Associate Professor Akira Takatsuki’s Conjecture Vol. 5 (manga) by Toji Aio, Mikage Sawamura: review

5/5 stars on Goodreads

Associate Professor Akira Takatsuki's Conjecture vol 5 by Mikage Sawamura

Volume 5 manga was released before vol 5 light novel, which is postponed to January, so here the manga catches up with the original. The volume starts by wrapping up the case of cursed office workers that was left unfinished in the previous one. But the most important part of that case is that Naoya learns that he’s not the only one who’s experienced the festival of the death, with the same consequence for his fellow of hearing lies.

It’s a pivotal moment in Naoya’s life so far, giving him new kind of focus. He really wants to go with Akira to the village where it happened, despite the warning of his counterpart of not returning there. But the other person also gives him advice on how to live with the condition without losing his mind.

The most exciting part of the light novel was the surprise visit of Akira’s uncle who lives in England. Akira used to live there with him as a teenager, and he’s the only family member he’s close to. Manga doesn’t quite capture the meaning of his visit, and he’s relegated to a background character. And the extra story where he tells Naoya of Akira’s life in London is left out completely. Unless it’s added at some later point, the readers of manga only will miss out on a large part of what makes Akira tick.

Most of the manga volume is taken by a mermaid story. Akira, Naoya, Kenji, and Akira’s uncle travel to the seaside where there’s been mermaid sightings. They encounter a little boy who insists she’s his mother, only to learn from the child’s father that she has drowned, and he hasn’t quite figured out how to tell that to his son.

It could’ve been left at that, a private tragedy, but the story takes a twist. Because it turns out, the boy could be telling the truth after all. The mother’s childhood friend is very mysterious, someone who has maybe lived a long time. And she knows just by reading Akira’s palm that he’s not alone in his body. But she disappears before he gets to the bottom of the matter.

The last story is from the volume 5 of the light novel, which I haven’t read yet. Akira’s students hold a night of one hundred candles, where they gather to tell scary stories in candle light. This too will have consequences, but the manga ends before we get to those.

This volume had a better pace than the previous one, which was too hectic. The art felt more restful too, and so different that I had to go back to older volumes to see if there has been a great change in style. The panels were maybe larger in this one, with fewer of them per page, which added to the calmer feel. It also allowed the artist, Toji Aio, to draw close-ups of the characters, giving the volume an over-all different feel. I hope this style continues in the subsequent volumes.

Peerless vol. 2 by Meng Xi Shi: review

4/5 stars on Goodreads

Peerless vol. 2 by Meng Xi Shi

Second volume of Peerless sees Cui Buqu and Feng Xiao, the brilliant leaders of Sui empire’s secret agencies, embark on their journey to west to form an alliance with one of the khaganates there. With them is the khan’s favourite concubine, and Cui Buqu’s trusted underling. But since two women and two men who are not married or related travelling together is seen improper, the group poses as two married couples, though not in obvious kind of pairings.

The journey through the desert is arduous and the small group pauses at Qiemo, the remotest outpost of the empire. They soon discover, that the actual power in the town isn’t in the hands of the empire’s representative, but a former bandit and a descendant of a former king who have divided the town between them. Since they have a bit of time in their hands, Cui Buqu and Feng Xiao decide to do something about it, with their now familiar method of causing chaos and seeing what’s what once the dust settles. What emerges is a discovery of a secret organisation that neither agent had heard of before.

From there, the journey continues to the khaganate. There they discover that the favourite concubine has lost her position and the enemy and the khan’s second son now have the khan’s ear. They’re determined to see the representatives of the empire dead, concocting a scheme after another. The pair prevail, though not unscathed, turning the tides for the empire. But just as they’re about to form the alliance, bad luck—or a hidden enemy—strikes again, ruining everything. The book ends at this cliffhanger.

This was in some ways better book than the first. The story was more straightforward, and the dynamics of the odd pair started to settle in. Cui Buqu wasn’t sick the whole time, so his brilliant mind could shine. Feng Xiao wasn’t quite as obsessed with his own beauty and excellence, and he got to show off his martial arts skills—and his acting skills as a woman, which he made the most of. But the power struggle between the pair wasn’t so prominent, with fewer funny scenes between them, and there were more battle scenes, which paused the story several times. Not as many as in Thousand Autumns though. Nevertheless, the grumpy-sunshine(ish) pair is wonderful and I can’t wait to see how they get out of the latest scrape and where they’ll head next.

Hell’s Acre by Lilith Saintcrow: review

3/5 stars on Goodreads

Hell's Acre by Lilith Saintcrow

Hell’s Acre was a really different book from what I presumed by the description, cover, and previous books by the author I’ve read. I expected a fast-paced alt-world urban fantasy told in first person narrative. But it’s an alt-Victorian gaslamp fantasy told in third person by multiple point of view characters, with an overly florid narrative style that is incredibly slow to read, as every sentence is packed full in a convoluted fashion that forces the reader to go back several times.

The world isn’t what I thought either, based on the description: a country that has refused to accept Christianity and where Rome never fell. I presumed it would be based on Roman gods and traditions, or since this takes place in England, Anglo-Saxon ones, or a combination of both. Mithraism, for example, in the temple of which the book starts, would’ve had rich, distinct rituals and interesting underground architecture that would’ve immediately made this world unique.

What we have is a very traditional Christian setting, like convents structured like Christian ones and organised by gender, and Priories and Abbeys, with a few token words of other religions and cultures in the mix to make it seem something else. Character names are based on Bible. Even the name of the book directs thoughts to Christianity, even if the concept of hell isn’t solely Christian. The world feels half thought out and is a great disappointment.

It took a long time to get a hang of the characters too, as the narrative doesn’t really dwell on their inner thoughts, and reader is more observing them from the outside. Yet, for all the floridity, characters are very sparsely described, and long after the reader has already formed their own image of them.

The story emerges slowly and in a roundabout way, with every character’s POV chapter opening mid-action with little or nothing to orient the reader. Beth, going by Gemma Dove, an orphan, has been living in this world’s version of France to hide her from powers who want her for something that isn’t specified. But her guardian has died and she’s returned to England (Albion) to revenge her parents’ death. She’s well trained in self-defence and believes in her abilities, but it isn’t easy to go after her prey even with powerful backers.

She takes a job as a teacher of boys in an orphanage near the bad part of town, Hell’s Acre, and that fills most of her days, with some adventures in the mix. She catches the attention of Avery Black, who leads a group of vigilantes (or something, I never quite figured out) in Hell’s Acre. Reader doesn’t learn much about him, or Hellions, the organisation he belongs to (but not the vigilantes?), but he’s after the same man as Gemma.

The book description gives to understand that the two team up. However, while their paths cross from time to time, the two don’t realise their mutual goal before the book ends. The ending is a cliffhanger. There’s a hint of interest, but no romance. I’m not sure I need to read more to find out what happens next. The story wasn’t interesting enough, and it was too much work to read, with too little given in return. I’m giving it three stars though, because I did finish it and it doesn’t quite feel like a two-star book despite everything I found lacking.

I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Case File Compendium Vol. 3 by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou: review

5/5 stars on Goodreads

Case File Compendium vol 3 by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou

Volume 3 of Case File Compendium is about the aftermath of the sexual assault in the previous volume. If the reader is hoping for soul-searching, deep conversations, healing and understanding, they will be sorely disappointed.

He Yu plunges deep into his psychopathy, living in a reality of his own, where his actions aren’t his fault, and pushing himself in Xie Qingcheng’s company—and into the older man’s bed. He’s still demanding answers for what took place when Xie Qingcheng resigned as his doctor. The latter isn’t willing to tell him anything, and only gives in to He Yu’s forceful demands to get rid of him faster.

Xie Qingcheng wants nothing to do with He Yu. He’s deeply traumatised by what took place, and he hates He Yu with passion. However, since he bottles everything in, he simply goes on as if nothing has happened, his rage surfacing only on occasion with He Yu. Reader feels both annoyance and sympathy for him, as it turns out he’s coped with hardships this way all his life.

Life keeps throwing the two together, and they end up on the set of a same movie production. Things get so bad that the reader starts believing this will end with either of them killing the other. But before their hatred peaks, a serial killer shows up and the two are caught in his web.

This was a difficult, heavy book. On one hand, I’m happy that the events of the previous book aren’t glossed over here, but there was nothing light to give the reader even a breather. Even the revelation of the source of He Yu’s madness didn’t ease things, as it’s a tragic story too.

We mostly follow He Yu as he descends into his madness. The brief lucid moments are always followed by worse delusions and violence. And Xie Qingcheng’s suffering isn’t any easier to witness. There aren’t even any side stories and plots that would take attention away from the two even briefly. And just as the plot changes a new gear, the book ends in a double cliffhanger, with Xie Qingcheng ready to reveal one of his secrets, and the pair in a mortal peril.

Nevertheless, this was a good book. He Yu’s mental illness is believable and Xie Qingcheng’s suffering relatable. It’ll be an agony to wait for the next book, but I’m invested in the story now. It’ll definitely need all the remaining several volumes before any sort of HEA can be achieved.

Sleeping Worlds Have No Memory by Yaroslav Barsukov: review

5/5 stars on Goodreads 

Sleeping Worlds Have No Memory by Yaroslav Barsukov

Sleeping Worlds Have No Memory combines two novellas, Tower of Mud and Straw that came out 2021, and its follow-up, City of Spires, City of Seagulls, with a brief intermission, The Man with All the Gifts, between them that gives the reader insight into the actions of one of the characters in the first book. I read and reviewed the first book in 2021 and liked it very much. You can read the full review here.

In the first novella, Shea Ashcroft, an aristocrat and politician, is sent to a remote town to supervise the construction of an enormous tower. It’s a punishment, and he takes it as such, but he’s willing to do his job as instructed. But when he learns that the tower will lead to a destruction of the world by opening a portal to another world, he has no choice but to destroy the tower.

The first novella ends there, with the reader convinced that Shea has plunged to his death with the tower. But he’s saved, in a manner that fits the world and doesn’t come across as a deus ex machina solution. But now that Shea is alive, he has to face the consequences of his actions. Everyone knows he’s the one who destroyed the tower. The queen herself comes to his trial to make sure he’s executed for treason.

Shea isn’t willing to wait for that. With the help of an enemy spy, he flees to her country, only to end up in even more trouble than before. Now he’s the captive of their prince who wants him for his information about the tower. Because the tower Shea destroyed isn’t the only one. It’s about arms-race, and the enemy isn’t willing to be left out, no matter what they say about destroying their weapon too.

Meanwhile Brielle, the engineer of the tower who was stranded in the alien world in the first novella, struggles to find her way out before she dies of thirst or is killed by a giant baby throwing a tantrum. But what happens when the two worlds collide?

In the end, there’s only one choice for the other tower too, and Shea knows it. Reality has changed already though, even if there are only two people who know about it. Or maybe it has always been like that...

Second novella is slightly more action driven than the first, but equally compelling and the narrative tone remains similarly pensive as in the first, as Shea now has new deaths on his conscience. Both Lenas feature too, even after death; Shea’s sister in his memories, and the alien woman in the pages of her diary Shea is reading for clues about the tower. The second novella ends in a better place for Shea, but the ending is open enough that the reader can’t be quite sure how he’ll fare from now on. Hopefully he’ll get what he wished for.

I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.