Archive for the Light Novel Category


ROLL OVER AND DIE: I Will Fight With My Love and My Cursed Sword, Volume 2

February 1st, 2021

When I was in high school, I had a teacher who would walk up and down the rows of desks in the classroom while we were in his class. If he thought we were not paying sufficient attention, he would slam a pointer down on our desks to startle us. Reading ROLL OVER AND DIE: I Will Fight With My Love and My Cursed Sword, Volume 2 was exactly like his trigonometry class – overstimulating and understimulating at the same time.

We left Hero Flum Apricot and her companion Milkit at the end of Volume 1 safe in the Western District with a former colleague in her hero party, Eterna, the mage. Eterna had left and, we know that so have several other party members, leaving the so-called “genius” leader Jean close to being on his own. As a hero, Flum is constantly fighting off the utterly tiresome Dein, a boring, gloaty and exhausting guy who spends literally every moment of his life trying to make Flum miserable. This will not end well for him. But we’re going to have to listen to a lot of “gyahahah” style gloating, and “hernh-hernh” type threats of sexual violence first. /deep sigh/

In the meantime, Flum will be fighting off accursed eyeballs and other grotesqueries, and we will learn more about what a total scam the Church is and how humans are evil. On the positive side, all of this will be done at such breakneck speed that we don’t really linger too long in threatening situations. On the negative side, some of the dialogue here is reminiscent of Tantric Stripfighter Trina. Characters that say “I should tell you now that I’m far superior to a normal human.” unironically not as a joke is, in my opinion, not-great writing.

Once again on the positive side, this book definitely saves innocent lives, as opposed to sacrificing them, and violence against girls is usually in the past while the present is filled with affirming their right to thrive. Flum is definitely the center of all the decent and good people of the story, who are slowly, surely drawing in around her to what will undoubtedly be a final climax that is full of scuzzy boring gloaty bad guys, organs and blood. as we remake society.

There are at least two other books in this series. I honestly do not know if I can bring myself to read them. We’ll see. But if you are enjoying this series, rock on. You have at least two more books to go and a manga adaptation is on the way.

I idly wondered what the original name of this series was, as I expected “ROLL OVER AND DIE: I Will Fight With My Love and My Cursed Sword” was not it. It was, as I suspected, not it.  “Omaegoto toki ga Maoh ni Kateru to Omouna” to Yuusha Party wo Tsuihousareta no de, Outo de Kimama ni Kurashitai,「お前ごときが魔王に勝てると思うな」と勇者パーティを追放されたので、王都で気ままに暮らしたい, which I’m not saying is untranslatable or anything but does make it tough for a title: (Since I was told, )”I don’t think you you can beat the Demon Chief” and was thrown out of the hero party, I want to live freely in the Royal Capital or something like that.

Ratings:

Art – 6 Okay. Not horrific, just sort of shocked faces and blood and torn clothes.
Story – 6 Rushed, crowded and often lazy, but if you like it, you like it
Characters – 7 No real growth, but they are okay as characters to start
Service – 5 Still lots of gross and dressing and undressing.
Yuri – 4  Last volume I said “but no doubt it will climb”…I was wrong. Milkit and Flum are in outright denial, even as others are like, “Look, its obvious.”

Overall – 7

Try to avoid having every single bad guy in your story being gloaty AND boring. I’m not in this book, but was still begging for death at times.

The team at Seven Seas did a fine job, but this book is just all right, no matter how well it has been handled.





Watashi no Oshi ha Akuyaku Reijou. Volume 3 (私の推しは悪役令嬢。)

January 25th, 2021

I don’t really know how to review this book. ^_^;  There’s so much to tell you and so little I can say!

In Volume 1, we met former office worker Oohashi Rei, who wakes up one day in the world of her favorite otome game, “Revolution,” as the protagonist Rae Taylor. As Rae, she opts out of the usual romance routes and instead focuses all of her acumen and knowledge of the game on her actual interest, the villainess Claire François. Then the revolution comes crashing down over the two of them.

In Volume 2, Claire and Rae, now a couple, work together to create a better world for themselves, their friends, their country, and…

spoiler warning/ Because both these books are available from Seven Seas in English, I am going to assume you have read them. If you have not read them, this review will contain inevitable spoilers, starting with the cover, because it is right here next to these words and I can’t hide that. If you haven’t read the first two volumes, this review may be largely incoherent and there are even MORE spoilers ahead. Don’t keep reading if you want to avoid spoilers. Do go read Volume 2, then come back. ^_^ /spoiler warning
So, going back to my previous statement.

Claire and Rae work together to create a better world for themselves, their friends, their country, and…their children.

Watashi no Oshi ha Akuyaku Reijou. Volume 3 (私の推しは悪役令嬢。), which I read on US Kindle in Japanese*, begins a year after the revolution. Claire, Rae, and their children Aleah and Mei**, the orphans they adopted in the tear-jearker epilogue to volume 2, are a happy family who are dealing with some major issues that are clearly foreshadowing future plots. Rae and Claire are teachers at the Academy they formerly attended as students, when they are approached by the government with a life-changing request: Diplomatic relationships with the Bauer Kingdom’s former (possibly current?) enemy, the Nur Empire is being established. A team of exchange students are being shared between the two countries. Several students from the Academy are going…and so are Claire and Rae, who decide to take Aleah and Mei with them.

We’ve already established that all norms are off the table in this series, so the plot here is a little bit of everything – school drama, romance, socio-political drama, and some other things and then the demons arrive. From this point on the book is spinning plates and juggling balls and then an axe or two on a high-wire.  And it all works, except I have about 300 questions. ^_^  I’ll just hope that some of that is clarified in future chapters and, eventually, volume 4.  I was worried through the entire first half of the book about two things that were never the problems I thought they’d be. But…what? Why? How? I’m not unsatisfied, I just want more!

I’m going to be really impatient until all of you have read it, too, so I can scream all my questions at you! ^_^

The second half of this volume are a series of deeply schmaltzy and satisfyingly goopy extra chapters that cover a number of celebratory events in Rae and Claire’s life, like birthdays and Christmas and their wedding. Rae and Claire get more and more touchy as the story goes on. Apparently Inori-sensei has offered up the bed scenes as an extra on her Pixiv Fanbox (which I think is a terrific idea and admit, I’m tempted. For the record, her Fanbox is being translated into English and Korean, so don’t be afraid to support her.) Rae and Claire’s wedding is a very pointed commentary on modern Japanese life and laws and an incredibly sweet scene. For a second time, the final scene of the book had me reaching for the tissues. How far Claire and Rae have come in a year is laid bare for all for us to see. (happy tears)

But, Erica! I hope you are flailing your hands at me in an attempt to get my attention. Did you say Rae and Claire’s wedding?!? Yes. And that is not the only wonderfully gay bit – nor is it arguably, the most important gay thing in this book. There are at least three other incredibly important conversations that I hope like heck have made a difference for someone, somewhere. And Rae and Claire are VERY clear about what they are to one another to the people around them in so many words.  They are physically affectionate with each other and with the twins, as well. I honestly loved that affectionate kisses and hugs and touching were just normalized in this story.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 9
Characters – 10
Service – Kind of? You’ll have to trust me that its fine, really.
Yuri – 10
Queer – 10

Overall – 10

Absolutely fantastic, but I have so many questions.

What about <spoiler>? What did they do?
What is the deal with <spoiler and spoiler>?
Were the <spoiler> there for shits and giggles?
What is going to happen with <spoiler>????
Why on earth is <spoiler>?????????

*The one thing I do honestly like about using Kindle for Japanese-language books is the translation function. It’s not perfect, but it helps not having to do more than highlight a term once the JP dictionary has been downloaded.

** In case it is not obvious, Aleah rhymes with Claire in Japanese and Mei rhymes with Rae.





I’m in Love With the Villainess, Volume 2

January 8th, 2021

Remember how amazed we were in Volume 1, when the characters of Claire, Misha and Rae had a frank discussion of sexuality? Well, I’m In Love With The Villainesss, Volume 2 has looked at Volume 1 and said, “Hold my mead”….

Rae Taylor is an extraordinary young woman, because in fact, she is not a young woman. She is a corporate drone from our world who has found herself in the world of her favorite otome game as the player character. Instead of romancing the princes, however, Rae has opted for a new route; one in which she is romancing the villainess, the aristocratic and strong-willed Claire François. Here in Volume 2, the holodeck controls are off and Rae and Claire run full speed towards a resolution that even Rae with her knowledge of the game can not predict.

As a reader and as a writer, I ascribe to what we called at the Fanfic Revolution called the “one-handwave” theory. This theory allows every world is allowed one massive, ridiculous, inexplicable thing that must be accepted at face value and cannot be questioned. This volume of I’m in Love With the Villainess, *immediately* blew that theory to hell in the most hilarious way I have ever seen. And then it did it again. And again. The rules? They are for some other story. This story could not have cared less what rules say. Massively important plot points were handled with literal magical handwaves, while actual time and attention were given to discussions of same-sex attraction, gender dysphoria, and, of course, the social impact of income inequality and political upheaval. It was compelling to say the least. It was a little too on the nose for this week, in particular.

This volume is significantly larger than volume 1. Given the resolution there’s only one thing the author left undealt with so Volume 3, when we get it, ought to address that.

In the meantime, this was an amazing read. Whatever benchmark might have been set by Volume 1, was shattered with sound-of speed waves as this volume goes blasting by it. It got exponentially queerer as the story went on. Final tally – 6 queer characters among the main cast, and a happy ending for our principles. And an epilogue that made me ugly cry at 2AM.

I give it my strongest recommendation. If you have not read this series, I hope you will. I know isekai isn’t everyone’s thing, but this is a shining example of exactly what I was talking about in my essay about queer representation Author Inori doesn’t consider that the limits of the worlds that previously existed are the limits of what the worlds could be. They’ve taken an already played-out plot driver and used it to explore very real-world situations in fantasy cosplay and come up with a different resolution. Rather than just assuming what was is what has to be, this series models a new ideal.  I feel even more confident that this was the right choice for my Top Yuri of the year for 2020, and it is going to be very, very hard to beat for 2021. But you know….I really hope something does beat it, because that would be something. ^_^

 

Ratings:

Art – 7 Okay. I’m still angry we didn’t get a picture of Claire in the tux in V1.
Story – 10 Perfection
Characters – 10
Service – 3 Yes, but…somehow this time didn’t bother me at all.
Yuri – 10
Queer – 10

Overall – 10

“Miss Claire, watch over me now.” I am slayed.





Girl’s Kingdom, Volume 1

January 4th, 2021

A few years ago, I was approached by a relatively new publisher of Yuri webnovels, GL Bunko. They wanted to bring their books to the western audience. I took at look at their first title, GIRLS KINGDOM 1 & 2 (that is to say, the first two webnovels of the series, collected. I found the book to be humorous and imperfectly – but sincerely – translated. And I had some hope for the series. I have since read and reviewed a few other GL Bunko novels and likewise find them to be highly entertaining. ^_^ It was a pleasure, then to hear that J-Novel Club has picked up GL Bunko titles and is now offering us Girls Kingdom, Volume 1 as a collected light novel volume.

Let’s get the main questioned answered right away – yes, this book is fun and at times, funny.

Written by Nayo and illustrated by Shio Sakura (whose work you’ve seen in other GL Bunko titles, like A Lily Blooms in Another World,) Girls Kingdom is centered around some classic Yuri tropes – the private girl’s school for obscenely wealthy young ladies with no grasp of the real world (TM), maids and a main character who has lived under a rock and signed up for a school having never once looked at its home page, much less read the handbook. Within these tropes, the story is clever. At this particular school half the students are obscenely wealthy young ladies with no grasp of the real world(TM) and the other half are young ladies vying to become their maids.

Misaki is a student with straightened circumstances who wants to study at Amanotsuka Girl’s School because it is free. Why it is free is not interesting to her, so she ignores all the information she is given and arrives at the school, an uncarved block. An uncarved block who is late to the entrance ceremony and happen to be discovered by one of the most powerful students at the school, Amanotsuka Himeko. Himeko confirms that Misaki has no interest in being a maid and straightaway makes Misaki her maid. And, so, Misaki is thrust into the cuthroat world of competition to become ladies’ maids to obscenely wealthy young ladies with no grasp of the real world (TM).

The remainder of the story is…well, honestly it’s gobsmackingly silly with dollops of tiresome fanservice, but because it’s so irrepressibly silly, it’s easy to enjoy. A quality that has, so far been my experience with GL Bunko. As you may remember the other series I’m reading from them is Kunoichi Bettegumi Igarashi Satsuki, (くノ一別手組ー五十嵐五月) about a samurai bodyguard and the very-probably-a-vampire she serves. These are not novels one needs to analyze deeply. They are novels one ought to read without letting your brain get in the way. But if excessive discussion of underwear and random groping is a deal-killer for you, then you will want to avoid this. There’s are twin maids, and you know that never goes well. ^_^;

Absolutely going to give props to translator Philip Reuben, editor teiko and the entire J-Novel Club team for making sense of this novel while  keeping the loopiness of the story intact.

As I said in my initial review, a “climactic “battle” of table manners fill the final pages of the book. If you did not already know how to eat escargot when you begin this book, you will by the time you finish.” which ought to give you an idea of where you stand with this novel.

Ratings:

Art – 8 Vastly improved from the original version, if, again, heavy on the service
Story – 7 Even sillier than I remembered.
Characters – 8 Enjoyable. Honestly
Service – 7
Yuri – Erm….kind of hard to judge, as its mostly fanservice and “maid’s loyalty” kind of stuff, 3? 5? I dunno.

Overall – 7

My very sincere thanks to J-Novel Club for the review copy. I definitely look forward to Volume 2, which ought to arrive with spring.

Thanks also to my Okazu Patrons who voted for this to be the first review of 2021!

 





Bloom Into You Regarding Saeki Sayaka, Volume 3

December 24th, 2020

Capping this weird, and horrible and amazing year off is the volume that I have been waiting for since April, when I raved about the Japanese edition. At last I can share with you, the joyousness of Bloom Into You Regarding Saeki Sayaka, Volume 3!

Saeki Sayaka, a girl who tends overthink most things, is confronted by a situation that requires faith in the future.

I almost don’t want to tell you anything about it, because I want you to enjoy the whole thing on your own, without my prompts. I’m also tempted to just quote huge chunks of my initial review at you, since the things I loved about the book in Japanese hold up beautifully in English, thanks to the deft translation by Jan Cash and Vincent Castaneda and Jenny McKeon’s adaptation. They captured Sayaka’s cool, reflective, outside voice and the increasing turmoil inside her head beautifully.

The humor fit perfectly, even the one thing I *felt* but wasn’t entirely sure was real, was communicated well. Everything here is as polished as it needed to be, with the result that I picked this long-waited volume up after dinner and did not put it down until I had finished it.

The Regarding Saeki Sayaka series was an unexpected bonus for this reader of Bloom Into You. Sayaka was the reason I kept tuning in. This novel reminded us again of the importance of Miyako as an older role model for Sayaka. How much angst and loneliness might she have to struggle with without someone to just talk to? Instead, this series had carefully, cleanly laid the path out for us to see Sayaka become a person who understands she likes women and feels neither shame nor confusion about it. Having cleared the way of negativity, we are allowed to watch Sayaka become interested in someone for their own sake, for the first time in her life. And, so, we can fully enjoy that moment, alone in her room, when Sayaka says, “I have a girlfriend.” out loud, to her own amazement. ^_^

I tip my hat to Hitoma Iruma whose work here – which included a brief conversation about gaydar, as well – is some of the best they’ve done.  I am so very much looking forward to Iruma and Nakatani’s next collaboration. With this book, Bloom Into You is over, but we have End Blue (エンドブルー) to look forward to.  They really seemed to bring out the best in each other, and here we are, able to reap the benefits. Even if you weren’t a huge Bloom Into You fan, I recommend this LN series.

My sincerest thanks to the folks at Seven Seas for their work on this series. Clay Garderner’s interior design was lovely, Nicky Lam’s cover, as well. And thank you Seven Seas for crediting *everyone* who worked on the book. It’s a pleasure to see the team get their due.

Ratings:

Art – 10
Story – 9
Character – 10
Service – 3
Yuri – 9

Overall – 9

Spending time watching Sayaka bloom into herself is absolutely worth your time.