Emma: Vol. 3

by Kaoru Mori

Synopsis
On the train back to her hometown, Emma meets Tasha, a maid working at a wealthy family's mansion in the country. This fateful encounter leads to Emma finding employment with the family as well. But despite her years of experience as a maid for Mrs. Stownar, living in a mansion filled with servants is something for which she is not prepared.

Review
It's an intriguing series. It's nice to follow the deliberate pacing and orderly panels. The story is slow, but keeps your interest. In this volume, Emma happens to find new work with a recently transplanted German family. It's a new and confusing experience for her. One really odd thing was they mentioned that she didn't have a reference. If you don't know, not having a reference at that time was like a death sentence; you'd never find work. Sure, it's glossed over with the family really needs the help, but it's completely unrealistic. Plus, it shows that Mrs. Stownar didn't care about what happened to Emma after she died. Would it really have been that hard for her to write one? I don't even know why this is here, it would have been easier and made more sense, and worked out the way the author wanted, if Emma just had a reference.

Meanwhile, William is acting strangely, taking an interest in work, going to parties, and seeing Eleanor more often. He reveals that this is because Emma is gone, so he's just going to live how his father thinks he should. If that's what he thinks he should do, that's fine, but he should be ready to accept the consequences. Also, it strikes me as "cutting off your nose to spite your face." You only hurt yourself.

I'd vaguely hoped that since she'd moved away, perhaps Emma and William wouldn't get together and that she'd move on, but the fact that he's still shown, and she misses him (sniff, sniff) leads me to think that won't happen. Too bad, it might have been interesting.

Also, the astute reader will notice that William's mother is shown in this volume. I wonder what her story is.

Final thought: I'll keep reading.