_^ I’m still trying to avoid spoilers, as best I can. ^_^

The Nur arc comes to a crashing, sword-waving, magic-using, epic ending, that has shockingly little to do with Nur and Bauer at all. Because Volume 5 is about the Demon Queen and the truth of the world. Basically, if you primarily read isekai, you are probably mostly unprepared for just about anything here, until it all settles down.

As I re-read this volume I am fascinated by the scope of this story, which has implications far beyond this narrative. Will future volumes of the upcoming She’s So Cheeky For A Commoner (which I have reviewed in Japanese, as Heimin no Kuse ni Namaika, Volume 1)  – and any series will come after –  let these petals fall and be dispersed, or will they float around reminded us over and over of what, exactly, is going on? I look forward to finding out. There was a great deal of territory covered in this volume and repeated visits in future volumes might help to reify it.

Even more broadly, this series does all sorts of interesting things with the concept of “another world.” Like the Locked Tomb series, it is simultaneously both fantasy and science fiction and some new hybrid child of those genres and isekai. AND it contains that single important question that fills so much classic science fiction anime – what does it mean to be human?

Despite all this, this novel never pretends to be be meaningful in that pretentious literary way of very serious men writing about humanity. It is a human look at the power of community. Once again, I must quote myself here, when I wrote, “If you are familiar with Doctor Who, you will entirely understand how everything in this book works…and how it must work. ^_^ This leads to the only criticism, if you can even call it that, I have. Because of that specific narrative structure, there was no way to give it a punchy ending, which was perfectly okay. It ended as it had to…and then didn’t end for a few more post-epilogue shorts. When you like your characters, it’s hard to let go, I understand completely. ^_^ ”

What I mean to say here is that this ending was the right ending for this book. ^_^ This series ends where it must, with home and family. I have said this about a dozen times recently, but I’ll repeat it – this is what I am looking for these days in the books I read. Future-building with hope…hopepunk, as Ada Palmer calls, it. Stories in which communities come together to build a better tomorrow. The fact that the leaders of this particular community are queer women is delicious icing on this sweet and satisfying narrative cake.

Ratings:

Art – 9
Story – 9
Characters – 10
Service – Very little, for perfectly good reasons.
Yuri – 10
Queer – 10

Overall – 10

This…was a very good book. I hope you’ll all read it. If you have read it, do let me know what you think in the comments!