Voices in the Sea Foam

by Kotarō

Can true love break a curse that ­crosses lifetimes?

Aito used to think he was an ordinary kid—until the day he fell in love at first sight with a boy at school. Suddenly, memories of his previous life as the tragic little mermaid came flooding back, leaving him unable to speak or stand without agonizing pain. The terrifying ordeal made him swear off love entirely, but a fateful encounter with his charming college classmate Toru now threatens to shake his resolve—and push him into dark waters that might drown him for good.

Genres: Manga, Romance, Fantasy, LGBT, Queer, Graphic Novels, M M Romance

Kindle Edition

First published December 10, 2024

Reviews

[*⁀➷ Lily the Lilac *⁀➷ · Rating 4 out of 5]

❀ 𝔸𝕥𝕥𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟: 𝕊𝕡𝕠𝕚𝕝𝕖𝕣 𝕗𝕣𝕖𝕖 ❀
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

🧜🏻‍♀️≋🫂≋🌊 𝓥𝓸𝓲𝓬𝓮𝓼 𝓲𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓢𝓮𝓪 𝓕𝓸𝓪𝓶 🌊≋🫂≋🧜🏻‍♀️

꒰➛ Stars: 4 ⭐!
꒰➛ Pov: N / A
꒰➛ Spice: 1 / 5
꒰➛ Content: No cws for this one!

꒰➛ Thank you to NetGalley for this e-ARC!

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✎𓂃 Mini Review! ✎𓂃

As a lot of people who read my reviews know, I'm an MM romance reader. So it's not surprising I read BL manga as well 💗 To all my BL lovers out there (and I know you're there), this was a really solid standalone! It's fast-paced, as most standalone mangas are, but leaves a sweet taste in your mouth near the end

The romance is super innocent, as in we don't even get to see them kiss, and I know it can be hard to find BL / yaoi on the more clean end of the spectrum sometimes!

The art? It's ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS, like I appreciate when a manga has good art, and this definitely did 🥰

Also just want to point out that the best friend of the first MMC (the reincarnated Mermaid Princess one) is very clearly transfem, and I like to see little inclusions like that <3

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[Liz ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

it’s like the little mermaid but make it gay (kinda)

[Bettina · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 ⭐️ This Little Mermaid inspired story was breath taking, and I loved every page! Aito can't fall in love without loosing hos voice, and ever since he was a child, he's avoided falling for anyone. Until one day he meets Toru who wants Aito to sing for him. This story was so beautiful, and I loved the inspiration form the Little Mermaid, the sea theme, and the art style was simply perfection. Overall, it was a great story, very interesting characters, and just a wonderful story. An absolute must read for anyone that loves mermaids, pining, beautiful art, and a cute love story.

A big thank you to Kodansha for giving me an arc of this beautiful manga!

[gracie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't like the fantasy created very much and that didn't make for the best reading experience but I loved the art style. Toru and Aito were so cute omg, and I think the story did a wonderful job of showing how fear can be physically disabling.

Thank you Kodansha Comics and Netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review

[Spens · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very cute, straightforward, and queer retelling of The Little Mermaid! While it doesn't offer anything necessarily fresh, I loved the art style and I appreciate the angle of fear as something that prevents us from loving fully.

[Bibliothecat · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you Kodansha for providing me with the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am so sad to give this a fairly low rating - the cover is absolutely gorgeous and I like the premise; a reimagining, or almost sequel if you will, of The Little Mermaid set in modern times. The inside art is pretty and the idea really was neat. Unfortunately, this story lost me already around the first chapter. I realise this is a standalone and therefore quite condensed but I found this to be one of the worst cases of instant love I've ever come across. I can get behind instant attraction or infatuation, but the main character is cursed to feel miserable once he falls in love. He literally falls in love in chapter one simply by looking at someone for the very first time and immediately triggers the curse.

I just don't buy into that and it took away any form of tension and of things to root for. It also sadly continued that route as the story went on and it caused me to loose focus and ultimately I stopped caring about it one way or another. I can still see it appealing to some people and for those who mostly care about art - sure, why not? I really wish I had liked it more but it is what it is.

[Frank Chillura (OhYouRead) · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s May, the month of Mer and it wouldn’t be right not to fill my soul with the songs of mermaids. Voices in the Sea Foam isn’t a retelling of my favorite classic Disney movie, it’s a continuation of the original Hans Christian Anderson story. It asks the question: what would happen to the mermaid princess if she was reincarnated as a human?

Aito has known since he was in elementary school who he was in a past life. His memories flooded back after he came face to face with a boy that would be his first (and hopefully only) experience of love at first sight. The curse that was put on him in his past life is still in effect and when he sees the boy, he immediately can’t speak and walking becomes painful like his feet are being stabbed through with knives. He went home from school that day and his parents immediately removed him from school.

Now years later, he’s in college for fashion, having vowed to never fall in love. His family, as well as roommate/best friend knows the story and all about the curse, but he’s kept it to himself beyond that. That is until he meets Tachibana and immediately falls in love.

This was starcrossed lovers and fated mates all rolled into one incredibly romantic and beautiful story that evokes all of the fond memories I had pretending to be a mermaid as a child, while also wishing for a prince to find me and fall in love. I read this completely in one sitting while my husband drove us to a musical. I couldn’t put it down, needing to know how it ends.

I loved every moment of reading this.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the gifted eARC.

[Logan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha for the ARC! The following is my honest review:

This was a lovely take on The Little Mermaid fairytale, or rather, a take on a sequel. The art was beautiful, the dialogue felt natural, and the pacing was smooth. For something as serious as a story about a curse, though, the tone was pretty unserious overall. This isn’t a bad thing, it’s just not what I was expecting. While I wish some aspects had been given more weight or depth—or that we’d been nicer to Ami lol—I still appreciate this queer take on (an already queer-inspired) fairytale for what it is.

[selly rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 ⭐️

thank you netgalley for sending me this in exchange for an honest review!

This was so honestly so adorable omg romance manga will always be loved by me!! It had a cute twist to the little mermaid tale and it’s great if you’re looking for a palette cleanser read. A cute couple, fun side character, and a beach chapter?! Cliche but i loved it 🙂‍↕️

The reason why it’s not 4 stars is because some parts did feel a tiny bit rushed, but overall I had fun!

[Bin · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 ⭐️ Super cute little mermaidesque mlm romance with some classic manga tropes!

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the idea behind this one, but the execution wasn't quite there.

The premise is that The Little Mermaid - the original fairy tale, not the Disney version - was a true story, ending in heartbreak and the mermaid dissolving into sea foam while her beloved prince got his happy ending without her. As she was dying, she had one final wish: to be reborn as a human, with a soul and more of a future.

Aito discovers his past life at the age of ten, when he has a chance encounter with another boy whom he falls for at first sight. Just like the mermaid, he loses his voice and struggles to walk, so he drops out of school and never sees the boy again. Or so he thinks.

As a college student, Aito is studying fashion design and hanging out with his bestie, Mizuki, who runs a semi-famous crossdressing tiktok and seems to be casually trans. (It's not specified, but despite the crossdressing label in the posts, she seems to always present as female.) She also fully believes in Aito's past life and his curse; their friendship is the most solid dynamic in this story.

Aito, however, falls in love at first sight, again, with a handsome student named Toru, who - like the prince - is head over heels for Aito after hearing him sing. Through one of Mizuki's tiktoks, since Aito is unable to speak whenever he knows Toru is around.

That to me was the first indication that all of this "past life" stuff was just in Aito's head, which I think is a more interesting reading of the story. Mizuki even tests it out, by telling Aito that Toru is on the phone, then revealing it was Aito's older brother when he's unable to make any sound. So it's...obviously just in his head. And later on he does acknowledge that he's getting wobbly legs and a clamped-down throat because he's so panicky at the idea of falling in love.

But then it steers hardcore supernatural at the end, with ghost ships and talking sea turtles and a near-death encounter with the mermaid (who wouldn't exist even in a supernatural world because she was reincarnated after disappearing). So it's just kind of messy.

I also didn't find the central romance that engaging. I appreciated how kind and patient Toru was; he didn't see anything strange about Aito's inability to speak in public settings and even said he had a friend who struggled like that when she was away from home/safe spaces. But his confession just came too quickly for me. The two of them did communicate via text to some extent, but too minimally to get to know each other well enough to actually be in love. Toru still basically knows nothing about Aito because Aito gets too panicky to interact with him. But Toru's in love with him anyway? It just didn't really work for me.

Parts were very pretty, like the scenes with Aito and Toru in the sea together, and the "fate" ending was sort of an interesting twist, but this really didn't end up being that memorable of a story.

[Coco · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this fresh, gender‑bent reincarnation retelling of The Little Mermaid. The illustrations are gorgeous—Aito’s character design is especially striking, and even the more unsettling figures, like the Sea Witch, are beautifully done.


Aito’s past life and curse haunts his memories both mentally and physically- cursed to lose his voice and unable to use his legs whenever he falls in love. As a result, a decade ago he made a promise not to fall in love again.

But everything begins to unravel when a friend posts a karaoke video of Aito singing. The clip catches the attention of Toru, who wants Aito’s vocals for a soundtrack in his college film project. Unfortunately, being around Toru triggers Aito’s curse but thanks to modern technology, the two are still able to communicate through messaging.

One of my favorite moments is the swimming scene, when neither has their phone and Aito gently traces letters into Toru’s palm so they can “talk.” It’s intimate, sweet, and beautifully illustrated.


During the group trip when Toru is asked about his dating life he admits he likes someone and is waiting for their answer, everyone seems disappointed by his answer wanting him for themselves. When alone Toru reassures Aito he will continue to wait for his answer.
The story ends with a heartfelt HEA, and the final panel is absolute perfection.

[Carissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

*3.75 Stars*
*Thank you to Kodansha Comics for the E-Copy!*

This was so cute ohmygosh!! The Little Mermaid but BL!

Aito is a former mermaid princess who died and became reborn as a human. He thought he was just a normal boy until he gets a little crush on a boy and gets flashbacks of his past life, where the mermaid princess gave everything up for a human prince only to be turned to sea-foam. Not only does he get his memories back, but he is suddenly faced with a curse where he cannot speak to the one he loves.
Flash forward a few years and Aito meets Junior Toru and instantly becomes enamored with him, problem is that Aito can’t talk or communicate with him. Despite this, they get closer and Aito has to figure out what it means to love someone, and how to break the curse.

This was such a cute story! The artstyle was stunning, especially with scenes featuring the ocean and the plot itself was simple but effective. While we only know these characters for a short time, their personalities are defined and I was routing for them since the beginning! Such a well done reincarnation story mixed with a retelling of a classic fairy tale. Definitely recommend!

[Adriana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aito is cursed with the memories of his past life. He's the reincarnation of the famous mermaid princess who died because her one true love married another. He's sworn off love ever since the day he fell in love at first sight with a boy at school and felt all the pain and trauma of his first life. He's convinced that he will live his life alone until a fateful encounter with charming Toru has him rethinking his stance on love and the impossibility of breaking that curse.

An adorably sweet and emotional new take on the story of the Little Mermaid that pays tribute to the original while being a wholly unique take. Aito is all attitude. He hides behind it to keep others away, although it doesn't work on his best friend or Toru, who is one of the most understanding and unrealistically perfect males in BL, and that's why I love him.

It's a very quick read that left me feeling happy. And the fact that the art is also cute is a very nice bonus.

Delighted thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics | Vertical Comics for the cute read!

[I' · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this as an advance reader copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions my own.


Is it a Little Mermaid retelling? Yes. Is it gay? Absolutely.

Looking at the cover I knew the art was going to be beautiful but I was not prepared by how actually stunning it was. Definitely one of the highlights of the manga. But not only that, as it help it make it a stunning read in all aspects. The art is usually a deal breaker for me in the sense that if I don’t gel with it, it will impact my reading experience but in this case. Stunning does not cover it all.

The plot, knowing it comes from the Little Mermaid you can expect it is heavily inspired by it with a modern University twist. It is a single volume so you have to condense the whole story in 200 pages. With this in mind it did not feel rushed, as the pace feel consistent through the volume. I can also see how it may seem differently to some as you have a very limited space to tell the story but in this sense, I think adding the reincarnation part of the story fit very well in order to make it feel less instant.

It ticks both the sweet and dark boxes, at I feel it walks the line between them fairly well. In due homage to the original story. But also modernizing it in a way that does not feel forced or takes us out of what already is familiar to the reader.

[Skirmantė · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grimm’s The Little Mermaid, but make it BL.

I liked that Aito could remember his past life as a mermaid princess, and his fear of the curse added an extra emotional layer that made his experiences easier to understand and feel more grounded.

The art style is just captivating, and all the characters have their own unique charm, but the love story itself fell a bit flat for me.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

[Kiana ⏾ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Kodansha for providing me with this ARC.

AHHH I loved this BL retelling of the Little Mermaid! For some reason I thought this was going to be a series, which could have had more potential for more yearning and magical mermaid moments, but this was still so cute. I beg the author to make a sequel or something because I love these characters. And the art was GORGEOUS!!

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Little Mermaid but BL with beautiful art. Yes please and thank you very much.

[Demetri Papadimitropoulos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bad News for the Little Mermaid: College Does Not Cure Catastrophic Romantic Thinking
In “Voices in the Sea Foam,” Kotaro turns queer fairytale longing into a romance about panic, repetition, and the awkward labor of not disappearing on cue.
By Demetris Papadimitropoulos | April 6th, 2026

Fairytales prefer their suffering outsourced to magic. The sharper move in “Voices in the Sea Foam” is that Kotaro lets magic linger only long enough to show how pain can become reflex. Aito does not simply fear love. His legs give way, his voice cuts out, and his body reacts as if desire were an old disaster arriving right on time.

That shift keeps the book from mistaking seawater for substance. “Voices in the Sea Foam” begins with the familiar machinery of Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid” – painful transformation, muteness, the humiliations of wanting to cross into another form of life for love – but uses it to build something more immediate. As a child, Aito falls for a boy at school and remembers a past life as the mermaid princess. The memory brings a trained reflex with it: attraction means pain, silence, collapse. Ten years later, now a college student in the fashion department, he has built his life around not giving that reflex another chance to fire. Then Toru appears – softly spoken, musically gifted, almost suspiciously polished smooth – and the old order begins to short-circuit.

That is the plot. The motion lies elsewhere. The real engine is repeated near-contact. The manga moves through six “songs” and a short Bonus, and those “songs” are not there to prettify the table of contents. They teach the reader how repetition sounds. The cycle is simple, which is why its variations matter. Aito moves toward Toru, his body revolts, some new condition changes the terms, hope slips in, old fear resumes its seat. Texting is manageable where speaking is not. Sitting is tolerable where standing is not. A confession can be wanted long before it can be answered. Kotaro builds not by springing surprises but by replaying the same crisis under altered conditions, each pass shaving a little off Aito’s certainty and adding a little to ours.

At the level of line and caption, the script knows the drawings are carrying half the current. Cat Anderson’s translation keeps the dialogue contemporary without flattening tone. Mizuki’s teasing has snap, Toru’s speech has a matter-of-fact warmth, and Aito’s interior captions stay clipped and alarmed in exactly the right way. Kotaro is smart not to slather delicate material in extra feeling. The book’s image field is narrow but disciplined – feet, blades, water, foam, cold, voice – and the diction rises only as far as the fairytale material can bear. The result is control rather than flourish. The language stays on a short leash, which is exactly what this story needs.

Just as crucially, the script stops talking when the body has already made the point. Silence here is not mood. It is plot. Aito’s muteness is staged through stranded replies, dropped speech, panels that hold him on the verge of utterance and then leave him there. Toru keeps talking into those silences without making a performance of his patience. That matters because the manga is not really about confession in the abstract. It is about what happens when feeling outruns the body’s willingness to cooperate. Of course the page has to learn how to wait.

Those six “songs” are the frame that lets repetition bear weight instead of simply recur. The first installs the wound. The second discovers that distance – especially digital distance – loosens the body’s grip a little. The third deepens attachment through collaboration. The fourth pushes private longing into public space. The fifth delays the expected payoff and makes trust, not confession, the actual obstacle. The sixth throws both boys into the sea and forces the manga to decide what it believes about its own curse logic. Kotaro is not interested in formal fireworks. He is interested in what happens when recurrence is tightened until it starts to bruise.

The middle is where the hook stops sounding clever and starts costing the characters something. The film project, the rides home, the costume work, the rehearsals, the lunches – these are not filler but usable excuses in a romance whose whole problem is proximity. Love here cannot descend as revelation. It has to be smuggled in through tasks. The white-dress fitting shows the mechanism most clearly. Aito, a fashion student, tries on a dress he has made; Toru watches; the mermaid story is still hanging about, but it no longer gets to act like the star. What matters just as much is the more immediate panic of being looked at by the person you want while dressed in a way that makes wanting newly visible. The scene is not merely pretty, and not merely symbolic. It is embarrassing in the productive way. It lets myth and self-consciousness occupy the same body at once.

Here the manga quietly outruns its own pitch. It gives fear a timetable. Aito’s condition is not a one-off metaphor but a loop with triggers: seeing Toru unexpectedly, standing near him, moving toward him, sometimes even anticipating him. By contrast, a screen helps. In text messages Aito can still be nimble. In person he may not be able to produce a sentence. That split – fluent on a phone, short-circuited in a hallway – is the book’s sharpest current observation, and it makes the point without fanfare. Mediated ease and embodied ease are not the same thing. Plenty of people know that. Kotaro is simply sharp enough to build a romance around it.

That same exactness keeps the romance from floating off into pure wishfulness. Toru matters less as prince than as steady disproof. He keeps showing up. He keeps liking Aito before Aito can answer him. He keeps filling silence without demanding instant reciprocity. Kotaro is too shrewd to pretend that being liked back fixes anything on contact. Toru does not rescue Aito. He pressures Aito’s explanation of himself.

Here tenderness gives way to diagnosis. Once Toru confesses, wanting is solved. Believing is not. That delay after the confession is one of the manga’s strongest choices because it refuses the easy fantasy that mutual feeling is the finish line. In Aito’s inherited rulebook, words are unreliable. The prince in the old tale says what he is meant to say and then chooses another woman anyway. What Aito carries forward is not just sorrow but instruction. Hope humiliates. Longing makes fools. Love cannot be trusted to stay love. His silence after Toru’s confession is painful, but it does not read as plot maintenance. It reads as a body and mind still taking dictation from an earlier betrayal.

That is where the metaphor earns its keep. “Voices in the Sea Foam” begins by asking whether love can break a curse and ends up asking what happens when a person mistakes a learned response for a law of nature. Aito thinks he is under a spell. The manga gradually proposes something more unnerving: he has built his life around an old rule and forgotten that it was learned. That is why the fairytale frame matters. Kotaro is not borrowing “The Little Mermaid” for atmosphere. He is showing how a story of pain can become a private myth of consequence.

The insight survives the book’s main limitation, though not without some narrowing. The island climax is the point at which the manga finally allows itself to be openly melodramatic. The ghost-ship material is gleefully pulpy, the sea turtle’s return unexpectedly charming, and the rescue sequence gives the book the full-body reckoning it has been promising from the start. Once Aito understands that there is no active witch’s curse – only fear, loneliness, regret, and the residue of a previous self’s despair – the turn lands because the sea does not merely symbolize the old catastrophe. It stages it again, this time with just enough difference to make choice possible. Still, the ending tidies too soon. Earlier pages let the curse stay bodily, mythic, and half-legible all at once. The final clarification scrubs away some ambiguity that was doing useful work. The book’s best scenes trust recurrence, gesture, and bodily panic to do the thinking. The ending, while moving, is slightly more eager to translate.

Toru, though, remains almost frictionless. He is appealing company – attentive, tactful, talented – and the story plainly wants him to feel safe. Fair enough. But he rarely misreads, pressures, or meaningfully complicates the romantic field. A rougher Toru might have made the manga stranger, harder, perhaps better. Then again, a rougher Toru might have sent Aito straight back into preemptive collapse, and this book already has enough water trouble. Kotaro is clearly making a trade here: less interpersonal mess in exchange for a cleaner experiment in how Aito’s body reacts to steadiness. The trade mostly pays off. It is still a trade.

Even so, the last act finally spends the emotional credit the manga has been hoarding. Once Aito stops mistaking terror for destiny, movement becomes possible. He can call out. He can act. He can reach Toru instead of freezing at the edge of feeling. That is the sharpest reversal in the book. “Voices in the Sea Foam” begins as a story about breaking a curse and ends as a story about recognizing that the curse has already done its work by teaching the wrong lesson.

Kotaro does not let that idea hover above the plot like a tasteful thesis card. He returns the story to art-making. The film is finished. Aito sings. Their story is screened, and someone praises its perfect happy ending. It matters because the manga opened by refusing a prettified version of suffering and now allows another painful, awkward, halting experience to become neater once shaped into narrative. Stories prefer their edges clean. Life keeps arriving with damp corners. “Voices in the Sea Foam” knows this. It participates in the smoothing while glancing sideways at it, which gives the ending a sideways intelligence beyond simple sweetness.

The Bonus, mercifully, arrives without trying to feed us sweetness by hand. After so much failed speech, plain, uninterrupted conversation feels almost indecently luxurious. Aito and Toru talk. They exchange old facts about school, family, and missed chances. There is a light suggestion that their lives may have crossed before. Kotaro is wise enough not to pile another metaphysical ribbon on a story that has already made its case in the nerves. At that point the miracle has become almost embarrassingly ordinary: Aito can speak, stay, and keep going.

By my lights, “Voices in the Sea Foam” comes in at 84/100 – 4 stars here – because it is emotionally persuasive, formally alert, and just a shade too eager to neaten its own best trouble. What remains is not really the reincarnation hook, or even the fairytale frame, but the image underneath both: a body that has learned to vanish on contact and mistaken that reflex for selfhood. Kotaro gives that reflex foam, silence, song, and a prince-shaped trigger. Then, with more nerve than most fairytales can tolerate, he asks a better question than the old story ever did: what if the hardest transformation is not becoming human, but giving up that well-rehearsed little vanish, right on cue?

[Mehsi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange of an honest review.


🧜‍♂️ Loved that this is a reincarnation story but not just any reincarnation story but Little Mermaid. Yup. You know the one. Girl rescues prince, falls in love, makes deal with the sea witch, turns human, that whole spiel. Well, our MC Kasugai was in his previous life that mermaid. Throughout the story he remembers details of what happened, often not the happiest details. The cutting of the tongue so the mermaid couldn’t speak, the swords that stabbed the mermaid when she was human and trying to walk. Her death.
🧜‍♂️ Kasugai was such an interesting character. How at first he was pretty confident… until he met his first love and he remembered what happened to his previous life. About him being the Little Mermaid in his past life. The horrors he felt through the memories that came in. The transformation that he could feel in the core of his soul. From then on, as one would expect, he has been avoiding love and romance and just went on to study hard to do something with fashion. Though I think he may also have a career in music given things, I definitely wouldn’t mind to hear that song for real.
🧜‍♂️ I felt for Kasugai as he just wants a normal life. Not having to avoid love and romance. Not when he falls in love feels his legs just give away. Not for his voice to leave the building. Not get those horrible memories that turn everything so so sour.
🧜‍♂️ Tachibana, who was just such a cutie and so sweet. He first hears about Kasugai from a TikTok in which Kasugai sings and he wants to use him for one of his songs that is meant to be for a movie. From that moment sparks fly. We see that he is definitely interested, and I love that, despite seeing that Kasugai can’t talk, or that his legs won’t work, he stays with him. Tries to figure things out. Talking to him while Kasugai types out replies on his phone. Being next to him when he needs support. A lot of guys/girls could have been weirded out by how Kasugai acts, but not Tachibana, and that made me root for him.
🧜‍♂️ Mizuki. The best friend of Kasugai. And a guy who goes through life as a girl. When we first met them I thought they were a girl (also because of their name), but then later we see them topless + in the baths with Kasugai. We don’t really get any information if Mizuki is trans or if they are feeling more comfortable dressing as a girl, but I did love the representation and I loved seeing Mizuki. They are also a great friend to Kasugai and helps them out whenever Kasugai needs help. Tries to get him together with Tachibana for instance. Helps with the curse. And is their own fabulous fashionable self.
🧜‍♂️ The part with the ferry and what happened there. The part in which Kasugai finally is able to talk to his past self. That made me cry, it was such a beautiful and gorgeous part and I am so happy they were able to reconnect, to talk, and for the mermaid to give Kasugai the much needed confidence, but also apologies.
🧜‍♂️ And then the bits after that, those were perfect. Yes, I am keeping it vague, but believe me you will get emotional and it will make you cheer as well.
🧜‍♂️ I loved the bonus so much. I had a suspicion throughout the manga that Tachibana was THAT person, but I wasn’t sure. I am so happy that that was confirmed and heck yes it made me cry so much when that was revealed. That was just beautiful. Perfect ending!
🧜‍♂️ The cover is just stunning, but it isn’t just the cover, the inside art is also beautiful and I love the style. The chapter covers were also just so beautiful that I want prints of them.

All in all, HIGHLY recommended. A gorgeous manga that made me cry, this is one that will stick with me for a while~

Review first posted on https://twirlingbookprincess.com/

[Eva Blr · Rating 2 out of 5]

That was really good and it has been so long since I’ve read a one shot manga.
Not gonna lie I was skeptical at first but it ended up being pretty good and I kinda wished that it was longer maybe with more one to one moment between our characters or the process of making the song. This would have made their relationship stronger.

[Yari · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw a beautiful cover and that it was a queer story, of course I HAD to see what it was about!

So what do you mean the protagonist is the reincarnation of THE Little Mermaid, who once gave up her tongue and tail for feet in hopes of winning the heart of a human prince? What do you mean he remembers all that AND how he died, slowly turning to sea foam and into nothingness? What do you mean now, every time he falls in love, he experiences agonizing pain in his legs and cannot speak in their presence? And what do you mean he has now fallen for a boy who loves his voice and is looking to spend time with him?? What do you mean I loved it so much???

I only decided to read the summary of the story after I finished reading chapter 1 (had such a whiplash with that first chapter), and I was initially worried over the pace of the story, as it seemed like such a complex idea for such a short amount of pages. But I shouldn't have worried at all, it was perfect!

The story follows Aito, a boy who thought himself perfectly normal until one day in his childhood, when he experienced his first love at first sight, he also abrutly recalled his past life's memories as the little mermaid, including her death. Ever since then, he has experienced a curse where every time he falls in love, he will lose his voice in their presence and be unable to walk without feeling like knives stabbing his legs. For years then, he has distance himself from any chance of romance, instead focusing on his college classes and assigments.

But then one video shared later, a classmate hears his singing voice and asks if Aito would sing for a movie his class is making. And Aito falls in love at first sight, once again.

I want to start out by saying the artstyle was absolutely BEAUTIFUL. Hands down, one of my favorite elements of story. Not only was everything beautiful, but I really liked the usage of speech bubbles in the story, the shift between regular white, before stark black to contrast the difference between spoken words and body language. For example, there's a moment in the story where the protagonist cannot speak, so his friend is doing all the speaking for him, and more than once during the exchange, there would appear black speech bubbles that would yell "I'LL STRANGLE YOU" while his mouth kept shut, and a furious expression, and it was very specific to the friend because only she could pick it up. It's never directly stated, but it's clear that they have a bond they've shared for years, probably mostly because of his past life and her particular interest in the supernatural, despite apperances.

This isn't exclusive to this manga, of course. I've seen other manga do similar stuff when separating spoken words with thoughts, but I believe it is important to highlight the way it is manage in this story, with the protagonist going non-verbal often in the presence of the love interest.

Another aspect I really liked is how they implied the existence of neurodivergent people. I don't know the present Japan's views of the subject, but I really liked how the love interest mentioned that he knows of people who "get so overwhelmed, they can't speak outside the comfort of their home" or something along those lines. Maybe they meant it differently, but I interpreted as a casual reminder of the existence of neurodivergent people with such sensory issues, and how having such struggles is not this great scandal or topic to be careful with. It's just how they are and that's okay.

Speaking of the love interest, Toru Tachibana, his character was so sweet. I love how he was always this normal guy who was kind and respectful, and made sure to treat others the same way too. He never made a big deal out of anything, was always endlessly patient, and always more focused on the person before him, not his troubles.

This isn't to make him a saint, I believe everyone should treat others with patient and kindness, but as someone who often struggles to get the words out how I want them, or organized them in the way I need to, I am deeply familiar with the impatience and annoyance even the people who love you and are close to you can express when you don't express things correctly or have trouble getting the words right. So seeing Toru never even flinch when Aito stayed quiet, never make assumptions, and become this steady, reliable rock that Aito could be certain would always answer back, I really really liked that.

The manga's main theme is about fear, trauma and the way it affects interactions with other people. The hurt you once experienced was real. It was painful, terrifying and no person could have gone through that and left unscathed. There's nothing shameful overrecognizing that hurt and it shouldn't be minimized. But it's also a fact that the fear is holding you back. It is causing you distress, causing you to miss out on many things in life, holding yourself back in an attempt of self preservation. It is trying to keep you safe, but it'll also keep you trapped in your own mind.
It's about making sure you have people around you to love and support you when your legs can't do it (pun intended), and avoid closing yourself up when wanting to try something new. To take that step if that is your wish, even if the fear paralysis you. You gotta make sure to live.

Thanking Netgalley again for the ARC! Cannot wait for the day it is released!

[Catalina Ess · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 STARS:

In this gorgeous re-telling of The Little Mermaid, we follow our protagonist, Aito, who has been reborn into a modern world after his previous life ended in heartbreak and tragedy (and sea foam). Aito still carries the weight of memories from his past life, and his discovery that he gets excruciating pain in his legs and cannot speak when faced with love, has caused him to swear off love for good. However, when a chance encounter leads Aito to be confronted with the possibility of love again—he must choose whether to keep running or to finally try and fight for what he wants.

This is a short story told in a single manga volume. As such, it is necessarily fast-paced and relatively simple—but I appreciated how incredibly efficient the storytelling was with scenes carefully curated to serve multiple purposes and inclusion of no filler or wasted words. For instance, with Aito being an excellent singer—we not only get a translation/importation of elements from the original story into the new one, but we also get insight into Aito's character/interests, his relationship with Mizuki (that they karaoke together is cute, demonstrates their close friendship and explains Mizuki's determination to help Aito), and his singing also ends up being the crucial nexus utilised to logically bring Aito and Toru together in the plot. Another related example would be university is not only the setting which brings our protagonists together, but their degrees are actually relevant for the plot too. Like I said, incredibly efficient in every detail.

The characters were also quite likeable. We have the sunshine/black cat combo going on with Toru and Aito, and Mizuki is a girlboss (and #1 instigator). I particularly like the way Aito's choices and worldviews have clearly been shaped from his previous life, and how the story does not brush over the trauma he would have from remembering his death—but actually makes it a recurring theme.

The art was incredibly expressive, and I liked how Aito's anguish was apparent not just in his facial expressions (the emotion in those eyes though! *chefs kiss*), but symbolically represented through the rest of the scene—with the scene becoming shrouded in greater darkness, more clutter, sharper lines, and further aspects. There are a few more graphic and darker drawings in this (hence the older rating), but nothing sexually explicit.

The only thing I wish we had more of, was for the main relationship to have been established a little deeper before we got to romance. I have no issues with the love at first sight Aito experiences since this can be a play on the fairytale trope, or even that they might feel magnetically drawn to each other because of reincarnation or destiny, but I wish once they had started appearing together, that we could have had some more or deeper interactions to round out their feelings. It is a single volume so the resolution is forced to be a bit overly neat, but I wish there was just a teeny more to substantiate it (although the interactions we do get are plenty cute—I wish these had built up to stray a bit deeper eventually).

Otherwise, I really enjoyed this modern re-telling of The Little Mermaid! This was a lovely self-contained read that ticked pretty much all the elements I would want in a short story. Thank you so much to the author and publisher for the opportunity to read the ARC via NetGalley!

[Rae, shutupandbookup · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Y'know you're kinda cringe when you're in love. Meek is not a good look on you." - Mizuki


Aito never wanted to fall in love especially after what happened when he did! Love at first sight usually brings butterflies and flushed cheeks. Instead, he's collapsing to his knees with sickness and pain. The Little Mermaid was real, and he finds that he was her in a past life! The curse remains and now he has to try and endure.


Solution = just avoid boy he fell in love with. Simple. But destiny has other plans. . . Cornered Aito finds his peaceful college career is going to get very complicated. The boy turned man is in his school and needing his help with a project!? Maybe with the help of Mizuki, Aito will break the curse and be able to finally speak to Toru!


"Happy endings are a fuckin' scam." - Aito


I found this manga and was drawn in by the cover! After reading the synopsis I had to request it through NetGalley! I did not expect to feel a spectrum of emotions with this read!


We all know the story of the Disney version of "The Little Mermaid". And if Mizuki and Aito stood next to each other you would instantly point at Mizuki! Nope, instead our little mermaid is Aito who is a true black cat with teeth! But underneath has a big heart. No, this retelling with some cool twists is based more on the tragic Brothers Grimm fairytale.


I enjoyed the showcasing of reincarnation and misfortunes from past lives. The modern setting and how Aito delt with or didn't deal with the curse. I very much appreciated, my favorite character, Mizuki who supported Aito and helped to push him out of his comfort zone. Being that supportive best friend! Even bringing up valid questions about the curse and theorizing on how to break it. One scene had me dying with laughter because of the shock on Toru's face concerning something Mizuki did.


This read does contain language! There is some bloodshed, violence, and very mild gore. Because of the curse and how it affects Aito he does have a physical disability at times. Having to come up with other means to work around the curse. Thank goodness for technology. There're some valid moments of fearing death in this read.


I loved the romance! Toru is so sweet, patient, and adaptive. Working with Aito and his disabilities, Toru not knowing about the curse, not shaming him over it. The drama over him denying things and trying to accept a lonely fate. Luckily Mizuki will have none of it! Watching as Aito overcomes things to be with Toru and trying to get that happily ever after. The most that happens between our guys is hugging and holding hands.


There were some beautiful twists at the end that had me crying! The artwork was tragically dark and beautiful especially around the mysteries curse giver. The full color page was stunning, and I loved the particular placement in the book. We do get an HEA though I wish this book hadn't ended! The story was so good as well as the pacing! Want to read more from Kotaro!


Do enjoy this BL and don't forget to give the author some stars!


Thank you, Kodansha and NetGalley!


shutupandbookup.com

[Heloísa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been reading romance mangas for a long, long time, and I’d say this is the first time I’ve ever seen a plot like this. Even though it handles themes that are somewhat common, like reincarnation, the detail that the main character used to basically be the little mermaid is both weird and intriguing in quite a compelling manner. The added obstacle of the curse made it all even more interesting to follow, to the point I’d argue this could be a great short series instead of a simple one-shot.

Besides the original plot, I adored our cast of characters so much. Kasugai is understandably blasé, but we get such powerful insights into his worries and difficulties that there’s no risk of him appearing as a clichéd aloof main character. With all his apparent limitations, he is so very tender, and the reader can’t help but root for him. Meanwhile, even if we don’t get much time with Tachibana, he comes across as a caring individual, who doesn’t mind making the effort to accommodate Kasugai, even when it ends up hurting his own feelings.

By far, however, my favourite character has to be Mizuki. Even though she’s relegated to the often overlooked position of “main character’s best friend”, she has personality and grit — and, to be very honest, the main couple only gets closer because of her presence. She’s supportive and quirky, which balances out Kasugai’s gloom very well. Her loyalty and eagerness to see her friend succeed is also very sweet, and I really like how we get this true sense of friendship from both of them.

The art itself is delicate and, when we get flashbacks to the mermaid’s life, the mangaka does a great job at giving the reader a sense of wonder, pain, and magic. The ocean is truly wondrous in this manga, and it’s a pleasure to look at it so closely.

The only thing I didn’t quite enjoy was how quickly the conflict resolved at the end. It almost felt too easy after everything Kasugai went through. Other than that, I quite wish we could see more of our main couple together, since their dynamic was pretty strained throughout the story because of Kasugai’s limitations.

[c☆te · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Kodansha for the ARC!
4.5★

i went into this volume with pretty high expectations, both because of the strong reviews from people i trust and the absolutely stunning cover — and it really didn’t disappoint. i ended up finishing it in one sitting without even realizing it.

the art is easily one of its biggest strengths. i expected it to be beautiful just from the cover, but i wasn’t prepared for how consistently gorgeous it is throughout the entire volume. it genuinely elevates the reading experience and makes every page feel impactful in its own way. for me, art can be a dealbreaker, but in this case it completely enhanced the story rather than just supporting it.

story-wise, it draws clear inspiration from hans christian andersen’s the little mermaid, especially its original ending, but reinterprets it in a modern bl university setting. even though it’s a single volume, the pacing feels surprisingly steady and never overly rushed; the use of past and present also helps give the narrative more emotional weight and structure, making the story feel more complete than you might expect from its length.

it manages to balance both softer and darker tones quite well, staying faithful to the emotional core of the original tale while adapting it in a way that feels natural rather than forced or overly modernized.
i really loved the overall atmosphere, the way emotions are often conveyed through glances rather than words, and the cast as a whole. in particular, aito’s girl friend toru stood out to me — it was genuinely heartwarming to see the patience and support she offers aito throughout the story.

it’s definitely not a story centered around smut, but at the same time it isn’t purely soft or comfort-driven either — it exists somewhere in that in-between space, where warmth and melancholy coexist in a way that feels very true to its inspiration. at its core, it’s a quietly wholesome story about healing from past trauma and gradually learning to trust again, ultimately unfolding as a very gentle, real, green-flag kind of narrative.

[hanni · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a sweet, and a little dark BL retelling of The Little Mermaid, following Aito who is haunted by a curse from his previous life as the mermaid princess and is now struggling to come to terms with his feelings after falling in love again.

The romance is love at first sight, which is generally not my favourite but largely works in this case as it follows the original little mermaid story. What I did really enjoy was how openly Toru expressed his interest in Aito and how they genuinely got to know each other better through little interactions and outings. Especially the way Toru had no issues with communication despite Aito being mute around him felt touching to me, so the romance overall was very sweet.
Mizuki was a great supporting character, as well - I enjoyed their dynamic with Aito and how supportive they were as a friend to both.

I tend to struggle with truly enjoying one shots as I usually feel like I cannot really commit to the romance because of the inevitable density but it really worked for me this time! The characters' feelings for each other did develop a bit quickly and I do wish we could have gotten a few more pages towards the end (and after) as the ending felt a bit rushed, but overall, the story had an okay pacing and came to a good end.
I also really liked the flashbacks to Aito’s life as the mermaid princess and thought the author found a good balance between telling the backstory and continuing the present timeline.

The art is beautiful and captures the slightly melancholic atmosphere very well, especially the water elements and scenes in the ocean are stunning.

Overall, I’d recommend this as a short and sweet BL oneshot for readers who enjoy retellings and are in for a slightly angsty and sometimes brutal, but gentle romance.

Thank you to Kodansha Comics and Netgalley for providing me a free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Lanie Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kasugai is the reincarnation of the mermaid princess who sold her voice to the sea witch to become human. Unfortunately for him, her curse seems to have followed him into this life meaning when he falls in love he loses his voice and his legs refuse to work. So at a very young age he decides he simply won't fall in love. Like with so many plans involving the heart his goes completely sideways when he meets Tachibana at school, it's love at first sight for Kasugai, which brings him nothing but misery at first. But thanks to his stubborn best friend Mizuki Kasugai has decided that love may worth risking a curse for.

This was a wonderful retelling of the Little Mermaid with a reincarnation twist! I genuinely was hooked by page one and was admittedly sad when I realized it was going to be a stand-alone because I would love to see much more of Kasugai and Tachibana! They are genuinely too perfect together; Tachibana especially was incredibly sweet and patient with Kasugai which is something he definitely needed. Mizuki was absolutely an amazing bestie as well, who also appears to be trans so that was a really unexpected but wholly welcome addition. Also, I loved the way this ends, even though yes if it had gone the way I expected it too (Mizuki and Kasugai have to spend months trying to find a way to break the curse) this probably would have become a series instead of a stand-alone, but it wasn't what I was expecting at all and I found the I suppose "moral" of it to be more in line with this retelling.

Definitely recommend this one, it's probably going to be my favorite yaoi for the year I just don't see anyone topping this short, sweet retelling!

As always thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha for the eArc!

[Daria (altrimari_archive) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Il primo amore di Aito gli riporta alla mente i ricordi di una vita passata, quella di una sirenetta che ha rinunciato alle sue gambe e alla sua voce per amore di un umano, e che per questo ha pagato il prezzo più caro di tutti. Il terrore scatenato da questi ricordi fa prendere al protagonista una decisione radicale: non si innamorerà mai più di nessuno.
Peccato che, anni dopo, rimanga folgorato dal suo primo incontro con Toru, un compagno di università. I due sentono un’attrazione immediata e, nonostante la paura di Aito, tra loro sboccia una tenera storia d’amore.

Ammetto di non essere mai stata grande fan della Sirenetta, dunque era prevedibile che questa storia non rientrasse esattamente nelle mie corde: dopotutto, il colpo di fulmine è uno di quei tropi che subito mi fanno storcere il naso.

In generale, mi sembra che sia stata messa troppa carne al fuoco per un volume autoconclusivo: la storia d’amore è tenera – ho particolarmente apprezzato i loro tentativi goffi di comunicare nonostante le difficoltà – ma si sviluppa molto in fretta. D’altro canto, le scene sulla vita passata di Aito sono poche e sporadiche: sappiamo che è stata così terrificante da rendergli impossibile parlare e camminare, ma non è abbastanza approfondita da generare un reale impatto nella lettura. A mio avviso, un’occasione sprecata.

Nonostante ciò, l’ho trovato comunque un manga molto carino, con due protagonisti molto dolci. L’ho letto con piacere, apprezzando particolarmente la bellezza delle tavole. Sono curiosa di leggere le opere future di Kotaro-sensei!
P.S.: sento la necessità di specificare che questa storia NON È erotica, non ha alcun elemento che a mio avviso giustifica il rating +16

Ringrazio NetGalley e la casa editrice per avermi mandato l’ARC in cambio di una recensione onesta!

[Visionary Druid · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aito is a reincarnated mermaid princess, one who died tragically from unrequited love. He believes the curse followed him into his new life as a human. Aito has sworn off love because of it. However, a chance encounter with Toru causes him to change his mind. Can Aito find a way to break his curse? Or will history repeat itself?

Toru is a junior in the sound and engineering department of college. After watching a video of Aito singing, he realizes he wants him to do vocals on a track. Whenever Toru is around Aito, the other man cannot speak. When he finds a way around their communication barrier, Toru finds himself falling in love with Aito. Can he convince Aito to go out with him?

Poor Aito. I can understand his reasons for being so jaded about happy endings and love. Being bombarded with such heart-wrenching memories at a young age would have anyone swearing off love.

I only have one small nitpick. I would have liked more of Toru’s point of view. Aito’s friend Mizuki has more scenes than Toru – which seems odd and off putting for me. It did not allow me to connect with him.

Mizuki may be a side character but he/she is a GREAT friend. I admire how far he/she went to help Aito overcome his curse. There was no derision, just acceptance.

This is basically a Boys Love twist to The Little Mermaid telling – the Grimm version not Disney. There are no heated sex scenes nor any heated kissing. Overall, it gives off a wholesome vibe.

A one-shot manga. So the pacing between Aito and Toru is rushed in some places. I would not be adverse to another volume being released, side stories showing the progression of Toru and Aito’s relationship.