Danica Davidson
April 4, 2024 
Before You Discard Me, I Shall Have My Way with You is a long title, but it does get across the basic premise of the story. Agnès has been engaged to Prince Lucilleur since they were kids, and he’s someone who’s sometimes kind — but more often than not, he’s not kind at all. He’s cold and aloof, and he breaks the engagement with Agnès so he can get engaged to a girl from a family that acts as rivals to Agnès and her relatives.
Agnès thinks her life is pretty much over, but she asks to spend some final time with the prince. And then she quite literally has her way with him. Afterward she runs off to another kingdom, but he tracks her down, and from there the two work on their revenge, with the rival girl also getting swept up in the drama. We’re dealing with poison, lies, love triangles, and betrayal.
Before You Discard Me, I Shall Have My Way is part of Seven Seas’ new Steamship imprint, which is billed as “sexy romance for women.” I don’t know that it’d really fall into the category of romance, because in romance you’re supposed to care about the other person. If you want a manga about a healthy relationship, this is not it. If you want a sexy guilty pleasure manga where sex is used as revenge and there’s enough action to get it a 17+ rating and “parental advisory warning,” then this is a good choice to read.
Before You Discard Me, I Shall Have My Way with You has political drama going on, though it’s not clear if this is going to be more fully fleshed out, or if it’s a background detail to give us cause for the main events. This is also a fantasy world where magic is real, so characters can cast spells on one another.
The artwork is attractive and well-drawn. It ends with a good cliffhanger, so readers will have to pick up the next volume to see if everyone is still alive. I’m thinking they probably are, because that gives opportunity for more revenge and twisted relationships.
Art: Selen
Story: Takako Midori
Character Design: Mami Surada
Publisher: Seven Seas
Translator: Amber Tamosaitis
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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.
