naivette

I recently finished reading Volumes 1 and 2 of Onmyoji and Tengu Eyes, published by Cross Infinite Worlds.

The story is about Misato Miyazawa (long black hair), an independent onmyoji (occult expert) who leaves his elite family in order to live on his own after an attempt on his life. He gets a job at the local Town Hall at the “Abnormal Disaster Unit”, a department dedicated to dealing with occult and spiritual issues. He ends up living with Ryouji Karino (blonde), an outgoing guy with who works as a freelance buddhist monk.

I generally enjoy “procedural” series that deal with the lives of people trying to do their job in a hyper specialized field, and this one was no different. If I had to compare it to something else, I’d recommend it to fans of Ghost Hunt, Midnight Occult Civil Servants , or The Night Beyond the Tricornered Window but it’s definitely more on the somber/serious side. 

Both of them have secrets and painful pasts that they’d rather not dredge up, but end up having to deal with them together. The two male leads are both interesting in their own right, but as the two open up, their interactions become quite heartwarming when they learn to trust each other and learn about the others’ quirks. There’s definitely a little bit of ship tease between the two, since they start living together at the start of Volume 1, and already have an “old married couple” vibe. It’s not BL though (damn) but it’s still a fun read!

There’s also a manga adaptation that’s ongoing, so I think both the novel and manga series are unfinished for now. Since the novels are episodic, I’m not sure what’s in store for the next book but I’m interested in finding out!