The Story of Saiunkoku, Vol. 1

by Sai Yukino, Kairi Yura (Artist)

Overview

A period fantasy in which a palace consort must guide a feckless emporer to assume the throne.

Shurei Hong, destitute but of noble birth, has always dreamed of working as a civil servant in the imperial court of Saiunkoku, but women are barred from holding office. The emperor Ryuki, however, refuses to take command, leaving everything to his advisors. Shurei is asked to become a consort to the emperor to persuade the ne’er-do-well ruler to govern.

Shurei enters the palace as Ryuki's consort, but he has yet to seek her out. It is rumored that men, not women, share the emperor's bedchamber. Shurei must think of a way to stop the emperor from shirking his responsibilities, but she has to find him first!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781421538341
Publisher:	VIZ Media LLC
Publication date:	11/02/2010
Series:	Story of Saiunkoku Series , #1
Pages:	176
Product dimensions:	7.76(w) x 11.78(h) x 0.56(d)
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Kairi Yura was born on January 16. She is the illustrator of both the manga and the YA novels for The Story of Saiunkoku. She is also the creator of the Angelique series. Yura's hobby is going to the theater.

Sai Yukino was born on January 26. She is author of both the manga and YA novels for The Story of Saiunkoku. She received an honorable mention and the Readers' Award for Kadokawa's Beans Novel Taisho Awards. When shes not busy writing, Yukino enjoys massages.

Editorial Reviews

This story began as a series of light novels by Yura and Yukino and was subsequently adapted into an anime, drama CDs, and a manga written and illustrated by Yura. Set in the fictional empire of Saiunkoku, it follows Shurei Hong, a clever and hardworking girl born to a noble family that has fallen on hard times. Unable to fulfill her ambitions to work in politics, she accepts an offer to work as a consort for the childish Emperor Ryuki. Finding it difficult to even meet Ryuki (he initially pretends to be someone else to avoid her), it is quickly apparent that this will be no easy job even for the ambitious Shurei. However, she soon notices the good in Ryuki that few others have taken the time to see, and they become a charming odd couple of sorts. Indeed, the centerpiece of this story is the interactions between Shurei and Ryuki; the subplots are interesting but mostly serve to further develop their relationship. The story is endearing, striking a good balance between humor and romantic subtexts, and the art pays a strong attention to world building detail. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly