Age Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Genre: Romance/Drama
Price: $9.99
Learning that Nefertiti has taken Ramses to a temple inside her palace, Yuri rushes there to try to save him. In the course of the attempt, she and Nefertiti wind up in an argument that results in the proud Queen of Egypt learning too much! While all this is going on, the rebels have kept busy storming the palace. Success seems within their grasp, but their leader Yuri's desire to rescue Ramses does not promise that they will ultimately triumph in their fight for freedom!
Good action and drama keep this volume from slowing down or losing the reader. Continuing the rebellion started in the volume before, this volumes takes it to it's conclusion with no distractions and gives the reader a satisfying ending that guarantees they'll be back for more.
I'm a big history buff, so why I didn't pick up this series when it came out is beyond me. But I was fortunate to receive a review copy and now I'm regretting not reading it sooner. I was sucked in after only the first few pages, something that doesn't happen often, so when it does, I'm impressed. It opens with a rebellion against the Pharaoh of Egypt. There's no dwelling on the fighting as the rebels press for the palace. We only see what's needed as Yuri leads the Egyptians through Thebes to make a quick strike. Even though she's a woman, the rebels don't seem to mind Yuri leading, and really believe that she's with them. This will come back on her later.
Once inside, the focus switches to the drama as Yuri confronts Nefertiti again, not only rescuing Ramses, but also revealing who she really is. She seems to try to appeal to Nefertiti's former nature, before she became focused on power, and not caring about the people of Egypt. Nefertiti calls Yuri naive, but Yuri's words seem to get through to Nefertiti some what. This exchange was very well written. Yuri shows the strength to stand up to Nefertiti, and doesn't let doubt drag her down. These scenes were just as thrilling as the action scenes earlier.
What I really appreciated about this volume is that the end was very straight forward. As Yuri and her companions try to flee Egypt, they are stopped by the rebels, who once they learned of Yuri's true identity, want to kill her. But this is just a detour in the journey straight back to the Hittite lands. A few times I thought there might be another obsticle put in the way to delay Yuri's reuniting with Kail, but there wasn't a one. Yuri's growing excitement with seeing Kail again, was infectious, making me feel the same. It was gratifying to see her get to his room on the last page.
The art in this volume was just stunning. I found myself just staring at the characters several times, marvelling at how well they are done. Especially with all the ornate jewelry worn by the Egyptians. The men are very bishonen, but the girls are beautiful as well. There's nothing one sided about it.
Red River is another fantastic manga from Viz. It's a title I would definitely recommend to readers interested in history. The historical elements are definitely on the fanciful side, but the mangaka works it in in such a way as to make you believe it could have really happened that way. Older readers will also enjoy the strong writing and great art.
9.5