Gorgeous Carat, Volume 04

ゴージャス・カラット 暗闇の美徳 [Gorgeous Carat: Kurayami no Bitoku] #4

by You Higuri

As Florian struggles to recover his sanity, Noir and the gang head to Tunisia to locate the lost treasure of the Knights Templar. Meanwhile, an angry Azura is hot on their heels with vengeance on his mind. Secrets and mysteries are finally revealed in the fourth and final volume of Gorgeous Carat.

Genres: Manga, Yaoi, Romance, LGBT, Mystery, Adventure, Fiction

188 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2005

About the author

You Higuri (氷栗優) is a Japanese shōjo and yaoi manga artist. She is known especially for her drawings of beautiful fantasy men in romantic storylines set in historical Europe, such as Gorgeous Carat in early 20th-century France and Cantarella during the Italian Renaissance.

Source: Wikipedia

Reviews

[Kati · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the end of the first series and the resolution of the treasure hunting arc. I love how obsessed Ray is with Floréan's amethyst eyes - for Ray, they are the most beautiful jewels of all. I also loved that yes, even though Floréan is usually the damsel in distress - of that there can't be any doubt - he came to the rescue this time and saved the day. Also, the ending with the blue diamond was perfect. Ha!

[Myffanwy Geronazzo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay so like, I stick by my feelings of the weird pacing, it seemed pretty anticlimactic, but that being said, I love the setting. I think it took me a bit to truly appreciate the unique atmosphere that this manga has from the vast sea of standardized locations. I appreciate that. Overall I feel fairly neutral in the series. It's pretty inoffensive but it's missing that truly memorable...SOMETHING. maybe there were too many characters in the rushed plot, but it would have been valuable to spread this over 5 books and fill in some of these gaps.

[ashes ➷]

Okay, yes, I finally (re-)finished it. It's amazing how much awful racial stuff slipped over my head as a kid, down to characters praising French control of Tunisia. I'm sorry to say that all the sweet kiss scenes I recalled weren't quite as emotionally destructive as I recalled, but that's how all yaoi is; I'm kind of just glad they're there. Now on to the next arc (Gorgeous Carat Galaxy) and then to whatever I find next-- likely only fantranslated. Oh, out of print yaoi, there's nothing quite like you. And thank god for that, probably.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I ended up loving this so much! It had a unique adventure story coupled with intense angst and some tender relationships. I also appreciate the author not simply brushing off Florian's trauma, and feel she handled that plot with care. Overall a manga I'm so glad I took a chance on and I'm eager to read Galaxy next. Also these characters are absolutely gorgeous!

[[melanie] · Rating 3 out of 5]

not a bad ending, a little anticlimactic… crazy that this is worth fifty bucks (I got it for three)

[Sparrow · Rating 3 out of 5]

A rather confusing whirlwind of a conclusion. The fourth volume seemed hasty and not very well thought out. Florian recovered from his amnesia randomly... It was clear that Higuri could easily eliminate any characters she wanted that got in the way. Losing the treasure also kind of sucked...it seemed like there wasn't really a proper ending that indicated growth or change or anything. I remember being upset that Azura wasn't caught when I read it the first time, but being older now, I can appreciate that kind of ending. I still feel mildly disappointed that Florian and Noir's relationship never really reached a climax (in the face of death didn't really count for me). Ah well. It's still a decent shonen-ai series in terms of art, translation, and story. I'll always be fond of it.

Here's a thought: is manga really more like soap operas in book form?

[Leila Anani · Rating 3 out of 5]

Concluding volume of 4 - this one plays out like an Indiana Jones movie. Everyone's on the hunt for the secret trasure of the Knights Templar and power hungry villain Azura simply will not die! He's been shot, pushed off a cliff and still at large!

Really exciting story with fab locations, and excellent characters. My two criticisms are that the story is a tiny bit melodramatic and that there isn't enough yaoi content, its hinted at but never really in enough detail to appease yaoi fans. Great fun read though, if a bit lite.

[Sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great series - You Higiri's art is very beautiful, and it was an engaging story with great characters and lots of excitement. And Templars! I loved this a lot more than I thought I would when picking up the first book.