Reviews - The Apothecary Diaries: (Light Novel) Volume 1

916 reviews for:

The Apothecary Diaries: (Light Novel) Volume 1

Kevin Steinbach, Natsu Hyuuga

4.26 AVERAGE

gigglesley's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous funny lighthearted relaxing slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: N/A

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: N/A

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

jlaich's review against another edition

4.25

funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

ursacygni's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

An excellent story about a young apothecary who is kidnapped and sold to work at the rear palace, the garden that houses the courtesans of the emperor. Strange happenings in the rear palace cause our apothecary to get involved in several mysteries at the behest of an apparently quite important Eunuch.

Story as excellent as the anime.

melission's review against another edition

2.0

i had high hopes starting this one at the first book of the year, so partly due to the expectations i’m so dissatisfied.

the style is patchy and uneven. and the text is dry. i find myself losing focus because of how monotonous the writing is. i honestly have no clue if it’s translation issues or the author style.

overall, i tried to find something to like, and occasionally it worked. yet, i didn’t have fun and i was tired at the end. not a perfect combo, i might add.

ghostlymoth's review against another edition

3.0

funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

kendallm21's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous funny mysterious fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: N/A

I love Maomao. I read this after season 1 and part of season 2 of the anime and definitely think seeing the characters and knowing them helps get into this book. Not sure I would have enjoyed it as much if I didn’t have that background but I definitely loved it and will keep reading. Maomao as a narrator can be somewhat unreliable which I think is so fun. The amount of times she calls Jinshi beautiful or nymph while pared with her looks of disgust/ boredom (or as she would put it like a worm) is so funny. I loved their dynamic through out and can’t wait to read more. I also loved each problem/ mystery Maomao had to work through and feel like the multiple “stories” give such a cozy vibe even if the content is more sad or dark. Anyway! Can’t wait to continue with the next volume and definitely recommend the anime or manga along with the light novels for more context.