I’ll probably finish book 12 tonight. So hopefully will add impressions of 11-12 later on as well. For now I’ll just say that 11 provided some much needed character growth for Yumi, and I’m finding her more enjoyable to read now (she’s gained some more self-confidence, and is actually speaking up about things)). Also finding Sachiko more tolerable now. Have a somewhat different impression of Touko this time around as well.
Anyway I’ll add thoughts via the usual details tags, once I’m done later
Added reviews for 11-12, and further impressions in my comment above. Book 12 is the first time I genuinely fully enjoyed Yumi & Sachiko as a couple! Also it contains one of my favorite moments in the entire series! I’ve somehow forgotten what happens in the next volume, but I see it’s a 3-story one, so should be fun
Of possible interest: there is a marimite fan game マリア様の贈り物. It actually came out before the anime & the art style is quite different from both the LNs and the anime.
That looks way too moe, but still wanna give it a try
Is that installed on your computer? How’d you come across it? I found a copy on Suruga-ya: 男性向一般同人誌 マリア様がみてる マリア様の贈り物 / とろろ | 同人 | Suruga-ya.com - which I’m probably order, but it would be cool to install it digitally, since idk what the system requirements for the CD are
I’m case this matters for anyone, it is marked as: 男性向け、アダルト on the JP site
There are drama CDs of parts of the novels, with the anime VAs as well btw, but they’re a bit frustrating to find all together (physical or digital)
I dmed a slightly more detailed explanation but essentially, there are no digital copies for sale as the company doesn’t seem to be active anymore. There are rips of the game disc available on other places.
Added a review for book 13. I might add thoughts in my comment on here later, but tldr this is the first book I wasn’t so into. First story is great, but the other 2 just weren’t interesting to me (not to say I didn’t get any enjoyment from them, but I found myself skimming as it went on). As an aside, I find Sachiko’s 男嫌い thing pretty unrealistic (it made sense in vol 1, but here it’s like ???), but it’s a great plot device.
I’m kind of considering reading the afterword first in the future, so I’ll have more level expectations about what to expect from the stories, since unlike the anime it’s not always linear. Speaking of, the anime actually dropped the stories I didn’t like, so I feel somewhat vindicated
Otherwise I finally got some digital files for the drama CDs, so I’ll eventually leave some thoughts / description on those probably
You are really such a fast reader! Hope you can still enjoy reading multiple volumes of the same novel series in so long. I sometimes need something else to read and focus on.
Thank you for bringing that up! I also really enjoyed that scene. Both in the anime and in the novel. Though I must admit, I somehow overread the そのけん part and just saved くるまで in my head to remember
That was really a fresh scene. So un-typical of Sachiko And thank you for sharing 読書三昧 that sounds like a really useful word +grin+
Same here! But those jokes and mentions throughout the Marimite series let me think that there really is something going on between Yuuki and Kashiwagi-san. I need to start that series, soon
That seen! Having the melody and voices in the anime does a lot to the atmosphere. After I watched that episode I searched for the lyrics and went around singing that song It’s such a nice melody as well.
And as we already talked, it is really one of the best moments where those two wins over every other one in pleasing the old lady.
… though I must admit without spoilering, I reeeeeally enjoy the current volume I’m reading
I’m not actually that fast, I just devote (almost) all my spare time to reading. So far I’m still really enjoying it, and find the series pretty relaxing to read, even during the intense moments. I think as long as I stay in the groove I’ll be fine
book 12
She’s already been described as really not being a morning person multiple times, so I think it was typical - just we haven’t gotten to see it up close before. This whole volume was very fresh Sachiko
My impression, based on Yuuki’s comments and actions at various points is that it’s mostly like Sei with Yumi - but anyway we can both look forward with baited breath
Also (semi-major spoiler for anime S4 (so whatever volumes that covers through, 27 or w/e): it is implied that Suguru actually has some romantic feelings for Yumi, when he’s talking to Sachiko (and I think there’s some maybe hints along the way). And I really wanna know (I’m assuming the series won’t ever explicitly tell, but plz don’t mention if you do know)
It’s such a simple, yet catchy melody… interesting little song
That was what stuck in my head the most when I watched the anime. So it was cool seeing it spelled out in the book
My thoughts for 13 & 14 will probably be a bit less detailed, cuz I haven’t really been writing reactions as I’ve been reading, this time around
Added scattered thoughts/highlights for books 13-15, as well as reviews. Impressed that 15 managed to make the sports festival enjoyable. Really happy to move on from that! I don’t quite recall what book 16 would cover, but I’m looking forward to it
Finished book 16. It’s a bunch of side stories mostly, and besides that one of them fleshes out Tsutako a bit, and another that gives more details on Eriko’s situation, they didn’t really add much for me. Besides one section, I didn’t hate it - which for a book of side/background stories is decent praise, coming from me
Finished book 17 and wrote a review. Don’t really have any meaningful additional thoughts beyond that. Looking forward to returning to the main story in book 18, now that we basically had 2 intermission volumes.
After reading this I tried as well to use more of my spare time that I would have my phone in my hand (like while eating) to have the book instead in my hand, and I got to read a little bit more than usual as well. That was great! I’ll try to do this more often
Lately I thought it would have been great if I had started creating a character map right from the first volume of Marimite that I was starting with. I’m sure there are a lot of loose ends knotting together at what I’m reading now but I sometimes cannot remember where I had met that character
If they’re a character from anywhere in the anime (or first 18 volumes), feel free to ask me. I’ll probably remember, drive it’s pretty fresh in my head rn
That was really a nice story. I also enjoyed the Yumi & Yuuki interactions a lot. If I remember correctly, Alice is one of your favorite characters, right? So must have been enjoyable
What did Kanako tell about Alice? I don’t remember that part
Reply to book 15 impressions of ルナ
Hehe, that was a fangirl moment, reading this book and the interactions between Yumi x Touko and Kanako.
You are right. Maybe we get a flashback from Touko’s point of view later on to see whether or how she is struggling with Yumi. Maybe she still remembers those lines.
I remember thinking that Touko must have been very jealous of Kanako because of their wager. Did you also get that impression?
Oh, I agree. Touko probably was too shy to admit she wanted to dance with Yumi (and not with Sachiko)
Meeting Sachiko’s father by accident was really funny
That bet Yoshino made with Eriko or rather the situation where this bet was made is so typical of both of them and I fear I might have been swayed into prompting such a response as well. Lol
I also love animes focused on sports so I had a lot of sports vocabulary here that I already knew
Thank you! Lately I had a person where I was not sure whether she appeared in the anime at all so I didn’t want to ask But I’ll definitely ask else! <3
Yes, and I have more to say about Alice & the writing in Book 18 that I’ll say when I’m done with the book
When Yumi confronts her about stalking Yumi, and then also the Hanadera students, she specifically mentions/alludes to Alice. Kanako is very distrustful of Alice and uses the phrase おかまのくせに:
I don’t recall having that impression. Simply I thought Touko was worried for Yumi, but then Yumi’s whole 無防備 in general drives her crazy. That’s not the first time we’ve seen her get upset/flustered at Yumi for it.
I guess from Touko’s perspective it’s some mix of “wth is Yumi-sama thinking?!” “Yumi-sama is basically throwing all of this concern of mine right in my face”… which of course as readers, we know that Yumi has solid reasons for her response here. Touko isn’t entirely wrong tho - that bet could have been really disasterous, if Kanako had any sort of malice
It’s possible Touko was jealous, but I think she would have expressed it in a very different way if that were the case
Eriko is a formidable opponent
That’s great about the vocab My only sports anime/manga is アオのハコ, which actually I don’t think has much overlap with the vocab here. But I’ve read enough sports festival arcs in high school manga & novels at this point… which is part of why I don’t like reading them.
It’s really pricey to import japanese books where I live, so sometimes I check secondhand book listings on a site that focuses on them. I have NEVER in years found a japanese book I actually was interested in (very slim selections: anyone who cares enough to import books isn’t likely to resell them I guess). I was buying an unrelated english book and trying to add more to my cart for free shipping when I noticed marimite book 1 was actually listed! So of course I bought it I prefer to read digitally but I couldn’t let it pass. Maybe one day I can reread on paper.
I also found a bunch of other non-japanese things I wanted for years, yesterday I was oddly lucky.
Just finished book 20, and left a review (for 19 as well)!! 19 was fine - easier to read than the last book of side stories. 20 was exciting the whole way through, on the sisters front - especially with Tsutako & Shouko - like I knew that was gonna happen, back when I read Variety Chocolates, but it played out sooo nicely. Also the fact that Yumi set that up was soooo nice - especially considering it’s not in the anime.
I imagine there will be even more “this wasn’t in the anime” content going forward. I can’t wait!
Thank you for sharing!
But I’ll definitely ask else! <3
I prefer to read digitally but I couldn’t let it pass. Maybe one day I can reread on paper.