Bleach Volume 3: Memories in the Rain

And now Ichigo has a purpose. The first two volumes he was a Soul Reaper because he had to be, here he becomes one because he wants to be. There's a bit more background into his character and the classic tragedy that most heroes have to live through. I'm excited to keep reading to see how things progress.

I'll give it a 5.

Hordes: Evolution

Evolution is the first expansion of the Hordes system from Privateer Press. It's adds a couple of new warlocks for each faction, unit attachments, cavalry and weapon crews. It added things that I use for nearly every build. I still think Primal has the better 'locks but there are some things in this book that I hate to leave out due to lack of points.

I'll give it a 4.

Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister

Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire takes the story of Cinderella and tells it from one of the stepsister's point of view. Everyone knows the story of Cinderella so, in a sense, I already knew how the story would end but I found it entertaining to delve into the motivations of the characters. What made the evil stepmother evil? How ugly were the stepsisters? How did Cinderella end up in the ashes.

There's no fairy godmother in this story. No mice and birds to help the girl get to the ball. It's historical fiction, set in Holland, and trying to stay as close to the story as possible. I liked Iris, the ugly stepsister, and I wanted her to end up with her "happily ever after".

The only complaint I have is that it's written in present tense. Novels that do that always confuse me a little. It doesn't have the sense of immediacy that I expect it's supposed to have. In third person present form it doesn't flow very well for me.

I'm giving it a 4.

Naruto Volume 1

This is the second super-popular manga I decided to start. It's currently on volume 35 or something. I don't know if I'll stick with it that long but I enjoyed the first one.

Naruto is about a young, incompetent ninja who wants to be one of the greats. He's brash, a prankster and not that talented but I think that's mostly him holding himself back. He's much more sympathetic than I thought he would be.

Naruto is also the world of an evolving artist. It was never intended to be a long running manga, and there are indications of that in the writing. Sometimes it feels like Kishimoto is just making stuff up as he goes along. Still, I liked it enough that I want to keep reading. I'm giving it a 4.

Bleach Volume 2

In Bleach Volume 2 Kubo continues to expand his world. The Parakeet story was a little harder to follow but still kept me interested. The character list is growing and I worry that there might soon be too many to keep track of. I'm still giving it a 5.

Bleach Volume 1

I admit it. I've fallen to the dark side and started not one, but two, of the most popular and longest running manga series. The first step is admitting the problem...

Bleach is about a boy, who can see ghosts and is then conscripted as a Soul Reaper. The world is rich and Kubo is doing a good job so far about drawing the reader into the culture that he's created. I like both Ichigo and Rukia and I want to find out more about what happens to them.

I'll give it a 5.

Chibi Vampire Volume 13

So that's why Karen is the way she is. I have a couple of ideas of where the story could end up in the final volume. I didn't really see the events of volume so I could be completely wrong. I like that this can surprise me. I keep expecting certain things of this fluff and it keeps proving me wrong. I'm giving it a 4.