Manga Review: Fruits Basket, Volumes 7 and 8 by Natsuki Takaya

Manga Monday was turned into a meme by the awesome Alison Can Read!

*I warn you now there may be spoilers…It’s hard with manga.

Title: Fruits basket, Vol. 7
Author: Natsuki Takaya
Paperback: 192 pages
Publisher: Tokyo Pop
Release Date: January 31, 2005
ISBN-10: 159532402X
ASIN: B000J3EHB6

Tohru and company have been having a lot more fun ever since Kisa came to visit. Now it's time for Tohru to meet another member of the Zodiac-the skillfully sarcastic grade-school student, Hiro! One way or another, this tyke will have to deal with his resentment of Tohru and his affection for Kisa. Where will he find the answers? In the fabulous 7th volume of the super-popular Fruits Basket, of course! (Goodreads)

Review

In this volume we meet Hiro Sohma and to be honest I did not like his character at all. Hiro was a total brat! He ordered Tohru around like a servant and he is just a kid. Yes, his actions are somewhat explained but the give and take between he and Tohru just makes Tohru seem like even more of a door mat and it got very annoying.

The silver lining in volume 7 is getting to learn Arisa’s back story of how she came to be such good friends with Tohru and her mom. It was nice to see what Arisa was like back in her Yankee days, why she got into the gang in the first place, and how hard it was for Arisa to get out. I had always liked Arisa but after this volume I totally love her.

It's good. I had fun for the most part.

 

Title: Fruits basket, Vol. 8
Author: Natsuki Takaya
Paperback: 208 pages
Publisher: Tokyopop
Release Date: April 12, 2005 
ISBN-10: 1595324038
ISBN-13: 978-1595324030

Summer is on its way, so of course Tohru and friends are excited about the upcoming vacation and field trip. But what's that sound? It's Hatsuharu going beserk in the classroom... again! Black Haru is full of more rage than usual, so what will happen when Yuki intervenes? And then there's Ritsu Sohma, whose mom Tohru met at the hot spring; what's wrong with this kimono-wearing beauty?! (Goodreads)

Review

If you are a Haru fan then this is your volume! Haru has gone black and torn his class room apart and the gang is trying to find out why. Yuki finally gets to the bottom of what is eating at Haru and it of course involves Akito in some way. I love Haru’s character and getting to see any of him is fun:)

A new Sohma is introduced in this volume. Ritsu Sohma, who is well, a total spaz. Ritsu freaks out at the drop of the hat if he thinks that he has offended anyone. You would think that I would hate his character, but I didn’t. Yes, the continual apologizing got a little old but after I got to know Ritsu’s character and Why he has always been so stressed out…I liked Ritsu.

I am very excited to continue this series and hope to get a few more volumes soon. I have the feeling that Yuki and Kyo will be stepping up their game for Tohru soon.

Happy Reading,

Loved it! I want to know about everything this author writes.

Recommended For

Teen and up

In My Mailbox (30)

Come Back Tomorrow For A Cover Reveal!!!

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren and is a post for bloggers to share what books they've received to review, bought, won, borrowed or were gifted.

I actually made a video this week:)

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From The Library

*Click the cover image on any book to go to the Goodreads page.

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Sexy Saturday Review: The Vampire King by Heather Killough-Walden

Title: The Vampire King
Author: Heather Killough-Walden
Release Date: February 6 2012 
ASIN: B00761TN1S
Author’s Website
Source: Self Purchase

It was immediate for Roman. In three thousand years, he’d never lost control of his emotions, or his heart. But the moment he laid eyes on Evelynne Farrow, he knew she was the woman who haunted his dreams. And everything changed.

Everything.

Evie Farrow has always loved a good vampire romance. In fact, she makes a living writing them. While sitting in a coffee shop and working on her next mega-hot book, Evie is approached by a tall, dark, and handsome man who could have been pulled directly from one of her novels.

Unbeknownst to her, Roman D’Angelo is exactly what he appears to be – a vampire, and not just any vampire, but the king of vampires.

Unfortunately, while Roman is both ancient and invulnerable, Evie is flesh and blood. Just as Roman decides that he and Evie have a date with destiny, for reasons of their own, an ancient god and a homicidal vampire take an equally strong interest in her. To make things more complicated, there’s something very special about Evie. Something not quite human.

Can Roman fight off the incredible forces that would have Evie as their own long enough to win her heart, or will destiny betray him, and destroy everything he has ever dreamed of?

“Lalura had told him about her vision. Thirteen kings on a chess board – and thirteen queens….” (Goodreads)

Review

Before a week and a half ago I had somehow not heard of Heather Killough-Walden even though she has a large following. I was looking for something new to read in paranormal romance and Heather Killough-Walden name came up. I was excited to see she had a new book out that is a spinoff of her very popular The Big Bad Wolf series, but The Vampire King is also the start of its own series. When I was checking it on Amazon and saw that The Vampire King had over 40 five stare reviews…well you know me I had to read what everyone else says is so great.

I was a little worried that The Vampire King, being a spinoff, would be hard to follow at times, because there would be characters thrown in that would not be explained because I was supposed to know who they were. This was not a problem at all.  There is a large cast of characters in The Vampire King, but each is introduced very well. Heather Killough-Walden does a beautiful job of making you feel the scene she has written so that I cared about each character and what was going on around them.

My absolute favorite character is Evie. Evie is a self published author with a strong coffee addiction. Evie has just about given up on sleep to keep up with her schedule of writing and doing everything she can to help with her parents, who are not in good health. Evie is just incredibly likable and believable. She writes paranormal romance but doesn’t actually believe in the paranormal, she has just always been disappointed with how normal real men are.  When Evie found out that another character had read her mind she was angry that now they new all her little secrets about herself. This was her thought:    

She recycled, but resented how difficult it always was.
She helped animals, but secretly couldn’t stand the way a stray dog smelled. She always glared at empty handicapped parking spaces when she couldn’t find a place to park. She swore like a sailor when she was alone, she forgot to shave for days at a time, and she rarely disinfected her shower.

How could I not like a character who got upset about others finding out she is just a real person.

I also really liked Roman. He has been vampire king for a long time, a title that is not just passed down. Even though Roman is this powerful bigger than life force I didn’t find him too alpha. I thought all his actions were fair and had good reason. I was really happy about this because way to often in PNR the male lead is all “ Because I say so, and I am great so it must be right.” Roman actually asked for advice and took it. Oh, and yes, Roman is a vampire king so of course he was hot beyond reason…um I was totally OK with that;)

So often times in any romance novel, well the lines can get a little cheesy. I so loved the fact that  Heather Killough-Walden obviously knows that, still wrote what needed to be said and laughed right along with me.

Evie stared up at him, lost for words and mystified. Why? she thought. “Because you fill me with a passion I’ve never known,” he told her, once more answering her unspoken question as if he’d taken the thought from her mind. “You and I were made for one another, Evie. You are so much more than you think you are. So much more than you know.” He shook his head, his expression suddenly taking on a bewildered cast. “I wouldn’t feel this way about you if you weren’t special. Evie, I showed you my cave!”

Evie froze. She blinked. The indomitable vampire king looked different in that moment – vulnerable, innocent. His chest rose and fell with emotion, all too human. He was right, he had shown her his cave. The notion was undeniably deep, romantically sweet, and passionately perfect. It was also hilarious.

I fell for this cast and world! There was one hiccup with Evie’s character that came to fast for me, but it would be a spoiler for me to mention what it was. I loved that I was given a villain that I could hate to the point of wanting him dead. I will definitely be continuing with this series! Now I must go read Heather Killough-Walden past books.

Happy Reading

Awesome! Reread worthy.

Recommended For

Adult and up: For language, violence, and graphic sex.  

Follow Friday (36)

Welcome to Follow Me Friday Hosted By Parajunkee.com and Alisoncanread.com

Featured this week!

This Weeks Question Activity:

Take a picture or describe where you love to read the most..

I love reading in the bath! I don’t know what it is? Maybe it’s the only place I can get some semi privacy in this crazy house of mine.  And for the record I have not damaged one book in the tub. There is just something about a nice relaxing bath and a good book at the end of a long day.

Happy Hopping,

Review: Darkest Powers Bonus Pack by Kelley Armstrong

Title: Darkest Powers Bonus Pack
Author: Kelley Armstrong
ebook: 174 pages
Publisher: Traverse Press
Release Date: November 14, 2011 
ASIN: B00686HQKW
Author’s Website
Source: Self Purchase

Contains three companion stories to the Darkest Powers trilogy.

Dangerous (prequel to The Summoning)
The story of how Derek and Simon came to Lyle House, told from Derek’s point-of-view

Divided (set between The Summoning and The Awakening)
Derek and Simon’s adventures while separated from Chloe and Rae in the factory. Also told from Derek’s point of view.

Disenchanted (overlaps part of The Awakening)
Simon and Tori continue their journey after Chloe and Derek are left at the truck stop. Told from Tori’s point of view.

Please note: these are stories, not novels. Combined, they equal half the length of a Darkest Powers novel. (Goodreads)

Review

OK, so anyone who knows me or Bending The Spine knows that I loved the Darkest Powers series! When I heard about Kelley Armstrong releasing this bonus pack of in between stories I was so excited. Honestly I will read anything to get more Derek!

If you haven’t read the Darkest Powers series yet (Um...why?!?!) then hold off on this. But if you love the series like I do then I think you will enjoy this as much as I did.

Dangerous was be far the largest of the three novellas. Dangerous tells the story of how Derek and Simon came to Lyle House. I liked seeing them with their dad in this, also it was great to see how resourceful the brothers are as a team when their dad goes missing. It was interesting to see the brothers dynamic before the rest of the cast come onto the scene.

I think Divided was my favorite of the three stories. Divided is told from Derek’s POV. In Divided I really started to get a sense of Derek's inner battle of how he was starting to feel for Chloe, but also all those protective instincts he has toward his brother. Divided just made me fall in love with Derek even more if that’s possible.

Disenchanted starts out in Simon’s POV then switches to Tori’s after the first chapter. Disenchanted almost had me liking Tori for a scene or two, and that’s saying something as I generally can’t sand her. It is sort of hard to not feel sorry for someone that no one likes and they know it… OK, I don’t feel sorry for Tori, how people feel toward her is her own fault.

I totally enjoyed this it made me want to go back an reread the series! It was well worth my $0.99 I spent at Amazon. I love it when authors release bonus materiel so that you can revisit the world you love. I highly recommend The Darkest Powers series and its sister series Darkness Rising.

Happy Reading,

 

Awesome! Reread worthy.

Recommended For

Teen and up: Use of language, and violence.

Other Books In This Series