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Yurara finds herself drawn to Mei, but her guardian spirit prefers Yako! Can Yurara sort out her true feelings?
When Yurara’s guardian spirit picks up a ghostly stalker, she vanishes, leaving Yurara to deal with the paranormal pervert on her own! By: Chika Shiomi Publisher: Viz Media – Shojo Beat Genre: Romance/Supernatural Rating: Teen + Price: $8.99 Not much of a volume description, is it? It doesn’t even come close to describing what’s going on in this volume. There is some serious character development going in here. The description only acts as a lead in. This volume starts off with two self-contained chapters that work to lead into the heart of the book; Yurara’s relationship with Mei. Mei is a serious flit, so Yurara doesn’t want to take his advances seriously, especially when it seems he’s really only interested in her spirit guardian. But when Yurara goes to the school rooftop to investigate the spirit that seems to be following her, Mei gets very upset with her. Yako explains to Yurara about Mei’s past and being in love with another woman who was killed by a spirit by pulling her off a rooftop. Yurara then meets that spirit when she possesses Mei and it’s up to Yurara to get rid of the spirit before it manipulates Mei into taking…
You’re the ones who’re horny every freaking single day of the year! By: Jun Yuzuki Publisher: Del Rey Genre: Comedy Romance Age: OT 16+ Price: 10.99 US As I stated in earlier reviews, I tend to be a reader of seinen manga, and as an adult male, that is the demographic that I fall into. However I try and read all genres and give them a fair shake, or at least an alternative perspective. Although I have found plenty of gems outside of the seinen genre, there are also plenty of head-scratchers as well. Unfortunately Gakuen Prince falls more into the second catagory than the first. Just like the schools in at least 50% of shoujo manga, Jyoshien Gakuen Private High School used to be an all-girls school, but not long before our story begins boys were admitted for the first time. Rise Okitsu is a plain jane (until she removes her glasses) who just wants to survive high school life. She is hazed by her more fashion and make-up conscious classmates, and Rise just tries to shrink and hide. However, this is the first day of school for the tall, dark and brooding Azusa Mizutani. All boys like Azusa…
Cai-Sheng is a celestial fox demon raised by a group of wild fox demons, who hope she will master the ability to transform into a male and same them from extinction. One day, she befriends a little boy and girl, who save her from a dog attack. Her caretaker marks them with symbols that will not disappear until Cai-Sheng repays her debt. Two hundred years later, Cai-Sheng meets the reincarnated boy and girl and decides to repay her debt by match-making them, but things get complicated when the girl falls for Cai-Sheng’s male form! By Yi Huan Publisher: DR Masters Age Rating: Teen (13+) Genre: Romance/Gender Bender Price: $9.95 Divine Melody is a Chinese manhua that is filled lots of romantic possibilities, but still manages to keep them from getting convoluted. It lays down a good foundation in this first volume, introducing a lot of characters without overloading the reader with too much information. The main romance in this story is the love triangle between Han Yun-Shi, Su Ping, and Cai-Sheng’s male form. I-Huan is taking her time with it, just introducing all the players in this first volume. Su Ping is under a demon’s curse, and Han Yun-Shi is…
The Kokusen Academy Culture Festival is here and the Special A crew is making sure it runs smoothly. But chaos erupts when Kei’s grandfather tries to haul Kei off to London! Worse, when Hikari tries to intervene, she gets abducted! But the worst part of all is that amidst all the drama, Hikari is starting to realize her true feelings for Kei… By: Maki Minami Publisher: Viz Media – Shojo Beat Age Rating: Teen Genre: Romance Price: $8.99 This is another series with female protagonist that’s as dense as a neutron star with a love interest that is cold yet popular with the girls. I suppose this isn’t bad if you don’t mind female protagonists that act like dumb blonds, but it really kept me from getting into the story. Kei’s grandfather sends his assistant Aoi Ogata to bring Kei back again. He kidnaps Hikari, thinking if he can get her out Kei’s life by seducing her. Hikari’s obtuseness makes it easy, but Kei runs to her rescue. Hikari then tries to get Aoi and Kei to be friends again, but throughout this, she finds it hard to look Kei in the eye and doesn’t know why. When she finally…
Saving Kyoko from Reino’s attack has finally knocked some sense into Sho’s head, and he realizes how much he cares for her. But before he can declare his devotion, Ren shows up to ruin the moment. Both men realize that Kyoko has no idea of their true feelings for her and begin a secret battle for her affections! By: Yoshiki Yakamura Publisher: Viz Media – Shojo Beat Age Rating: Teen (13+) Genre: Romance/Drama Price: $8.99 This volume is dedicated to the romance side of Skip Beat. Picking up the aftermath of a stalker attack on Kyoko from last volume, both Sho, Kyoko’s rival, and Ren, Kyoko’s mentor, realize their feelings for her. Kyoko, so wrapped up in her mission to become more famous than Sho, doesn’t see beyond the surface. This of course leads to a lot of melodrama. Kyoko didn’t tell Ren that Sho protected her from the stalker, Ren gets upset, Ren and Kyoko thinks they are hated by the other, and when they start to recover, Sho shows up and makes a challenge/declaration of love to Kyoko. But, all that drama isn’t so bad actually. It all plays as a natural progression as Ren has been working…
It’s where Mom and Dad were supposed to go… Art by Natsumi Ando; Story by Miyuki Kobayashi Publisher: Del Rey Manga Genre: Shoujo Age: T (13+) Price: 10.99 USD Ask anyone who has spent any time in Japan what they miss the most, and without a doubt the food will be in their top three choices. Naturally, native Japanese cuisine won’t be better anywhere else, but many are surprised to hear how many delicious breads and desserts can be found in Japanese bakeries invariably found on any shopping street or decent grocery store. I believe the reason for this is triple-fold: 1) throughout history Japan has scoured the world for the the most delicious recipes and adapted them to Japanese tastes, 2) Japanese cooks know less is more, and a sprinkle of dark chocolate has a more subtle and palatable finish then cup after cup of sugar, and 3) bakers take so much pride in their work (and there is no shortage of competition) that every bite a customer eats should be nothing short of perfection. Though the results may not be perfection, Manga writer Natsumi Ando brings these sensibilities to her best abilities in Kitchen Princess‘s ninth volume. Shoujo…
Shall the son suffer for the continued sins of the father? Alexis hatches an evil plan involving a beautiful girl with a sick fascination for his son. And could Jizabel’s hatred of Cain also stem from their father? Step into the past as we learn more about the tortured early life of Dr. Disraeli! By Kaori Yuki Publisher: Viz Media Age Rating: Older Teen Genre: Drama/Horror Price: $8.99 If the last volume was about betrayal, then the theme of this one could be said to be about love. It can be twisted from infatuation into obsession, and independence into servitude. But, in the face of a pure heart, such manipulations can be broken. Alexis Hargreaves is the master of manipulation. He uses the emotion of love and twists it from something beautiful to something dark and evil. We watch him pull both Mikaila’s and Disraeli’s strings to get them to do his bidding, but the puppet he needs most has already cut his strings. Cain is no long under his father’s spell, and can not only refuse him, but one-ups him! It was very refreshing to see Cain be one step ahead of his father for a change. Throughout this…
Cain stumbles on a secret that will change his life forever. It’s not only the Hargreaves who harbor skeletons in their closet. To whom can you turn when the only person you every trusted betrays you beyond your worst nightmares? By Kaori Yuki Publisher: Viz Media – Shojo Beat Age Rating: Older Teen Genre: Horror/Drama Price: $8.99 Betrayal is an act that can either destroy a person or transform them. This volume is dedicated to the build up and reveal of a major character as a betrayer. But the real drama begins afterwords, with Cain’s reaction and resolution to the betrayal. The betrayal revealed in this volume was probably very obvious to a lot of people. But because it is so obvious that it’s the last person you think of. Yuki-sensei is a master of creating red herrings to steer the reader off, in this volume she did a supremely good job of it. She had me guessing all the way to the end. But, once it was revealed, there was no doubt, because she is careful to lay the path before hand. In this case, it goes back to the first series, The Cain Saga. Cain’s father, Alexis, expects…
It is time for the truth to be told. At last, all the secrets of the Hargreaves family are brought from the dark into the harsh light of day, as Cain’s epic adventures draw to a close. Is Cain ready to find out who he truly is? Are you ready? By Kaori Yuki Publisher: Viz Media Rating: 16+ Genre: Drama/Horror Price: $8.99 This is it. After 12 volumes of mystery and intrigue (including the Cain Saga), we finally have a resolution to all the main characters fates. It is the end of Delilah and the evil mastermind behind all the suffering of the Hargreaves family, but the villain isn’t who you’d expect. This volume starts off with Cain saying his final goodbyes before going to try to stop Delilah and have his final confrontation with his father. He still must struggle past Delilah’s Cards as his father prepares for Judgement Day and the resurrection of the soul of his dead sister Augusta and Cain’s mother. When Cain finally reaches the Delilah’s headquarters, each confrontation ends in a resolution for each character. Cain is able to face his father, and finish what he started in the Cain Saga, as well as…