Pet Shop of Horrors, Book 4 (Paperback)

by Matsuri Akino (Author), Tomoharu Iwo (Author), Bryan Masumoto (Author), James Lucas Jones (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
"Digital" - On firm orders from his chief, Leon reluctantly takes the only witness to a murder, a tropical fish, to Count D in the hopes that the creepy pet shop owner will be able to extract any information. The count's seemingly supernatural ways have always been fishy to Leon, but the detective is going to have to scale back his skepticism if he's going to reel in his man. "Dark Horse" - Count D falls in love with beauty in all its myriad forms, so when the eyes of a championship horse stir the fires of his aesthetic, he offers the owner things monetary and magical. Unable to part with her thoroughbred, she refuses. But even if Count D cannot have the steed, he still may still be able to profit from it. "Dracula" - Count D fits the victim profile for a local serial killer, and it falls on Leon's shoulders to protect him. Paired with a beautiful FBI agent, Leon believes he's fingered the killer. However, the key to truly solving this case lies in the past. Specifically, Count D's past. Family secrets will be revealed and skeletons will be exposed in more than one closet before this crucial tale wraps. This volume also contains two "Flowers and the Detective" side stories. "Flowers and the Detective, Part 1" - Count D presents the depressed Orcot with an unusual gift to cheer him up - a rare cactus called a Gattolatto. An exotic plant, indeed, the Gattolatto only blooms once in its lifetime, and when it does, it proves to be a life-altering, and life-saving, event. "Flowers and the Detective, Part 2" - When a curious Orcot accidentally spoils Count D's attempt to breed a rare flower called the Midnight Beauty, D comes up with a clever way to pollinate the plant, with an involuntary assist by the good detective.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: TokyoPop (January 6, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1591825016
• ISBN-13: 978-1591825012
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #596,176 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Count D rules!, March 4, 2004

By	"lungtaiyang" (Palm Desert, California United States) - See all my reviews

I love Petshop of Horrors. But compared to the previous 3, this book is kind of feels like an intermission rather than a continuation of the story. "Digital" was a little sad, but not as tragic as "Delicious"; "Flowers and the Detective Pt.1" was a wonderful interlude that gives proof that Count D has precognitive powers; "Dark Horse" was kinda lackluster, but its not as bad as people say. I thought Count D and Leon were hilarious at the race track (escpecially how Count D does a "Yoink!" on Leon's ticket from his jacket!); "Flowers and the Detective Pt.2" was one wierd acid trip on Leon's part, too bad we didn't get to see his "next morning" reaction as Count D hinted. I loved the part where Leon was feeding Pon-chan (D's tanuki/magic raccoon)! ; "Dracula" was great, especially when the vampire first shows up and molests Count D and Leon walks in on them ^_^ And their next encounter was funny too!
On a final note, I hate it when people call D a crossdresser. Fact: Formal cheongsam for men are long-sleeved while the ones for women are either short-sleeved or no sleeves at all. But Count D prefers flowery prints-type of fabrics instead of the more solid colors of traditinal male chengsam, so I guess D is "fruity," but crossdresser? Nah. And oh, "Dark Horse" might make Count D seem like he dabbles in "bestiality" (I.e. getting googly eyed about a horse's perfect rump), but in truth, he just really likes pretty things in contrast to Leon's more "sexual" attractions.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ha..., August 12, 2004

By	Meinos (Maine. 'Tis cold here.) - See all my reviews

There are not words to explain how much I adore this series.

This volume was one of my favorites, though this is apparently an unpopular opinion. I loved the whole thing to death. Especially Dracula. Plus, *I* really liked Dark Horse. And the covers are awesome.

Then again, the whole thing could have sucked, and I'd have loved it for the line, "I wonder, Detective Orcot, if you will be so good as to stay and protect me forever? Or perhaps at least overnight?" (Not to mention the scene when Leon has just entered the petshop.) I get a giggle fit every time I think of that.

Who, me? A ridiculous DxLeon fan? No, way! (Ha, who am I kidding?)

I'm just so crazy about this series. My best friend and I are going to next year's PortCon Maine as D and Leon. (Me D, she Leon.) Her condition (Not that she wouldn't have done it anyway): She gets to have handcuffs. Obviously, we're going to get some interesting photos of us acting slashy. ^^

I cuould go on for hours about how great this series is. Really. Everyone should read it. Everyone. ^^;

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars There are other volumes that stand out in my mind..., March 3, 2004

By	K. Leal "Novel addict :: *_*::" (CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is PSoH, so I can't say that I *didn't* like this book.
But I can't say I really liked it either.

It's unfortunate that this volume was such a let down. After being positively thrilled by volume 3, I was anxious to see what would happen next. Unfortunately I was treated to some rather empty and--heaven forbid--boring stories. "Dracula" was probably the best, and the "Flowers & The Detective Pt.1" was mildly entertaining. All the stories seemed rather underdeveloped or rushed, and really didn't do much for the continuity of the story.
Another nag I had with this volume was the constant punctuation mistakes in the sub-texts (and since there's lots of subtext, this is very noticiable). Hopefully TokyoPop will reissue this volume later with corrections.

If you're new to PSoH, pleeease don't base your opinion of the series on this book. Check out one of the previous volumes and come back to this one when you simply need more of Leon and Count D ~_^.