The Apothecary Diaries | Kusuriya no Hitorigoto – Chapter 63 ◉ The Hunt (Part 3)

just because he got promoted from being just a gag character does not mean he ever stopped being a gag character

Kusuriya no Hitorigoto Vol.15 (light novel)

My fav historical manga:

Requiem of the Rose King (Aya Kanno) The Apothecary Diaries (Natsu Hyuuga, Nekokurage, Itsuki Nanao) Golden Kamuy (Satoru Noda) Hell's Paradise: Jigokuraku (Yuuji Kaku) About the Movement of the Earth (Uoto) Vinland Saga (Makoto Yukimura) Green Blood (Masasumi Kakizaki) Vagabond (Takehiko Inoue, Eiji Yoshikawa) The Angel of Elhamburg (Aki)

Series: Kamisama Gakkou no Ochikobore Artist: Akagawara Modomu Publication: Hana to Yume #1 (01/2023) Details: Hanayume Allstar Jewelry Calendar (July) Source: Scanned from my personal collection

Fav books of 2023 (in no particular order and not including re-reads)

The Apothecary Diaries (薬屋のひとりごと)

The Apothecary Diaries

by Natsu Hyuuga/Itsuki Nanao and Nekokurage

Square Enix

Title: The Apothecary Diaries Light Novel, Vol. 1

Author: Natsu Hyuuga, Kevin Steinbach (trans.)

Illustrator: Touko Shino

Genre/s: historical, mystery

Content/Trigger Warnings: implied pedophilia by a character no longer present in the series, kidnapping, being sold into indentured servitude, death, suicide, physical and emotional abuse

Summary (from publisher's website): In the East is a land ruled by an emperor, whose consorts and serving women live in a sprawling complex known as the hougong, the rear palace. Maomao, an unassuming girl raised in an unassuming town by her apothecary father, never imagined the rear palace would have anything to do with her—until she was kidnapped and sold into service there. Though she looks ordinary, Maomao has a quick wit, a sharp mind, and an extensive knowledge of medicine. That’s her secret, until she encounters a resident of the palace at least as perceptive as she is: the head eunuch, Jinshi. He sees through Maomao’s façade and makes her a lady-in-waiting to none other than the Emperor’s favorite consort… so she can taste the lady’s food for poison! At her lady’s side, Maomao starts to learn about everything that goes on in the rear palace—not all of it seemly. Can she ever lead a quiet life, or will her powers of deduction and insatiable curiosity bring her ever more adventures, and ever more dangers?

Buy Here: https://j-novel.club/series/the-apothecary-diaries

Spoiler-Free Review: Oh but this was a delight! The way I think of this is that Maomao is kind of like Sherlock Holmes, except she’s stuck in a period intrigue drama set in the rear palace of the Chinese imperial court and has to negotiate all the etiquette and conspiracies in THAT particular setting while also solving mysteries. Which, given all the conspiring, there are actually plenty of.

While the mysteries are pretty interesting, what REALLY hooked me was reading about Maomao interacting with the consorts and their ladies-in-waiting. The way Maomao views herself (low-ranked servant/food taster/apothecary) stands in direct contrast to the way the REST of the inhabitants of the rear palace view her (poor unfortunate waif), and there’s plenty of hilarious moments where Maomao does or says something that makes the other rear palace residents react in a certain way, and she does NOT for the life of her understand WHY. It’s not that she can’t READ people, because she CAN; she just doesn’t seem the least bit interested in anything that might necessarily apply to HER. On one hand there’s a pretty good reason for that: she firmly believes no one would care about her because she’s so low in the overall hierarchy that she doesn’t think anyone would care about her welfare. On the other hand, she’s just the type of person who’s not easily impressed by anyone. She knows how to act in front of her social betters, but that’s just manners; she doesn’t go out of her way to impress anyone because, in her opinion, it’s a waste of time.

What this means is that Maomao has some entertaining, and often outright HILARIOUS, interactions with the other residents of the rear palace. There is a moment in the novel where some ladies-in-waiting concoct a tragic backstory for Maomao that Maomao finds annoying - not only because it gets the facts of her life wrong, but also because it prevents her from working as much as she used to. Despite that, though, she tends to let it slide because the privileges she gains from the misunderstanding allow her to do OTHER things that are more aligned with her preferences. There’s a lot of “It is what it is, I should just make the most of it” to Maomao’s outlook in life, which is juxtaposed against her intense curiosity and willingness to go to any lengths to find the answer to any question she might have.

And then there is Jinshi: the beautiful eunuch who is constantly giving Maomao migraines. At first he’s an almost adversarial character, but that’s only because the reader first sees him through Maomao’s THOROUGHLY unimpressed eyes. It becomes clear later on that Jinshi isn’t all that he seems to be on the surface - something that Maomao figures out herself later on, though that doesn’t lessen her annoyance at him. It’s also through Maomao’s interactions with Jinshi and his assistant Gaoshun that the reader gets a sense of something brewing in the palace - something that goes beyond the games and intrigues of the imperial consorts and their ladies. Still, it’s clear his and Maomao’s dynamic is something to keep an eye on, and it’s easy to see why they’re popular as a ship in the manga and anime fandoms.

Overall, this is a very quick and entertaining read. Maomao’s an absolutely endearing character, both because she is extraordinary and extraordinarily flawed. The way she interacts with the characters around her and navigates rear palace politics often make for hilarious moments, but they make for some pretty interesting mysteries for Maomao to solve as well. It’s interesting to see where Maomao’s curiosity will take her, and what mysteries she will unravel - not just in the rear palace, but perhaps in the Imperial court itself.

Rating: five rare herbs

Manga Monday: The Apothecary Diaries Vol. 1

Artist: NekokurageWriter: Natsu HyuugaPublisher: Square Enix MangaReleased: December 8, 2020Received: Library Find it on Goodreads | More Manga Summary: Maomao spent the earliest parts of her life training in herbal medicine. She had a path in life that she loved. Unfortunately, that was all ripped away from her when she was captured and sold to the inner palace. Now, she works as a lowly…

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IWD 24: Celebrating the Women of the Anime, Manga, and Light Novel Industries

A warm welcome back, everyone! Here we are again, for the third year running, celebrating some of our favorite women creatives who work in anime, manga, and light novels. Now, anime is known for its cute girls and strong female protagonists, and some incredibly talented women seiyuu voice them. But on International Women’s Day, we like to highlight the women who are a little more behind the scenes, the ones you may not have heard of and whose names may not make it onto top ten lists in the aniblogosphere, even though they’ve been instrumental in bringing us our top ten anime, manga, and light novels, as writers, animators, mangaka, directors and composers. This year, we’re featuring quite a few up-and-comers so that you can get in on the ground floor of the fandom and enjoy following their careers in the years to come.

So without further ado, let’s dive into this year’s homage!

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Animators • Composers • Directors • Light Novelists • Mangaka

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Touko Amekawa • Aki Hamazi • Kanna “Kappe” Hirayama • Natsu Hyuuga • Youko Kanamori • Yoko Kuno • Jun Mayuzuki • Hiromi Uehara • Kanehito Yamada

(Read More)

The Apothecary Diaries | Kusuriya no Hitorigoto – Chapter 62 ◉ The Hunt (Part 2)

if this is referring to the lihaku x maomao that's in the episode i just wanna say i am grateful

Kusuriya no Hitorigoto Vol.13

Kusuriya no Hitorigoto TV Anime Adaptation Announced for 2023

https://wp.me/p4jiOt-dg4

Japanese multimedia corporation Toho has announced that Natsu Hyuuga and Megumi Matsuda’s Kusuriya no Hitorigoto (The Apothecary Diaries) is being…

#薬屋のひとりごと #anime #KusuriyaNoHitorigoto

The Apothecary Diaries by Natsu Hyuuga and Nekokurage

Maomao, a young woman trained in the art of herbal medicine, is forced to work as a servant in the inner palace. Due to her affinity for medicine, she is tasked to be the food tester, a job most people dread because of the high risk of death. She is also tasked as an unofficial doctor when the imperial heirs are afflicted with illness, adding more tasks to her plate. Although her personality is unusual for someone living in the palace, she finds friends along the way, some in very high places.

I have read through the first 4 volumes and I love this story. I can’t wait to find the next volume! 

She is the definition of an oddball, which is a refreshing change from most protagonists who are trying to fit in. She is unapologetically herself, which can land her into some trouble. She has a very different perspective since she was not thrilled to be picked as an attendant, when most young women think of it as the highest station they could reach.

I think my favorite part of the story is how off she is. She intentionally makes herself more unappealing to other by drawing in freckles, something that is not seen as beautiful in this universe. She also has a masochistic streak, which is very funny to see. She is so interested by poison that she does not care about the possibility of dying. She tastes poisons, savors the pain, and informs the others that there was poison in the food. It is honestly hilarious to see people confront her about this trait, which is mentioned multiple times throughout the story. 

I also admire the rapport she has with her co-workers and her mistress, and the other mistresses of the house. They see her as a breath of fresh air and very bold as a woman. She earns the favor of multiple mistresses, and has caught the eye of one of the high ranking males in the palace. She is an anomaly and they can’t quite figure her out; and no one seems to be able to figure out who she was before she entered the palace.

The art is also very pleasing and sticks to a standard manga look. It had all these gorgeous scenes that truly highlight Maomao, while also depicting these beautiful natural landscapes.

I highly recommend this read to anyone interested in Japanese history, apothecaries, and general fun!