Category Archives: reviews

Abducted Princess Running Rampant: Wielding Forbidden Magic in the Demon King’s Castle

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By Hiroshi Nagamatsu and Tsubame Nozomi. Released in Japan as “Maou ni Sarawareta Kiyoshi Oujo desu ga, Maoujou Gurashi ga Hima datta no de Kinki Mahou de Abaremasu” by Fujimi Fantasia Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Shaun Cook.

As I was about two-thirds of the way through this book, I wondered what it was about it that felt weird to me. I kind of hated the pacing, and thought that the author was getting distracted by having its heroine wander around rather than trying to advance the plot. Then, as I came to the very end, I realized the truth: this is only one volume. It’s pretty rare that we get a single volume series from JN-C, and of course it’s possible that they know something we don’t and it has a secret anime coming soon or a second volume in the works soon. But I kind of doubt it. There’s nothing in here that makes me want to read the further adventures of. As a one-volume series, this was OK. That abducted princess runs rampant, and then we all go out for tea.

Princess Mil Arphilia has valuable appraisal magic, and so she’s almost never let out of the castle by her overprotective father except under ludicrously heavy guard. Her dream is to be an adventurer, just like all the one’s she appraised over the years. But alas, her level’s not that great, as there’s a limit to what you can do fighting humans. Then one night, she’s abducted by the demon lord, who wants her… to do the exact same thing, only for his demon soldiers. At first, she’s delighted to see all these new species of demons she’d only read about previously, but gradually she starts to realize that she’s doing the exact same thing she did before, only with no other princess duties, AND she’s still trapped in a castle. Fortunately, surrounded by monsters, she can now level up seriously.

The best part of the book, in my opinion, is the second quarter, where Mil wanders around the castle and makes herself ludicrously strong and powerful because no one’s been told to watch over her closely. She also runs on “will this be really cool or not?”, so has no problems learning the darkest magic that can easily murder whole cities and think nothing more than “this will be handy when trying to get rid of today’s garbage”. After she inevitably escapes, thanks in part to a highly amusing demon whose mindset is “I am overly literal but only when it amuses me”, the rest of the book is less compelling, as she gradually visits various places and picks up new party members, including the shy sheltered mage, the gruff but lovable beast woman, and the demon lord’s daughter, who immediately gives off “I am a tsundere who is going to fall in love with the princess” vibes, so fast in fact that the other two comment on it.

Alas, one volume, so no yuri here. I don’t regret reading this, but if it does ever get more to it, I feel no real drive to get more of it.

Love Between Fairy & Devil: Cang Lan Jue, Vol. 1

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By Jiu Lu Fei Xiang. Released in China on the JJWXC website. Released in North America by Seven Seas. Translated by Yu. Adapted by Ivy Fox.

This one really took me by surprise. Partly as it’s a Chinese fantasy novel that isn’t danmei, a rarity for Seven Seas. But I had sort of expected the genre to be fantasy romance. Which it is, don’t get me wrong. That said, I would call the actual genre of this book “buddy film”. The author is a screenwriter, and it shows, as this really feels like it’s written to be adapted to the screen. (Indeed it was, and I suspect those who watched the Live-Action Drama may be surprised when they start the book.) The titular Fairy and Devil just can’t seem to shake each other throughout this entire volume, are constantly sniping at each other, and gradually develop a bond of trust. The fantasy is also pretty danm cool. As for the romance, well, the premise seems to invite the use of what some term the “manic pixie dream girl”, but I think this girl is a bit too much of a mess. Manic Pixie Nightmare Girl? Honestly, she’s Usagi Tsukino.

After a brief prologue, we open *after* the main plot development has already happened. (The live-action drama, which I watched part of after reading this, gives a lot more background to the main heroine.) Xiao Lanhua is currently sitting in a cell, in the body of the demon king, Dongfang Qingcang. Meanwhile, the demon king is in *her* body, and planning to escape. This, needless to say, upsets her just a bit, to the point where she slaps the demon king with the full force of her currently occupied body… killing her original body. After escape, the two of them are now BOTH in his body, Steve Martin/Lily Tomlin style, and have to each learn to operate one side. Needless to say, this leads to shenanigans which occupy the first half of the book. The plot arrives in the second half.

Not that there’s much of that. The plot appears to be Dongfang Qingcang slowly getting slightly less evil under the influence of Xiao Lanhua, and Xiao Lanhua learning more about how the world world outside of the very sheltered life that she has led. There are cool scenes with lots of fantasy explosions, and Xiao Lanhua does get some “wait, do I care about him or not” romantic tension. But honestly, the best reason to read this is that Xiao Lanhua is hilarious. She’s constantly snarking at Dongfang Qingcang, but she’s pretty pathetic when she tries to do anything without his help. She starts by murdering her own body by accident, then ends up in his own body, then a slowly rotting corpse, and by the time we’re near the climax of the book she’s reduced to an angrily screaming torso. It’s absolutely amazing, I cackled.

I’m not sure how many volumes this will end up – two or three sounds about right – but I’ll definitely read the next one, which I hope, even as things get more serious and we inevitably find out Xiao Lanhua’s secret origin, that we have time for more truly goofy slapstick.

My First Love’s Kiss, Vol. 3

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By Hitoma Iruma and Fly. Released in Japan as “Watashi no Hatsukoi Aite ga Kiss Shiteta” by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Kiki Piatkowska.

(This discusses the final “twist” in this third and final volume of the series, but not till near the end.)

OK, I’ve calmed down a little bit from a couple hours ago, when I finished this book and was ready to not only tear into it, but also Adachi and Shimamura, and hell, toss Bloom Into You there as well, which the author wrote a spinoff to. But I am now thinking of that meme with the “dead dove do not eat” bag, and I will admit, after my experience with the first volume, and the fact that the second volume managed to somehow up the ante, I really should not have been that surprised at … MOST of what I read here. Most of what I read here is just an author who has decided to write a thought experiment rather than about characters, and also possibly saying “see? I could have turned Adachi and Shimamura into THESE two! Aren’t you glad I didn’t?”. (Oh yes, and there’s another stupid cameo from another of the author’s series I don’t know.) So we’re left with one thing so stupid I’m still angry.

We pick up where we left off, and honestly the rest of the book plays out so predictably – mostly – that I feel reluctant to even sum it up. After hearing that Shiho is her sister, Umi seems to fall EVEN HARDER for her, and decides to move out of the bedroom she shares with Takasora and into an apartment with Shiho. This is, mind you, after Shiho runs off while leaving her bag at Takasora’s house, which requires going to her rich estate to confront her. Takasora tries to stop this happening by grumping about it very hard, but by now Umi is not only aware that Takasora is in love with her but has started to actively reject that. Things are not helped by Umi confessing to Takasora: she plans to kill herself after graduation.

As I said above, I could have guessed most of this by the end of the second book. It is not exactly a surprise that Umi does not really care about any incestuous aspect of her relationship with Shiho. In fact, the fact that Shiho is also a family member – and one who actually explicitly loves her – sends Umi over the moon, really. I’m also not very surprised that the entire Umi suicide plot is left completely up in the air at the end, because, just as Adachi and Shimamura is really Shimamura with a bit of Adachi, these books have been about Takasora, not about Umi, so her own fate is irrelevant once Takasora gives up on her. I can even, very, very grumpily, accept the ending twist where, years later, Takasora has become another Shiho, preying on young students and breaking up their friendships with other girls. It’s thematically gross and terrible, but I can see how the author went “Oh, wow, what a great twist!” while cackling to themselves. No, the absolute DUMBEST thing in this book is Takasora slipping and hitting her head on a rock, and that head injury being signposted as to what made her “turn evil”. There was no need for that! You already signposted your shitty twist! There was no need to make it due to brain damage after talking to Yashiro and wiping out in the river! WHYYYYYYY?

There’s another Adachi and Shimamura due out later this year, and I’m wavering on whether I want to read it, especially since the author wrote the 99.9 volume giving the series a very definitive ending. But whatever it turns out to be, I hope to god they don’t feel a need to shoehorn in anything from this terrible series. There are much better toxic yuri couples out there.