Virgin Love, vol. 2

Virgin Love #2

by Tina Yamashina

The Battle of the The Love Novice vs the Love Junkie

Determined to break out of her shell and find real romance, Shoko Shoji signs up for the Love House, an experimental living arrangement putting six young singles under one roof to see what sparks may fly. Her eye is immediately caught by the intriguing young art student, Kei, who appears to have set his sights on her as well. But things are not always as they seem, and soon Shoko walks in on Kei in an intimate moment with another Momo, the adorably charming and fashionable hairstylist, who’s not about to back down from her own chance at love.

Genres: Manga, Romance, Comics

176 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 11, 2021

Reviews

[marcia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Vol. 1 ★★★☆☆

I'm more invested in the conflict between Momo and Shoko than the actual romance. I don't have a problem with age gap relationships if the characters have chemistry together, but Kei has as much appeal as wet cardboard so it's insane that Shoko is seriously considering dating him.

[Hisgirl85 · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/4 stars This is paced so quickly. I love the fast-moving story and the art. I love that the three female characters are all friends. The little bonus story at the end was so cute. I'm waiting to hear more about the playboy guy. It has some interesting and positive messages not always seen in manga. I love it.

[Izzy's Isle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Virgin Love volume 2 by Tina Yamashina dives deeper into Shoko and Kei’s relationship while giving Momo more of the spotlight and revealing pieces of her backstory.

Momo suddenly develops an interest in Kei, which forces Shoko to confront whether she’s been too self-absorbed to consider the other women’s feelings, especially when they might be drawn to the same man. As the volume progresses, Riopi points out that Shoko and Momo are two sides of the same coin: Momo envies Shoko’s apparent success and carefree confidence, while Shoko longs for Momo’s effortless social ease, fashion sense, and popularity with men. That mirrored jealousy makes both characters more sympathetic.

On the other hand, Kei and Shoko’s growing connection hits a roadblock because of Kei’s nonchalant demeanor and his difficulty in expressing his feelings. His lack of clarity hurts Shoko which in turn opens the door for Tanaka to step in. I hope Shoko will learn not to downplay her feelings or excuse ambiguous behavior despite how young Kei is because her emotional needs deserve to be acknowledged.

This volume picks up the pace and heightens the drama, but I found myself wondering how much of it is actually being captured on camera. Since the premise is that the residents are being filmed for a TV program, I wish the manga had given clearer signals that the cameras are present during key moments. Many scenes feel as if they occur off-camera, which undercuts the reality show framework.

Riopi has been acting as the voice of reason from beginning to end which I love, but I hope we get to see her backstory and a reveal of who she may truly have her eyes set on.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This manga follows Shoko who joins a dating/living arrangement experiment that places six singles in a house together.

Definitely still has my interest and I’m curious to see what happens next. Currently, these are my thoughts:

- not a huge fan of Kei as a love interest. Maybe since I’m not usually a reverse age gap trope girlie, but usually I can look past it. Shoko the FMC is 26 and Kei is NINETEEN (and he shows it lol)… yeah not my jam 😅
- Riopi is one of the girl housemates and she’s my fave so far. Idk why she gives me ‘Paradise Kiss’ vibes? And she seems to be one of the only characters to have her head screwed on properly
- I love Tanaka and his slutty little glasses. That is all.

[Libby · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume was decent. Love triangle between Shoko, Kei and Tanaka is slowly building up. I really like Tanaka — he’s adorable and sweet. Im hoping we get more character development (and romantic pairings) because I find some characters to be a little flat. I’m still uncomfortable with Shoko and Kei together (even if the age gap wasn’t a factor, I find Kei to be a really uninteresting character).

[Rachel]

i’m enjoying this, but i wonder how much of it is just due to the beautiful artwork and similarities to living room matsunaga san lol

[Lelani · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another quick read!! I love how fast paced it is but once again…I AM NOT TEAM KEI. This volume just solidified it. The age difference is shown greatly and I hope by volume 4 (I bought and read three the same day as this one) that she finally clocks that hey maybe KEI isn’t the one. Hes 19 and not going to want to settle down or anything for awhile. TANAKA ON TOP. I’m glad that momo turned out to still be a girls girl but idk that whole “situation” was weird and if I was the MC would’ve distanced myself from KEI and momo slightly.

[mel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume drops the comedy altogether and turns into a drama but it's still quite enjoyable. I really love that the women are all friends and place more value into their friendship than romantic relationships.

[Risa (Clazzi) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nah, because why are we dedicating a whole ass love triangle where Kei is the focus? I am wholly NOT team Kei, he is so uninteresting and bland and the age gap shows how uncompatible he and Shoko are. Tanaka needs to step up because the love interests are not it.

[Brooke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another cute volume! It’s nice to get to know each of the characters a bit more and get other storylines from Kei and Momo.

There is more drama which is fun. Still rooting for Kei!

[Aurakinski · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is surprisingly wholesome. I only picked it up because vol 2 was on sale for a great price, so I ended up buying vol 1 as well.

One thing I find weird though...

I thought that the premise would be that they were on a reality dating show, and that they would be on TV. But no. Instead, a dating app company is sponsoring an experiment where six strangers move into a building together for a year, in an attempt to find love. They get to live there rent-free, and they are NOT shown on tv, but for some reason there are still cameras set up in their shared spaces? And somehow, during these 2 volumes (Out of 4 total), this fact never gets addressed?? Nothing beyond "oh yeah, there will be cameras monotoring you". But then nothing about how the participants feel about that fact, who is going to be watching or why, what's going to be done with the footage, or how it affects the way they're comfortable expressing themselves. Nothing.

That's aside, it's a cute romance series with likable characters that have some depth to them despite it being a short series.

Ordered the rest of the series today, so we'll see how this goes!

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Six single people living together rent-free for the "Love House Project" - who will fall in love with who?

Ahhhhh!!! This book is so much fun, because it feels plausible that anyone could end up with anyone, and there are probably some twists coming! You could root for Tanaka and Shoko (awkward cuties!) or Shoko with Kei (hot!) or even Momo and Tanaka (opposites attract!) or hey what about the more mysterious members, Igarashi (the playboy, but is he really a softie??) and Rio (the coolest girl you've ever seen). Fun idea, great characters. Let's goooo!

[Skyler Tigner · Rating 5 out of 5]

The art is beautiful and I live for all the beautiful outfits the female characters wear. I’m glad the author had the two girls talk about their issues rather than create a woman against another woman storyline.

[-moonprismpower- · Rating 2 out of 5]

I cannot connect with these characters at all and I just don’t understand why Shoko is even trying with a 19 year old??? He’s still in college!!! He’s studying while she works a 9-5 job! Girl, I know you’re a virgin but NOOOO.

[lulu · Rating 4 out of 5]

fast-paced, para cualquiera que esté en un bloqueo lector creo que le podría servir.

no me gusta la relación de shoko con kei, sacando que él es un NIÑO; su manera de ver el mundo es muy egocéntrica y machista.

rooting for tanaka all the way porque me hace acordar a REDACTED

[Evelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow the 19 year old was bad at communicating his feelings who could have guessed that

[Angelica Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

The art is so pretty 🥹 this volume is so fast paced! Just waiting for Tanaka’s moment… I’m rooting for you 🥹🖤

[Eden]

The first book kept me interested, but this book was so much better. I wanted to start the 3rd volume right away.

[Juniiee · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNFing the series; a lil bit too cringe for me & I have no interest in any of the characters or the romance. And personally, the age gap between Kei & Shoko is weird.

[Mrs. Tea · Rating 4 out of 5]

oh I'm absolutely involved now!!!

[Aurora · Rating 3 out of 5]

I continue to be kind of meh on this series. 😅