By Kosuzu Kobato and Yasuyuki Syuri. Released in Japan as “Kusushi no Majo Desu ga, Nazeka Fukugyō de Rikon Daikō Shiteimasu” by DRE Novels. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Satoko Kakihara.

When reviewing the 2nd volume of The 100th Time’s the Charm, I talked about all the ways that it was a good example of how NOT to do a 2nd novel for a series that seemed pretty wrapped up with the first, and suggested that it might be because DRE didn’t want a lot of one-shots to start their novel line. Feeling a bit guilty about that, I’m happy to say that the 2nd volume of The Apothecary Witch Turned Divorce Agent is a good example of how the author SHOULD do this. It gives us a lot more details about Carla’s past, but also leaves us a lot of mysteries still to solve. It also touches on Thane’s past, and why he has such a mad-on about witches. Both characters still flirt by being sarcastic at each other, and are mostly unaware of their own feelings – at least Carla is. Basically, if you read the first book and thought “more of this, please”, good news.

It’s the time of the year when all witches have to convene at a secret spot for their annual convention, and much to Carla’s annoyance that includes her. Thane wants to go with her, as he wants to ask the Fortune-Telling Witch, who used to be the Foresight Witch, about his past – as the Foresight Witch was supposedly related to the death of his father and downfall of his family. He can’t go to the convention itself, but Carla mentions it, and said witch agrees to meet with Thane after Carla does a job for her – and yes, it’s another divorce request. A noblewoman is not only puzzled why her husband and father-in-law are conspiring late at night, but lately she’s been unable to move out of bed at night to check. Is this a genuinely bad marriage that will allow Carla to successfully negotiate a divorce at last? What do you think?

There’s a subplot here involving the Queen from the first book, and how she turns out to be tied to Carla’s past far closer than we’d imagined. We do learn a lot about it, but it’s mostly along the lines of “this was no accident, it was murder”, which honestly is such a non-surprise I’m not even worried about spoilering it. It does help us get a lot more insight about why Carla is the way she is. On the magic side, it’s fairly clear that her magic is suppressed in some way, likely due to emotional trauma and memory loss, and no doubt when she regains her memories she will become a lot more powerful. On the personality side, everything I like about Carla’s attitude is also a major flaw – she has almost no regard for her own person or safety, barely eats at the best of times, and does not understand why this is odd at all. It’s no surprise that Thane’s sullen personality is explained very well in this book, while Carla is the ongoing story.

I really enjoyed the first book in this series, and I enjoyed this book just as much. I’m really hoping for more, this is one of the best DRE licenses.

By Kosuzu Kobato and Yasuyuki Syuri. Released in Japan as “Kusushi no Majo Desu ga, Nazeka Fukugyō de Rikon Daikō Shiteimasu” by DRE Novels. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Satoko Kakihara.

I have a type, it has to be said. OK, I have several types. But one of those types is essentially Carla, the heroine of this novel, and as such I love it to bits, possibly a bit more than it deserves. When I first saw the title scroll by at Anime NYC last year I got excited, because it sounded similar to Dahlia in Bloom, where we go after various asshole fiancés and take them to the cleaners. Then I read the summary and was less excited, because they all kept getting back together in the end, making this a much lighter and softer book than I’d expected. But then it turned out that I feel the same way that Carla does. Given her apothecary is failing, all she has left is this side job of hers. She wants to make it a success. So why is it, every single time, everyone ends up happily in love?

Carla is a witch. Orphaned at a young age, she was taken in by an old witch and taught the basics of magic. She’s very good at cultivation and transformation magic. Unfortunately, all of her oral medicines have terrible side effects. As such, after her teacher’s death, the apothecary is doing terrible business, basically surviving on ointments and deodorizers… as well as her side job. She is asked to help a woman break up with her husband, who is ignoring her. Using transformation magic, she pretends to be the wife and confronts the husband. But it’s all just bad communication! Now they’re in love again. Carla is now the go-to person for wives who are dealing with terrible men. Sadly, all the men aren’t terrible and they get back together! Why is Carla so bad at BOTH jobs?

So first and foremost, if you are not a fan of two characters sniping constantly at each other, and this being interpreted as flirting by everyone else, get another book. Carla and her not-love interest, the knight Thane, immediately fall into banter that does not go away. (Gintama fans will also raise an eyebrow at the “It’s not *you*, it’s Carla!” running gag.) Carla herself is enormous fun, as despite her businesses both failing she’s actually a really good witch, and also good at knowing when to take action and when to just let people pour their hearts out at her while she stands there silently. The wannabe divorcees in question are of the usual variety – the husband is shy and was raising money for a demonstrative gesture, the prince was trying to protect the woman he loves by being cruel to her, etc. Actually, the main flaw of the book may be that everything is a bit too pat and predictable. But I don’t care, I want to read more of Carla being blunt and straightforward.

This is an author we’ve seen before – I’d Rather Have a Cat Than a Harem – and will again – Making Jam in the Woods just got licensed. And the illustrator is also known, as The Saint’s Magic Power Is Omnipotent is from the same artist. So this won’t be the most original thing ever. But in the end, it did live up to the overinflated expectations I had of it at Anime NYC, mostly due to Carla.