James Nicoll Reviews

2021’s The Apothecary Diaries: Volume 11 is the eleventh volume in Natsu Hyuuga’s Apothecary Diaries secondary universe mystery/political thriller series. Illustrations are by Touko Shino. The 2024 English translation is by Kevin Steinbach.

Having survived a plague of grasshoppers, the unfortunate people of I‑Sei province must now deal with an approaching famine. Under most circumstances this would be of only theoretical interest to capital-dwelling Maomao, except that in a previous volume, she and Jinshi (the emperor’s brother and Maomao’s boss/fiancé of sorts) were dispatched to I‑Sei province.

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2021’s The Apothecary Diaries: Volume 10 is the tenth installment of Natsu Hyuuga’s ongoing Apothecary Diaries secondary-universe light-novel series. Illustrations are by Touko Shino. The 2024 English translation is by Kevin Steinbach.

Apothecary/gray-market physician Maomao joins an imperial mission to the capital of the empire’s western province of I‑Sei. Mysteries await, some obvious and some very obscure.

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2020’s The Apothecary Diaries: Volume 9 is the ninth light novel in Natsu Hyuuga’s secondary-universe quasi-historical Apothecary Diaries mystery series. The illustrations are by Touko Shino. The 2023 English language edition was translated by Kevin Steinbach.

Series love-interest Jinshi removed himself from Li’s imperial succession by branding himself. Luckily for the badly burned Jinshi, he has Maomao on hand to treat the burn. Less luckily, Maomao is an apothecary, not an actual physician.

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2019’s The Apothecary Diaries: Volume 8 is the eighth light novel in Natsu Hyuuga’s Apothecary Diaries series. The illustrations are by Touko Shino. The 2023 English language edition was translated by Kevin Steinbach.

In which our heroes (one of whom is apothecary and occasional consulting detective Maomao) explore the exciting world of unintended consequences of clear-eyed, sensible public policy.

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2018’s The Apothecary Diaries, Volume Seven is the seventh volume in Natsu Hyuuga’s secondary-universe light novel series. Illustrations¹ are by Touko Shina. The 2023 English translation is by Kevin Steinbach. 

In this volume, Maomao struggles with school work, international intrigue, and of course the glacial progress of the romance between her and attractive (but incapable of straight-forward declaration) Jinshu, revealed as a prince of Li a few volumes ago.

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2016’s The Apothecary Diaries: Volume 6 is the sixth installment in Natsu Hyuuga’s secondary-but-mundane-universe mystery Light Novel series. It was illustrated by Touko Shino. The 2022 Anglophone edition was translated by Kevin Steinbach.

When last we encountered senior royal Jinshi and apothecary/consulting detective Maomao, they had finally given into their mutual attraction and had engaged in hot torrid sex. Having done so, the two smartest people in the empire manage their new status as only incredibly brilliant people can: awkwardly.

Frankly, a bride’s flamboyant public suicide comes as a welcome distraction.

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The Apothecary Diaries: Volume 5 is the fifth volume in Natsu Hyuuga’s secondary universe historical fantasy, the Apothecary Diaries series of light novels. The illustrations are by Touko Shino; the 2022 English translation is by Kevin Steinbach.

Having survived entanglement in high-level imperial conspiracy, Maomao returns to the pleasure district to pursue her vocation as a Verdigris-House-affiliated apothecary. She is accompanied by young Chou‑u, the last survivor of the disgraced Shi clan. Maomao fosters Chou‑u just as she does everything else: grumpily.

Maomao may wish to be done with imperial schemes, but imperial schemes are not done with her.

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Natsu Hyuuga’s 2015 The Apothecary Diaries: Volume 4 is yet another volume in her secondary world mystery series. Volume 4’s illustrations are by Touko Shino. The 2021 English translation is by Kevin Steinbach. 

Apothecary Maomao is painfully aware she has, thanks to the revelations of Volume 3, become someone who knows too much about high-ranking eunuch Jinshi. Thus, when a fellow servant enlists Maomao’s help in a mundane matter, Maomao welcomes the distraction. This is an error of judgment. 

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2015’s The Apothecary Diaries: Volume 3 is the third volume¹ in Natsu Hyuuga’s secondary-universe quasi-historical mystery series. Illustrations are by Touko Shino. The 2021 translation is by Kevin Steinbach.

Jinshu is a skilled administrator but he lacks the professional training that would allow him to notice a potentially ominous development in the imperial harem. For palace servant Maomao, the problem is more obvious.

Perfume.

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The Apothecary Diaries: Volume 2 is the second volume in Natsu Hyuuga’s illustrated light novel series, The Apothecary Diaries. Illustrations are by Touko Shino. The English translation is by Kevin Steinbach.

Court eunuch¹ Jinshi made an allusive comment that was misinterpreted; it cost his protégé Maomao her job in the Rear Palace, where the emperor’s wives and concubines live. He attempted to repair his error by recruiting her to the Outer Court. 

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