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乙嫁語り [Otoyomegatari] #14
Bride Stories T14
Une fresque épique, humaine et tendre à la fois dont on ressort ému, mais le coeur gonflé d'énergie ! Accompagné de sa fiancée, d'Ali et de Nikolovski, Smith a entamé un nouveau périple, cette fois consacré à la photographie... Les sujets ne manquent pas : c'est d'abord un vieil homme qui fête son retour de pèlerinage, puis la somptueuse demeure du couple qui avait précédemment hébergé l'Anglais à Téhéran.
Dans une région où les deux sexes ne se mélangent pas, la présence de Talas permet de documenter les quartiers des femmes avant que le petit groupe ne reprenne la route... Prochaine étape : Muynak ! Quel accueil les jumelles Layla et Leyli réserveront-elles aux voyageurs ?
Dans une région où les deux sexes ne se mélangent pas, la présence de Talas permet de documenter les quartiers des femmes avant que le petit groupe ne reprenne la route... Prochaine étape : Muynak ! Quel accueil les jumelles Layla et Leyli réserveront-elles aux voyageurs ?
178 pages, Pocket Book
First published October 20, 2022
9 people are currently reading
195 people want to read
About the author
Kaoru Mori
100 books851 followersKaoru Mori (森 薫) is a Japanese manga author. Her stories tend to be intricately drawn female lead historical dramas set in exotic locations like Britain and along the silk road. Her series include Emma (2002-2008), Shirley (2003-present) and the best known A Bride's Tale (2008-present).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews
November 5, 2022
全てがとても美しいです。次巻が待ち遠しいです。
December 16, 2023
Time for some new brides!
The looming threat of Russian invasion has some Central Asian clans considering a potential alliance. Marriage between two clans would help cement the proposal, but first the Halgal men will have to prove themselves worthy by defeating the Jandiq women in a thrilling horse race that takes up majority of this volume's pages.
Beautifully illustrated, as all books by Kaoru Mori are.
The looming threat of Russian invasion has some Central Asian clans considering a potential alliance. Marriage between two clans would help cement the proposal, but first the Halgal men will have to prove themselves worthy by defeating the Jandiq women in a thrilling horse race that takes up majority of this volume's pages.
Beautifully illustrated, as all books by Kaoru Mori are.
August 7, 2023
Mori continues being an amazing storyteller and also just simply very talented artist! I really love how smoothly this story just goes and I also love how diverse Mori makes the characters and the bodies!!
September 26, 2023
I love the new brides so much, omg!!! They're all so perfect for each other, but I think that Baimat and his wife were my favorite of the trio. The way he's so gentle and kind with her, after all she's been through, my heart!! I definitely want to see more of them in the next volume. I loved how forward Joruk's bride was, how she tells him he's cute and that she wants 10 children right off the bat lol. She kind of reminds me of the twins, Leily and Leila Azel's bride is strong and fierce, I think that they truly make an awesome match. I hope that the next volume is all about these new couples!!
June 29, 2024
The horse racing was cool, and as always, the art was gorgeous.
January 28, 2024
What an absolute delight to be back in this series!! I loved the all the details in the horse race! Azel is amazing and I was so happy to see how his romance came to be!! And damn did he pick a good one wife!! She is amazing and bow down to her!! Amir is just so precious with her excitement of not only the return of her hubby but the horse race in general. And don't get me started on the adorableness of Aigul!! She is going to be spoiled rotten and given the love she truly deserves!!
May 16, 2024
Amiraa ja Karlukia vähemmän tässä. Kirjakin tuntuu ohuemmalta. Uutta erilaista paperia käytetty, muste ei leviä. Hienosti piirrettyjä hevosia ja kaikkee. Tykkään!
March 15, 2024
Como siempre el dibujo, es una obra de arte, y con eso que aqui hay carreras de caballos, logra darle esa movilidad al dibujo.
Pero aquí no solo el dibujo es magnifique, la historia especifica de este tomo es emocionante.
SPOILERS
5 stars
Que sigue siendo super creepy leer sobre Amir y Karduk.
J
Pero aquí no solo el dibujo es magnifique, la historia especifica de este tomo es emocionante.
SPOILERS
5 stars
Que sigue siendo super creepy leer sobre Amir y Karduk.
J
July 6, 2024
Feeling anxious about the future of this series. It's clearly not over, but the author appears to have been experiencing some health concerns over the past few years, and nothing new has been published since 2022. Here's hoping Ms. Mori is improving and we will eventually see further volumes of this superb historical graphic series.
November 7, 2024
The boys got married!!! Yay!!
Horse racing is the best, I really want to have a horse now haha
Author - in the race, were you trying to kill him (azel)
Bekhe Jahan - if he'd died, he wouldn't be much of a man, would he?
So damn right hahahahaha
Love this woman
Horse racing is the best, I really want to have a horse now haha
Author - in the race, were you trying to kill him (azel)
Bekhe Jahan - if he'd died, he wouldn't be much of a man, would he?
So damn right hahahahaha
Love this woman
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 24, 2025
Mori enters her horse girl phase. Some real beautiful drawings of horses this time around. I don't know what will happen with the upcoming war with Russia, but I'd be happy if this book was all cultural and historical vibes on the steppes
January 16, 2025
Toujours aussi génial et aussi beau, juste dommage que la couverture spoile un peu l'issue du plot principal de ce tome. Ça fait toujours trop plaisir de recroiser Amir et Karluk :3
May 9, 2023
Un tome un peu à part dans la série, où l’explorateur Smith brille par son absence et où Karluk et Amir sont très peu présents. L’histoire se focalise sur les pourparlers entre les différents clans pour organiser la résistance face à la future invasion russe. Dans le cadre des alliances à venir, Azher, le frère d’Amir, va devoir prouver sa vaillance en remportant une course de chevaux face à celle qui, en cas de victoire, pourrait devenir sa future épouse.
Résultat, un tome regorgeant d’action où les chevaux occupent une place centrale. Kaoru Mori l’avoue d’ailleurs dans la postface, c’est son envie de dessiner « plein de fiers destriers » qui l’a poussée à développer longuement cet épisode de course équestre dans la steppe. Un événement lui permettant également d’introduire de nouveaux personnages féminins marquants qui devraient occuper une place importante dans les chapitres à venir.
Ce quatorzième tome se lit à la vitesse d’un cheval au galop, ce qui pourrait être frustrant si on ne prenait pas la peine de s’attarder sur la beauté de chaque case où, comme de coutume, aucun détail n’est laissé au hasard. C’est sans doute en grande partie à cause de cette recherche de perfection graphique que l’attente entre chaque nouveau volume est aussi longue (presque deux ans depuis la publication du précédent !). La patience est une vertu, parait-il. Il va malheureusement falloir en faire preuve pour découvrir la suite de cette épatante série !
Résultat, un tome regorgeant d’action où les chevaux occupent une place centrale. Kaoru Mori l’avoue d’ailleurs dans la postface, c’est son envie de dessiner « plein de fiers destriers » qui l’a poussée à développer longuement cet épisode de course équestre dans la steppe. Un événement lui permettant également d’introduire de nouveaux personnages féminins marquants qui devraient occuper une place importante dans les chapitres à venir.
Ce quatorzième tome se lit à la vitesse d’un cheval au galop, ce qui pourrait être frustrant si on ne prenait pas la peine de s’attarder sur la beauté de chaque case où, comme de coutume, aucun détail n’est laissé au hasard. C’est sans doute en grande partie à cause de cette recherche de perfection graphique que l’attente entre chaque nouveau volume est aussi longue (presque deux ans depuis la publication du précédent !). La patience est une vertu, parait-il. Il va malheureusement falloir en faire preuve pour découvrir la suite de cette épatante série !
December 22, 2023
Magnificent. The art of this manga continues to amaze me. I can't imagine how long it takes to create each panel with such intricate detail. Even if the story weren't good (it is good), I would enjoy turning each page. The story in this volume is focused on a single group of characters and each of their marriages. Each three of the men find very different wives but wives that fit them in (I thought) surprising ways, especially Baimat (I really like his character). The plot doesn't move forward, but that's just fine. This manga could go on forever, and I would be just fine.
March 1, 2024
I had imagined that A Bride’s Story, Volume 14, by Kaoru Mori, moight just be the penultimate volume, as things in previous volumes seemed to be moving toward wrapping things up. Get this, I began reading this series ELEVEN YEARS ago (?!). And I still like everything about it--the historical fiction set on the Silk Road set in the nineteenth century, the beautiful costumes, the realistic settings, the action sequences, the sort of ethnographic approach to the culture.
In this one we point to the historical roots of Russian invasions, as they seem to be threatening to take over the region. So two clans, the Halgal and Jandiq, normally at odds with each other, decide to join forces. And in keeping with the principles of romantic adventure, they decide that intermarriage between clans would help solidify the alliance. Sure, why not?
But first of course we somehow need a horse race between Halgal men and Jandiq women, which manga-ka Mori admits in an afterword gives her a chance to draw multiple wordless panels of beautiful horses--like a third or more of the book. So, if a Halgal man wins his race with a Jandiq woman, he gets to choose his bride, but it is also clear that the Jandiq women must agree to the union, and it is also clear the women make moves in the direction of men they like. In Mori's nineteenth-century, girls and women know how to navigate the patriarchy to get what they want.
Oh, and central characters Amir and Karluk--married when she was twenty and he was twelve, out of political motivation, initially, and, yes, arranged marriages in Central Asia then were not of course uncommon--are reunited, yay. I am not sure we needed more characters--more brides!!--to keep track of at this late date, but whatever, it's all good.
In this one we point to the historical roots of Russian invasions, as they seem to be threatening to take over the region. So two clans, the Halgal and Jandiq, normally at odds with each other, decide to join forces. And in keeping with the principles of romantic adventure, they decide that intermarriage between clans would help solidify the alliance. Sure, why not?
But first of course we somehow need a horse race between Halgal men and Jandiq women, which manga-ka Mori admits in an afterword gives her a chance to draw multiple wordless panels of beautiful horses--like a third or more of the book. So, if a Halgal man wins his race with a Jandiq woman, he gets to choose his bride, but it is also clear that the Jandiq women must agree to the union, and it is also clear the women make moves in the direction of men they like. In Mori's nineteenth-century, girls and women know how to navigate the patriarchy to get what they want.
Oh, and central characters Amir and Karluk--married when she was twenty and he was twelve, out of political motivation, initially, and, yes, arranged marriages in Central Asia then were not of course uncommon--are reunited, yay. I am not sure we needed more characters--more brides!!--to keep track of at this late date, but whatever, it's all good.
May 21, 2024
4,5
L'imminente invasione russa spinge la gente delle città a cercare un accordo con le tribù della steppa. Un accordo che permetta di unire le forze in caso di attacco nemico e che favorisca il commercio tra le due anime del territorio. Impegnato a proteggere la sopravvivenza del suo clan, Azer sa che è il momento di stringere dei legami con altre tribù...ergo, è tempo di trovare una moglie, sia per se stesso che per gli amici che lo seguono da una vita. E visto che si tratterebbe di un'unione tra due clan della steppa, non basta una semplice proposta: Azer deve dimostrare di essere un uomo forte e risoluto. Il risultato? Una corsa a cavallo che vede opposti Azer, Baimat e Joluk alle figlie del loro futuro suocero - donne che sono delle cavallerizze esperte, donne intraprendenti che sanno combattere e che non hanno alcuna intenzione di farsi proteggere da un uomo. E alla fine si celebreranno non uno, ma bensì tre matrimoni. Il futuro della tribù degli Hargal sembra essere assicurato e l'alleanza tra città e steppa è diventata ufficiale. Su questa felicità pesa come un macigno l'ombra della guerra incombente. Spero di avere presto tra le mani il volume 15 (anche se ci spero poco 😭) perché voglio vedere come evolveranno le cose. E poi sono curiosa di vedere se la sensei ci mostrerà il viaggio di Smith e Talas.
P.s.: Azer super bono, ma direi che anche la moglie non scherza 😂
P.s. parte seconda: i disegni sono sempre meravigliosi. So che lo scrivo in tutte le recensioni, ma, come si suol dire, repetita iuvant.
L'imminente invasione russa spinge la gente delle città a cercare un accordo con le tribù della steppa. Un accordo che permetta di unire le forze in caso di attacco nemico e che favorisca il commercio tra le due anime del territorio. Impegnato a proteggere la sopravvivenza del suo clan, Azer sa che è il momento di stringere dei legami con altre tribù...ergo, è tempo di trovare una moglie, sia per se stesso che per gli amici che lo seguono da una vita. E visto che si tratterebbe di un'unione tra due clan della steppa, non basta una semplice proposta: Azer deve dimostrare di essere un uomo forte e risoluto. Il risultato? Una corsa a cavallo che vede opposti Azer, Baimat e Joluk alle figlie del loro futuro suocero - donne che sono delle cavallerizze esperte, donne intraprendenti che sanno combattere e che non hanno alcuna intenzione di farsi proteggere da un uomo. E alla fine si celebreranno non uno, ma bensì tre matrimoni. Il futuro della tribù degli Hargal sembra essere assicurato e l'alleanza tra città e steppa è diventata ufficiale. Su questa felicità pesa come un macigno l'ombra della guerra incombente. Spero di avere presto tra le mani il volume 15 (anche se ci spero poco 😭) perché voglio vedere come evolveranno le cose. E poi sono curiosa di vedere se la sensei ci mostrerà il viaggio di Smith e Talas.
P.s.: Azer super bono, ma direi che anche la moglie non scherza 😂
P.s. parte seconda: i disegni sono sempre meravigliosi. So che lo scrivo in tutte le recensioni, ma, come si suol dire, repetita iuvant.
March 14, 2025
As wonderful as always!
Volume 15 is out in Japanese, which means that I can read volume 14! I am trying to minimize waiting times between volumes, you see ;)))
And here is the lovely, lovely detailed art. I wonder how Kaoru Mori manages to keep up the amazing quality, perfectionism, and very nerdy historical research volume after volume after volume… Picking up this series again and seeing Amir and Karluk is like coming home. I got a shock when somebody said that they have now been married for a year. 14 volumes and only a year has passed? I wonder where we will end up at this rate. No, no, I am not complaining! Keep them coming, that’s all I am saying.
Yes, we are still in Central Asia in the 19th century. There is unrest and a threat of war. Tribes and clans of the steppe talk about what is to be done. Should there be an alliance? Should there be marriages? Let’s have a horse race, so that grooms may prove worthy of their brides from other clans. Men are to compete with the women. ”The way a person rides never lies.”
Can you hear the hoof beats from the panels? Can you see the horses flying across the steppe? And riders exchanging glances that would melt any ice?
Most of this volume is about the horse race. Did the mangaka just want to draw lots of gorgeous horses? She says something about this in the afterword :)
The ending was very touching.
Volume 15 is out in Japanese, which means that I can read volume 14! I am trying to minimize waiting times between volumes, you see ;)))
And here is the lovely, lovely detailed art. I wonder how Kaoru Mori manages to keep up the amazing quality, perfectionism, and very nerdy historical research volume after volume after volume… Picking up this series again and seeing Amir and Karluk is like coming home. I got a shock when somebody said that they have now been married for a year. 14 volumes and only a year has passed? I wonder where we will end up at this rate. No, no, I am not complaining! Keep them coming, that’s all I am saying.
Yes, we are still in Central Asia in the 19th century. There is unrest and a threat of war. Tribes and clans of the steppe talk about what is to be done. Should there be an alliance? Should there be marriages? Let’s have a horse race, so that grooms may prove worthy of their brides from other clans. Men are to compete with the women. ”The way a person rides never lies.”
Can you hear the hoof beats from the panels? Can you see the horses flying across the steppe? And riders exchanging glances that would melt any ice?
Most of this volume is about the horse race. Did the mangaka just want to draw lots of gorgeous horses? She says something about this in the afterword :)
The ending was very touching.
January 9, 2024
Un numero abbastanza importante nell'economia della storia. In vista dell'invasione Russa i popoli delle steppe e quelli delle città cercano di forgiare un'allenza, saldata da una serie di matrimoni tra clan. Così i fratelli di Amira si guadagneranno tutti una sposa in linea col loro carattere.
Molto bella la gara a cavallo, ottimi come sempre i disegni delle decorazioni dei vestiti, dei finimenti dei cavalli. Forse un pò troppo buonismo, perché i maltrattamenti verso le donne, in questa serie in genere appena accennati, erano, e sono anche oggi, molto maggiori.
Comunque un volume da 4 stelle e mezza che pone una domanda sul futuro della serie: quando gli zaristi attaccheranno, e come Storia vuole devasteranno l'emirato di Bukhara, cosa vedremo accadere ai nostri numerosi protagonisti?
Molto bella la gara a cavallo, ottimi come sempre i disegni delle decorazioni dei vestiti, dei finimenti dei cavalli. Forse un pò troppo buonismo, perché i maltrattamenti verso le donne, in questa serie in genere appena accennati, erano, e sono anche oggi, molto maggiori.
Comunque un volume da 4 stelle e mezza che pone una domanda sul futuro della serie: quando gli zaristi attaccheranno, e come Storia vuole devasteranno l'emirato di Bukhara, cosa vedremo accadere ai nostri numerosi protagonisti?
November 27, 2022
More cringy affection between Karluk and Amir (now 13 and 21, gross af), more marrying off subservient submissive women, and God forbid a woman beats a man in a race for once, so Azel just picks her off her horse and carries her like a calf over his shoulder to the finish line. Demeaning and objectifying. And the female characters all happily play along because they only live for men and have regressed childlike minds in Kaoru Mori's bordering on fetishization fantasy.
Also, I'm calling it, Mori is gonna pair off Azel's broad, muscular, black, manly stallion with Bekhe's sleek, feminine, beautiful, girly (ugh!) Akhal Teke.
Also, I'm calling it, Mori is gonna pair off Azel's broad, muscular, black, manly stallion with Bekhe's sleek, feminine, beautiful, girly (ugh!) Akhal Teke.
November 1, 2023
This was an interesting continuation of Azel and Halgal clan's story, it was interesting to see the race and the later weddings. The little glimpse's of Amir and Karluk through out the story was funny and cute, their relationship has grown and they are enjoyable to read about. The three brides had such different personality's that fit the three men perfectly. This was a beautiful and brilliant story, with the marriage leading to the alliances to with stand the Russians. The art style is so beautiful and the story was brilliant, it was so worth the read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 21, 2024
I am done all of the available books! 😫 I love this series so much!! I need more now!
This one didn’t have a lot of dialogue since most of it was the horse race to see if Azel & his cousins would get a chance to become betrothed, but it was exciting and different! Loved it!
I love that the three girls are all very different and the blossoming relationship between Baimat & Aigul could become another favourite.
I can’t wait for more!!!
4.25/5 (would be a 4.5 but it felt short because of the less dialogue and the actual weddings felt a little rushed in the end).
This one didn’t have a lot of dialogue since most of it was the horse race to see if Azel & his cousins would get a chance to become betrothed, but it was exciting and different! Loved it!
I love that the three girls are all very different and the blossoming relationship between Baimat & Aigul could become another favourite.
I can’t wait for more!!!
4.25/5 (would be a 4.5 but it felt short because of the less dialogue and the actual weddings felt a little rushed in the end).
July 18, 2024
I mainlined the series thus far this weekend & it is so so so good! The best word I have for it is Lush, the illustrations, the story, the world building is all so full and vibrant. It's a fairly slow moving story focusing mostly on slice of life and character development with some bursts of wild excitement from time to time, but that suits me down to the ground. Even the plot lines I'm less excited about are wonderful to get updated on and I love seeing how each story weaves in and out of the others. I'll read as many of these as Kaoru Mori wants to give us and then beg for more!
December 5, 2024
I went through most of this going, who are these people - it had been a while, and I didn't realise it was Amir's brother and cousins. I remember them being baddies in the beginning, then being rehabbed in Volume 6 (I had to go back to look this up). And now they're vying for wives in an exciting horse race, as Russia closes in on the steppes. Very interesting, gorgeous as always, . I'm not even big on clothes and even I think they're pretty. The horses, too, were so sleek even in black and white.
January 1, 2025
On retrouve dans ce tome Amir et Karluk ainsi que le frère d'Amir, Azher, lors d'une épique course de chevaux aux enjeux plus que cruciaux.
Tome toujours trop court à mon goût car j'aime beaucoup l'ambiance, les personnages, l'aspect historique du manga.
La menace russe prend de l'ampleur et on se doute que la suite des aventures des personnages ne va pas être de tout repos.
Mais pour ça il faudra attendre la parution du 15eme tome en avril...
La série n'est pas terminée et la mangaka écrit 1 tome tous les ans ou tous les 2 ans.
(Bienvenue à la frustration!)
Tome toujours trop court à mon goût car j'aime beaucoup l'ambiance, les personnages, l'aspect historique du manga.
La menace russe prend de l'ampleur et on se doute que la suite des aventures des personnages ne va pas être de tout repos.
Mais pour ça il faudra attendre la parution du 15eme tome en avril...
La série n'est pas terminée et la mangaka écrit 1 tome tous les ans ou tous les 2 ans.
(Bienvenue à la frustration!)
April 8, 2024
I continue to give this series 5 stars and it's all about the art. The illustrations bring to life the people and rituals of the central Asian steppe. There is simply no other manga as detailed and enjoyable as this series.
Amir & Karluk are cuter than ever. Plus a fast paced high risk, high reward horse race. Masterful pen and ink. Intriguing new characters have been introduced. I'm hopeful this series has much life left in it!
Amir & Karluk are cuter than ever. Plus a fast paced high risk, high reward horse race. Masterful pen and ink. Intriguing new characters have been introduced. I'm hopeful this series has much life left in it!
June 22, 2025
It was lovely to be back with this series. I am so glad that the brothers from the Steppe got a chance to get brides. And we got pages and pages of lovely horses. Love this series. I may have to read it again to settle on the final rating (or maybe twice more), but I enjoyed the art-work a lot. A bulk of the text was about a horse race so this is recommended for all the horse-fans out there.
And yes, the characters are nice too. But the horses. ❤❤❤❤
And yes, the characters are nice too. But the horses. ❤❤❤❤
September 20, 2023
This volume is 50% horses by weight. A racing contest for brides, and a most necessary alliance, lots of fun new characters, and also gorgeous art. Love how good Mori's writing is, especially in a volume that has so little of it (because most of it is art of horses running :) but it all still does exactly what it needs to.
September 30, 2023
The long periods between volumes is definitely getting to be a hardship as I have no memory of why Karluk is where he is. That said, this was a fun book, with the centerpiece being a fantastic horse race that allowed Mori to draw lots and lots of pretty horses. And we get a triple wedding this time, which is probably good for future volumes if I can remember any of this in a year.
January 16, 2024
This might be one of the few manga series where I want to own every volume. The illustrations are detailed and GORGEOUS without being distracting for a moment. And the story in this volume was kind of amusing, as three of Amir's clansmen including her brother get brides of their own through a horse race- against their prospective brides. Wonderful, no notes.
July 27, 2024
Les évènements se bousculent dans ce 14ème tome : alors que Smith et Talas prennent la route des Indes et que la guerre avec la Russie se précise au Turkestan, les clans nomades s'unissent pour défendre leurs terres. L'occasion pour Azher d'enfin prendre femme, dans des circonstances épiques à la hauteur de ce personnage charismatique.
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