Checked Out

Today's post is on Checked Out by Elizabeth Spann Craig. It is 242 pages long and is published by the author. The cover has a cute orange kitty sitting on a book with some blood spots on the book. As it is the first in the series, you can start here. The intended reader is someone who likes cozy mysteries. There is very mild foul language, no sex, and no on page violence. The story is told from first person perspective. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the novel- There are no renewals when you’re permanently checked out.
When librarian Ann Beckett finally reluctantly agrees to being set-up on a blind date by one of her over-eager patrons, she figures that the worst that could happen would be that the two of them wouldn’t hit it off.
Little did she know that she’d be stood up…because her date was murdered.
With the help from her patrons, Ann tries to find out who might be responsible in the small town of Whitby before more residents are permanently checked out.

Review- A very cute start to a cozy series. Ann is a local librarian in a small town where there is not much crime. That all changes when she finds her blind date dead in his home. The mystery continues to grow with the bodies and the murderer is very clever. The strongest point to the novel are the characters, they are fun and interesting. Ann, our main character, is interesting with her own story and desires. She is, of course, very curious about what is happening in her town. The kitty on the cover, Fritz, very cute and he adds to the cozy ambience. The mystery was fun and I look forward to reading the next one. 

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

Takane & Hana, Vol. 8

Today's manga is on Takane & Hana, Vol. 8 by Yuki Shiwasu. It is 200 page long and is published by Shojo Beat. The cover has Hana Takane with chocolate all around them. As is it the eighth in the series, you need to have read the first seven volumes in the series to understand the story. There is no foul language, no sex, and no violence in this manga. The intended reader is someone who likes hurmous over the top manga. The story is told from third person close of Hana. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the manga- Valentine’s Day rolls around, and Hana wonders what she should give Takane even as she struggles to hide her feelings from him. Meanwhile, Hana’s father poses a question to Takane—exactly how long is he planning to continue his arranged marriage relationship with Hana?

Review- Hana is still dealing understand her feeling towards Takane. But she doesn't know how Takane feels about her, so she decides to just try and annoy or ignore him. That is easier said than done. Takane himself has taken the first steps of proven himself to her grandfather but that has it's own consequences, as his grandfather moves Hana and her whole family in Takane's house. This is going to get even more ridiculous than ever and I can not wait see 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. 

What's Wrong with Secretary Kim?, Vol. 4

Today's post is on What's Wrong with Secretary Kim?, Vol. 4 by MyeongMi Kim (artist) and GyeongYun Jeong (original_author). It is 288 pages long and is published by Yenn Press. The cover is purple with Youngjun in the center. As it is the fourth in the series, you have to have read the first three volumes to understand the story. The intended reader is someone who likes rom-coms with a heavy center theme. There is mild foul language, no sex, and no violence in this manga. The story is told from third person. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the manga- Miso has reunited with the boy from her dreams, but much to her disappointment, there are still so many questions left unanswered...The more she digs, the more she feels things aren't adding up. Why doesn't Sungyeon remember her? What is the spider that haunts her memories? How did Youngjun get those strange scars on his ankles? And just who in the world is Hyun?

Review- A lot happens in this volume with Miso, Youngjun, and Sungyeon. Miso has doubts about Sungyeon and what he says happened to them. So she begins to push on his memories and he cannot take the pressure. She has also discovered that Youngjun is hiding something from her. The last half of the manga is the secret that he has kept for twenty years. If you have been paying attention then the reveal will not be a shock to the reader but it will be be to Miso as the volume ends in a cliffhanger. I look forward to the next volume and all the drama with the secret being out. 

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

Ten Ways to Get Dumped by a Tyrant: Volume II

Today's post is on Ten Ways to Get Dumped by a Tyrant: Volume II by Gwijo Seo. It is 298 pages long and is published by Editio Publishing. The cover has Charlemagne on it looking very imperial. As it is the second volume in the series, you need to have read the first one to understand the story. The intended reader is someone who likes fantasy stories. The story is mostly told from first person of Scarlett with some scenes from a different character's perspective for plot. There is no mild foul language, no sex, and mild action violence in this novel. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book- Things are starting to get serious for Scarlett Arman as she helps Charlemagne turn over a new leaf and reconciles with her half-brother, Isar. Now, the only thing on the reformed villainess’ mind is petty revenge on her father, the Duke. But darker forces have other plans for the would-be heroine, and after failing to sacrifice Isar to the demon god, they set their sights on her! Things become especially complicated with the transmigrator being flung into yet another story within a story, locked in a never-ending loop as a new character with an unnervingly similar story to Scarlett’s original timeline. What secrets will be revealed as Scarlett traverses this new fictional world? And can Charlemagne and Isar rescue her from the dark mages who hold her in their clutches? All will be revealed in the second volume of Ten Ways to Get Dumped by a Tyrant!

Review- Scarlett is up to her elbows in trouble in this volume. The villains' now think that she is a problem, she is not dead, Charlemagne acting different, and nothing is going as planned. So they decide to curse her and send her into a book. But of course nothing goes as planned for the bad guys and Scarlett uses her brains to start working the system again. This series is pretty funny and over the top with plot and the twists but I'm having a lot of fun. I look forward to seeing where Scarlett is going next and what trouble she'll cause there. 

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

Sweat and Soap, Vol. 8

Today's manga post is on Sweat and Soap, Vol. 8 by Kintetsu Yamada. It is 192 pages long and is published by Kodansha Comics. The cover has the two main characters dressed for the beach on it. As it is the eighth in the series, you need to have read the first seven volumes to understand the story. There is no foul language, some mild sexuality, and no violence in this series. The story is told from third person close of the two main characters. There Be Spoilers Ahead. 

From the back of the manga- An Odd-yssey for Two
Now that Kotaro and Asako have met each other's families, things should be smooth sailing from here on out- right? But there's still their first company trip as a couple, not to mention some unexpected... gains... of romantic bliss to navigate. With their inner weirdos rearing their freaky heads, can Kotaro and Asako keep their ship afloat?

Review- Another very sweet volume in a sweet series. Asako and Kotaro are getting very comfortable with living together and are coming up on their one year anniversary. They are now both thinking about the future that they both want, like marriage and children. There is some humor with their co-workers, as they tease Kotaro about being weird and making sure that Asako is okay. It is all playing for fun. This series continues to have some of the best communication I have read of any romance manga. I am looking forward to 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. 

An Incurable Case of Love, Vol. 5

Today's manga post is on An Incurable Case of Love, Vol. 5 by Maki Enjōji. It is 192 pages long and is published by Shojo Beat. The cover has the two main characters on it hugging. As it is the fifth in the series, you need to have read to the first four volumes to understand the story. There is no foul language, mild sexuality, and no violence in this manga. The intended reader is someone who likes funny medical romance stories. The story is told from third person close of the main character, Nanase. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the manga- Nanase became a nurse to chase after Dr. Kairi Tendo. Now the feelings are mutual, and they’ve become a couple. It seems their love should only deepen from here on out, but when Nanase tries to help a certain someone, it leads to a disruption in their romance!

Review- Nanase is still finding her feet in her new relationship when she helps a young man having a suizure. He then decides that he is going to steal her from Tendo. So Tendo gets to feel a little jelous about Nanase. I liked seeing him, having to deal with other people seeing all the good qualities about Nanase. But trouble is coming in the form of ex, I think. This volume was good, come character development, relationship movement but Nanase still has some issues with herself that she needs to work through. It will be fun to see the drama is coming. 

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. 

Ten Ways to Get Dumped by a Tyrant: Volume I

Today's post is on Ten Ways to Get Dumped by a Tyrant: Volume I by Gwijo Seo. It is 280 pages long and is published by Editio Publishing. The cover has the female lead on it with three fairies around her. The intended reader is someone who likes silly, romance fantasy stories. There is mild foul language, no sex, and mild action violence in this novel. The story is told from first person perspective of main character, Scarlett with the occasional scene from someone else's. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book- The only way out of this marriage is to act crazy! When a transmigrator wakes up in the body of the fictional villainess Scarlett Arman, a few things become abundantly she is a minor character, destined to die like so many other antagonists in The Private Life of the Tyrant ; her fiancé is the tyrant (and killer), and she has been transmigrated to a time period before the story has even started. Scarlett quickly realizes that her only chance to escape death is to get out of her betrothal and get rich on her own... but how to break off an engagement with a tyrant? As Scarlett does everything that she can to show herself as unfit for marriage-from pouring wine all over her dress to singing an off-key love song to his face-little does she know that the tyrant has learned what she is up to... and is more endeared than before! Will Scarlett's wish to be dumped come true, or will all of her plans backfire? With fairy-luring fruit trees and a cast of hilarious characters, Ten Ways to Get Dumped by a Tyrant is the perfect comedy of errors to add to your isekai romance collection.

Review- A very fun novel and a good start to a series. Scarlett is from our world, she remembers dying somehow, but now she's woken up as a secondary villain in a trashy romance she was reading. But she is not going to die like the original Scarlett. The writing is fun, the characters are fun and funny, Scarlett is the best. She is not going down, so she comes up with so many plans to get him to dump her, from pouring wine on him as a magic trick or creating a song to express how much she missed him. She is so silly but so focused on not dying. I also like the male lead, he is smart, not an asshole, and very amused by the whole situation. I'm look forward to reading the next volume and seeing what trouble Scarlett causes next. 

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