To the Monster I Love, Vol. 1

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By ryunosuke and Gesoking. Released in Japan as “Bakemono no Kimi ni Tsugu” by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Laura Sitzer.

I was on the fence about picking this series up, as let’s face it, I read way too many light novels, and the first I heard about it was hearing complaints about the way the title is translated. (My Japanese is not good enough to go into what it should or shouldn’t be, but the title as chosen certainly can fit the book.) As it turns out, I enjoyed this a great deal. It may be a tad grimmer than I expected, with a high body count overall, but none of those deaths are in the main cast. Instead, the main cast are defined by basically being really sweet – almost ridiculously so at times. The series is about solving crimes, but at the end of the day it’s also about a man who is in love with four women, and they love him, and while the women may not be happy with each other, they’re very happy with what they have now. Also, unlike a lot of “contest winners”, this feels like the start of a series.

We open on an interrogation, as a frankly far too manic researcher has a young man tied to a chair, and wants to ask him questions about his actions of the last month. As it turns out, Norman, the tied-up young man, acts as a detective/detective’s assistant/minder/lover to four different girls, all of whom are designated Unlaw by this city – Unlaw meaning essentially they have magical powers. We hear about how he and Shizuku, a stoic musician, solve a gruesome society murder. About how he and Eltiel, a huge and loyal blonde woman, investigate a depressing string of murders in the slums. About how he and Lonsday, a brilliant but easily bored detective, look into a “phantom thief” stealing from a museum. And about how he and Clareth, a schoolgirl, are lured into a trap involving a train car full of corpses. Is Normal really just a protagonist in a light novel? Or is it something more sinister?

I had expected Normal to be the weak link, as frankly he’s mostly a blank space that the women project themselves on to. But as we find out, that’s on purpose, and I appreciated the fact that his love for the four girls wasn’t to keep them in line, or because that’s the best way to use them, but because he really does love them all as humans, not Unlaw. The girls are, let’s face it, all types set to appeal to a light novel reader in general and a Dengeki Bunko competition judge in particular. Eltiel in particular hits about 5 or 6 buttons alone with her backstory, powers, and appearance. (She’s also the nicest of the four, although that’s by design given the type of “monster” she is.) The final scene also has a really good battle between not-so-blank Norman and the villain, and shows that deep down, the man is a sweetie pie. Though admittedly a sweetie pie who will not hesitate to kill a lot of folks to protect his loved ones.

In the end, they’re all rewarded with a detective agency, which means that the girls may have to – shock, horror – interact more in Book Two. If you like supernatural mystery books, and don’t mind that it feels like a book written to be an anime rather than a light novel, this is quite well done.

Notorious No More: The Villainess Enjoys Feigning Incompetence, Vol. 3

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By Hanako Arashi and Wan Hachipisu. Released in Japan as “Kitai no Akujo, Sandome no Jinsei de “Musai Munou” wo Tanoshimu” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America by J-Novel Heart. Translated by Mac B. Gill.

So this volume, at long last, gives us a good long look about what happened in the past, even if actual flashbacks to the death of Beljeanne, while there, don’t give the entire story either. One thing that has come up from those who know the real story is why, after Beljeanne’s death, the ones who benefited the most from it and ended up stronger than ever are the ones who hated her the most. Basically, Beljeanne’s plan did not differentiate between her allies and enemies. Towards the end of this book, while talking with one of the antagonists, Laviange makes it perfectly clear: Beljeanne grew up not knowing love, and so why did everyone expect that she would feel it towards other people? I called Laviange a sociopath and got some disagreement, though I think if I say “comedic sociopath” it would be accurate. Beljeanne, though, is the real deal.

Laviange is hanging out in some of the damaged lands that her class is trying to come up with ways to heal, with her sacred beast/puppy by her side. She is then interrupted by two new people: a priest who is trying to essentially get her on the side of the church at the behest of the pope, and a noble who she vaguely recognizes as Mirandalinda, Heinz’s ex-fiancee who desperately wants to get back together with him despite that now being pretty impossible. More importantly, though, Mirandalinda is also interested in looking at the pretty boys around her and imagining them in BL situations, so Laviange takes a shine to her right away, though Mirandalinda’s crippling shyness may not be helping. That said, it turns out that the reason the pope wants Laviange to come to the church is for a different reason. Something a bit more… evil.

I talked before about Laviange’s current life and her past life, but of course there was another life in between those, the one she lived in Japan, where she married, had kinds and grandkids, and died at a ripe old age. It’s very important, because while what little we’ve heard of her Japanese life suggests that she was eccentric, it also shows her capable of love and caring, something Laviange accepts as she thinks back upon that life… but something that she’s struggling with now that she’s back in her original world. This book is, in many ways, a broad comedy about a young woman who has no desire to deal with serious matters seriously – honestly, the book is really freaking weird in ways I can’t begin to describe – but at its core it’s about those who remember the broken woman she used to be and trying to get her to grow and change and learn to open her heart. And if I’m being honest, they’re still struggling.

Now that we have a major subplot, if not dealt with, at least expounded on, what’s next for Laviange? Whatever it is, she will likely be very silly at it.

The Tale of a Little Alchemist Blessed by the Spirits, Vol. 2

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By yocco and Junsui. Released in Japan as “Outo no Hazure no Renkinjutsushi: Hazure Shokugyou datta node, Nonbiri Omise Keieishimasu” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America by Airship. Translated by Andria McKnight. Adapted by Lex Reno.

One of the issues that a lot of isekai/reincarnation books have is the desire to make the main character not only overpowered, but also the only one who’s overpowered. They can do ludicrous stunts that make the normal people around them shudder. They’ve got the finest sword, the best magic, the most potent… you know. And everyone around them exists to be amazed. That’s why I was particularly pleased with this second volume of Little Alchemist. Sure, Daisy is still incredible, doing things that astound everyone. But she’s paired here with a dwarf girl who also is blessed by a spirit and can also do ludicrous things, and then meets and elf girl who is incomprehensibly overpowered. Their bodyguards are the two top adventurers in the country. Daisy’s brother and sister may turn out to be magic users beyond comprehension. It’s nice to see, and makes Daisy feel less like an author’s pet. Overpowered traits for all!

Things are going great for Daisy, who at ten years old finally has her own shop, a combination alchemist’s shop/bakery. And both halves of that take up equal amounts of her time. Sure, she’s continually seeking to improve her alchemy, deploy healing spells by essentially hurling potions at the person in need, and saving the kingdom (again) from the horrors of lead and mercury-based cosmetics, but she’s also here to make cheese! And invent hamburgers! And fried chicken! Oh yes, and also going on a quest for ingredients with her new friend Lynn, a dwarf with a very big hammer. That leads them to challenge a tower that no one has ever made it to the top of – they all died. Can Daisy manage to get past the part where he kills you?

The book knows exactly what its readers want, frankly. The vibe is the most important part of an atelier book, and that means that we’re not going to see Daisy struggling or having anxiety about her work. Things work out in this book,. and that’s fine. She doesn’t QUITE make it to the top of that tower, but she does solve the part where he kills you, and no one gets killed (except him). She not only saves one of the three world trees that keep the nation from falling to ruin, but she also then heals it so that it’s better than ever before. Elves threaten her, only to bow when they figure out who she is. This book is here for a relaxed vibe, and you can have the bubblegum, it’s not needed. Even when she’s trapped in a cave that’s designed to murder people, she gets out – though she does exhaust her mana. I guess that could be a crisis? Ish?

And I didn’t even mention my favorite part, which is that adventurers are delighted with her high-quality potion, not because of the strength, but because having to drink 5-6 normal potions makes you have to pee. So yeah, regarding plot and characterization? There are probably better series. Regarding atelier vibes? This is just right.