Queen's Quality, Vol. 4 by Kyousuke Motomi

Today's manga post is on Queen's Quality, Vol. 4 by Kyousuke Motomi. It is 200 pages long and is published by Shojo Beat. The cover has Fumi holding a queen of hearts card with chains around her. As it is the fourth in the second series, following this characters, you need to have QQ Sweeper and the first three volumes of Queen's Quality to understand the story. There is no foul language, no sex, and mild violence in this series. The story closely follows Fumi and Kyutaro the main characters. There Be Spoilers Ahead. 

From the back of the book- Bug handler Ataru offers Kyutaro a deal- he'll reveal everything about Fumi's past if Kyutaro will do what he asks in exchange. Although Kyutaro knows this must be a trap, he goes to see Ataru...
What devastating effect will Ataru's evil plot have on Kyutaro and Fumi?

Review- The blurb is just the first part of the story and Kyutaro is smarter than Ataru realizes. So most of the volume is trying to help Ataru and discover what is really going on with him. He is convinced that he and Fumi share a past and have made promises to each other. But Fumi does not know him and she pushed him to remember who he really made those promises with. The manga continues to be a very enjoyable read, the art is good, and the characters are still the best part of the series. I want Fumi to start to remember her past and what really happened to her. 

I give this manga a Four out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this manga with my own money.

Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Eternal Edition, Vol. 1 by Naoko Takeuchi

Today's post is on Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Eternal Edition, Vol. 1 by Naoko Takeuchi. It is 304 pages long and is published by Kodansha Comics. The cover has Sailor Moon on it. The intended reader is someone who likes classic, groundbreaking shojo manga. There is no foul language, no sex, and mild violence in this series The story is told from third person close of mainly Usagi but some other characters pov's are added for plot. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

Blurb- The Guardians in sailor suits return in this definitive edition of the greatest magical girl manga of all time! Featuring an extra-large size, premium paper, and and all-new translation and cover illustrations by creator Naoko Takeuchi!
Teenager Usagi is not the best athlete, she's never gotten good grades, and, well, she's a bit of a crybaby. But when she meets a talking cat, she begins a journey that will teach her she has a well of great strength just beneath the surface and the heart to inspire and stand up for her friends as Sailor Moon!

Review- This is an incredible manga and an incredible edition. Usagi is a loafer, she just goes through life without much thought and no plans. When she helps a black cat, the cat, Luna, tells her that is a warrior called a Sailor Scout, in fact is the guardian of the moon, Sailor Moon. She has a lot to do now, she has to find the other sailor scouts, the silver crystal, and the princess! Add in Usagi over-blown romantic imagination and we have the most famous magical girl manga of all time. Everything about this manga is great, in my opinion, from the art, the plot, and the characters are just top of the line. Usagi is so cute, she is over her head but she is trying her best, even if that best is crying her eyes out. I have never read all of Sailor Moon and I look forward to following Usagi and her friends into an adventure that changed the face of an entire genre. 

I give this manga a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this manga with my own money. 

Captive Hearts, vol 1

Today's post is on Captive Hearts, vol 1 by Matsuri Hino. It is 200 pages long and is published by Shojo Beat. The cover has the two main characters on it in faux Victorian dress. The intended reader is someone who likes shojo manga, romance manga, and fantasy manga. There is no foul language, no sex, and no violence in this manga. The story is told from third person close of the male lead, Megumi. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book- Careless Megumi Kuroishi was living a life of luxury until the day a girl named Suzuka Kogami walked into this life. All of a sudden, Megumi finds himself kneeling at Suzuka's feet and prostrating himself like a servant! What Megumi doesn't know (until that very moment anyway) is that his family is cursed to follow the orders of the Kogami family.
Being carried around everywhere and having handsome Megumi act like a slave may seem ideal, but Suzuka just wishes he would stop. Can anything be done about Megumi's captive state? Or is Megumi doomed to see Suzuka as his master... forever?

Review- This is a very cute manga about two young adults trying to make the best of a cursed life. Suzuka doesn't want to have a lifelong servant and Megumi doesn't want to have his life revolve around her. But they have a personal connection and they want to have more. The manga in this first volume is more comedy with Megumi getting into funny situations with Suzuka and having to get out of them. The curse is only talked about in passing but Suzuka wants to find a way break the curse and free the Kuroishi family. At the end there are two short stories about young love and they are cute and quick reads. I would recommend this first volume for all shojo manga lovers. 

I give this volume a Four out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this manga with my own money.

Yona of the Dawn, vol 19

Today's post is on Yona of the Dawn, vol 19 by Mizuho Kusanagi. It is 192 pages long and is published by Shojo Beat. The cover has Sinha and Ao in it. As it is the nineteenth in the series, you need to have read the first eighteen to understand the story. The intended reader is someone who likes shojo manga, epic storylines, and fantasy themes. The story if told from third person close of the main characters, moving as the story needs. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book- While preparing to set up camp, Sinha comes across a stone statue of a dragon in the forest. When the statue's mouth starts to close down on Ao, Sinha slices it open and unintentionally releases an ominous spirit! How will Yona and her friends handle the ensuing havoc?

Review- This is story is really about other blue dragon's who waited for the crimson dragon to return and died before Yona was born. The blue dragon just wants to be free and move on but he is trapped by his desire to meet Yona. When she finds him in Sinha's body, she helps him and the other blue dragon's find peace. The second half is continuing the story about the drug trade in the Water country. Most of the this volume is about the dragon's longing for the crimson dragon and how that effects their whole lives and even into their deaths. It was sad to see them still sufferings and longing for Yona. This volume was pleasant if a bit sad and I look forward to reading the next volume. 

I give this volume a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this manga with my own money.

Skip Beat, vol 28

Today's post is on Skip Beat, vol 28 by Yoshiki Nakamura. It is 200 pages long and is published by Shojo Beat. The cover has Kyoko in her Love Me uniform looking at the reader. As it is the twenty-eighth in the series, you need to have read the first twenty-seven. There is no foul language, no sex, and no violence in this manga. The story is told from third person close of Kyoko and Ren. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book- Ren's new roles are dredging up old memories best left buried, and he's having trouble dealing with the emotional turmoil. But the President was right when he claimed Kyoko was Ren's good luck charm. Will her strange but good-natured ways be enough to keep him from his own darkness?

Review- We get a lot of Ren's back story in this volume and start to see what he is running from. Of course Kyoko has no idea about what is going in his head because she is too worried about herself. The character development in this volume is great. Kyoko gets to see how Ren deals when he feels underprepared for a role. those moments help balance out the serious plot development with Ren. It ends with Kyoko having an emotional crisis herself and I can't wait to see how she handles it. 

I give this volume a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this manga with my own money.

A Day of Fallen Night

Today's fiction post is on A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon. It is 880 pages long and is published by Bloomsbury Publishing. The cover has a blue Asian dragon on it. The intended reader is someone who likes epic fantasy. This is a prequel to Priory of the Orange Tree but you can read this novel as a stand alone. There is mild foul language, sex and sexuality, and violence in this book. The story is told from third person close of different characters. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the dust jacket- Tunuva Melim is a sister of the Priory. For fifty years, she has trained to slay wyrms – but none have appeared since the Nameless One, and the younger generation is starting to question the Priory's purpose.
To the north, in the Queendom of Inys, Sabran the Ambitious has married the new King of Hróth, narrowly saving both realms from ruin. Their daughter, Glorian, trails in their shadow – exactly where she wants to be.
The dragons of the East have slept for centuries. Dumai has spent her life in a Seiikinese mountain temple, trying to wake the gods from their long slumber. Now someone from her mother's past is coming to upend her fate.
When the Dreadmount erupts, bringing with it an age of terror and violence, these women must find the strength to protect humankind from a devastating threat.

Review- This is an incredible fantasy novel. It is in the same world as Priory of the Orange Tree. It takes place in the past and deals with a uprising of the fire dragons. Like Priory, the story is told from all over the globe with characters dealing with the same problems. This novel puts many things from Priory into motion and explains some things and why some people are where they are. We see more of the kingdom of Seiiki and how the Rainbow Throne ended and the beginning of the dragon riders. So much happens in this novel and I hope that Shannon has more planned. Shannon is a great writer, she knows how to balance world building with character development. She never overwhelms the reader with details, instead everything in the novel happens naturally and the reader is with the characters as the plot moves. I highly recommend this novel. 

I give this book a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.

The Earl and the Pharaoh

Today's nonfiction post is on The Earl and the Pharaoh by The Countess of Carnarvon. It is 400 pages long and is published by Harper. The cover is blue with a castle at the bottom and a pharaoh's mask on top. The intended reader is someone who is interested in the history of the Earl of Carnarvon. There is no foul language, no sex, and no violence in this book. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the dust jacket- In November 1922, the world was mesmerized by news of an astonishing historical find in Egypt's legendary Valley of Kings: the discovery of the tomb of the Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamun. George Herbert, himself a famed amateur Egyptologist and noted antiquities collector, financed the expedition and excavation headed by lead archaeologist Howard Carter, and accompanied him inside this sacred space that had remained untouched for centuries.
Inside the tomb, the explorers found King Tut's sarcophagus and a treasure trove of astonishing artifacts: chariots and model boats, board games and paintings, a coffin made of pure gold. But these objects were more than just beautifully crafted works of art; they shed new light on Tutankhamun world and this fabled period of history, and changed our understanding of how the ancient Egyptians had lived--transforming overnight what had been formed through centuries of history and myth.
Drawing on Highclere Castle's archives, Lady Fiona Carnarvon pays homage to her ancestor on the 100th anniversary of this extraordinary event. In vivid and dramatic detail, she brings into focus the larger-than-life characters and lustrous settings--as well as those twists of luck and tragedies that shaped Herbert's life. Across the early 1900s, Highclere saw no less drama than the fictional Downton Abbey, with early tragedies for the Earl and love affairs, as well highs of exorbitant wealth and trials of punishing debt. But above all there was adventure. While Herbert first went to Egypt for his health, this mysterious, romantic land would become a second home; the beloved place where he funneled his attentions over a period of decades, never quite realizing how great the fruits of his labors would prove.

Review- This is not a book about Egyptology and the discovery of King Tut's tomb. It is a biography of the Earl of Carnarvon and his life, in which he was interested in Egyptology but that was just a small part of his life. The book starts with his birth and goes until his death and it covers everything in between. Herbert was a man of many interests, from flying to racing horses and Egyptology was just one. He did help Howard Carter get funding and help to do his excavations. He did have a collection of many priceless artifacts but I was expecting a story just about the discovery of the tomb not a life story of a man tangentially involved in the discovery. The writing is fine but at times can drag with all the details about the Earl's life. If you are a fan of Downton Abbey and want to learn more about the real people that inspired it, then you may like this book. But if you are looking for an in-depth book about the discover of King Tut's tomb, then you should pass on this book. 

I give this book a Three out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.