historical fiction

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Lenni Reviews: “Firefly Wedding” Vol. 7, by Oreco Tachibana

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Shinpei teams up with the other swordsmen on the island to get rid of Yanagida but despite this, the true mastermind behind Satoko’s abduction arrives to tear them apart.

While the fight scenes are fun, Shinpei and Satoko are just sweet to watch. Through them, we learn more about Shinpei’s childhood but it’s told with the same straightforward way as everything he talks about. Nothing matters to him but Satoko. As for her, she just needs to throw the whole family out. I know it’s not that simple and Shinpei has a litany of red flags but geez… She may be better off on Sex Worker Island with less awful people. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “The Elusive Samurai” Vol. 20 by Yusei Matsui

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Tokiyuki and his allies flee south to the Southern Court, where Emperor Go Daigo tests him.

Tokiyuki is also preparing for his next battle, which is at sea. Also, what the heck…

This creator needs a horror manga… That shit’s terrifying.

Shizuko brings back the magic angle to this series, and again, it’s all just meh. There’s something just so bland about this that makes it hard to care. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “cocoon” by Machiko Kyo

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

In this fictionalized account, we follow some young girls recruited as assistant nurses in WWII. As the conflict worsens and resources become scarce, the idealized dream of serving their country crumbles in the face of dismal reality.

Yeah, this is as depressing as you’d expect. It left me with the same sinking sadness as Come and See. I’m almost glad the art style dulls the edges of spilling entrails and maggot-infested wounds, but it’s still horrible. There is at least (spoilers?) an upbeat ending. It’s not completely hopeless. The whole thing is absolutely heartbreaking. 4.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “The Search for Sadiqah” by Greg Burnham

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

At 13, Sadiqah is a teacher’s pet, but her life is thrown into chaos after the Tulsa Massacre. Her family gone, she embarks on a quest to find her ancestral home.

While I love me some historical fantasy with awesome Black protagonists, I feel like the pacing of this book is off. There are places where I can tell it would be so much more impactful if a moment were allowed to stretch or a scene were a bit longer. I totally understand how much work goes into creating a graphic novel. It’s not like a novel where you can sink deep into a scene with a few more sentences. Instead, you have to add multiple panels and pages. But, even still, I have to say some parts felt a bit too rushed, and I wanted more. Wanting more of something isn’t a negative here, really, since I think the book is good. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Firefly Wedding” Vol. 6, by Oreco Tachibana

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

After saving Satoko, Kotaro vows to help her with her dream of living happily with Shinpei. But they still need to get off this island, and Asagiri won’t make it easy for them.

Since they’re still stuck on this island, it gives us a chance to see more of Shinpei and Satoko growing closer and get some insight into Asagiri and why she’s making things so difficult. They’re working on a different way to get off the island. It’s nice to see Kotaro actually listen to Satoko and help her get what SHE wants, other than what her family obligations are. Her family sucks anyway. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “The Elusive Samurai” Vol. 19, by Yūsei Matsui

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

This volume is the Battle at Ishizu where Akiie’s army is outnumbered and Tokiyuki faces his former retainer, Morofuyu.

I get that fleeing is Tokiyuki’s thing, but wow, he is losing allies and friends right and left. This is historically based, and yes, when waging a war, things don’t go smoothly and you lose people. But still, this volume doesn’t really make Tokiyuki look good. 2.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Vagabond” Definitive Edition Vol. 5, by Takehiko Inoue

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is suggested for mature readers. 

Takezo faces Kohei, Master of Chain and Sickle.

While we learn Kohei’s backstory, we also learn about Kojiro, a deaf child raised by Jisai. Kojiro’s growth into a skilled swordsman takes up the bulk of this volume. It seems he’s destined from birth to wield a sword, but like a lot of stories in this genre, that’s a tragic fate. This had to be my favorite of the series so far. It’s everything I love about this genre, despite including some SA. 5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Firefly Wedding” Vol. 5, by Oreco Tachibana

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Satoko tries to convince the most popular prostitute on the island, Asagiri, to allow her contract to be bought out since she has turned down every offer so far. While running her errands for Asagiri, Satoko spends more time with Shinpei.

Their relationship is odd but sweet. Shinpei is still his cute/psychotic self, and we get more glimpses into Satoko’s past, where her sister still sucks. It also sucks that we’re still stuck on this island, but it was sweet to have Shinpei and Satoko get closer, hanging out and doing random things. Shinpei is still low-key terrifying, though. 4 out of 5

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Lenni Reviews: “The Elusive Samurai” Vol. 18, by Yusei Matsui

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Tokiyuki and his vassals fight Kono Morano while Akiie has to deal with ineffective nobles in order to win.

I do enjoy how Akiie treats his troops, making sure they can have celebrations to keep up morale. He’s a good leader, so it’s clear Tokiyuki can learn a lot from him. But as he’s still going through this learning process, this still feels kinda dry. I couldn’t even get it into the fight scenes. It all feels like that Simpsons meme:

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I honestly wonder if I should drop this series or succumb to the sunk cost fallacy and power through. 2.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “The Elusive Samurai” Vol. 17, by Yusei Matsui

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Tokiyuki and his army head to Kyo where they face the powerful Toki Yorito, and a former friend appears to kill Tokiyuki.

While there is a lot of action in this volume, it doesn’t feel smooth. It’s very “This happened. And then this happened.” but didn’t feel like I was enjoying a story. They felt unconnected, like Sunday comic strips: all our familiar characters are there, but from scene to scene it doesn’t flow. It’s not bad. The tactics and battles are cool to look at, some of the character reveals will raise an eyebrow, but overall, this is just ok. 3 out of 5.

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