Sei's life has just returned to a semblance of normal when she's once more summoned to the palace. A foreign prince is coming to the kingdom, ostensibly to study abroad, but his true intentions are shrouded in mystery. In order to protect Sei, the kingdom instructs her to hide her true identity as the Saint and retreat to the safety of the palace. While she complies at first, she soon finds herself drawn to the prince--especially when it becomes clear that she might be the only person who can help him.
This novel felt as if Tachibana's heart wasn't quite in it, which may well be true - her afterword tells us that she wrote it in the beginning stages of the pandemic. The story is still good, but the panacea storyline is woefully underdeveloped; probably the strongest parts were where Johan's and Albert's families were discussing marriage possibilities with Sei...without Sei present, of course. I feel like she'd be aghast if she knew those conversations were even happening. At any rate, this is probably the weakest entry into the series to date, although it's by no means bad - just clearly a book written when the author had other things on her mind.
So...I think the series has jumped the shark. After Sei unlocked the Saint's magic and was able to do what she'd come here to do, the author needed to come up with a new goal. Instead we're wandering around from place to place doing little things with no overall arc. She's got everything she wants. Life is stable. Nothing is happening, good or bad. And yes, I loved the low-stakes feel of the first three volumes (yay Mary Sue!) it's gone beyond low stakes to zero-plot. Then the kicker is that at the end of every volume, we get seven or eight vignettes followed by an author's note where the author whines about how hard it was to write this volume. Yes, because you don't have an overall arc. That would be why it's so hard to write it.
That also makes it harder to read. For the first four volumes, I read them one a day. This one took four or five days because I just couldn't get invested.
I'm not sure if I'll keep reading beyond this volume.
This volume was a huge drag for me. I still like the characters and I'm still looking forward to what happens next, but this particular volume was a struggle to finish. The main plot here is essentially the nobles gearing up for Sei's official debut as the Saint and the mysterious appearance of a visiting foreign prince.
I didn't care for this new prince character at all. I found him annoying and was irked that most of the book involved him. It was so strange that he was allowed to keep appearing at the Institute that held many national secrets and was allowed to talk to Sei, the Saint they were keeping under wraps, everyday. I couldn't understand why the Prince didn't just ask the King if there was someone in the kingdom who could make the panacea. It's not like it was his father, the king, who was sick. It was just his concubine mother. What harm could happen by divulging this? The way he tried to unearth information about an alchemist who could help him was so inefficient and havey-cavey. And the secrecy of the main characters was baffling. They allow the prince to interact with Sei but refuse to divulge that she is the Saint even though the prince will probably find out during her debut ball.
There was also a little too much conversation about herbs and illnesses in this book. Despite being a series about a Saint who heals people, the previous volumes didn't go that deeply into details, which suited the flow just fine. But here there's a lot more specifics and the author's lack of knowledge shows. You should never go into details about a topic you're not that familiar with.
Another point I disliked is that despite all the fuss in the beginning of the book about Sei's debut and who would be her partner, months go by and no one mentions this ball to her. How long does it take to plan a ball anyway? Everything afterwards is just about Sei and the prince chatting about potions. I was so afraid that the Prince would end up asking her to be his partner. Albert's absence was completed ill-timed.
Lastly, I really disliked the collection of short stories that were just tossed in at the end without thought. The stories themselves were interesting, but it shows a great lack of heart on the author's part about this book. I wish the collection had been incorporated into the very one-dimensional plot of this volume.
Overall, I'd still say that readers of this series should read this volume but should think of it more as an interlude or a crossroads between the last arc and, hopefully the beginning of a bigger and better one.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Sei may have inadvertently stepped into things again, though at least the end result this time around was more intentional, even if it was more of a passing thought in the beginning and only really become a series quest once she learned of the prince's mother. Hopefully it works and they won't be hounded any further, though that could still backfire if they want to thank her or create more in the future. Meanwhile, Sei seems oblivious as always to romance and emotions, yet somehow her relationship with Albert seems to be going well. It remains highly amusing that she still refers to his brother as Lord Smarty-Glasses even though she knows his name at this point and he seems to be one of the few that are considered closer to her to have freer accesses and be included in plans for her protection and wellbeing, though perhaps that isn't so surprising given how long Yuri was sleeping after summoning her and how flighty he tends to be.
Short of ultimately pairing Sei off with someone (yet to be determined and that she is not in the discussions for even though it's her life and relationships and everyone says they know she has at least some relationship with Albert at this point) it seems like there is very little to no overall story that is driving things at this point though. More research? For what? Is getting Sei married the ultimate happily ever after that is driving things at this point and we're just going at a snails pace because of how inexperienced and bashful she is? It's really hard to tell. We get a handful of short stories at the end of the volume that are amusing in their own right, but feel like they could have been fleshed out and included in the full story with more purpose and really building on the characters instead of being more behind the scenes like some of the actual volume chapters. It's hard to really see what the driving force is here beyond just what can be used for what effect and if Sei will ever figure out her relationship(s).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I think some reviewers might not understand the time period. It was a lot stricter back then and balls do last a long time. If you’ve watched Bridgerton think of it that way. They see a marriage prospect or whatever. They try to court them if willing and if they’re interested letter of engagement is sent. It’s completely normal to talk about possibly marrying Sei without her there. In fact I think Sei would feel uncomfortable being there. Hey Sei which one of us would you marry? TOTALLY awkward.
I think this one is cute and the author was trying to bring the romance out more. For me, I know Sei is extremely interested in herbs and the drive she has to help people is interesting to me. Maybe some people don’t like the herb focus, but for me I found it really interesting. The prince part was somewhat cute and I like that it showed she felt bad and wanted to really help him. The author was having a hard time writing, but I thought it was good considering her situation.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
The first half of this volume was disappointing. A prince from a foreign nation has arrived with a suspicious interest in Sei’s potions. Most of the book was spent with Sei talking and eating and avoiding the prince. Then she has a eureka moment, creates a miraculous panacea, and the prince is sent off with a sample: all off page.
The second half of the book was filled with short stories from various sources, all compiled in this volume. They follow a loose thread, but they’re mostly individual moments between Sei and Albert. Where there was a dirth of romance in the first part of the book, this section more than makes up for it. The stories are charming, sweet, and exactly what I had hoped to read more of when I bought this volume. Sei’s personality is the reason why I read this series. Her mixture of business-like confidence and bashful-insecurity makes for an interesting dynamic.
Disappointed with this volume, will probably be taking a break from the series. First 10% of the book was the normal filler, including 5 pages of summary from the previous volumes. The main story introduced a new villain and quickly sent him packing without any real drama. The included behind the scenes story belonged in the previous volume. Albert's presence was practically non-existent with no development in his relationship with Sei. Finally the last 20% of the volume was 2-3 page short story "ideas".
All this would have been fine and if you liked the previous volumes, you will probably enjoy this as well. But $10 for this little content is just ridiculous.
Volume 6 in the series focuses on the arrival of a foreign prince, who has come to the kingdom to study, but his true intentions are shrouded in mystery. In order to protect Sei, the kingdom instructs her to hide her true identity as the Saint and retreat to the safety of the palace.
However, despite hiding Sei, she still stumbles upon him and finds herself drawn to him, assisting him when she can, while still hiding the fact she is the Saint.
Within the story, we briefly follow the Hawke family, where discuss Sei's debut to society, and who should be the one to court her. (I particularly enjoyed this part in the story).
This was an enjoyable volume, but I feel that the foreign prince is still hiding something and may make a future appearance, where possibly trouble may be stirred up.
I think the author built the world and Salutanian society, then worked Sei into it without considering that she should rightfully stand outside it. It’s absurd to subject her to marriage and parties if she doesn’t want to go. I’m also mystified as to why she relies on income from her cosmetics, and it’s not sufficient to buy ingredients in the amounts that she wants. As the savior of thee world, doesn’t she have any reward money? Shouldn’t the palace subsidize anything she wants?
Regarding the prince….everyone is so badly disciplined. Seriously, it shouldn’t be so hard for Sei to blend in, but she’s caught pretty much right away thanks to blabbermouths all looking for her (revealed in side story of next volume) 🤦🏻♀️
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
All in all I liked it. Ever since she figured out how to trigger her saint's magic at will the series lacked a new arc, a new goal. She gets small goals to achieve but no greater one so instead we end up with slice of life and half a book about potions, illnesses and details about health than have to remain pretty vague since the author and therefore Sei lack the knowledge. While I was intrigued if and if yes, HOW she would manage to help in this case, the answer was...this thing that happened (don't want to spoil anyone). Still hoping for some progress, either in the story or romance department. We are standing still. Not as good as the other books but overall fine.
Personally I enjoy reading the story, Sei's research into new potions and interactions with those around her, but it feels much the same like previous volumes. The only romantic development were in the short stories at the end or the behind the scene one about the ball in the previous volume. So if you enjoy these slice-of-life slow burners, you will enjoy the book. Still, I do hope the romance at least is going somewhere...
I enjoyed the introduction of a new character, but I do not enjoy when everything goes according to plan for some books. But this was soft and cute. It was nice to see her help someone so selflessly. Was a great turning point for her getting into the politics of the world. Want more romance for Albert was almost nonexistent in this volume but thats ok because her relationships with others were boosted.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I was expecting more and that’s what I got. The behind the scenes chapters are really insightful because the reader’s get to know why some of the things happened. I can’t wait to see what all of those around Sei do.
I really do enjoy this series. Slowly I'm catching up. The anime ended on a bright note aka Volume 8. I hope that this series gets a proper ending and not just an unfinished one on Shosetsuka ni Naro.
Unsure what to rate it (4.5 maybe?), only becadse not much happened in the book but as mentioned by the author, the pandemic happened which is understandable. I still love it but I wanted to learn if the panacea worked right away haha
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.