There will be Red River fangirling. That's the only warning you get.
Sora wa Akai Kawa no Hotori © Shinohara Chie/Shogakukan
[First serialized in Sho-Comi]
Published in Indonesia as Red River by Elex Media/Level Comics
Yuri leads a charmed life. She just passed her senior high admissions exams AND shared her first kiss with promoted-to-boyfriend childhood friend Himuro. Everything goes down the drain, however, when she realizes that water behaves weirdly around her. The weirdness peaks one day when disembodied hands reach out of a street puddle and yank her in!
Yuri surfaces in 14th century B.C.E. Hattusa, the Hittite Empire capital, in the central Turkey region now known as Anatolia. (The reason why Red River/Sora wa Akai Kawa no Hotori is more commonly known as Anatolia Story.)
Why was Yuri dragged back in time?
asks Level's back cover blurb.
Before I answer that question (falling back on Wiki and VIZ's Red River, Vol. 1 description for assistance), lemme (1) note that at least this Yuri (Suzuki) should thank the stars she didn't get flushed down the toilet like another Yuri (Shibuya; Kyou Kara Maoh's) and (2) list the top Baka-Updates Manga tags for this award-winning shoujo manga:
♥ Time Travel ♥ Strong Female Lead ♥ Royal Family ♥ War
♥ Politics ♥ Possessive Lover ♥ Magic ♥ Mediterranean
♥ Love Polygon ♥ Social Hierarchy
I want you to pay attention to that Strong Female Lead
and Possessive Lover
and see if you don't wipe away the drool like I did.
Neway, to answer the question: Yuri was abducted by the maleficent queen Nakia, who intends to sacrifice the 15-year-old maiden to eliminate two princes vying for the crown. (Wiki shares that the Hittite Empire at the time was only rivaled by Egypt, ruled then by Pharaoh Tutankhamen.) But before Yuri's blood is spilled, Prince Kail Mursili rescues her by announcing that Yuri is no longer unsullied, that he had already taken her virginity. (Another aside here: compare a similar “she may be carrying my child” claim made by the time-slipping Emperor to save girlfriend Mi ju in New Sexy Simpleton 7.)
Later, the prince agrees to help Yuri return home, but for that to happen, they first have to retrieve the 20th century clothes Yuri came in from the queen. Not a simple task as—as Baka-Updates Manga points out—the queen's persistent schemes to kill them both, plus their growing interest in each other, keep those plans delayed.
Wiki also adds: Many of the people and events in the story are drawn from known history.
Breath-taking romance AND history? And for 28 volumes, at that? What more can you (I) ask for??
While best-known for Red River, Shinohara Chie-sensei also created the (likewise award-winning) Purple Eyes in the Dark josei horror manga.
Level Comics manga (2010.10.27)
Release links are hide/unhide. Click for more details and cover scans.
- 3x3 Eyes 32 of 40 by Takada Yuzo
- The Black Swindler (Kurosagi) 10 of 20 by Kuromaru & Natsuhara Takeshi
- Glass Chair (Garasu no Isu) 6 of 8 by Nakamura Mariko
- Nurse Aoi (Ns' Aoi) 15 of 32+ by Koshino Ryo
- Over Rev 14 of 31 by Yamaguchi Katsumi & Team 39
- [Series Premiere] Red River (Sora wa Akai Kawa no Hotori) 1 of 28 by Shinohara Chie
- [Premiere] The Running Bus (Bus Hashiru) by Sahara Mizu
- Soul Eater 2 of 18+ by Ohkubo Atsushi
- Wilderness 4 of 7+ by Ito Akihiro
 | Kurosagi 「クロサギ」 |
Volume 10 contains chapters:
98～101 トリック詐欺（I～IV）
102～108 巨額投資詐欺（I～VII）
シロサギ・データ・ファイル
Awards
Best Seinen/General Manga, 53rd Shogakukan Manga Awards (2007), along with Sekiya Tetsuji's Bambino!
Related
Shin Kurosagi (sequel; eight volumes per 2010.09)
Adaptations
An 11-episode live-action renzoku starring Yamashita Tomohisa (Kurosaki) and Horikita Maki (Yoshikawa Tsurara) aired on TBS from April to June 2006. A movie starring the same leads premiered in Japan on 8 March 2008.
 | Garasu no Isu 「ガラスの椅子」 by Nakamura Mariko |
 | Ns' Aoi 「Ｎｓ’あおい」 by Koshino Ryo |
Recognitions
Jury Recommended Work for Story Manga, 12th Japan Media Arts Festival
Related
Ns' Aoi - Those Days (side story; 2 of 2 volumes)
Adaptations
Live-action renzoku starring Ishihara Satomi (Misora Aoi) aired on Fuji TV from January to March 2006, followed by a special in September that same year.
 | Over Rev! 「オーバーレブ！」 |
Volume 14 contains chapters:
148 本当の所有者
149 父と娘
150 去りし者の遺産
151 第1日目の試練
152 免停1か月！
153 剛性強化
154 峠のヒッチハイカー
155 テストバトル
156 レインダンス
157 ドラテク求道者
158 再会の瞬間
159 ミラージュの挑戦
 | Sora wa Akai Kawa no Hotori 「天は赤い河のほとり」 by Shinohara Chie |
Awards
Best Shoujo Manga, 46th Shogakukan Manga Awards (2000)
Other languages
English Red River (VIZ Media; 28 volumes), Italian Anatolia Story (Editions Star Comics; 28 volumes), German (EMA/Egmont Manga and Anime), Vietnamese Dòng Sông Huyền Bí (Tre Publishing House) and traditional Chinese 赤河戀影 (Tong Li Taiwan)
Adaptations
Eight drama CDs were released between 1997 and 2003.
Related
An artbook (Japan release: 1999.02.24), fanbook (2002.07.26) and a two-volume novel adaptation 天は赤い河のほとり 外伝 魔が時代の黎明 written and illustrated by Shinohara Chie-sensei (2007.05 and 2007.09)
 | Bus Hashiru 「バス走る。」 by Sahara Mizu |
 | Soul Eater 「ソウルイーター」 by Ohkubo Atsushi |
Related series
First appeared as one-shots in two Gangan Powered special editions (Summer and Fall 2003) and Gangan Wing's 26 November 2003 issue. (Regular Monthly Shonen Gangan serialization commenced May 2004.)
Other languages/serializations
English Soul Eater (Yen Press; volume 4 street date: 2009.10.27; serialized in Yen Plus), French (Kurokawa tome 11 shipped per 2010.09), German (Carlsen Comics Band 7 ships 2010.10.29) and traditional Chinese 噬魂者 (Sharp Point Press Taiwan)
Adaptations
Manga volumes 1 to 12 adapted to anime by BONES. Fifty-one episodes starring seiyuu Omigawa Chiaki (Maka Alban) and Uchiyama Kouki (Soul Eater) aired in Japan from April 2008 to March 2009.
Square Enix bundled an audio drama, Soul Eater (Vol. 1): Special Social Studies Field Trip, with an artbook in August 2005. The drama CD featured different actors (Takeuchi Junko as Maka; Hoshi Souichirou as Soul Eater); only Kobayashi Yumiko reprised her Black☆Star role in the TV series.
 | Wilderness 「ＷＩＬＤＥＲＮＥＳＳ」 by Ito Akihiro |
Level Comics European comics/ROMICs (2010.10.27)
- Cubitus - Cubitus Jadi Hijau (Cubitus Se Met au Vert tome 26) by Dupa
- Lucky Luke - Legenda Barat (Lucky Luke, tome 41: La Légende de l'Ouest) by Morris, Patrick Nordmann
- Lucky Luke - Washington Man (Lucky Luke : L'Homme de Washington) by Laurent Gerra, Achdé
¹ Sources: Elex STO 27 October 2010 (release schedule) and Komikologi and/or Gramedia Shop (synopses, unless indicated otherwise)
² GN are priced at IDR 18,500 each except The Running Bus (SRP: IDR 25,000) and 3x3 Eyes 32 and The Black Swindler 10 (IDR 19,500 each). ROMICs/BDs retail for IDR 30,000 each.
³ Links like this are commercial Amazon search and/or product links (other language versions).
Volume previews continued
3x3 Eyes 32 of 40 by Takada Yuzo
Yakumo goes to Amara to save Pai, trapped in Neglowni's studio, and is attacked by Hahn who, by all rights, should already be dead.
Meanwhile, Kaiyanwan plans to blow up Amara. Can Yakumo and Pai escape before Amara disappears into oblivion?
The Black Swindler 10 of 20 by Kuromaru & Natsuhara Takeshi
Convicted stock shirosagi Kuruma Kyosuke is up to his old tricks, evidently not learning repentance lessons from four and half years of incarceration. This time, using a dummy corporation as front, he lays traps for investors. Kurosagi wants to investigate Kuruma, but Katsuragi refuses to cough up any information on the white swindler.
Aided by Hayase, Kurosagi persists in his pursuit of Kuruma. But Hayase's information miss blows Kurosagi's cover. Can Kurosagi escape Kuruma's clutches?
Glass Chair 6 of 8 by Nakamura Mariko
Her suspicions piqued by her parents' reticence, Aoi digs through old documents to discover the truth about Izuru's birth. She unearths a photograph that just might be the key to solving the mystery. Meanwhile, Izuru regains part of his lost memories and breaks down upon remembering his childhood trauma.
Who is Izuru, really? And how will Aoi react after learning his identity?
Nurse Aoi 15 of 32+ by Koshino Ryo
“We need to be more proactive!”
Seeing Ushijima-san's condition worsening, Aoi proposes an aggressive medical care regime. Fortunately, ER head Misato agrees.
Ushijima's daughter seems to welcome the more aggressive treatment and acts cheerfully around her father. Ushijima's wife, however, loses hope and decides on a shocking course of action.
Can Aoi prevent a worst case scenario from happening?
Over Rev 14 of 31 by Yamaguchi Katsumi & Team 39
Shino Ryoko falls for a guy driving Roadstar, and how! She even goes as far as letting herself get drenched by rain, just so she can meet Dream(y) Guy. She justifies the extreme measures by saying, “His driving is perfect!”
The Running Bus by Sahara Mizu
Level sez this Bus, Variations on a Theme
-tagged anthology compiles nine short stories, centering around bus stops and the dreams and yearnings of the people who wait there. Storm in Heaven (description excerpted by Baka-Updates Manga) meanwhile sez the omnibus contains two parts, Bus Hashiru (originally serialized in the seinen Comic Bunch) and Nanairo Sekai (shoujo Melody), and enumerates the following as the contents:
Sky-Winding Bus Stop
Sakura Street Bus Stop
Wasurena Hill Bus Stop
Weather Forecast
Dudleya Road
The Glasses Thief
(ex Nanairo Sekai)Adult-Uniform
(ex Nanairo Sekai)
I suggest GET! to confirm the actual contents of this IDR 25,000-priced antho.
Sahara Mizu-sensei uses Sahara Mizu for her seinen works, among them, her current Comic Bunch serial, My Girl, the Shinkai Makoto-authored Hoshi no Koe or Voices of a Distant Star and Kumo no Mukou, Yakusoku no Basho or The Place Promised in Our Early Days, as well as Watashitachi no Shiawase na Jikan, the manga adapt of South Korean author Gong JiYoung's novel. But she creates BL manga as Yumeka Sumomo.
Soul Eater 2 of 18+ by Ohkubo Atsushi
Soul and Maka's remedial lessons proceed apace, with the pair battling Dr. Franken Stein, the most powerful Death Weapon Meister Academy alumnus and the culprit behind Sid-sensei's transformation. Franken Stein's immense soul outclasses even Black*Star that Soul and Maka can only quail before it.
Can Maka overcome her fear and emerge from the assignment unscathed?
[With additions from Yen Press' Soul Eater, Vol. 2 description]
Wiki meanwhile adds that a new student enrolls at the DWMA and faces off with Soul and Black*Star.
Soul Eater volume 2 contains chapters:
002. Remedial Lesson (Part 2)
003. The ‘New Student’ and ‘Soul Observation’
004. Demon Sword (Part 1)
005. Demon Sword (Part 2)
Wilderness 4 of 7+ by Ito Akihiro
Not only are Goldsmith and Broughton hunting them down, the police are also on the tail of the three Japanese nationals on the run in the Mexican desert.
As if mortal threats weren't enough, Ena is haunted by guilt over having killed someone. She succumbs to the strain and shoots Seruma, before going off to face death herself!
Wilderness volume 4 contains chapters:
13 Somebody to Remember (1-3)
14 ALL THE SCARED RABBITS (1-3)
15 Bloodline (1-3)
UP NEXT: m&c! 27 October 2010 manga and manhwa
m&c!: Ugly Duckling Become Swan 4 · Female Wolf's Boy 7 · Misunderstand Girl and Angry Prince by Shiumi Saki · Bakugan Battle Brawlers 11 · Shanaou Yoshitsune Genpei War 7 · Love Survival by Sugiyama Miwako · Be A Naughty Girls 1 by Yeon Doo, Kim YeVin · Memory Eater 2 of 2 · Long Hu Men 172 · KOLONI: Intan Permata Rimba 1 by Hans Jaladara · Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures 10 of 10 · Cherry 48/2010
Iamque opus exegi,
~niki DBA 30uɐlnɯɐnɥ (花木蘭03) who thanks Level editor Lenny-san for the Red River artwork *bows*
disclaimer
Cover images and source summaries used here for reference are © their respective intellectual rights holders. No infringement intended.
other upcoming manga (27 October 2010 street date)
Elex Media: HanaLaLa 53/2010 · Detektif Conan 58 · Pokonyan Pika-pika 1 by Fujiko F. Fujio · English School Wars 1 by Matsumoto Tomo · Kindaichi Special Case - The Phantom Of The Opera 2 of 2 · Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle 17 · Otoboke Section Chief 7 · Godhand Teru 27 · Buso Renkin 10 of 10 · Lum, The Invader Girl 26 · With My Brothers 9 · Shonen Star 75/2010
related monthly schedules
October 2010
Premiering Red River by Shinohara Chie,Gun Smith Cats Burst by Sonoda Kenichi andHunt for the Thumb by Yamada Yuusuke (standalone)
September 2010
Premiering Sky of Love by Mika & Haneda Ibuki and The Duke and I by Hara Chieko
other invaluable resources
Baka-Updates Manga · Wikipedia · 7net Shopping · ANN
Technorati tags
Level Comics · manga · ROMIC (BD) · josei · seinen · shoujo · shounen · 3X3 Eyes · The Black Swindler · Glass Chair · Nurse Aoi (Ns' Aoi) · Over Rev · Red River (Sora wa Akai Kawa no Hotori AKA Anatolia Story) · The Running Bus (Bus Hashiru) · Soul Eater · Wilderness · Cubitus · Lucky Luke
3x3 Eyes 「３×３ＥＹＥＳ」 by Takada Yuzo
Kodansha Weekly Young Magazine, seinen
Volume 32 first published in Japan 1999.10
Other languages
English 3X3 Eyes (Dark Horse Comics; till volume 8), Korean (Young Movie Comics), French (Pika Édition; 40 volumes), Spanish (Planeta DeAgostini Comics; dropped), Italian (Editions Star Comics) and German 3x3 Augen (Carlsen Comics)
Awards
Best Shounen Manga, 1993 Kodansha Manga Awards
Adaptations
Two anime OAVs starring seiyuu Tsujitani Kouji (Fujii Yakumo) and Hayashibara Megumi (Ayanokouji Pai)