Let Dai Volume 4

...by book 4 you're either used to it or not. I kept going mainly for the beautiful covers, but the content has been worth it. Dai and Jaehee seem to be on-again, off-again friends. Jaehee is literally physically sickened by Dai's behavior, but can't help hypocritically longing for him. Dai continues to cruelly toy with Jaehee by asking everything of him, then brushing it off like means nothing when Jaehee gives it to him. Meanwhile, EunHyung is still recovering from the assault. Hating the world for its persecution of the weak, she completely metamorphizes by choice, so that she may be strong enough to withstand it. Her sister, Yooneun, panics; she is still is love with Jaehee, terrified of Dai, and devestated on behalf of her sister. But she has decided that her adulthood protects her from the sadistic games of youth gangs. But she's having a harder and harder time holding onto that as she struggles with crossing over to cope with her feelings for Jaehee and protecting her sister. Obviously, this book is driven by the strength and complexities of its characters. After a shaky start, they're showing more consistency and more in-depth interactions. By book four, Dai and Jaehee enter a relationship that indicates that thier feelings for each other, at least, are gentle and caring, even if they make them act psychotically at times. Several times they share tender moments that can almost deflect the insanity of thier reality. Meanwhile, the sisters exhibit strength and will rarely seen in female characters. Eunhyung, especially, stuns you with her transformation--though still shattered on the inside, she grits her teeth and learns to be the attacker, not the attacked. A new addition to the cast, Naru Hagi aka "Narcissus" provides a lot of the comic relief. The problems in book one are still there. The weirdly inappropriate poems, oddly mixed vocabulary levels, and the occasional typo won't ever go away, it seems. Some events don't seem to fit into the context, or are just overdramatic. There's cartoony (like loony-tune cartoony) illustrations at funny moments, which can be a little off-putting at times. Otherwise, the art is pretty charming, especially the serenely beautiful covers. If you read it all in one sitting, it's easier to gloss over the annoying aspects and empathize with the story in general.