Ouran High School Host Club volume 1

Title: Ouran High School Host Club volume 1

Author: Hatori Bisco

Genre: Romantic comedy, drama

Summary: Haruhi Fujioka is a female student who lands a scholarship to a prestigious rich school named Ouran High School. However, a few days before she is due to attend the school, a naughty neighbourhood kid sticks chewing gum in her hair. Being the ever practical person she is (her mother passed away at an early age and her father isn't very helpful seeing as he crossdresses), she hacks off her hair and sticks on thick glasses because she's lost her contacts.

Dressed as thus, Haruhi Fujioka was (understandably) mistaken for a male.

She stumbles upon the school's host club in the 3rd music room, and while trying to escape from the undeniably eccentric host club president, Tamaki Suoh, she breaks a valuable vase worth 8 million yen.

(Did you remember that I said that Ouran was a rich school? And that Haruhi had gotten a scholarship? Can you put the two together?)

Haruhi, being unable to repay the debt of the vase straight away, is assigned to being the club's 'dog', doing menial chores and tasks until she is able to pay off the debt in full. The host club, being unaware of her gender, assigns her to be a host after discovering that she had 'potential'.

Tamaki Suoh - the president of the host club and self-proclaimed 'King'. Tamaki is the son of the school's chairman but he generally acts...foolishly. ^^' In a good way, I suppose.

Kyouya Otori - vice-president of the host club and is nicknamed the 'Shadow King' because he is more of the quiet, sadistic type.

Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin - the famous twin brothers in the host club. No one can tell them apart...except, predictably, Haruhi, the protagonist. They invoke an element of incest in the host club's attraction package, by the way. ^_^

Mitsukuni Haninozuka - is called either 'Hunny' or 'Honey'. He is the typical lolita shota character and dotes on sweets, cakes and his bunny, Usa-chan. Despite his miniature size and cuteness, he is lethal in karate (which looks...odd. At times.)

Takashi Morinozuka - Honey's constant companion. Apparently, his family has vowed to serve Honey's family throughout the generations. The stolid, silent type.

Opinion: Ouran High School Host Club is insanely hilarious with some 'manga-ish' moments - things that can never happen in real life, but is a good fun read nevertheless. Haruhi as a guy is very convincing, despite his/her large eyes. ^_^ I personally like Kyouya myself, because I love his devillish moments as he manipulates and uses the host club to his benefits. Tamaki is especially prone to trickery as he's the gullible type. He takes a shine to Haruhi on her first day of becoming a host club member, and even when the plot reveals that she is actually female. He affectionately takes on the role of Haruhi's 'father' (and appoints Kyouya as the 'mother') but Haruhi generally ignores him on such occasions.

OHSHC is a roller-coaster manga with plenty of ups and downs and little twists in them. As you read more and more into OHSHC, you'll find plenty of other supporting characters who have their own charm and wit. OHSHC can be rather random at times (see Haruhi's crossdressing father! A very convincing female!) and serious at other times, but I guarantee you will love this manga...provided you are a girl, after all. I can't see males getting into this. ^^' It's a host club after all! ~rage-chan

Rating: 4.5 out of 5. I took half a mark off for the art, which can be rather forced at times, but as you get used to it, it's all right. Go and read!

Possible links:
Wikipedia's OHSHC
AnimeNewsNetwork's OHSHC
AnimeNfo's OHSHC

Gravitation volume 1

Title: Gravitation volume 1

Author: Maki Murakami

Genre: Comedy, shounen-ai (boy love)

Summary: Gravitation is a boy love manga following Shuichi Shindou and his music band Bad Luck which he formed with Hiroshi Nakano, his best friend. One day he meets Eiri Yuki, a famous romance writer, who critisizes his work. However, this is not the first time they're going to meet...a full-blown relationship between Yuki and Shindou soon forms, but the thing is, they're both males!

Gravitation naturally focuses a lot on music and the band as well as Shindou aspires to be a famous singer.

Opinion: I have been poked for liking Gravitation. Seriously. And it's not because it has boy love themes in it. It's just because they claim that Gravitation sucks.

Well...it doesn't suck all that bad (or is this my shounen-ai fangirl side coming in?) but I have to admit that Shindou can be so annoying sometimes. He's constantly whining, crying, needs assurances, and does the stupidest things to get Yuki to notice him. He's even dressed up in a girl's school uniform and bunny costume and things...the things he will do to catch Yuki is unbelievable.

Some of the manga is absolutely...*has no words to describe*. You simply can't describe it as 'good' or 'crap'. It's just...slightly unbelievable.

...

Ax that. It's COMPLETELY unbelievable, some of the things Murakami has written. It's so out of whack that it's not funny. However, if you're into shounen-ai, I'd say take a quick peek at this. There are not many fantastic shounen-ai manga out there, so you'd better grab Gravitation while you can.

The romance keeps you hooked. ^^ It works for me, even though I'd love to smack Shindou sometimes.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Title: Fantasy Trap

Author: Prince-in-Disguise

Genre: Action, Adventure, Suspense

Status: In-progress - four chapters up at time of post

Summary: Athrun and his friends test drive a virtual reality arcade game, but something goes wrong and the seemingly harmless game soon turns deadly when they become trapped inside it! Post GSD. Main cast: Athrun, Lacus and Kira. Shinn and Meyrin also feature. ~quoted verbatim

Opinion: Prince-in-Disguise writes reasonably long chapters and it's none of the fluffy sort of writing. Her chapters are the long, serious kinds, although she does try to inject humour. Athrun, Kira and Lacus start playing a virtual reality game in the arcade, but halfway through, the game turns menacing and locks them in the cyber world. I enjoyed this tremendously (seeing as I'm starving for virtual reality game fics now) and I really recommend this to Gundam Seed/Destiny fans. ^^

I also think it's fitting for Lacus to be a mage. I mean, look at her - she's the very countenance of a mage. And if you want to read about Athrun getting wings....*grin* ~rage-chan

Rating: 4 out of 5

Title: Jealous

Author: awin-chan

Genre: Humor, General

Status: Complete, oneshot.

Summary: Fuji is jealous. Hints at fujiryo. ~quoted verbatim

Opinion: 'Jealous' is a very funny and, as usual, rather cracky fic by awin-chan. Fuji is, apparently, jealous of a certain 'someone' whom Ryoma pays more attention to. Read this quick oneshot to find out just hilarious it is. ^_^ There's a twist in the end, though now that I've told you this it won't be as much fun, ne?
--
Very cute and enjoyable - and yet so true (or at the very least, believable!) And yes, jealousy IS a very very potentially humourous thing. This one-shot is quick, short, and to the point, but does not fail to deliver quality reading (or quality writing, whichever you prefer.)
~Vio-chan

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Title: iD_entity volume 1

Author: Hee-Joon Sun and Youn-Kyung Kim

Genre: Action, fantasy, cyber game

Summary: The series centers around the main character Jang-Gun and his friends along with their virtual reality avatars in the computer game world called "Lost Saga". When Jang-Gun logs on as a different character, he "Creates" an AI with a personality from the hacked disk he found when renewing his appearance for his once a year renewal process. Yureka is a flutter-brained, but advanced, AI with powerful stats and a real-life doppleganger. It is his turn to see just how deep his immersion in the virtual world goes. (quoted from Wikipedia)

Opinion: I've always had a fascination with real life characters being sucked into a cyber game and having to fight or think their way out (fighting would be much more preferable for some action). Jang-Gun (known as Roto in the game) is an immensely comic character who, predictably for a main character, is a formidable foe in the game. His character is classed as a sorceror (he likes flames, for some reason) but is sub-classed as a warrior. His two friends, Kwan-Su and Woon-Suk (known as Boromid and Ah-Dol respectively in the game) are backups to Roto's skill in the "Lost Saga", and are capable fighters themselves. Along the way, they team up with Yureka, an Artificial Intelligence. Yureka is shrouded in mystery and speculation. Where did she come from? Did Roto (or Jang-Gun) really create her? What is her role in the manwha?

Overall, iD_entity is extremely intruiging so scoot over to your nearest bookstore (or to someone who has these books) and try to get ahold of them for a nice read. Fantasy is a very easy and popular genre, and these books won't disappoint. Or at least, they didn't disappoint me. ^_^ ~rage-chan

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Title: Kitchen Princess volume 1

Author: Natsumi Ando and Miyuki Kobayashi

Genre: slice-of-life, cooking, shojo

Summary: The story follows Najika Kazami, an orphan and an excellent chef from Hokkaido, and her arrival at Seika Academy, an elevator school.Not only does she plan to become a great chef like her deceased parents, but she also sets out to find her "Flan Prince", a boy that saved her from falling into a river and gave her a cup of flan with a silver spoon with the school's emblem on it. She promised him she would make the best treat ever. However, as soon as she is placed into Class A, she has to deal with the constant insults of Akane Kishida and her group. Things become better, however, when she befriends Sora and Daichi Kitazawa, the school's most popular brothers, and possible candidates for the status of her "Flan Prince". (quoted from Wikipedia)

Opinion: Kitchen Princes is predictably shojo with a female main character, two flanking cute guys, and a jealous female rival. Still, with a cooking/food element in it, Kitchen Princess is fun and simple to read. Included at the back of the manga books as 'extras' are the recipes that Najika uses to make the yummy food throughout the volumes, so never fear - if you like the look of something in the manga, you can use the recipe to make it yourself!

I think Kitchen Princess is worth a read if you have enjoyed other shojo manga such as Fruits Basket, Ouran High School Host Club and Absolute Boyfriend. Kitchen Princess gets a thumbs-up for nicely drawn art (and the cute bishounens) but gets slightly marked down because, well, shojo plot is so predictable, wouldn't you say? Although my vote might have been biased because I love eating...XD ~rage-chan

The art really reminds me of Mermaid Melody. Cute. And the food looks absolutely delish. XD

The plot, as Rage said before, is very simple. Najika practically solves all her problems using her amazing skill in cooking. But other than revolving around food, the story would also tackle on things such as acceptance, discrimination, being true to yourself, following your dreams, putting your talents to good use and judging a person based on first impressions.

Because of it's simplicity, 'Kitchen Princess' is a relaxing and interesting story to read. But it also makes one hungry. XD ~Gelly

Rating: 4 out of 5

Title: Atobe's Opinion of Mary Sues

Author: awin-chan

Rating: K - for kids (or also known as general reading - anyone can read!)

Category: Prince of Tennis fanfiction

Genre: Humor, Parody

Summary: A follow up to The Seigaku Regulars Hate Mary Sues. You don't have to read the previous one though to read this. Oneshot. ~quoted verbatim

Opinion: awin-chan writes extremely good cracky Prince of Tennis fanfiction, so if you're in desperate need of a crazy laugh with the PoT boys, her fics are the way to go. The Seigaku Regulars Hate Mary Sues has already been previously covered by us, so to find it, do click on the label awin-chan or visit her Fanfiction.net account to see a list of all her stories, reviewed or not. Atobe in this fic is extremely In Character, is hilarious, and will give you a laugh unless you're a rock. ~rage-chan

Awin-chan writes hilarious one-shots. Atobe's version of why he hates Mary Sues is just amusing and gives a pretty nice opinion of why Mary Sues aren't particularly supported by writers. ~Gelly

Another one of those egoistic yet just adorable speeches by the great Ore-sama. This one had me cracking up in stitches. And the beauty of it is that you don't need to be a fan of PoT or even to have watched the anime/manga to appreciate and enjoy the humour. It provides one minute of pure crack. Simple, and indescribable genius.
Vio-chan rate = 4.5! (Or if you're a real humour fan, 5 out of 5! )

Title: The Purple Emperor

Author: Herbie Brennan

Genre: Fantasy

Blurb: When Prygus Malvae's father arrives at the Purple Palace his appearance causes more than a little shock. After all, he was supposed to be dead. Add to that the fact that the recently deceased Purple Emperor is now an ally of the Faeries of the Night and it is clear that all is not what it should be in the Faerie Realm. Madness is unleashed. Faeries of the Night are in charge, an insane woman is now Queen, the old order is seriously under threat, and Prygus and Holly Blue have to get to the bottom of all this chaos. When Henry arrives from the human realm to help, little can he imagine the diabolical world he is about to enter, nor that he will have to do so much to try and put everything right.

Opinion: The Purple Emperor is the second book in this series (not sure if there is a third) and the first is Faerie Wars. Faerie Wars really caught my attention when I first read it, but when I finally got my hands on the second volume, I could only say it didn't quite live up to the reputation of the first book. I'm not even sure myself what was missing from the second book. Maybe it was just me being out of focus because I had manga coming in all the time demanding for my attention and I kept putting off The Purple Emperor. But then again, if the plot was all that exciting, do you think I would have left it behind to read manga first?

...Or am I just too obsessed with manga?

But overall, I think it's not too bad a read. At least it didn't make me doze off. I'd recommend getting both books at one go and reading them together so the first volume stays fresh in your mind. I got The Purple Emperor quite a long time after I'd read the first, and although I'm quite sure I'd remembered everything from the first book, it might still be better to read both books in one sitting. Have fun reading! ~rage-chan

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Title: Blaze of Glory

Author: Michael Pryor

Genre: Fantasy, politics

Blurb: Aubrey Fitzwilliam is the son of a prominent ex-prime minister. He's also brilliant at magic, but he's stuck at boarding school. At least he has his best friend, George, there to back him up. George would follow Aubrey anywhere - and with Aubrey's talent for thinking up daring schemes that will get them both into trouble, that's no easy thing to do.

At a weekend shooting party at Prince Albert's country estate, the boys find themselves in a hotbed of political intrigue. They discover a golem, a magical creature built to perform one task: to kill Prince Albert. Aubrey and George are hailed as heroes for foiling the attempt on the prince's' life - but who sent the golem, and why? Aubrey is far too curious to let the authorities handle this one, and he and George start investigating ...

Opinion: I picked this one up randomly and I liked it straight away. For one thing, the first line is extremely eye-catching: "Aubrey Fitzwilliam hated being dead. it made things much harder than they needed to be." Of course, being insanely curious the way I am, I had to keep on reading. If Aubrey was dead, why is he still telling the story? Is he even the protagonist?

That was a very clever opening line. As I read on, I find out the secret of Aubrey's apparent 'death', and over time, I came to like the guy. He's got guts and a brain, and Aubrey doesn't sound too bad a name either. Magic and political conflicts are woven into this novel and makes it one very exciting read. Reading this will keep you on your toes and hopefully, you'll come to love this book as I did. Magic is in a completely different world here, and more than just swishing a wand and saying a magic word.

Having the word 'investigating' in the blurb also makes it a mystery of sorts, and I absolutely love enthralling mysteries. This is something you should read if you haven't already.

Rating: 5 out of 5!

Title: The Ruins of Gorlan (The first volume in the Ranger's Apprentice series.)

Author: John Flanagan

Genre: Fantasy

Summary: Will is a 15-year-old orphan who lives in Castle Redmont. Will is small and slight for his age, and although he longs to be chosen as an apprentice to a knight, he is turned down. His friend, Horace, however, is accepted because of his sturdy and tall frame. Disappointed, Will is on the verge of giving up his dreams completely until he finds out that he has been chosen to be Halt's apprentice, one of the mysterious and feared Rangers who roam Araluen. Will knows that the Rangers inspire fears in the people, and is not too thrilled by this opportunity. However, he accepts the apprenticeship.

Being a Ranger's apprentice is not as easy as he had hoped, however...

Opinion: I was hooked the minute a friend recommended this to me. Ranger's Apprentice is a simple read and very fascinating, and Flanagan injects dry humour every now and then. If you enjoy fantasy with a simple twist, Ranger's Apprentice is the way to go. It's not full of mind-numbing plot twists either, just exciting little skirmishes and the little bits of conflicts that make this novel such an enjoyable quick read. This is only the first book in the series, however. For more information, why not head to the Ranger's Apprentice official website?

Recommended for younger readers around 10-12 years old. Might make a nice present for that bookworm of your little brother who loves knights and battles! ~rage-chan

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Title: President Dad

Author: Rhim Ju-Yeon

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Summary: Ami Won is a seemingly normal high school girl whose life is turned completely on its head after her father won the presidential election to become one of the youngest president of South Korea. To ensure Ami's safety as she is now the daughter of a very prestigious man, her aunt hires a bodyguard for her. Fahrenheit is a very unusual bodyguard indeed as he has the ability to change his appearance and voice (seemingly without disguises) at will. In order to better protect Ami, he disguises himself as a teenaged girl and joins Ami's school.

But there's not just Fahrenheit. A 16-year-old boy comes on the scene, and apparently, he's a veteran when it comes to fights and wars. Moo-Hyun is also one of Ami's classmates, and he becomes entangled in the web that is Ami Won and Fahrenheit.

Opinion: Although President Dad's art is clean and uncluttered, the plot is slightly confusing and rather disorienting, to say the least. I find the many chibi and 'unreal' scenes in the manga slightly annoying when a really sombre mood would have been best. Some bits of the plot don't quite make sense either, but overall, the art is really lovely and quite sophisticated.

(I especially like Moo-Hyun.)

^_^ President Dad spans only 7 volumes long, so think about finding a place where you can borrow and read it. It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but hey, you never know until you try, right?

Please leave a comment if you've already read this and let us know your thoughts! Feel free to recommend something we should read and talk about if you have a really good novel/manga that you feel is underloved. ~rage-chan.

Rating: 3 out of 5