Title: Oh My God! Vol 1

Author:  Natsuho Shino

Publisher: Deux

ISBN:  9781934496244

May Contain Spoilers

What is a boy to do when his peaceful life is disrupted by a very annoying and very troublesome god?  Yuto gets to find out when he accidentally breaks the seal that has been keeping Jade the prisoner of an ancient sword in the family shed.  Yuto comes from a long line of sorcerers, though nobody in his family has any powers what so ever.  They are a bunch of fakes, and his grandpa earns a living scamming people into believing that he’s the real deal.  When Jade appears, Yuto’s got his hands full trying to deal with an amnesiac god with an unpredictable personality.

This was a very cute book. Good natured Yuto is resigned to helping out his grandfather in the family business.  Too bad nobody actually has any powers anymore!  Yuto earns his allowance by writing prayer cards and doing odd jobs, knowing that everything his grandfather does is a sham.  When he’s sent to fetch something from the shed, he knocks over a sword, breaking the seal that one of his ancestors placed on it.  Out pops a very cranky god.  Because he seems rather harmless, and he can’t even remember his own name, Yuto starts calling him Jade, and viola! The family has a new freeloader to deal with.

I felt a little sorry for Jade.  Here’s a powerful being who can’t even remember what his power is!  He can’t remember his name, or anything about his past.  He is mysteriously drawn to Yuto, however, so he decides to hang around the Hikami household for a while.  Good thing he does, because Yuto seems to attract spirits to him, and Jade is constantly having to rescuing him from them.  Jade’s like a little boy - he’s enthusiastic, impulsive, and quick to lose his temper.  He constantly grumbles when the Hikami’s put him to work, cleaning the house, sending him out shopping, or having him rid the home of spirits.  Poor guy is so overworked, and all he gets out of it is something to eat.

Yuto is a great character - he takes everything in stride, never loses his sense of humor, and he’s very kind.  Why else would he feel sorry for the terrible god who his ancestor was forced to seal away?  He can be a bit impatient with Jade when all the god wants to do is make him happy, but considering what a clingy whiner he can be, I don’t really blame him.  Yuto is kind of a question mark, too, because it’s obvious that he has some kind of power - nobody else seems to be able to recognize it, though, other than Jade.

There wasn’t much in the way of romance here, and though it’s obvious that Jade really likes Yuto, Yuto hardly pays him any mind at all.  Instead, Jade is like a big puppy dog, following Yuto around and begging for a pat on the head.  This was a fun comedy, and perhaps the romantic developments will strengthen in the next volume. 

Grade: B

Rated for Older Teen 16+

Review copy provided by Deux