Manga Mondays (50): Vampire Knight vol. 8 - Matsuri Hino

Vampire Knight vol. 8 - Matsuri Hino

Summary

Cross Adademy is attended by two groups of students: the Day Class and the Night Class. At twilight, when the students of the Day Class return to their dorm, they cross paths with the Night Class on their way to school. Yuki Cross and Zero Kiryu are the Guardians of the school, protecting the Day Class from the Academy's dark secret: the Night Class is full of vampires!

After trying to recall her past, Yuki's hallucinations become more vivid and she tries to strangle Zero during a fit of madness. Locked in her room, all she can see is a world dyed in blood, but Kaname comes for her. He tells her it's time to wake up and sinks his fangs into her neck…. (courtesy of Goodreads)

Review


*Warning: Potential spoilers. My manga reviews tend to be more of a summary than a review. I find it hard to review manga in the same way I do regular books.

We finally get to learn about Yuki's past and it's a doozy!

Kaname sinks his fangs into Yuki's neck and turns her into a vampire. Only he's not exactly changing her into a vampire. It's more like resurrecting her. Zero drops by just as Yuki is waking and is understandably irate at smelling the blood of two vampires, not just one. He threatens to kill Kaname for turning Yuki, but Yuki stops him. Yuki isn't a new vampire. She's a resurrected vampire. And Kaname is her older brother!

Yuki is a pureblood vampire princess. She was much loved by her parents and older brother, but was in great danger. Her existence was hidden by her family. Finally, to protect her, her mother sacrificed herself to turn Yuki into a human, erasing all her memories.

Yuki was born to be Kaname's wife. Brother and sister marriage is pretty weird, but apparently is not uncommon for pureblood vampires. Yuki's parents were siblings. And as Kaname points out, they're not humans. They don't live by human standards of propriety. However, I get the feeling that Kaname isn't exactly her brother. He calls himself such but he's actually related to her in a different way. I don't entirely understand this from Volume 8 but hope it makes more sense later.

Yuki is different as a vampire: stronger, prettier, more confident. Yet she is still in grave danger. Rido has come to the Academy intent on destroying Yuki. He's inhabiting the body of his son Shiki but no one is fooled, Kaname least of all. He and Kaname finally clash, but it doesn't result in Rido's destruction. Instead Kaname gives his blood to resurrect his enemy. Kaname admits that he's the progenitor of the Kurans and Rido is the master who awakened him. Once again, I don't really get this. I hope to understand it as the series goes on.

In My Mailbox (38)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren.

I'm Alison. I've been blogging for 11 months. I review mainly YA with a few MG books and a weekly manga feature.

After my light book acquisition week, I followed it up with an over-enthusiastic one:

Library Stash

Please Ignore Vera Dietz - A.S. King

Demonglass - Rachel Hawkins

Bloodfever - Karen Moning

A Touch Mortal - Leah Clifford

Chibi Vampire vol. 1 - Yuna Kagesaki

1000 Followers! Yay!

I hit 1000 followers yesterday! So excited!

Thank you to all of you who have read this blog in the past year. As much as I enjoy spouting off on books, what I really love is all the new blogging friends I've made. It's so fun to have tons of people around who enjoy books as much as I do. Each of you make my day!

Thanks so much!

Blog Hops

It's time for the weekly book blogger hops again! A great opportunity to meet new bloggers and say hi to old.

Crazy For Books' Book Blogger Hop

Parajunkee's Follow My Book Blog Friday.



I'm Alison. I've been blogging for eleven months. I review mainly YA with a few MG books and a weekly manga feature.

I missed the last Blog Hop because I was out of town, so my recap is extra long today.

On the blog the past two weeks -

Advice

Blogger Advice: Gaining Followers

Discussion

Families in YA

Reviews

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion
The Ghost and the Goth by Stacey Kade
The Luxe by Anna Godbersen
The Espressologist by Kristina Springer
Royal Reviews: Bios of Kate and William; The King's Speech; Bio of Queen Elizabeth II

Manga Mondays

Vampire Knight vol. 6 by Matsuri Hino
Vampire Knight vol. 7 by Matsuri Hino

Questions of the Week:

Blog Hop: Are you going to Book Expo America (BEA) and/or the Book Blogger Convention (BBC) this year?

No. I would love to go, but I'm getting read to move to California in a few months, so all my money and time are being devoted to that endeavor. I'm doing Armchair BEA.

Follow Friday: The Blogger Apocalypse made me a little emotional. What is the most emotional scene in a book that you have read lately?

Hmmm...One of my favorite books so far this year is Greyfriar by Clay and Susan Griffith. There are a few moments at the end of the book where the main characters express their love for each other that are so touching and sweet that they bring tears to my eyes no matter how often I read it.

Families in YA

One of the most common elements of children or young adult novels is absent or neglectful parents. This is understandable. Without the presence of strong parental influence, the main characters have the freedom to be the heroes. Everything depends on the kids. It's why the orphan theme is so popular - think Harry Potter, Anne of Green Gables, and more.

Yet I love books with strong families. I particularly love books with a big, loving family full of diverse personalities. When a family is done well, it makes the book stands out.

Twilight comes to my mind first. While I am a fan of Bella and Edward, what really took my feelings for this series from mere like to complete obsession is the Cullens. I love that there is this big family who work together as a team to solve their problems. I love that each character has a distinct personality and history that unfolds throughout the series. (Twilight does have the typical absent parent types in Bella's parents).

More recently, I fell in love with the "family" in Die For Me by Amy Plum. I love the group of revenants who live together as a family. Like the Cullens, they are a big team and have all sorts of different personalities. You have fun-loving Jules and Ambrose, nervous Gaspard, lovable Charlotte, and more. That's not even including  Vincent, the handsome love interest. (Full review to come soon)

Other books with strong families that come to mind:

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling (the Weasleys)
Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters by Natalie Standiford
Piper's Son by Melina Marchetta (actually almost all her books have family elements)

What books can you think of with well-developed family characters?

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion
April 26, 2011; Atria
*Book provided free for honest review

Summary

A zombie who yearns for a better life ends up falling in love—with a human—in this astonishingly original debut novel.

R is a zombie. He has no memories, no identity, and no pulse, but he has dreams. He doesn’t enjoy killing people; he enjoys riding escalators and listening to Frank Sinatra. He is a little different from his fellow Dead.

Not just another zombie novel, Warm Bodies is funny, scary, and deeply moving. (courtesy of Goodreads)

Review

Warm Bodies is my first zombie book. If you're a fan of zombie books, Warm Bodies is definitely something to pick up. If you're not a fan of zombie books, don't pass this by. While the book doesn't skimp on the violence of zombie appetites, its most prominent features are beautiful prose, thought provoking philosophical questions, and a subtle, sweet love story.

Our hero, R, is a zombie. He can't remember how long he's been a zombie, what he did as a human, or even his name (aside from his first initial). He is more verbal and self-aware than most other zombies, but he still spends his life in a trance. He lives with a large group of zombies in an abandoned airport. They try to recreate their human lives to some degree. There are schools for children, churches, marriages, etc. The zombies really don't understand what they're doing, but some subconscious part of their mind craves the structure of a human life. Some zombies are not verbal at all while others like R can speak in halting, simple sentences. They spend most of their time groaning and shrugging.

There's plenty of death in Warm Bodies. R describes in great detail hunting humans and devouring their brains. Zombies don't need to eat brains, but they're drawn to them. When they consume a brain, they relive the person's life and memories - the zombies get to be alive for a short time. It's addicting. R goes on a hunting run and eats a teenaged boy name Perry. Perry's memories are particularly strong and become all consuming for R. He instinctively saves Julie from the other zombies and takes her back to his home at the zombies' airport.

Julie definitely does not fall instantly in love with R. She fears him, for one thing, but mostly she's angry. Julie has had a hard life. Her mother died when she was fairly young and her general father thinks only of security and fighting. Julie is hardened and quick to lash out. R is almost the exact opposite. Extremely patient. Protective. Slow to anger. While he basically holds Julie hostage, they form a reluctant friendship and then a stronger attachment. Their relationship is sweet. I love how R calmed Julie down and helped heal her in a way, while Julie showed R how to be more than a shrugging, groaning zombie.

What really sets Warm Bodies apart are the characters' thoughts. Both Julie and R have a tendency to pontificate about the meaning of life, the zombie curse, and the idea of love. I love how the author set out so many different ideas to ponder. Here's a little taste:

[Julie is looking through R's record collection]
"'There's nothing in here newer than like...1999. Is that when you died or something? ... Why the stunted musical growth?'
I start to shrug and then stop myself, with some difficulty. How can I possibly explain this to her in words? The slow death of Quixote. The abandoning of quests, the surrendering of desires, the settling in and settling down that is the inevitable fate of the Dead.
"'We don't...think...new things,' I begin, straining to kick through my short-sheeted diction....
'You don't think about new things? You don't 'seek'? What's that even mean? You don't seek what? Music? Music is life? It's physical emotion - you can touch it! It's neon ecto-energy sucked out of spirits and switched into sound waves for your ears to swallow.'" (p. 53-54)

The book is worth reading for no other reason than a philosophical exercise.

My main problem with this book is that so many things are not explained well. The zombie lifestyle is explained thoroughly and clearly. That was fascinating. What was lacking was the explanation of why the zombies existed in the first place. It says that there was some kind of curse, but it was basically left at that. Highly incomplete. Also, why are there so few humans? Is it just because the zombies have killed them or have they killed each other? How long has this been going on? The book indicates that things have gotten really bad in the last few years, but it also implies that zombies have been around for at least 50 or 60 years. I think the book would have benefited from a few pages of background slipped in throughout the story.

Despite a few world-building flaws, Warm Bodies is a lovely, thoughtful story. It is ultimately a romance between two unlikely beings, but it is also a book to read when you are in the mood to stop and think about the greater things in life.

Rating: 4/5

Manga Mondays (49): Vampire Knight vol. 7 - Matsuri Hino

Vampire Knight vol. 6 - Matsuri Hino



Summary

After the vacation ends, Yuki asks Kaname to tell her about her past, but he evades her questioning, and confesses his love for her. Zero, wanting to get some answers himself, goes to the Moon Dormitory and confronts Kaname. The two fight, and Zero ends up drinking Kaname's blood...
Yuki asks Kaname once more about her past, and he says that he will tell her if she becomes his lover (as in girlfriend). The Night Class follows Yuki around to protect her, and she has a picnic with Kaname. She demands, one last time, to know about her past, and she begins to have flashbacks... (courtesy of Goodreads)

Review


*Warning: Potential spoilers. My manga reviews tend to be more of a summary than a review. I find it hard to review manga in the same way I do regular books.

The seventh Vampire Knight volume is all about Yuki seeking her past. She was attacked by a vampire ten years ago and saved by Kaname. That's all she knows. Everything before that is a blank.

Yuki is sure that Kaname knows something about her past but is afraid to ask him. At first, she goes to ask but chickens out. She worships Kaname and is terrified that he'll think poorly of her

So trusty Zero goes to ask Kaname instead. Not being Kaname's biggest fan, his question sounds a lot like an accusation - "Did you erase Yuki's memories or not?" Pretty soon, Zero and Kaname come to blows. Zero points the vampire gun at Kaname and Kaname has his hand around Zero's neck. Kaname makes it clear that Zero is a tool for him - a means to an end - he has plans for Zero. In the meantime, Kaname offers Zero his blood. The blood of a pureblood vampire can help stave off Level E insanity and infuse Zero with strength. The contrast between guy taking blood from guy and guy taking blood from girl is amusing. The guy/girl blood connection is extremely sensual. The drawing of Zero taking blood from Kaname features a desperate-looking Zero and a bored, solemn Kaname.

Yuki finally works up the courage to ask Kaname about her past. He refuses to tell her. Instead, he asks her to be his lover. I sure hope something got lost in the translation. If someone said to me, "Will you be my lover?" I'd laugh in their face. Subtlety goes a long way. The drawings make up for the silly dialogue. Hino definitely knows how to portray passion in her art.

The volume ends with Kaname sneaking Yuki away from her dorm room. His jaw is at her neck...can't wait to see where this goes!