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MANGA: Karasu Otoko ni Kiotsukete
Karasu Otoko ni Kiotsukete – Kawai Ame
Shiratori, a civil servant in charge of controlling the city’s crow population, was approached in the park by a handsome but suspicious-looking guy named Kuroo. As Kuroo had no address and was unemployed, Shiratori was wary of him, but somehow found himself unable to dislike him. One day, he finds out that Kuroo is actually a crow…?!
Be Careful Of Raven Man starts with civil servant Shiratori doing his park maintenance duties. Part of this is controlling the crow population. He spies a crow being bullied by two others. He kindly reminded the crows about their precarious situation. The man tended to talk aloud to the birds. He has a soft spot for them and doesn’t want them exterminated.
Then his watch was stolen by one of the birds. The bullied crow took after it to retrieve it. This is when Kuroo makes his appearance. He promptly latches on to Shiratori, who made it a habit to feed him because he thought Kuroo was homeless.
Kuroo has Grell’s (Kuroshitsuji) personality. Clingy, has no concept of personal space and has no shame whatsoever declaring in his love for Shiratori. He’s quite the drama queen, employing his Oscar-winning acting skills to persuade Shiratori to declare his affection.
He might sound like a bad person when I say it like this, but he’s actually very endearing. I never found him pushy. The poor crow is kind of a pariah in the bird community. So it’s no wonder he’s attached to the person who showed him kindness.
The plot is pretty simple and straightforward, so you can already guess how things play out. Given that, I still loved the whole thing. This is an example of a manga that spins a cliché into a highly entertaining story. While not employing any groundbreaking twists, this little paranormal one-shot is very cute and charming.
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REVIEW: Chrysalis by S.E. Harmon
The Formicary: Chrysalis – S.E. Harmon
A gunshot to the head is bad enough. Waking up with amnesia is far worse. I learn that the hard way when I wake up in the hospital, my memory practically wiped. I don’t know why someone wants me dead. Hell, I don’t even know my name. They say my name is Christian Cross. Too bad that name means nothing to me.
I haven’t forgotten everything, though. Grayson Laurie has always been my kryptonite, and it would take more than a bullet to the brain to forget him. He assures me that I’m imagining the distance between us, but I know better. I just don’t know how to fix it. I console myself that at least I’ve reached rock bottom and things can’t get worse…until they do.
My life is a tangled mess of lies and deceit. The more I learn about myself, the less I want to know. I want nothing more than an honest future with Gray, but the past isn’t about to let me go without a fight.
Fortunately, I’m starting to realize that fighting is my specialty.
To paraphrase one of the characters, amnesia is something we mostly see in Days Of Our Lives. I find this trope cheesy because of how it’s overused in soaps. But the blurb of the book immediately piqued my interest.
Chrysalis is the first book of The Formicary duology. Christian Cross wakes up in the hospital with no memory of anything, not even his name. The only thing he remembers is the memory of Dr. Grayson Laurie, his boyfriend. The hospital staff told him he was shot in the head. Gray told Chris, the amnesiac ghosted him four years ago and that the doctor is now in another relationship. To make matters worse, some very dangerous people were after Chris, who had no idea why.
The book follows Chris as he traces clues to his identity, fights off the bad guys and wins back the love of his life. Rather than a rebirth, as the title might suggest, this is a return to an old secret life he kept from Gray.
The story is told from a first-person POV. One thing that stood out is that Chris is prone to unnecessary jokes that are not exactly funny or witty. The writing is fast-paced and tight enough to keep the momentum going, but Chris’ little asides don’t really add anything.
However, there is nothing cheesy with how the amnesia trope was deployed. This is one of the better uses of the trope. It worked exceptionally well with the mystery. It is exactly as the blurb says, and I was completely hooked!
I really enjoyed tagging along with Chris as he stumbles upon the bits and pieces of his old life. There were big hints, like the extra body parts and ninja fighting skills, that helped me suss out who or what Christian is. But even knowing that, the air of intrigue and anticipation remained high until the end. Also, despite his bad jokes, the man is an entertaining narrator.
The second chance romance was also wonderfully executed! There’s some push and pull between the MCs because Gray was hurt, and Christian might disappear again. But Chris’ devotion to Gray was pretty obvious from the start, and it was also clear that Gray still has strong feelings for his ex. Their chemistry jumps off the page! I loved watching them find each other again and again.
Gray’s current boyfriend is a non-entity who soon exited so there’s no cheating here. The book is not a standalone. It ends with a cliffhanger so best to have the second book on hand before starting.
Chrysalis has mystery, action, yeah okay, maybe some humor, a couple of painful separations, and long-overdue reunions. It is about a man looking for answers. It delivers those answers in one suspenseful, gripping package. It’s not the most memorable but it’s certainly worth remembering.
Rating:
4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bitsSoundtrack: Chrysalis
Artist: Dianna Lopez
Album:
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SOUNDTRACK: Chrysalis by Dianna Lopez
Soundtrack to The Formicary: Chrysalis by S.E. Harmon
Chrysalis by Dianna Lopez for a book about a man who couldn’t remember and the man he couldn’t forget.
I run to wish upon a star
Open my palms to feel this love
Why won’t you just escape my dreams
You never seem to want to leave
But when we meet I feel real high
Late night I swore we touched the sky
A lonely night is all I needHad to die to love myself
Rebirth to another
Ripping brainwash in my cells
I just want to remember -
There is softness on my crown
And freedom in my eyes
Ancient secrets in my laugh
A calling to rememberI run to wish upon a star
Open my palms to feel this love
Why won’t you just escape my dreams
You never seem to want to leave
But when we meet I feel real high
Late night I swore we touched the sky
A lonely night is all I needHad to die to love myself
Rebirth to another
Ripping brainwash in my cells
I just want to rememberI run to wish upon a star
Open my palms to feel this love
Why won’t you just escape my dreams
You never seem to want to leave
But when we meet I feel real high
Late night I swore we touched the sky
A lonely night is all I need -
MOVIE FEATURE: Bros
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NEW RELEASE BLITZ: Thirst by J. Hali Steele (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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RELEASE BLITZ: Collar Me by Colette Davison (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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RELEASE DAY BLITZ: Heathen by Natasha Alterici & Ashley A. Woods (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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NEW RELEASE BLITZ: Possibilities by Kira Stone (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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FLICKer: Louder Than Words
Featuring LGBT short films I found around the interwebz a.k.a Youtube. Okay sucky intro, but yeah, that’s it.
Louder Than Words follows a young musician named Ansel (Luke Farley), and his unexpected encounter with Niall (Marty Lauter), an endearing, deaf dancer.
When forced to share a studio space, artists Ansel and Niall find themselves awkwardly beside each other, performing song and dance respectively. They have an underlying connection, and that is a closeted interest and admiration of each other. While Niall can read lips, an obvious language barrier still stands between him and Ansel. In order to communicate, Ansel and Niall must step out of their comfort zones, because even though they share similar passions and quickly inspire each other, the inevitable risk of miscommunication—both in language and emotion—remains, rendering their hidden affection almost impossible to express.
The film explores the sheer struggle that queer people often face in a culture that is yet to fully foster accepting spaces for courtship and love. At its core, the story portrays how difficult it can be to communicate romantic interest as a queer person, and in this case, the added impediment of being deaf.
