Red River, Vol. 1

I had, until I began re-reading this series, forgotten what a prick Kail could be at times. Mind you he wasn't the worst offender ever, but its kind of shitty to threaten a girl with "bedding her for real" if she tries to run away (even if you're attempting to keep her idiotic neck safe).

Though to be fair Yuri wasn't much better. The scenes (in the first couple of books at least) went something like this:

Yuri: I must go do this stupid thing!
Kail: But its stupid! And will get you killed!
Yuri: It doesn't matter! I will get home no matter what!
Kail: If you would just WAIT a couple hours I will have it taken care of SAFELY.
Yuri: No! I will endanger everyone's life by running off and doing this stupid thing against the Queen who has plotted show more and schemed to murder me since chapter 1 because of reasons!
Kail: Stupid girl! She will kill you!
Yuri: It won't happen! :runs off to do stupid thing: Oh no! I did that stupid thing and got caught!
Queen: Stupid harlot! Now I shall do exactly what I've been threatening to do to you since the very first chapter. Only Kail could have saved you!
Yuri: Oh why didn't I listen to him? He never told me the danger! Kail! Kail! Save me!
Kail: :bursts in somehow to save her: I save you not because I'm going to say I told you so, though I will, but because I lo....er want to foil the Queen's plots!
Queen: Curses! Foiled again by my overly elaborate plotting!
Yuri: Now on to my next stupid stunt!

Rinse, Lather, Repeat.

I'll admit she isn't USELESS, just BRAINLESS most of the time. She's a bit of a Mary Sue in that she falls into all sorts of predicaments and then untangles herself through luck, innate skill and men falling over themselves to help her. By volume 3 this mostly ends as she realizes she needs to be useful to Kail and to be useful she needs to know how to DO things like fight and such. But this first volume is mostly spent with her lamenting her fate, ignoring Kail's justifiably concerned admonishments and getting folk killed. show less

This review is for the series as a whole. It's honestly not worth getting invested in.

Review:
I wasted too much time trying to read 28 volumes. If this story could have been condensed and stopped its repetitiveness (Nakia's evil schemes, whether or not Prince Kail and Yuri will have sex, and Yuri getting framed for some scandal, etc), I would have liked it much more. I wish almost raping the female MC would stop being used as a plot device. This shoujo is from the 90's, and I still see that in modern shoujos.

Now, I'm not saying Red River didn't have its shining moments. I liked seeing Yuri go from a confused high school girl to a somewhat capable and clever warrior. There was a great cast of characters minus the evildoers (and Ramses show more caused he ticked me off). The love between Prince Kail and Yuri is sweet and forever dramatic (though often cringy; those two live for PDA). And whenever someone dies you really feel for them.

I wasn't satisfied with the story, but others might think differently. show less

Yuri is a Japanese high school student who is transported to an ancient Middle Eastern city through a puddle of water. While trying to get her bearings, she meets Crown Prince Kail, who puts her under his protection by making her his concubine.

What starts out as a typical girl-in-another-world teen romance later becomes a story of epic proportions. As Yuri grows in her relationship with the prince, she also becomes a confident and powerful leader in war and politics in her own right. There is much stronger sexual and violent content here than in typical manga aimed at teenage girls, but it gives a more realistic picture of the sort of challenges people faced at that time. I also enjoyed the artwork, especially the loving detail given show more to everyone's clothes and jewelry. This is a great series for older teens/twenty-somethings looking for a capable heroine and higher-stakes conflicts. show less

I discovered this manga here at the LibraryThing. It was just what I was looking for: a simple page-turning adventure. I'm always eager to find out what will happen next in the story. I'm even working on a website about it. It's a bit on the raw side, what with me not knowing what I'm doing, but here's the URL:
http://www.geocities.com/beggar1015/index.html
I own more than just one volume but for space sake I just list the first book.

The story follows the experiences of modern-day Japanese teenager Yuri Suzuki (who doesn't look a bit Japanese) who is sucked back in time to the 14th century B.C. Hittite empire. Evil Queen Nakia wants to make a human sacrifice of Yuri. Prince Kail wants to protect her ... and find any excuse to stick his show more tongue down her throat. Then wouldn't you know it, war breaks out and Yuri is captured by the enemy! What will happen next? I don't know, I haven't gotten the next volume yet.

The series is rated T for teen. show less

This fast-paced shoujo manga features a very heady romance plot with visuals that might not be appropriate for younger readers.

Yuri is a typical teenager with typical teenage problems. But powerful magic from the past pulls her into a time and place that is drastically different from modern day Japan. Her first thought is how can she return home, but before that she has to survive! And does she really want to leave, drawn, as she is, to Prince Kale and the events surrounding him?

Great characters and exciting plots propel this series onward with never a dull moment. Yuri is a delightful heroine. She is clever and athletic, but doesn't do anything too far out of the reach of a real teenager. A fabulous escapist read.

This book did remind me a lot of [b:Fushigi Yûgi: The Mysterious Play, Vol. 01|568592|Fushigi Yûgi The Mysterious Play, Vol. 01|Yuu Watase|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1372406014s/568592.jpg|2389949] which I read many years ago.

I like it and the artwork. The trying to have sex with a 13 year old did suprise me but I understand that it was more expected in those times.

I really like the historical setting. I do not think I have read a manga series set in historical middle east and I think I will keep reading this series.

Read until volume 16, then got bored and parked it for a year or two.