The Mimosa Confessions

The Mimosa Confessions is a light novel that first piqued my curiosity not only because of its premise but the fact that it ended up being a relatively short series (the last and fifth volume will be published the month I write this review).

A story about a transgender heroine is a peculiar and uncommon one, and its a delicate matter to broach, but rest assured that the author, Hachimoku Mei, handled the matter with the utmost care and respect. He also did a pretty good job of making it painful, bitter, sometimes lighthearted and funny, but always compelling to read. That's the most important thing to me.

I can sum up the first volume as the protagonist, Sakuma, struggling with the fact that his old best friend, Ushio, is now a girl. All hell breaks loose from this point onward, as Ushio suffers with the decision of adopting a lifestyle that best suits her. Its also a book containing a love triangle, as Sakuma falls in love with Hoshihara, a peppy girl from the same class as him and Ushio, but who also happens to have a crush on the person Ushio used to be. Suffice to say this tangled relationship is done well and I'm quite curious with how things will fare in the future.

I have to make one thing very clear: Hachimoku Mei's writing is pretty damn good. Its my first time reading his work, and it left so good of a impression on me that I will definitely read his other books. His writing really struck its chord with me on a personal level. Not only because of how he handled stuff in general, but stories with rural settings always enthrall me, but its useless if the author's writing is poor. Fortunately, that isn't the case here.

The Mimosa Confessions takes place in a "backwater country town" (this is exactly how it is described in the book) and this setting is portrayed majestically thanks to the author's writing, it's as if it teleports you to this place you've never been or seen, as you follow the characters day-to-day and struggles. I always see writing as some form of magic, certain people have this ability to create a world, characters and drama so human and real you care for this so much that you feel a whirlpool of emotions while you read the book. That's a sign of a good author, and most importantly, of a good story.

In regard to the characters, I loved how the author tried to rationalize their thoughts and way of seeing life, as a contentious book handling certain topics, obviously you will have lots of prejudice present there, and characters with strong opinions, but I think the author did a good job of giving some kind of logic to their actions and thinking, even if you as a reader will see it as wrong and hate them. The author stated in the afterword that he hoped this book would provide some food for thought, and after reading it, I can see why.

To sum things up, even if you don't find the premise appealing at all, I would say to give it a try if you like drama with well-characterized characters and a good prose. Don't dwell too much on the transgender bit, of course it is the main theme of the story, its interesting and well-handled, but the most important thing is that its just a damn engaging read.