An Even More Beautiful Lie

by Kei Kanai

When art student Kurosu Keiichiro notices a young man leaving his umbrella on the train, he runs after him to return it. In so doing, he ends up missing his last train home. Feeling responsible, the young man offers his place for the night. Turns out he is a fellow student at Keiichiro's university, one Yukari Yohito who has already garnered considerable attention for his artwork. Yukari may be a genius with paints and a canvas, but he's completely hopeless at everything else. Striking up a friendship, Keiichiro begins coming by to take care of things for Yukari... but, the more he involves himself in Yukari's life, the deeper Keiichiro's feelings begin to run. It's no longer mere friendship or even admiration that moves him, but what should he do about it?

Genres: Manga, Yaoi, Romance, Graphic Novels, LGBT, Drama, Fiction

200 pages, Paperback

First published July 24, 2010

About the author

Kei Kanai (金井桂) is a Japanese mangaka.

Reviews

[Brittany Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not at all what I was expecting; I really enjoyed it and as a couple these boys are adorable.

[Erika · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short, simple story. The art was okay, nothing mind-blowing. I was expecting more romance but the plot never really gets there. Nothing terribly wrong with this manga but I can't say I did more than kind of liking it. It was... average. I can't point exactly what it was but this left me underwhelmed.

[Amy Tasukada · Rating 4 out of 5]

the art work was very pretty, and I'm glad about that. The story was interesting kind of the reverse really. They sleep together then slowly build up a relationship. There's a hit that one of the characters might have a darker past so I enjoyed to subtle hits. Nice.

[Men In books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Petit one-shot tout doux, conseillé par la gentille vendeuse de Manga Taifu / OTOTO (merci beaucoup ), on découvre l'intensité de la passion de Yukari pour son art, la fragilité et l'isolement auxquels il est contraint car pour lui , rien n'est plus important que de créer, de passer ses émotions sur la toile. Par le regard admiratif qu'il pose sur le jeune artiste, on voit Kurosu ressentir de plus en plus ces émotions nées avec ses toiles, puis avec la lumière émanant de Yukari lorsqu'il se plonge totalement dans sa peinture. La façon dont Kurosu le voit va permettre à Yukari de tout de même plus s'ouvrir au monde et à la vraie vie pour profiter de toutes les beautés qui existent .... Quand on parle d'art, les sensations se font plus poétiques, plus douces-amères que pour tout autre manga du monde estudiantin, même si les sujets de base - l'amour, les sentiments, la sexualité - restent les mêmes. Ce manga se laisse savourer tranquillement, il est plein de tendresse, les graphismes sont beaux, on a envie de poursuivre leur histoire, et clore la dernière page de cette jolie romance....

Rose Taylor
http://meninbooks.eklablog.com/un-si-...

[Florence · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un joli manga avec une histoire et des personnages qui m’ont touchée. J’aurais certes aimé savoir un truc qui n’est pas éclairci concernant le passé de Yukari mais pour le reste, j’ai vraiment apprécié ma lecture. Une belle histoire.

[Kris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Since it is Kanai sensei, the book is sweet and brutal in places. The relationship between the two men develops slowly and has several setbacks, but comes to an HEA at the end. There is a rape scene in the middle, so beware, but the rape isn't written to titillate.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was very different than I expected. Definitely not a fluffy romance, but rather surprisingly emotional with undertones (and some more obvious elements) of darkness and trauma. It kind of broke my heart a bit, but I love the characters together and the art and atmosphere were beautiful.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

it was okay, good story but too condensed. The volume was way too short and it felt like there was something missing.

[TT · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Kane · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not worth the money I spent... I was truly disappointed.

[Bryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

You know, there were a few pages of this I could strongly have done without, but on the whole this was a charming self-contained love story and I enjoyed it a lot.

[hua · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pas le meilleur mais je le relis parfois par nostalgie

[Jennifer]

The art pwork was pretty good, but I didn’t quite understand the story...It kind of went off into a dark direction, and I found it confusing.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kurosu enrolls into Teio Art University at the last minute, surprising his friends as he barely had a passable grade in art and has the minimum of talent for it. It's there that he becomes a fan of Yukari's work, and so is pleased when a chance meeting brings them face to face.

But Kurosu learns little by little that Yukari lives and breathes for his art, that apart from keeping his bed sheets clean and changing his clothes as soon as he gets home everything else falls by the wayside. Yukari warns Kurosu that he doesn't have anything to give, aside from his body, that painting is all he thinks about.

Instead of heeding Yukari's words, Kurosu takes it upon himself to care for Yukari; preparing his meals, fixing stuff around the house, and even bathing him. Like a painter with a blank canvas, Kurosu fills the empty spaces with color and warmth; his strokes sure and bold as he tries to bring Yukari to life.

[Myka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful art, reminded me of Seven Days art. Story is a little basic and I could have done with a little more displays of affection, but the whole point of it is that period of wonder just before a relationship.

[Libraryangel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A simple, but beautiful story about loving someone who is different and in that steals your breath and makes you change.

[Jessie Potts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not explicit but interesting an in depth lead character. I really feel like this author could have been drawn out in two or three volumes. Beautiful art.

[Grace 🎻 · Rating 2 out of 5]

This manga was ok.

[Chiara · Rating 1 out of 5]

I honestly have no idea what I just read.

[Lydiah☾ · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring, Confusing - Nice art though