kamreadsandrecs's review
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
emeraldreverie's review against another edition
4.0
Murder and intrigue and machinations. With some cooking thrown into this volume. Really enjoyed it!
misssusan's review against another edition
3.0
this volume's a little different from the prior ones in that it goes for short one-two chapter long stories rather than an extended arc. i liked it, the downtime let yoshinaga poke about some of the smaller characters and corners of her world. plus i like our new chatterbox herbalist gennai and expect that the 'cure the pox' plotline will have them around awhile. 3.5 stars
andrael's review against another edition
4.0
Great as usual but I still wish they would include some kind of appendix or guide to help keep track of the characters. Even just a list of all the previous shoguns would be welcome.
kalanadi's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
nonesensed's review against another edition
5.0
When you're on part 8th of a series this ongoing and closely connected with itself, it's really hard to review it without the review being 100% spoilers. All I can say is, if you like the court intrigues in the first parts, you'll probably like the rest of it.
Also, if you can, get the all the released volumes and read them back-to-back while you still have them all at hand, so you can double-check who is who because this is a series with a gazillion characters and that spans generations. Do yourself a favor, start making a flowchart of the cast from chapter one and you might keep up!
Also, if you can, get the all the released volumes and read them back-to-back while you still have them all at hand, so you can double-check who is who because this is a series with a gazillion characters and that spans generations. Do yourself a favor, start making a flowchart of the cast from chapter one and you might keep up!
christine_s's review
3.0
I'm invested, I have so many pages read that at this point it feels like I am just reading these to get through this whole thing. How many years have passed in this story? Couldn't tell you. What's the name of the current leader? No clue, but I like the art, I have the books and they WILL get read.
meeners's review against another edition
4.0
someone i know was complaining to me the other day that this volume is too fluffy and shoujo-manga-esque, but i don't think this is necessarily a bad thing - yoshinaga fumi is the master (mistress) of the light touch, and she shows it off well here. the farcical moments get shaded with sympathy; the tragic moments, with pragmatism.
was going to give this only 3 stars because of the random cooking bit (i think this is part of the reason why this person i know was complaining - too much like 『なにたべ』) and a bit too many other filler moments . . . until the moment i discovered this volume features none other than HIRAGA GENNAI!!!!! a.k.a. one of the most awesome edo writers ever. yayayayayay. in real life he was a polymath and all-around genius, but more importantly, he is the one who bequeathed to the world the masterpiece that is "a theory of farting"（放屁論）. i am totally not kidding; he really did write an essay called that. i dare you to look it up. very glad to see that yoshinaga fumi seems to agree with me about how awesome hiraga gennai is. crossing my fingers that she keeps it up in volume 9!
was going to give this only 3 stars because of the random cooking bit (i think this is part of the reason why this person i know was complaining - too much like 『なにたべ』) and a bit too many other filler moments . . . until the moment i discovered this volume features none other than HIRAGA GENNAI!!!!! a.k.a. one of the most awesome edo writers ever. yayayayayay. in real life he was a polymath and all-around genius, but more importantly, he is the one who bequeathed to the world the masterpiece that is "a theory of farting"（放屁論）. i am totally not kidding; he really did write an essay called that. i dare you to look it up. very glad to see that yoshinaga fumi seems to agree with me about how awesome hiraga gennai is. crossing my fingers that she keeps it up in volume 9!
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