Danica Davidson
February 23, 2023 
The Princess of Convenient Plot Devices is an isekai manga about a young Japanese woman who dies and is reincarnated into her favorite BL light novel series. The series in question takes place in a European-style realm, and the main character has been reborn as Princess Octavia, and her older brother Sirius is one of the men in the books’ BL relationship.
In her past life, she was a total fujoshi and loved BL stories. However, Octavia realizes that being in a BL world isn’t the perfect fantasy she thought it was going to be. For one, the men are mostly interested in other men, so she can’t get herself a boyfriend. She keeps falling in love with her bodyguards, and they keep leaving her for men. There is also the issue that Sirius and his boyfriend Sil can’t make an heir, so she’s expected to have a baby and give it to them for adoption. She’s less than thrilled at this premise. She decides she’s going to start taking things into her own hands, and that begins with getting herself a boyfriend. But things might not be as they appear . . .
The Princess of Convenient Plot Devices has a humorous take on the BL world, in that it’s ironic that a fujoshi would not fit. The artwork fits with BL — pretty, filigree, with plenty of attractive young men. We get into a bit of the history of the kingdom, including some murders in the past, so it appears the story might have more of a plot going on then just a reincarnated girl trying to find a boyfriend amongst a menagerie of male/male lovers. Whether or not the story gets in-depth, so far it offers escapist reading with lots of eye candy, some interesting characters, and amusing new ways to think about what a BL world would actually be like if it became real. This read would be of most interest to fujoshi like the main character herself.
Manga: Kazusa Yoneda
Original Story: Mamecyoro
Character Design: Mitsuya Fuji
Publisher: Yen Press
Translator: Sarah Moon
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Danica Davidson is the author of the bestselling Manga Art for Beginners with artist Melanie Westin, plus its sequel, Manga Art for Everyone, and the first-of-its-kind manga chalk book Chalk Art Manga, both illustrated by professional Japanese mangaka Rena Saiya. Check out her other comics and books at www.danicadavidson.com.
