MASQUERADE AND THE NAMELESS WOMEN -- POPSUGAR READING CHALLENGE #4

Image from Goodreads

This one was a bit different from the rest. I didn't start to read it as one of the challenge books. I picked it up because it sounded twisted, which I admit, I needed considering all the lighthearted manga and books I've been reading.

Challenge four of the Pop Sugar Challenge is: A book you think should be turned into a movie.

I found that as soon as I got into the book, I actually said to myself (in my head) that I would love to watch this. It was then that I realized that there was a challenge that fit this idea.

I was attracted to the cover at first, but once I read the premise, I hesitated on buying it. I took the plunge and ate that puppy up in one day.

The premise isn't unfamiliar. Serial killer who works with police. The Dexter series by Jeff Lindsay is an example of this.

Masquerade and the Nameless Women was a fun read for me. I would really love to have a second book that pits the serial killer and the rookie cop obsessed with finding him together.

A to Z Challenge 2017 -- Ban, Merill "Benten" Yanagara #atozchallenge

Locked in the prison at Baste Dungeon,Ban  is my first character in the B category.  Ban (bahn), the Fox Sin of Greed, comes from the Anime Seven Deadly Sins. It is a fantasy genre anime that pulls in Arthurian characters, which has over-the-top action and is just a riot especially when the main male character, Melodias, is a perv.

Ban is an enigmatic character.  He fell in love with a fairy princess, Elaine, but lost her in a battle with a demon.  He can heal unscathed from most wounds, which makes him wreckless in battle nevermind who is the enemy. The scar is the only wound that never healed and was given to him by Meliodias.

He is emotional and appears laid back most of the time, but his motivations are deeper than at face value.

🍜🍜🍜🍜🍜🍜


Merill "Benten" Yanagara is from the early 90s anime Cyber City Oedo 808.  The foul-mouthed anime has a multitude of crude jokes and cursing, but the three stories are interesting despite that.

Benten, as he is called, is a multi-life sentence criminal who works for Police Chief Hasegawa as a cyber policeman to reduce his sentence. The chief controls the mini-bomb collar around Benten's neck as well as the other criminals working for him.

Effeminate looking with his albino appearce and painted nails, he is anything but a pansy. He prefers silent weapons and has great acrobatic skills. He wields a monowire in his ring that can cut through steel or flesh.

A TO Z CHALLENGE 2016 -- RED ROOM (AKAI HEYA)

You knock on her door, but there is no answer.  She never does.  You don't worry too much because her music is blaring.

You call out to tell her to go to sleep since it's late.  She heard because the music quiets instantly.

When you knock the next morning, she says nothing.  You go downstairs to make breakfast. Twenty minutes later, you begin to worry. She's usually stomping down the stairs by now.

You go check on her.  Your heart is doing flip-flops for some reason as you reach her door.  You knock and call out again then warn her that you're entering.

You hesitate turning the knob, but you finally do.  The streaming sunlight blinds you for a second.  Blinking, your eyesight adjusts and you see thick streaks of red on the wall closest to you.

Paint?  Then the rusty smell hits you and your gut clenches in fear and sickness.

Not paint.  Blood.  Red stained fingers are stretched out on the far side of the bed. You scream.



The Red Room is a Japanese urban legend in which a pop-up asks a series of questions and then a list of names appears at the bottom with your name added.  One specific question is: Do you like the red room?

When you see a specific pop-up, you commit suicide by using your own blood to paint your room.

This urban legend has an actual murder that is attached to it.  A girl murdered another girl.  Sasebo Slashing (as it is called) took place in 2004.  The girl viciously beat and cut up the victim.

Supposedly, one of her topped bookmarked site on her computer was the Red Room Curse.