The Apothecary Diaries Manga Enters Hiatus [UPDATE]

UPDATE: The Apothecary Diaries has confirmed its current hiatus will end soon enough. The Apothecary Diaries: The Palace Cloister Mystery-Solving Notebook of Mao Mao will return on July 19th as Minoji Kurata will have returned from maternity leave. 

The Apothecary Diaries has proven itself a major hit, and the anime has more on the way. With season two on the horizon, all eyes are turning to the manga to keep fans satisfied. After all, The Apothecary Diaries kickstarted its manga in 2017 some years after the novels launched, and now one of the manga titles is going on hiatus.

The report comes from Shogakukan as the publisher announced The Apothecary Diaries: The Palace Cloister Mystery-Solving Notebook of Mao Mao is going on hiatus. It is taking a break as artist Minoji Kurata is going on maternity leave. The artist gave birth in January, and Kurata plans to take time away from work through the summer.

Now to be clear, Kurata’s manga adaptation is separate from the one The Apothecary Diaries fans know best. The artist oversees a spin off of sorts while the full manga adaptation of Nekokurage’s light novels lives under Square Enix. The adaptation began in May 2017, and it is overseen by writers Natsu Hyuga and Itsuki Nano.

Obviously, fans of The Apothecary Diaries are sending their best wishes to Kurata as they tackle maternity leave. In the meantime, readers can brush up on the series’ main manga or revisit its anime. In October 2023, The Apothecary Diaries made its anime debut under OLM and Toho Animation Studio. The historical drama earned rave reviews, sparking buzz from fans across the globe. A season two has already been ordered for The Apothecary Diaries. So if you want to know more about the series, you can read its official synopsis below:

“Maomao, a young woman trained in the art of herbal medicine, is forced to work as a lowly servant in the inner palace. Though she yearns for life outside its perfumed halls, she isn’t long for a life of drudgery! Using her wits to break a “curse” afflicting the imperial heirs, Maomao attracts the attentions of the handsome eunuch Jinshi and is promoted to attendant food taster. But Jinshi has other plans for the erstwhile apothecary, and soon Maomao is back to brewing potions and…solving mysteries?!”

What do you make of this latest update on The Apothecary Diaries? Let us know what you think over on Twitter and Instagram. You can also hit me up @MeganPetersCB to share your take!

HT – ANN