Book Review: Zombie-Loan, Vol 3 by Peach-Pit

 

Zombie-Loan, Vol 3      

Author: Peach-Pit

Publisher: Yen Press

American release date:  June 17, 2008

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Fantasy Manga/192 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

 

Chika and Shito arrive too late to prevent Michiru and Koyomi from being kidnapped! They find themselves in the midst of the Butterfly’s fans, who are certainly a strange lot. Sitting around the dinner table with them gives Michiru an eerie feeling, especially when one person announces there is a heretic among them! Panicking, Michiru attempts to rouse the slumbering Koyomi, only to discover  that it is Yomi who responds to her frantic pleas. And then the cavalry arrives, aka Shito and Chika!

One of the fans escapes, and Michiru says she noticed a black ring around his neck, so the boys are up to going after him. Koyomi is in no condition to come with, but they call Yuuta to come and get her and off they go! They follow him into a decrepit abandoned building. Turns out this isn’t just any old fan of the Butterfly – it’s the man himself! And, even better, he has become a god!  Shades of Caligula!

Or is he?

Michiru is concerned about Chika. He seems understandably down after recent shocking events. She wants to help, but his request to sleep in her room throws her for a loop! Shito finds himself stuck with him when Michiru refuses.

The Chancellor decides everyone needs a chance to relax, so she sponsors a trip for everyone to the hot springs, including the Ferryman! Yay! But things take an unexpected turn when they arrive at a hotel that was shut down 27 years ago because of rumors of ghosts on the premises. Michiru’s room is next to Shito and Chika’s, and she can hear that, as usual, they are arguing. So she retreats to the hot springs to find Koyomi has arrived before her. Except it isn’t Koyomi, it’s Yomi, and she’s… well-developed. Which is a little intimidating for Michiru. And Yomi is so…touchy feely!

An impartial lottery decides Michiru and Shito have to go to the store to buy ingredients for dinner. But of course, nothing is simple with them, and trouble is never far behind.

I am really enjoying this series, and I like all the characters. This volume has an unexpected and horrific betrayal! Never saw that coming. The relaxation trip is pretty cute  and the cliffhanger leaves us wondering what is going to happen to Shito? Can’t wait for the next book!

 

 

Book Review: Zombie-Loan, Vol 2 by Peach-Pit

 

Zombie-Loan, Vol 2      

Author: Peach-Pit

Publisher: Yen Press

American release date:  February 13, 2008

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Fantasy Manga/192 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

 

The Sister is missing, but life goes on, and even changes a little when Michiru says she won’t be getting the girls’ lunches anymore. Chika and Shito applaud her for standing up for herself, even if Chika still calls her gofer. But when he catches her eating bread crusts for lunch, because she can get them for free, he is appalled, because he believes that women need to eat food with fat so they can bear healthy babies. Unfortunately, being short of money for food, Michiru also has no place to live. Shito and Chika have an idea and return to Z-Loan where they tell her to go with a mysterious little girl, who will help her get a place to stay. She turns out to be Shimotsuki Kuze, chancellor of Holy Kurou Campus. Michiru ends up in the school’s old monastery, which has been turned into students dorms. But students must meet two criteria in order to stay there. First, the student must have a living arrangement problem as the result of a family issue.

Before Michiru can learn the second condition, a cheerful girl named Koyomi arrives, and the Chancellor tells her to show Michiru around and then leaves herself without offering an explanation. The condition of the dorms is less than ideal, but Michiru is thrilled to have her own room, with a window, even though it opens onto the cemetery. Shito and Chika and Koyomi throw her a small welcome party, which is when Michiru learns of her debt to the two boys. The only way to pay this debt is to work with them. After the party, Michiru also learns of Koyomi’s secret. The boys are delighted to learn that they can use Michiru to bring out that secret, naturally to benefit them.

Chika takes Michiru to his second job at a convenience store and makes her help him with his work. There he runs into an old acquaintance, Shiba, and the two boys instantly bond. Michiru thinks she’s never seen Chika so happy. However the situation turns dire when the three find themselves faced with a large number of rats!  Shiba’s solution to the problem surprises both Chika and Michiru. Afterward, when Shinba follows them to Z-Loan, things get tricky. Everyone is working together to solve a recent murder, and Shiba proves surprisingly helpful. So Ferryman offers him a job, to Shito’s chagrin. Believing Shito to be jealous of Chika’s relationship with Shiba, Michiru is set straight by Shito, who explains how things really work with him and Chika and why they appear to be so close.

Lots of secrets going on – some revealed, some not. We meet some new characters, including the personable Shiba, whom I suspect will be around for a while. Is he as nice as he appears to be, or does he contain a secret self? Only time will tell. The revelation regarding Chika and Shito is not totally surprising, as we saw evidence in the first volume, it’s simply been corroborated now. I like the artwork as well as the story and look forward to reading more.