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Mamachari Matchmaker
Shhh… Listen To The Gods.
The Japanese believe the gods live in all things. Trees, appliances, animals, buildings — they all have a spirit living within them. Maybe, if you listen carefully, you can hear them too.
This bike longs to be owned by a family with kids but is bought by a quiet, cosplaying, young woman instead.
How will Mamachari help Eriko to find true love?
The Japanese believe the gods live in all things. Trees, appliances, animals, buildings — they all have a spirit living within them. Maybe, if you listen carefully, you can hear them too.
This bike longs to be owned by a family with kids but is bought by a quiet, cosplaying, young woman instead.
How will Mamachari help Eriko to find true love?
Kindle Edition
First published July 20, 2015
About the author
S.J. Pajonas
58 books157 followers
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Stephanie (S. J.) is a writer, knitter, Capricorn, Japanophile, and USA Today Best Selling author. She loves summer, downtempo beats, yoga pants, foxes, owls, dogs, sushi, pasta, and black tea. She lives outside NYC with her husband, two great kids, and her dog who always wants to play. When it comes to her work, she writes about everyday women and uncommon worlds. Find her online at https://www.spajonas.com
Stephanie (S. J.) is a writer, knitter, Capricorn, Japanophile, and USA Today Best Selling author. She loves summer, downtempo beats, yoga pants, foxes, owls, dogs, sushi, pasta, and black tea. She lives outside NYC with her husband, two great kids, and her dog who always wants to play. When it comes to her work, she writes about everyday women and uncommon worlds. Find her online at https://www.spajonas.com
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
January 18, 2016
This story was delightful! I loved the relationship between Erica and the green bicycle. Erica is twenty-two years old and she’s at a point in her life when she realizes she needs to ditch her childish ways and become a mature adult, but she is floundering. All the fun begins when Erica buys a charming bicycle, with a life of its own, that can communicate with her. At first she doubts the bike’s intentions, as you would a new friend, but their relationship builds and at the end the bike becomes an integral part of her future family. Luckily, the bike has a sweet and supportive personality and it doesn’t take long for it to become the perfect friend for Erica, who desperately needs something or someone to build her confidence and help her find a boyfriend. The bike almost represents the ideal best friend so it’s a perfect companion for Erica who reminded me of many young Japanese girls who find it difficult to grow up because they are introverted and need constant reassurance. The bike is happy to provide advice, in a very protective and assertive way, and this provides humour as well as depth to the storyline. Erica also loves reading manga (Japanese comic books) and she is interested in cosplay, a hugely popular performance art in Japan which is embraced by many young Japanese people as well as lots of foreigners. If you have an interest in otaku, cosplay, or the kawaii culture then you’ll love these elements in the story. I think this story would be very successful if it were translated into Japanese and it would also make an enchanting anime (animation produced in Japan). Give it a go and you’ll discover it’s an uplifting and inspirational story that doesn’t take long to read and I have no doubt you’ll enjoy it as much as I did!
June 8, 2016
I loved this one. Eriko was just perfect, awkward and cute and sweet, Henry was charming and nice without falling into the goody-two-shoes trap. The talking mamachari was fun, and quirky. I loved the picnic scene in particular, but the whole plot was great. I enjoyed it a lot.
July 22, 2015
I received a copy in exchange for an honest review
I love this short story series by SJ Pajonas. The stories are short enough to read in one sitting and they are a lot of fun and always make me happy. They don't feel rushed and are very enjoyable. You would be able to read this series out of order as each book is about a different characters. This one features a Mamachari bike who wants to be owned by a family, but when someone buys him from the bike shop, it tuns out to be a single shy women who loves manga and cosplaying. Mamachari doesn't let go of his dreams and decides to find a guy for his new owner.
It was a fun and light-hearted story, I liked how the bike was trying to play matchmaker and how Eriko actually gave it a try with the encouragement of the bike. I like the stories with how these items have a personality and while they can't move of their own or go where they want to, they still have the power to help others around them who can hear them. I just love this concept and I think it would be fun to be able to talk to items and hear their stories or how they experience things. I liked the bike and how he was chasing his dream, even though he was a bike. Eriko was also a fun main characters, I liked how she loved her manga's and cosplay and didn't want to change to get a boyfriend. I liked how she was just herself and eventually found someone who liked her for who she was. Although I was a bit sad she threw out her plushies. I am grown up women and still have a lot of pluchies on my bed and am not throwing them away for any reason and I felt like Eriko didn't need to throw them away to be more mature. We meet one of Eriko her friends who is really mean and basically implied she had to change as she was an embarrassment, I am glad Eriko didn't listen, although it did make angry at that character. Why would you need to change to be loved? Eriko deserved to be loved like she was and I am glad that happened.
There is also a bit of romance in this book and it was just so cute and adorable and I was even a bit sad it was so short as I would've loved to see their relationship develop more. We get their first meeting and first date and it was just so sweet and fun to see them give this a try. I loved how Henry also liked manga's and liked Eriko for who she was. I also liked the twist how Henry was an American in Tokyo and was trying to be polite, but eventually that actually got him into some trouble as he didn't dare say no, but it was kinda funny. So the romance was really well done and it didn't feel rushed at all.
We get a few pieces of world building in this book. Like how it turns out there are lots of times with personalities and in the bike shop this Mamachari bike spoke with other bikes. There is also a mention of a toaster the main character Eriko had previously which she also could understand. This adds a piece of information to the world and it seems that quite some times have personalities, more than I expected at first.
To conclude: Another great short story! I love this series and how the items have personality and meet a person who can hear them. I really liked the characters in this one and the romance was sweet and well done. The epilogue was awesome as well. I also liked the message about finding someone who loves you how you are. And we learn a bit more about the world and the amount of items that have personality. These short stories always bring a smile to my face and leave me feeling happy. I can't wait for the next one!
I love this short story series by SJ Pajonas. The stories are short enough to read in one sitting and they are a lot of fun and always make me happy. They don't feel rushed and are very enjoyable. You would be able to read this series out of order as each book is about a different characters. This one features a Mamachari bike who wants to be owned by a family, but when someone buys him from the bike shop, it tuns out to be a single shy women who loves manga and cosplaying. Mamachari doesn't let go of his dreams and decides to find a guy for his new owner.
It was a fun and light-hearted story, I liked how the bike was trying to play matchmaker and how Eriko actually gave it a try with the encouragement of the bike. I like the stories with how these items have a personality and while they can't move of their own or go where they want to, they still have the power to help others around them who can hear them. I just love this concept and I think it would be fun to be able to talk to items and hear their stories or how they experience things. I liked the bike and how he was chasing his dream, even though he was a bike. Eriko was also a fun main characters, I liked how she loved her manga's and cosplay and didn't want to change to get a boyfriend. I liked how she was just herself and eventually found someone who liked her for who she was. Although I was a bit sad she threw out her plushies. I am grown up women and still have a lot of pluchies on my bed and am not throwing them away for any reason and I felt like Eriko didn't need to throw them away to be more mature. We meet one of Eriko her friends who is really mean and basically implied she had to change as she was an embarrassment, I am glad Eriko didn't listen, although it did make angry at that character. Why would you need to change to be loved? Eriko deserved to be loved like she was and I am glad that happened.
There is also a bit of romance in this book and it was just so cute and adorable and I was even a bit sad it was so short as I would've loved to see their relationship develop more. We get their first meeting and first date and it was just so sweet and fun to see them give this a try. I loved how Henry also liked manga's and liked Eriko for who she was. I also liked the twist how Henry was an American in Tokyo and was trying to be polite, but eventually that actually got him into some trouble as he didn't dare say no, but it was kinda funny. So the romance was really well done and it didn't feel rushed at all.
We get a few pieces of world building in this book. Like how it turns out there are lots of times with personalities and in the bike shop this Mamachari bike spoke with other bikes. There is also a mention of a toaster the main character Eriko had previously which she also could understand. This adds a piece of information to the world and it seems that quite some times have personalities, more than I expected at first.
To conclude: Another great short story! I love this series and how the items have personality and meet a person who can hear them. I really liked the characters in this one and the romance was sweet and well done. The epilogue was awesome as well. I also liked the message about finding someone who loves you how you are. And we learn a bit more about the world and the amount of items that have personality. These short stories always bring a smile to my face and leave me feeling happy. I can't wait for the next one!
July 20, 2015
*I received an ARC from the author, in exchange for an honest review.*
I’m really not a short story reader. But this series, Kami No Sekai, is really changing that. I just love the way S.J. makes these inanimate objects come to life, along with all her human main characters, too.
This time around, said main characters were a mamachari, or bike, and Eriko. I really liked Mamachari, who was a serious matchmaker. Wanting an owner with a family, the bike started out the story determined to push Eriko on guys. But the character development came when it started wanting her to be herself, no matter what.
As for Eriko, I really identified with her. She was a girl who liked sci-fi manga, and was afraid of expressing herself since she was usually rejected for her “geekiness”. Eriko was quite shy, too. But as the story progressed, she grew into a person who stood up for herself, and eventually, found love because of it.
The plot of this story was just as engaging as the others have been. As I previously stated, it followed the bike’s matchmaking attempts for Eriko. There were themes of loving yourself for who you are, and not being afraid to truly be yourself. I really liked it! Plus, it helped that I liked the love interest, Henry. Granted, he wasn’t developed to the extent of Eriko and the bike, as this is a short story. But he liked manga too, and I liked that he was a foreigner. It paralleled Eriko’s life, since she wasn’t like most of the othere girls she knew.
Overall, I definitely liked this story. The whole part about living inanimate objects is still fascinating to me, and I love that these stories are all set in Japan. Also, S.J. manages to do quite a lot with character development with few words. I definitely recommend this series. They’re fun, with some great themes.
I’m really not a short story reader. But this series, Kami No Sekai, is really changing that. I just love the way S.J. makes these inanimate objects come to life, along with all her human main characters, too.
This time around, said main characters were a mamachari, or bike, and Eriko. I really liked Mamachari, who was a serious matchmaker. Wanting an owner with a family, the bike started out the story determined to push Eriko on guys. But the character development came when it started wanting her to be herself, no matter what.
As for Eriko, I really identified with her. She was a girl who liked sci-fi manga, and was afraid of expressing herself since she was usually rejected for her “geekiness”. Eriko was quite shy, too. But as the story progressed, she grew into a person who stood up for herself, and eventually, found love because of it.
The plot of this story was just as engaging as the others have been. As I previously stated, it followed the bike’s matchmaking attempts for Eriko. There were themes of loving yourself for who you are, and not being afraid to truly be yourself. I really liked it! Plus, it helped that I liked the love interest, Henry. Granted, he wasn’t developed to the extent of Eriko and the bike, as this is a short story. But he liked manga too, and I liked that he was a foreigner. It paralleled Eriko’s life, since she wasn’t like most of the othere girls she knew.
Overall, I definitely liked this story. The whole part about living inanimate objects is still fascinating to me, and I love that these stories are all set in Japan. Also, S.J. manages to do quite a lot with character development with few words. I definitely recommend this series. They’re fun, with some great themes.
January 19, 2016
Mamachari Matchmaker was a cute and unique story about a bike, Mamachari, trying to play matchmaker for her owner, Eriko. It's Mamachari's dream to be owned by a young family and is determined to help her new single owner find a husband to start a family with. Eriko finds it hard to find a date, but resists her friends suggestions to be more 'normal' and stop cosplaying and talking about manga. She likes who she is and unwilling to pretend to get a man to like her. I was happy that she remained strong in face of their attitudes.
I enjoyed both Mamachari's and Eriko's points of view. I've never read a story with a bike as one of the main characters, but it was different and worked well. Mamachari and Eriko can communicate and they felt like good friends.
The story is short but wraps up nicely. A great read if you're looking for something light and short with a taste of Japan.
I enjoyed both Mamachari's and Eriko's points of view. I've never read a story with a bike as one of the main characters, but it was different and worked well. Mamachari and Eriko can communicate and they felt like good friends.
The story is short but wraps up nicely. A great read if you're looking for something light and short with a taste of Japan.
July 26, 2015
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
So far, of the 3 Kami No Sekai Short Story Series, Mamachari Matchmaker was my favorite. The story of a green bicycle who is looking for a family to come by and buy him is so sweet and endearing. Eriko is not quite the family Mamachari envisioned but you quickly realize they are perfect for each other.
I don't read many short stories, but Pajonas' stories are perfect for a quick read that makes me smile and always leaves my heart happy!
So far, of the 3 Kami No Sekai Short Story Series, Mamachari Matchmaker was my favorite. The story of a green bicycle who is looking for a family to come by and buy him is so sweet and endearing. Eriko is not quite the family Mamachari envisioned but you quickly realize they are perfect for each other.
I don't read many short stories, but Pajonas' stories are perfect for a quick read that makes me smile and always leaves my heart happy!
February 21, 2024
This has been my favorite of these short stories so far (probably because I'm a sucker for a romantic storyline). As always, I loved seeing the world through the eyes of an inanimate object - I think it's fun to see how Pajonas makes the perspective of each object different!
January 19, 2017
Wow!!! A box set of books, this was among one I downloaded for free.... what a cute story! I learned a little about Japan, and read all of the stories in the set. Will be looking for more from this author!!!!
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July 17, 2015Information about this title can be found on my website at http://www.spajonas.com/mamachari-mat...
January 21, 2016
What a charming story!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews