Familiar Diversions

I had the day off from work, and it was wonderful. As stressful as the past couple weeks have been, I decided I deserved a book shopping trip (with raspberry white chocolate cheesecake at the end!). However, I hadn't planned for the trip, so the pile of books I offloaded was tiny. I ended up breaking my "always sell a larger pile of books than you buy" rule, big time. Maybe I can put together a library donation pile to make up for it.

Anyway, I thought I'd list some of the highlights of my trip.

Battle Royale - Koushun Takami - I've been wanting to give this one a try, but it makes me nervous. I hope this is one of those where all the characters are horrible and easy to hate, because I'd rather not have my heart ripped out as the body count rises.

Owning a copy means I can take as long as I need to to read it when I finally get around to it. And then I can decide whether I'll be able to stomach watching the movie.

  Black Lagoon, Vol. 1 - Rei Hiroe  - I've seen the first season of the anime. I liked it, but didn't love it. That is, until the homicidal maid showed up. If I remember correctly, she had grenades in her skirt and a machine gun in her suitcase. It was fabulous.

I picked up several volumes of this (yay for used bookstores that make this possible for me to do without emptying my bank account!), but I only just now spent more than a few seconds flipping through them. The first volume has the homicidal maid. Score!

Meridian #01: Flying Solo - Karl Kesel  - This stirred vague nostalgic feelings within me. It took me a bit to realize why. I first read this years ago, back when I was in college.

Apparently it made an impression on me, but not a huge one, or I'd remember more about it. I decided to get it anyway. The colors are pretty.

Rurouni Kenshin, Vol. 1 (VIZBIG Edition) - Nobuhiro Watsuki - This is destined to be donated to my library, after I've reread and reviewed it. I'd like the stuff I donate to represent a variety of genres, and, so far, the stuff I've donated has mostly been romance.

Although this does contain some romance, the emphasis is on over-the-top battles. Also, because some of its characters are actual historical figures, it could be considered educational. A little. Kind of. If you squint.

We'll see if I can bring myself to part with this when it's time. I remember enjoying Rurouni Kenshin when I first read it, and this big three-in-one volume is pretty nice.

The Prince Who Charmed Her - Fiona McArthur - This was part of a Harlequin Medical Romance mystery package. I have wanted to try a Harlequin Medical Romance for a while, just to see what they're like, and $3 for a pack of seven books was enticing. One of these seven books should work for me, I hope.

Now that I've unwrapped the package, I'm a little worried, though. Babies are mentioned in the descriptions of at least half of these books. Babies aren't necessarily a dealbreaker for me when it comes to romance novels, but I'm not overly fond of them. Oh well, at least it's just babies and not sickeningly adorable small children.

Midnight Secretary, Vol. 2 - Tomu Ohmi - Most of my purchases today were used. My Midnight Secretary purchases were the only exception. I've already devoured the second volume, and I'm wondering if I'll come to regret buying these volumes. I loved the first volume. I am...very unhappy...with the way volume 2 turned out. I've started the third volume, and things haven't improved yet. I would really like Kaya to put her foot down, tell Kyohei exactly what he can do with his vampiric pride, and focus her attention on her career. Let Kyohei remove the stick from his butt on his own.