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Below are the 11 most recent journal entries recorded in
Manga Maniac Cafe's InsaneJournal:
| Tuesday, September 11th, 2018 | |
| 4:47 am | Manga Review: Limit V 5 by Keiko Suenobu
May Contain Spoilers Kamiya and Konno are determined to flush out Usuis killer. They trade theories and suspicions, and decide to directly ask one of their number. Their story just doesnt add up, and that person has information about Usui that was not possible unless they saw her and killed her. They agree to tread carefully. Someone has already killed once, and that act led to Ichinoses death. Konno is simply unable to view people in a bad light. She knows that one of them is a killer, but she cant accept it. Her past history with her classmates makes her reject her suspicions again and again. Even when there is concrete proof right in front of her, she dismisses it as a coincidence. Her inability to suspect puts her in grave peril, though it does force a confession from the murderer. I thought the pacing was way off in this installment. The previous volumes did a great job building incredible tension and a sense of fear. Who will die next? Who is killing off the surviving students of the tragic bus crash? This threw it all away by revealing the murderer in a dump of chaotic pages that made no sense. I’m the killer! And I’m going to KILL ALL OF YOU AND BURN YOU UP!! So I can go home alone! The motivation and big reveal were so disappointing. Theres only one volume to go, so Im curious about how Suenobu will wrap this series up. Grade: 3.5 stars Review copy provided by publisher About the book: As a search-and-rescue party is now deep into the hunt for survivors, another young life has fallen seemingly from the hands of another. Tensions are high, but Mizuki feels she may have found brief solace in old acquaintance Haruaki. But her trust may soon be betrayed once again, when he reveals who may be behind murders since the bus crash, potentially driving the pair further into darkness. |
| Monday, September 10th, 2018 | |
| 3:26 am | Manga Review: Slam Dunk V 19 by Takehiko Inoue @shonenjump @vizmedia
May Contain Spoilers Its time for the second half of the game against Ryonan! It seems that Shohoku is starting to wake up, thanks to Mistuis three pointers. Now if only the rest of the guys would show a little spirit. Hanamichi is furious with himself and with Fukuda for getting the best of him. Will he be able to set aside his raging emotions and concentrate on playing the game? This was a fun volume. Shohoku finally wakes up from the coma theyve been in. Rukawa starts the process, by actually starting to play to his potential. Because he ran out of steam in previous games, he wasnt giving the game his all. He actually wants to finish a game, and he knows that the final minutes is when hell be needed most. Argh he had me fooled. I thought he was having a really, really bad day! Uozumi is having a pretty bad day, on the other hand. After getting foul number 4, Coach Taoka pulls him from the game. He doesnt want him to foul out with so much time left. His substitute cant go toe to toe with Akagi, giving Shohoku the opening they need to get some points on the board. We get a flashback to Uozumis freshman year, and, man! He did not have things easy. Being a big kid, he struggled with footwork drills and trained so hard he threw up. Every day. And Taoka berated him constantly. When he was ready to quit, Taoka revealed his dream to Uozumi. He was going to build a team around Uozumi, and they were going to Nationals in Uozumis third and final year. Bet that got him over the hump of difficult training! This volume is nuts. The momentum of the game swings back and forth, before finally sticking with Shohoku. Hanamichi has finally had a fire lit under his butt, and he is determined to play better and score more points than anybody else. He is an idiot sometimes. Its all well and good to compete with the other team, but maybe not such a good idea to constantly try to one up your own teammates, and give up the ball while youre doing it. Maybe one day hell learn about teamwork. Nah, not with Rukawa constantly needling him. There are about 8 minutes left in the game, so I wonder if the game will get wrapped up in V 20? Lets see! Grade: 4.25 stars Review copy borrowed from my local library About the book: Thanks to consecutive three-pointers by Mistui late in the first half of the game against Ryonan High, Shohoku High ends the half down by only six points. Rukawa’s still got plenty of strength left and he’s going to need it to face Ryonan’s ace, Sendoh. The pressure on Ryonan continues to draw fouls from them–can Shohoku exploit this and pull ahead? Or is Ryonan’s coach Taoka just waiting for Shohoku to trip themselves up? |
| Friday, September 7th, 2018 | |
| 5:40 am | Reviews by Poo Penny: Magic Triumphs by Ilona Andrews
Review by Poo Penny May Contain Spoilers Kate went out with a bang! I am kind of sad we aren’t going to get to read about how this new world is going to be. At least we have some Hugh books to look forward to. I am hoping that maybe Conlan will make a debut in them because I feel like his story was not wrapped up for me. So the meat of this book, Kate has to find a way to keep her dad at bay, and some new big bad evil showed up. And obviously only Kate can bring together all the people needed to bring him down. I have so many questions, like how Yu can exist in the world. Or how could Curran start to become a god, but then he can use all the power up in one go. Hugh was an absolute delight, however I wish I had known to read his book before this one. Ayyyyy. Well its not like it really ruined anything for me, I really wanted Hugh to redeem himself, and he definitely did. Twice for me! So yes, Kate brings everyone together, all her allies, and TRIUMPHS! See what I did there. I give the book 4.5 out of 5. I was just a little disappointed at how convenient it was to deal with her dad and the big bad in this book at the same time. Review copy provided by publisher About the book: Mercenary Kate Daniels must risk all to protect everything she holds dear in this epic, can’t-miss entry in the thrilling #1 New York Times bestselling urban fantasy series. |
| 4:07 am | Manga Review: A Bride’s Story V 3 & 4 by Kaoru Mori
May Contain Spoilers In Volumes 3 and 4, the focus of A Brides Story shifts to Mr. Smith and the villagers he comes in to contact with on his journey to Ankara. Amir and Karluk make cameo appearances, so we dont completely lose sight of them. Amirs family has fallen on hard times because of their failure to steal her back and marry her off to another tribe, and I cant say I felt too bad for them, even if Amir did. World politics play a more important role as the conflict with Russia and the suspicion of Europeans in Asia cause some grief for Smith. Before meeting up with his guide, Smith gets tossed in to jail, and his pleas to contact the embassy fall on deaf ears. Hes finally released, but has another complication to confront. He and Talas, a young widow, have come to an agreement, but will her family destroy their future happiness? I though this was a bit of a depressing installment. Smith sees first-hand how unpleasant life can be for women in Central Asia. Subject to the will and whims of their fathers, women have little voice or control over their own fates. Despite Smiths intention to marry Talas, her spiteful new step-father has other plans for his new daughter, and theres nothing either of them can do to change his mind. What a bummer.
Volume 4 was a different beast. Much more lighthearted and fun, Smith is rescued by two rambunctious twins, Laila and Leily. The sisters are constantly in trouble, more interested in snaring wealthy husbands than the fish they are tasked to catch. When their father, exhausted from their antics, finally makes an arrangement for each of them, the girls dont get the husbands they have been wishing for. Laila and Leily are overly energetic, and while everyone thought they were too young (me included!), their father finally caved. The girls have a lot of growing up to do before they can effectively take care of a household, so their stern mother gives them a crash course in housework. While they complain the whole time, proving their need to grow the heck up. I enjoyed this volume. It has some very funny moments, and after the twins are resigned to their husbands-to-be, they begin to find things about the boys that make them special. Its this quiet examination of the characters that I find so endearing about this series. Yeah, Laila and Leily didnt snag the rich husbands that they dreamed about, but maybe the village boys that they will be marrying are special in their own way. Once again, the art is stellar in both volumes. I love all of the details, from the clothing, to the food, to the animals and objects that surround the villagers daily lives. I love this series, and Im thrilled its coming out in digital starting in October. Once I power through the library books I borrowed, I will be keeping up with the series digitally Grade: 4.25 stars Review copy borrowed from my local library About the book: Volume 3 Acclaimed creator Kaoru Mori’s tale of life on the nineteenth-century Silk Road continues, this time introducing a new would-be bride–Talas. A young widow, Talas opens her home to the researcher Mr. Smith, who has ventured to her town to continue his studies. However, when Talas’s uncle begins to see Smith as an impediment to his plans to wed his son to Talas, the old man’s schemes land the Englishman in prison! Far from friends and even farther from home, Smith’s outlook seems grim& Volume 4 Acclaimed creator Kaoru Moris tale of life on the nineteenth-century Silk Road turns westward, following Englishman Mr. Smith on his long journey to Ankara. Passing through a fishing village along the Aral Sea, Smith and his guide encounter a pair of spirited young girls named Laila and Leily–identical twins who are fishing not for sturgeon, but for husbands! Despite their efforts to find two wealthy, healthy, and handsome brothers to wed, Laila and Leilys plans generally only land them in loads of trouble!d |
| Thursday, September 6th, 2018 | |
| 4:41 am | Manga Review: Dance in the Vampire Bund V 14 by Nozomu Tamaki
May Contain Spoilers Welp, I have reached the final volume of Dance in the Vampire Bund. Only its not the end. Its the end of part 1. So if you are looking for an actual conclusion, you need to look elsewhere, because this non-ending was disappointing. We finally get some backstory on Alphonse, and I guess I can see why he acted as he did. Sort of. I can even understand why he chose to follow the fake Mina, at least at the beginning. Having given his heart and soul to the real Mina, only to have it thrown back in his face, could certainly cause some bad feelings. Especially when she gave her heart to an infant werewolf baby. Im not going to get into how creepy that is. Mina and Akiras relationship has always made me uncomfortable. She is centuries older than he is, and she groomed him to be at her servant. Thats kind of gross. Beowulf forces arrive back in Japan just in time to stop a complete slaughter from occurring. So many humans, terrified of the vampires, started striking out at everyone in fear, killing many innocent humans in the process. I dont think we ever found out what happened to the nutso mayor may his punishment have been as brutal as his rhetoric. We have an answer to why fake Mina did what she did, but her whole method of accomplishing her task seems so convoluted in retrospect. And I still dont understand whats going on with the massive ancient underground cities, both of which were destroyed after Mina and Akira visited them. Maybe the answer is in the next story arc? Overall, the first story arc of Dance in the Vampire Bund scored a solid 3.25 stars. There are a couple volumes where I felt that the story went completely off the rails, but since I was so far into the story, I stuck it out. The pointless nudity gets a demerit, but again, I realize that I am not the target market for this comic. The Lolita aspects give me the creeps, but in this case, again because of the massive age difference and power imbalance between Akira and Mina, I found it more disturbing that Mina is so obviously taken with the teenaged werewolf. Will I read more of the series? Maybe. I do have the first book of the next series its a rando graphic novel that just showed up one day, so I will probably read at least that one. Grade: 3.75 stars Review copy borrowed from my local library About the book: The final volume in the #1 New York Times bestselling manga series! |
| Wednesday, September 5th, 2018 | |
| 4:31 am | Manga Review: Limit V 4 by Keiko Suenobu
May Contain Spoilers There is a murderer among the surviving students, and nobody can figure out who it is! Just when you thought these kids couldnt go through anything worse than the horrific bus crash that killed their classmates, now they have to deal with the uncertainty of knowing that Usui was killed by one of their number. Tensions boil over as they try to solve the mystery. Who can be trusted? Wow. I think for sure that Morishige is the one who murdered Usui, because she is so freaking unpleasant, but did she? Could Ichinose have done it? I dont think so, but everyones brains are a bit scrambled from all that they have suffered since the accident, and who knows. Nobodys got an air-tight alibi, and since everyone is just a step from going off the deep end, anyone could have snapped and done the deed. This manga is very suspenseful. Can the city kids, with hardly any supplies, survive long enough to be rescued? Without Kamiya, the answer to that is most definitely no. Not one of them has the slightest idea how to survive in the wilderness. Add in selfishness and human nature in general, and you have a group of traumatized survivors who are willing to work together but only until their own survival is threatened. The art in this bleak volume is very dark, and the infighting is well portrayed. Morishige is absolutely awful, and you cant help but want to see karma pay her a visit. And while Kanno wants everyone to work together and get back home safely, she makes some major missteps that will have a lasting effect over her, as well as the others. Grade: 4 stars Review copy provided by publisher About the book: After experiencing countless tragedies, the remaining survivors have settled into their roles hoping to make it out of their ordeal alive. Nevertheless, tensions held over from the classroom still linger, especially when death strikes once again taking the life of the remaining six. Now with an actual murderer in their midst will these teens cling on to any thread of faith in one another, or will they ultimately succumb to their collective fears? |
| Tuesday, September 4th, 2018 | |
| 4:01 am | Manga Review: Slam Dunk V 18 by Takehiko Inoue @shonenjump @vizmedia
May Contain Spoilers Oh, no. Things seem to be falling apart for Shohoku faster than the shinkansan barreling down the tracks. Without Coach Anzas steadying influence, they cant stay focused and they are not playing to win. Akagi is too busy worrying about his ankle to make the aggressive moves he needs to go one-on-one with Uozumi. Can Koguri get their heads back in the game? Well, the team collapsed like a house of cards. Boom! They are hardly putting up a fight against Ryonan. Akagi is the biggest disappointment. Hes dreamed of this moment for years, and hes doing nothing to capitalize on it. He is being steamrolled by Uozumi, and hes doing little to try to dominate the game. Thats not to say that everything is Akagis fault, because its not. The entire Shohoku team neednt have bothered showing up. They are that out of the game. Even Hanamichi, despite his bluster, cant get anything going. The guy falls on the ball (a real ball buster sorry!), and looks like a rank amateur out there. Fukuda and Uozumi dont hesitate to take advantage. Where is Coach Anzai when we need him? This was a dramatic installment in the series. The game is fast and fierce, but the Shohoku team doesnt seem to be part of the action. They better start hustling, or their season will be over just when things were getting good. And how will Hanamichi live down this humiliation? Fukuda practically stomped on his face, and then stood over him to gloat about it. Come on, Hanamichi! Get that infamous temper ignited! Anything to get the team back in the game! Grade: 4.25 stars Review copy borrowed from my local library About the book: In a white-hot competition, you need your confidence to carry you to victory. In the Shohoku vs. Ryonan game, Akagi, still recovering from an ankle injury, has his confidence shaken when Ryonan’s Uozumi knocks him down. Now doubting his effectiveness, Akagi begins deferring opportunities to his teammates. Ryonan seizes the chance to pull away, leaving Shohoku wondering how they’re going to get their mojo back! Sakuragi’s going to have to try something unthinkable to get Akagi back on his feet and his head in the game! |
| Friday, August 31st, 2018 | |
| 3:36 am | Manga Review: Slam Dunk V 17 by Takehiko Inoue @shonenjump @vizmedia
May Contain Spoilers While the Kainan Ryonan game rages on, Akagi gets an unwelcome emergency phone call. Coach Anzai has collapsed, and hes been admitted to the hospital! How will Shohoku play their most important game of the year without Anzais guidance? We get a brief glimpse into Hanamichis past, but not enough to satisfy any burning curiosity you might have. Coach Anzai collapsed while watching Hanamichi practice shooting baskets, and Hanamichi called for an ambulance in a panic. We get a flashback to when he discovers his father facedown on the ground, and he frantically tries to call for help. Hanamichis troubles catch up to him, though, and hes jumped by some guys he beat up earlier. No phone call for him. Before this short snippet of information, I never really stopped to think that we dont get much personal information on any of the characters. Sure, we saw Haruko and Akagi eating dinner at home, only to be interrupted by Hanamichi, but thats really it. We dont know much about the guys outside of basketball, and I feel a little cheated by that. The most domestic scene weve been treated to is Anzais wife greeting them in the hospital, assuring them that Coach will be okay. After seventeen volumes, Im a bit disappointed to realize that I know nothing about Hanamichi before basketball, other than he was (and still is) a troublemaker, who lashes out first and thinks about things afterwards. Maybe he thinks about them. Theres still a debate about that. The game with Ryonan starts, without Anzai to guide them. That means more pressure on Akagi. If they lose, this is his last game. Ever. The stakes are so high, and the pressure is intense. Ryonan is no pushover, and everyone is feeling a touch of nerves. They have to win for Anzai. This was a quick volume, with lots of basketball, a touch of human interest, and then more basketball. Hanamichi has a lot to make up for, having thrown the ball away in the loss to Kainan, and then missing the next game. Lets see if his hours of practice helps him to land more than one basket. Grade: 4 stars Review copy borrowed from my local library About the book: As the boys from Shohoku watch from the sidelines, the much-anticipated game between Ryonan High and Kainan High continues to heat up. Kainan superstar Makis stellar play helps swing the momentum back in his teams direction, aided in no small part by a key player from Ryonan getting into foul trouble. However, Captain Akagi and company leave the game early when they receive an alarming bit of news: Coach Anzai has collapsed and is now in the hospital! |
| Thursday, August 30th, 2018 | |
| 5:30 am | Reviews by Poo Penny: Iron and Magic by Ilona Andrews
Poo Penny has had a busy summer! She and her hubby welcomed a little bundle of joy into their lives just after moving to their new home in Texas. She hasnt had a lot of time to read, but she did dive into Iron and Magic, by one of her favorite authors, Ilona Andrews.. Check out her review below! Review by Poo Penny May Contain Spoilers You will want to read this book before Kate 10. I read that somewhere. Hey! Its been a while, between being a human cafeteria for a newborn, and all the dirty diapers, its really hard to make time to read, let alone write a review. The little guy doesn’t like to sleep for more than 30 minutes during the day. HUGH! I have been waiting with bated breath since Ilona Andrews announced they were writing a Hugh book. And I was not disappointed. There is action, Hugh is super sexy, there is drama. What more can you ask for? Hugh’s Iron Dogs come get him and stop him from drinking himself into an early grave. See, Roland took away his love and magic, so poor Hugh is having a hard time coping. That’s all right, because it made a good read. So Hugh has about 300 soldiers to keep safe, and keep fed, clothed, and sheltered. Did I not mention that he’s broke? Well, he’s broke. His Centurions found a way to keep the Iron Dogs sheathed in luxury. OK, not really, it was just a deal to keep them fed, clothed, and sheltered. It does however, comes at the cost of marriage. To Hugh! Lucky lucky girl. So, Hugh marries Elara, the leader of the settlement that has agreed to take in the Iron Dogs for protection. The outside world is supposed to think its a real marriage, so when they have guests they put on a front. Which I loved. Their back and forth snipping really reminded me of the back and forth teasing my husband and I have. (I promise its a loving back and forth) Through unknown enemies, and known enemies, Elara and Hugh need to show each other that they can be trusted not to back out of their deal. Can they do it? You’ll have to read the book to find out! Hint: Its a pretty good book, and it was only book 1. Grade: 4.5 stars Review copy purchased from Amazon About the book No day is ordinary in a world where Technology and Magic compete for supremacy&But no matter which force is winning, in the apocalypse, a sword will always work. |
| Wednesday, August 29th, 2018 | |
| 5:20 am | Manga Review: One Piece V 11 by Eiichiro Oda @shonenjump @vizmedia
May Contain Spoilers The battle against Arlong and the fish-men wraps up, with all of the ridiculous action that youd expect. Arlong sprouts nasty shark choppers in his hands, and Shark Darts at Luffy, leaping at him and leading with his wicked, serrated nose. Watch out, Luffy! When Luffy turns the tables on Arlong by snatching away a set of his teeth, oh my! Lets just say that Luffy just doesnt have the jaw strength for an attack of that nature. Just when things are looking grim for Luffy, he is filled with a sense of righteous indignation at the thought of how terribly Arlong treated Nami while she was forced to work for him. I have always liked that his true strength comes from his desire to protect his friends. He will do anything to keep them safe, and if he takes a beating for it, so be it. Eventually he will rally and keep his crew safe. After liberating Coco Village, the reassembled crew sails off for Roguetown, where the Pirate King, Roger, was born and ultimately executed. What they dont know is that Luffy now has a price on his head of a whopping 30 million berries, which I am sure will lead to many, many misadventures and headaches as bounty hunters try to collect all that cash, and the navy attempts to apprehend this obviously dangerous criminal. Roguetown is at first a fun little outing, with the crew members heading off in different directions for shopping and sightseeing. Luffy, of course, wants to see the execution scaffold where Roger lost his head. Once there, hes about to lose his head as enemies from the recent past descend on Roguetown. This is almost about as far as I got in the anime, all those years ago, and Im looking forward to learning more about Captain Smoker and Tashigi. He seems like a hard ass, and she seems like a flake, but Im thinking that theres more to them than meets the eye. Grade: 4 stars Review copy borrowed from my local library About the book: After almost drowning at the hands of “Saw-Tooth” Arlong, captain of the nasty Fish-Man pirates, Luffy bounces back with a few tricks up his sleeve. The fate of Coco Village, if not the rest of the East Blue, rests upon the outcome of their final battle! |
| Tuesday, August 28th, 2018 | |
| 6:20 am | Review: Magic Triumphs by Ilona Andrews
May Contain Spoilers Oh boy, where to start. As the final book in the Kate Daniels series, Magic Triumphs is everything I hoped it would be. It ties up the main storylines satisfactorily, settles Kates daddy issues in a clever way, and leaves an opening for more adventures with supporting characters. I really enjoyed this, and cant think of a better way to draw the series to an end. Im not going to give many plot details, because I dont want to give any spoilers, and part of the fun of reading Magic Triumphs is being surprised as one road bump after another is exposed by Kates investigation into the disappearance of the population of an entire town. As she and Derek doggedly dig around for clues, she discovers that in addition to this threat, Roland is also getting ready to attack Atlanta. With two enormously powerful enemies knocking on her door, things dont look very promising for the continued existence of her family, friends, or her city. While Kate is dealing with a lot of dark, heavy issues, there is glorious humor thrown into the narrative. Most of it is courtesy of Kate and Currans feisty, incredibly powerful son, Conlan. If Conlan was my kid, I would be tearing my hair out and investing in silver baby cribs so I could put him in the occasional time out. Conlan is as stubborn as Kate, as determined as Curran, and probably more magically gifted than both of them put together. I would love love love to read more about him. Think about it. A novella about him heading off to high school, or the trials and tribulations of trying to fit in with the rest of the populace, when his star shines brighter than the sun. Oh, the troubles he could overcome! All of the supporting cast that we have come to love return, providing support, grief, or comic relief. After this installment, Erra is probably my favorite, followed by Julie, Derek, and the boudas. Some of supporting cast had hanging plot threads that could easily be solved with a novella, so if the authors are listening, Id love to read more though that would cut into their time to give us more Hidden Legacy stories, so it would be counter-productive (for me). The Kate Daniels series has been a fantastic roller-coaster ride, with each book improving over the last. I remember originally DNFing Magic Bites, and the only thing that got me through it was the wonderful narration of the audio book. I listened to the first two books, in fact, before I switched over to reading them on my Kindle. And guess what? Now that the adrenaline fueled rush to reach the end is over, I think I will listen to all of them, and enjoy the whole series again. Oh! And I totally forgot to say Read Iron and Blood, Hughs first book, first! Grade: 4.5 stars Kate Daniels series overall: 4.5 Review copy provided by publisher About the book: Mercenary Kate Daniels must risk all to protect everything she holds dear in this epic, can’t-miss entry in the thrilling #1 New York Times bestselling urban fantasy series. |
