Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower, Vol. 3

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By Miri Mikawa and Kasumi Nagi. Released in Japan as “Ikka Kōkyū Ryōrichō” by Kadokawa Beans Bunko. Released in North America digitally by J-Novel Club. Translated by afm.

If there’s one thing that’s really going to separate Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower from Apothecary diaries it’s the romance. There *is* romance in Apothecary Diaries, but Maomao’s complete avoidance/disinterest helps to keep it about the 5th or 6th most important thing. That’s not the case here, as a good chunk of this book is taken up with both Rimi and Shusei being in love with each other, but knowing that they can’t actually do anything about it. This is not particularly helped by the fact that the Emperor is also deeply in love with her. Indeed, while I would not quite call Rimi a manic pixie dream girl, her presence and way of thinking seem to have gone a good ways towards making the Emperor mature, as for once we get a “I am going to force myself on you” shoujo romance trope where the guy takes the right message from it. This is one big ol’ love triangle, but one side of it can’t really happen. Or… can it?

Most of this volume is dedicated to trying to negotiate a trade agreement with Saisakoku, a nation further to the West known for its herbs and spices. Unfortunately, Saisakoku does not particularly seem all that interested in negotiating, and the envoy they send doesn’t really care if the emperor is annoyed at this. Fortunately, they also have Rimi, who is interesting enough to attract the attention of the Envoy, who apparently likes to gather strays to his side to serve him (which makes him very similar to many otome game villainesses). Rimi really wants to find out about the Saisakokuan style of cooking, particularly as she alone is now serving the Emperor’s meals – Shusei has been delegated to essentially calm the Emperor down while the delegation is here. Can Rimi do something to break the deadlock?

I’ve talked about the romance, which is important, but that doesn’t mean that this story has forgotten about its roots – or its title. Food is very much a major character, as we continue to see shusei find things that are very good for the Emperor but taste awful, and Rimi continues to try to find ways to make it palatable. The sheer joy she shows over learning new ways of cooking wins over not only the head chef at the palace, but also the Saisakokuan chef who is there to serve the delegate spicy food, as he finds Konkokuan cuisine boring. The solution to this issue turns out to also be the solution to the trade talks, though things are also helped by the Emperor really leveling up and learning when it’s OK to ask for help. I also enjoyed seeing the four consorts now getting along swimmingly, even if I sometimes have trouble telling them apart.

There’s a cliffhanger that promises that the political intrigue that’s also a part of the series is only going to get worse, and I suspect that Rimi and Shusei will have a long and hard road ahead – this is only Book 3 of 11. Still, if you like shoujo romance, food, or happy go lucky heroines, this remains an excellent choice.

The Apothecary Diaries, Vol. 3

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By Natsu Hyuuga and Touko Shino. Released in Japan as “Kusuriya no Hitorigoto” by Hero Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Kevin Steinbach.

One of the enjoyable things about the Apothecary Diaries is that, while it will always be about the relationship between Maomao and Jinshi to a degree, if you’re completely uninterested in that sort of thing there’s still a whole lot to get out of every volume. There are the mysteries, of course, as everyone and their brother wants Maomao to apply her cunning and figure out Who’s Killin’ Who. There is Maomao herself, who has an idea of what social niceties and graces are and has decided to tell them “no thank you”. And there’s an increasingly fun cast, including the amusingly carefree Xiaolan, who spends most of the novel learning to read – and unlike what most books of this sort would do, she proves to be pretty good at it once given proper education. And then there’s Shisui, who is my new Best Girl, and is basically to bugs what Maomao is to poisons. It’s tough to be so eccentric that Maomao is mistaken for you, but this girl can pull it off.

When Maomao is not busy snarking at Jinshi or “the quack doctor”, she is helping Jinshi to try to educate the people in the rear palace, discovers a cat that is quickly named after her (sort of), deals with a caravan that is selling all the ladies fragrant perfumes… some of which are potentially dangerous; trying to solve a recent disappearance that turns into a not-so-recent murder; figures out how a sheltered young woman snuck past her guards and got pregnant; discovers that the issues surrounding Consort Lihua, which is what started this series off, have not vanished; and ends up going on a hunting trip with a disguised Jinshi, which ends up turning far more dangerous than either of them had anticipated.

As I said last time, the series rewards close reading, and having prior volumes on hand. There are several pregnancies in this book, and several chapters dealing with people who are trying their hardest to make sure that those pregnancies are unsuccessful… or are they? It *could* just all be a coincidence. On the lighter side, for those who ARE reading the book for the relationship between Maomao and Jinshi, the last quarter of the book is pure gold. Something we had long suspected is finally straight up admitted, and you will never be able to see the words “decently sized amphibian” again without laughing. Maomao herself seems more determined than ever to avoid going anywhere near this – she’s very aware of how Jinshi feels, what it would mean for her future, and how she really does NOT want to deal with it. Even if she does go gaga when he gives her the right present.

So yes, this remains essential reading provided you don’t mind that it’s got the Emperor and his many consorts, or that the heroine (not one of the consorts) can kill a man with her sharp tongue at 500 yards.)

Magistellus Bad Trip, Vol. 1

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By Kazuma Kamachi and Mahaya. Released in Japan by DENGEKI no Shin Bungei. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Jake Humphrey.

This is another one of those books that starts off slow and kind of boring and only really pays off in the back half. Honestly, when I started it I kind of felt like Kamachi had gotten bored with writing A Certain Magical Index’s 245th volume and decided to transcribe his Let’s Play video and send it to Dengeki. (Honestly, given how “well” the Index books did here, it’s surprising we got this at all, though it helps that it’s finished at three volumes rather than running to an infinite number.) Taking place in a game world where anything goes as long as you make money, and starring a cool guy and his badass succubus familiar, the book oozes testosterone from every pore, and I was almost ready to give up till the interesting stuff kicked in. Fortunately, the interesting stuff IS interesting, and helps explain a lot of the plot holes that the attentive reader might have raised an eyebrow at. It makes me want to read more of the book, especially given it’s a finished series in Japan.

Kaname Suou is a player in a game called Money (Game) Master, a game with no rules or restrictions except “make money”. He is assisted by Tselika, an NPC assistant character who takes the form of a buxom succubus. When we meet then they’re pulling off a big caper that will get them a huge amount of ‘snow’, this game’s currency, which allows them access to an exclusive group trying to get a hold of a forbidden Legacy weapon, left behind by a former player who was able to make ludicrously powerful weapons. If you’re looking at this description and thinking “there’s going to be double-crossing”, you’re right, but that’s not exactly a spoiler. That said, things get more interesting when we meet Midori, the younger sister of the weapon builder, who is trying to destroy the Legacies. Oh, yes, and it turns out that this game has HUGE consequences for the real world as well – in fact, in most ways that count this game is now the economy of the real world.

So, not wanting to reveal the interesting twists too much, I will merely note that I did find them interesting, even if a few of them were a bit unsurprising. It’s not too hard to guess the identity of certain people if you know how to think like an author. Still, overall it’s a book filled with a great deal of action, which Kamachi is good at, a few stabs at humor, which he’s far less good at but at least they’re better than his attempts in Index, and a lot of thrilling intrigue, as the last part of the book involves a race against time, a big chase, and literally everyone in the world turning against our hero. Kaname is a bit generic, possibly to avoid too many people comparing him to Touma, but also because he’s playing a game character, he isn’t trapped in a game as his real self or anything. Everyone is deliberately making themselves cool and attractive in this.

So yeah, this is not New Testament, but it’s a good action thriller, and it should please fans who don’t mind a lot of cars, guns, things exploding, and questions about the nature of reality.