Sweet But Not Sweet

by Senmu Sakishita, Melania Schmitz (Translator)

Keiichi Hozumi hat alles: Erfolg, Intelligenz und Charisma. Doch hinter der perfekten Fassade verbirgt sich eine Schwäche – er kann nicht allein schlafen. Jede Nacht teilt er sein Bett mit einer anderen Frau, während sein treuer Sekretär Ibuki, der heimlich seit acht Jahren in ihn verliebt ist, die Spuren seiner Affären beseitigt. Als Keiichi eines Abends betrunken einen Dreier vorschlägt, bringt das Ibukis Fassade ins Wanken. Wie lange kann er seine Gefühle noch unterdrücken, bevor Leidenschaft über Loyalität siegt?

Genres: Manga, Romance, LGBT, Boys Love, Graphic Novels, Yaoi, Comics Manga

208 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 29, 2025

Reviews

[alex :) · Rating 2 out of 5]

this was so weird.. the whole relationship felt forced. i’ve always loved the trope where one mc has been in love with the other for years, but i didn’t really feel that dynamic between ibuki and hozumi. it was just smut, some jealousy, more smut, and then randomly confessing feelings. idk nothing felt genuine to me 🤷🏽‍♀️

[Peppa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story centers around Keichi, who’s clingy, emotionally stunted and somehow completely unaware that he’s been in love with his best friend Ibuki for eight years.
You can tell Keichi treats Ibuki more like a comfort object than an actual person, he’s basically his emotional support human. And Ibuki just goes along with it, like a loyal sidekick-slash-butler.

There’s this stuffed animal moment that felt symbolic, Ibuki gives it to Keichi (probably trying to redirect all that childish attachment), but after they sleep together for the first time, Keichi rips it apart. Honestly felt like Ibuki drawing a line, saying “stop projecting on this plush and actually see me.”

But still… it relies hard on the usual BL tropes. Ibuki being prideful and lowkey bitter that Keichi hasn’t figured things out, even though he’s the one who let things stay unresolved for years. Keichi’s dense, yeah, but Ibuki didn’t exactly make anything clear either. It’s just nothing new.

Also, the thing with Keichi’s mom? Weirdly rushed and only really there to explain why Keichi acts like a lost child. It didn’t add much for me.

Overall, gorgeous art, some interesting emotional beats, but it definitely leans into cliché territory a bit too much.

[⋆ forest ˖ · Rating 4 out of 5]

ᢉ𐭩 idiots to lovers
ᢉ𐭩 assistant x boss
ᢉ𐭩 mutual clingy-ness
ᢉ𐭩 whiny x get over it

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

The very definition of pwp.

[Rebecca Turk · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was so cute (but not cute (lmao)) these two are fucking idiots and are so codependent and disastrous you cant help but love them

[John A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was clingy and awkward, but in a good way, Ibuki is everything that’s right 😭

[Susanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to say, this was aptly named. The story was kind of cute, but Hozumi was anything but. I’ve seldom encountered such a man-baby who’s completely enamored with himself. I’m not entirely sure what Ibuki saw in him, but he’d spent eight years making Hozumi dependent on him so the other guy would realise he loved him too. (In the flashbacks to their college days we learn Hozumi being all over Ibuki when he’s drunk, only to forget everything when he sobers up.)

Since this is a one-shot story, Ibuki gets what he wants in the end, although it takes a couple of outside pushes to make Hozumi realise his feelings. He doesn’t change at all though, as the bonus stories reveal. Spice was abundant and it was hot. Art was good.

I received a free copy from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

[sara]

DNF!!

[Shae · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not for me. Full thoughts here: https://youtu.be/nsVrCSKsOXM?si=9Zkzz...

[S · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sorry not sorry but this little oneshot manga is horrible.

The mc is in his thirties and a whiny brat. He's frankly one of the most annoying, crybaby characters I've had to read. It was genuinely difficult to get through the whole thing, and it was only one volume. Constantly crying during not only sex but every day functions. He's a pampered and spoiled rich man who needs someone to sleep with or else he can't sleep. While childhood neglect is his reasoning for this side of him, his personality made this utterly unbearable. Throughout the whole volume he never acted like an independent adult.

On the other hand, the ml is a year younger than the mc and has been in love with him for eight years. He is very determined to get the mc to fall in love with him. Way too determined. It was very nonconsensual the way that the ml was forcing himself on the DRUNK mc. Ugh. What an annoying and disgusting trope.

Both characters seem to have personalities that are not sticking; the mangaka was not consistent in their behaviors. It was infuriating. Not only that, I hate when art styles have this overexaggerated blushing. There was that and the constant annoying crying from the mc. The art style was good but looked weird at times. If you're like me and don't like that stereotypical yaoi art style, you won't like this one. Big hands, long faces, weird looks---yeah, it wasn't exact but it definitely had those vibes with it.

Overall, the art style is unfavorable to me, but this one is purely opinion. Other than that, it contains some tropes like taking advantage of the other while drunk (a form of noncon) and an incredibly annoying mc who just needs to grow up and doesn't even develop away from the personality from start to finish. There is no character development for any character at all. The only thing that changes about the mc is he goes from being a womanizer to bisexual. He learned nothing but realizing his friend of 8 years has been in love with him the whole time. That's it.

Yeah, don't read it or spend your time on it. What a waste.

[Lucsbooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been on a BL manga binge, and "Cute or Not Cute" was the one I liked the least out of all of them, even though I loved the premise and the inversion of the usual power dynamics between the assistant and the CEO.

While this story touches on some very heavy themes, such as the effect of a loveless childhood and alcoholism, there is no attempt to help the characters get better; they simply get into a relationship.

The story has a lot of hot scenes and while some of them worked like when Ibuki refers to Hozumi as "little ceo" and takes care of him in multiple ways such as dressing him or putting cologne on him and then on himself, and their more intimate scenes where Ibuki teases him until he cries with pleasure, the lack of communication and informed consent bothered me, as did seeing him on his knees for his mother with Ibuki seating beside her. I know I'm missing some cultural context, but it happening in front of Ibuki disgusted me.

I almost wish that this entire novel was marketed as less of a romance and more of a thriller, where Ibuki was a goldigger who put 8 years into gaining his mark's confidence and ended up liking him, because even though I liked where we left them, with Ibuki proposing with a ring out of nowhere and Hozumi demanding a proper proposal and Ibuki immediately obliging, there was so little character growth that I got to the end believing that they both deserved better than the other. What they needed was therapy, not an engagement that Japan won't even recognise. But at least, Hazumi's family is everything bad, but not homophobic, so they won't have to worry about that.

Thank you to Edelweiss, TokyoPop and LoveLove for this DRC.

[Nicki Markus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute But Not Cute had a fun premise. I liked the dynamic between the two characters; however, I wished there was more time to get to know them, as my sense of them only felt superficial, especially since intimate scenes did make up a fairly large chunk of the book. The artwork was excellent, though: clear and expressive. Overall, I am giving this one 3.5 stars. I liked the art and the premise but would have appreciated the opportunity to get to know the characters more deeply. Recommended for contemporary BL manga fans, but with the advisory that this one is at the more explicit end of the BL spectrum.

I received this book as a free eBook ARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

[R. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hozumi is a spoiled little rich boy with a silver spoon, but a harsh to almost non-existent relationship with his parents. As a result, he attaches to friends and one-night stands more than is usually healthy. Ibuki meets Hozumi when the two of them are in college together and Hozumi manages to make Ibuki fall for him thanks to his drunken adventures, confessions, and need to sleep with another person. Years later, Ibuki is still cleaning up after Hozumi as he wishes he would stop his playboy ways and recognize his own affections. Surprisingly, even Hozumi's mother seems to be on board with this idea, which is even more shocking given the arranged marriage talks. Now it's just up to Ibuki's own scheming and determination to wear down Hozumi's resistance to make him see the light.

[Cassie Renais · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was middling in almost every way- decent characters, acceptable story, consistent pace, good art, gratuitous smut. So whilst it's not breaking the mold to deliver anything incredibly original and deep, it is serving up the same enjoyable oblivious ML/devoted MC dynamic that we know and love.

The characters are cute together, and whilst the 8 years hiatus between the opening confession and the rest of the story is a bit too long to swallow, the idea that Ibuki has been playing the long game is sufficiently explained in the text to make it believable. Hozumi is undoubtedly a man-child, but I can see the appeal anyway. Some people love to love on others and Hozumi soaks it up.

Overall, cute, but not a story I'm likely to remember anything about in a few weeks time.

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Awful. And honestly it's my own damn fault because I've disliked every Senmu Sakishita I've read. I could basically copy and paste my thoughts on Haga-kun wa Kamaretai onto this review: It was not good. The writing is awful. It was confusing and messy and hard to follow. The relationship sucked and the personalities kept flip flopping.

The only redeeming quality is the art and the smut. The smut was pretty good and the art popped off. I absolutely LOVED the way Ibuki was drawn. It's honestly such a travesty he was stuck in this book. I need to just not read from this mangaka anymore.

[Bee C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Took me a while to get through this. It’s good but I also didn’t care much for their relationship. Hozumi is such a child that it makes me wonder if he understands he’s acting like one. Ibuki on the other hand acts like a parent by taking care of everything for Hozumi. Their relationship as boss and assistant feels like any other one where the assistant actually works but their relationship as people with feelings just left me meh. There are fun moments like when Hozumi’s mom appears. I think I just need to reread it through once without stopping.

[Zephorah Dove · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to LoveLove for the DRC.

This title was cute enough, but it did feel like the character development lacked a bit. I loved seeing the flashbacks of their time in school and how seamlessly they settled into their current relationship. It was a messy transition from friends to lovers but it hilarious how much our MC fought it but then got jealous of other people with his friend.

Really cute one-shot. Not perfect but was an enjoyable read without any scenes of forced intimacy.

[Sarah Tyson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to Edelweiss and the publisher for the Digital Review Copy.

Low on plot, but a solid BL Manga for what it is.

Love the art, it's the BL formula to a T, but I'm not mad about it.

Loved Ibuki. Would have loved a little about his backstory and if Hozumi was even just a hair more fleshed out.

[Not Very Extroverted · Rating 3 out of 5]

*This is not a 'Bad' review. This is a 'needed a little more' type of review.

So overall, it was cute. I really wanted to get more time to explore both the characters and the family bonds, but all it really focused on was 'he's finally fallen into my trap that I laid out for the last 8 years' which isn't bad, but I just needed more.

Will add though: the smut was excellent 👌

[nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

i do agree it's cute how hozumi keeps looking for other people when his type is simply by his side and it's cute how ibuki plotted for eight years for hozuki to be his. i guess i hoped for a more in depth flashbacks showcasing more of their past as college students or just something.. something that would make me go "aww" about their love story. but nonetheless, the title says it all.

[Hisgirl85 · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars. Beyond not being for me, story felt a mess. There was a bit of an ick factor in how the two talked to each other and their dynamic.

[Anisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

VERY CUTE 😭

[Cheyenne Davey · Rating 3 out of 5]

unsure how I feel tbh.
very fitting name though. at some points I thought it was cute. others not so much. MC is such a man child.
and Ibuki seemed groomerish? IDK. kinda weird vibes all around.

[Lailah · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Mars]

eh. i knew i should've read a bit of this one before i bought it.

[Mari · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is nothing but turn your brain off smut. The art the gorgeous, the author knows what they're doing. But this just screams pwp. Not bad, but it’s not gonna give you emotional depths.

cw dubcon

[J-Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don’t really like his womanizing ways, but the story is cute once that issue is solved.

[Cornelius Strange · Rating 5 out of 5]

both these men stupid in love but also did not expect to see full hole 😂

[DonutKnow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute but not cute exactly! I kind of like Ibuki’s character, especially when he was younger because it got a bit too manipulative for me when he got older 🤔😅🥰