The story continues, and Tohru gets some actual female friends, which is nice. One of them is pretty bland, but the other's a creepy, possibly psychic girl who is actually very entertaining. I'd far rather read about her than the repetitive angst of the two teen boys Tohru lives with, but they're becoming slightly more tolerable as they become slightly less self-obsessed, actually looking up from their own constant whining to notice that other people have problems too.

There's also a backstory building up with regards to the shapeshifters. A few more are introduced, and the community that they live in is fleshed out a little more - including an (as yet unseen) character, in control of them all, who comes across as both threatening and kind of abusive. Complicating this is the magical ability to wipe Tohru's memory if she steps out of line, so no wonder the poor girl's sticking to her key personality trait, which is a mixture of relentless optimism and doormat.

Don't get me wrong: I do like the emphasis on kindness and hard work and doing one's best. It's just "Pollyanna" appears to be Tohru's one personality trait, and it's not enough.