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Happy Sugar Life #2
Happy Sugar Life, Vol. 2
"Their happiness was interrupted.
Though it was deep into the night…
...Satou hadn't come home.
Beset with worry...
…Shio was gently lead by the hand...
…of a long-haired phantom woman.
Even if you cry.
Scream.
Cover your ears.
Or close your eyes.
The phantom...
...will not fade."
Though it was deep into the night…
...Satou hadn't come home.
Beset with worry...
…Shio was gently lead by the hand...
…of a long-haired phantom woman.
Even if you cry.
Scream.
Cover your ears.
Or close your eyes.
The phantom...
...will not fade."
210 pages, Paperback
First published December 22, 2016
19 people are currently reading
112 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
February 19, 2021
Was a little let down with this volume, I expected more craziness.
Basically this volume focuses on two parts. Shio gets lost outside in the real world and Satou is on the search. Funny enough Taiyo is the one to find Shio but after learning his desire in liking "children" this is very concerning. But what comes out of it is even stranger than I expected and not in the way you think. The next involves Satou and a old lover, Kiiya. Now Kiiya thinks he has one over on Satou, but we all know this girl doesn't fuck around.
This wasn't a bad volume by any means but just didn't move at the brisk pace the last one did. The first half is good but feels like it takes forever to get to the punchline that it ends on. Then we retrace moments from volume 1 here to lead into the 2nd storyline. However, the reveals at the end of the volume set up some what could be really fucked up moments. I also am intrigued how long this thing Satou is doing can go on without being caught. This can't end well.
A 3 out of 5.
Basically this volume focuses on two parts. Shio gets lost outside in the real world and Satou is on the search. Funny enough Taiyo is the one to find Shio but after learning his desire in liking "children" this is very concerning. But what comes out of it is even stranger than I expected and not in the way you think. The next involves Satou and a old lover, Kiiya. Now Kiiya thinks he has one over on Satou, but we all know this girl doesn't fuck around.
This wasn't a bad volume by any means but just didn't move at the brisk pace the last one did. The first half is good but feels like it takes forever to get to the punchline that it ends on. Then we retrace moments from volume 1 here to lead into the 2nd storyline. However, the reveals at the end of the volume set up some what could be really fucked up moments. I also am intrigued how long this thing Satou is doing can go on without being caught. This can't end well.
A 3 out of 5.
August 16, 2020
I’ve rarely been so happy to see somebody get physically assaulted as I was in this book. That pretty much sums up this series in a nutshell - bringing out the worst in everybody. There’s nothing but damage strewn across the pages, physical AND mental, and the coping strategies of our main characters are so, so flimsy.
It’s the kind of story where even the safest space is tinged with hidden menace and the potential for things to go so, so wrong lurks under the surface like a constant hum.
Unfortunately, this volume falls victim to an annoying habit I’ve seen in other manga - the ‘unbonus bonus’. We get a full half of this book devoted to the original one-shot that spawned the series. That’s fine if you’re interested, otherwise you just spent your money on half a book.
The one shot is too similar to the original story, despite the author’s suggestion that things are a bit different, so you spend the second half of the second volume re-reading the first part of the first volume. A fairly underwhelming prospect.
What new story we DO get here is pretty good, so there’s that, at least. It’s hard to not think of this as a lesser volume though, since... well... it is.
It’s the kind of story where even the safest space is tinged with hidden menace and the potential for things to go so, so wrong lurks under the surface like a constant hum.
Unfortunately, this volume falls victim to an annoying habit I’ve seen in other manga - the ‘unbonus bonus’. We get a full half of this book devoted to the original one-shot that spawned the series. That’s fine if you’re interested, otherwise you just spent your money on half a book.
The one shot is too similar to the original story, despite the author’s suggestion that things are a bit different, so you spend the second half of the second volume re-reading the first part of the first volume. A fairly underwhelming prospect.
What new story we DO get here is pretty good, so there’s that, at least. It’s hard to not think of this as a lesser volume though, since... well... it is.
September 27, 2024
These are getting weirder the more I read
November 19, 2021
This is a review of the entire series!
Raised by a severely disturbed aunt with a twisted definition of 'love', Satou Matsuzaka tries to find a sense of belonging in the world by giving up her body to every guy she meets in hopes of receiving true love from them. After countless unfulfilling sexual encounters, Satou believes she has discovered true love from an abandoned little girl named Shio she found on the street one day. Leaving her life of sexual deviancy behind, Satou 'kidnaps' the little girl and raises her as if she were her real mother. The two girls have been hurt and abandoned all their life, but they find a warped sense of comfort and affection in each other's companionship. Shio has no idea what type of person Satou truly is, however. Does she genuinely love her, or is she being emotionally groomed as an object by an unstable predator that's capable of murder?
This series begins with a lot of subversive shocks. The bubbly cute girl is a deranged murderer. The popular girl at work is an obsessive stalker. The strong-headed female employer is abusing her underage male staff. The lovable school teacher is sexually blackmailing his female students. The handsome classmate only has eyes for a homeless little girl. Everyone is putting up a happy, sugary facade while being utterly rotten and twisted on the inside. Such is the nature of this manga. It shows that people are rarely what they seem to be in public and how different they are behind the privacy of closed doors. It's depressing and even scary at times.
Happy Sugar Life plays around with a lot of great subversive horror elements, making you believe something is bubbly and cute at first glance but then showing you it's actually extremely toxic and unstable. The series has interesting themes, but it is often dragged down from being drawn out way too long, going in circles and dialogue that feels a bit immature given the disturbing subject matter. If the narrative was a bit tighter, maybe 3 or 4 volumes instead of 10, it would've been more impactful and gotten the message through much more effectively. It repeated itself too many times, some chapters felt like identical clones of each other that were made just to pad out the length.
A good series overall, but it has some glaring weaknesses that prevent it from being as good as it could've been.
***
If you're looking for some dark ambient music for reading horror, dark fantasy and other books like this one, then be sure to check out my YouTube Channel called Nightmarish Compositions: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPPs...
Raised by a severely disturbed aunt with a twisted definition of 'love', Satou Matsuzaka tries to find a sense of belonging in the world by giving up her body to every guy she meets in hopes of receiving true love from them. After countless unfulfilling sexual encounters, Satou believes she has discovered true love from an abandoned little girl named Shio she found on the street one day. Leaving her life of sexual deviancy behind, Satou 'kidnaps' the little girl and raises her as if she were her real mother. The two girls have been hurt and abandoned all their life, but they find a warped sense of comfort and affection in each other's companionship. Shio has no idea what type of person Satou truly is, however. Does she genuinely love her, or is she being emotionally groomed as an object by an unstable predator that's capable of murder?
This series begins with a lot of subversive shocks. The bubbly cute girl is a deranged murderer. The popular girl at work is an obsessive stalker. The strong-headed female employer is abusing her underage male staff. The lovable school teacher is sexually blackmailing his female students. The handsome classmate only has eyes for a homeless little girl. Everyone is putting up a happy, sugary facade while being utterly rotten and twisted on the inside. Such is the nature of this manga. It shows that people are rarely what they seem to be in public and how different they are behind the privacy of closed doors. It's depressing and even scary at times.
Happy Sugar Life plays around with a lot of great subversive horror elements, making you believe something is bubbly and cute at first glance but then showing you it's actually extremely toxic and unstable. The series has interesting themes, but it is often dragged down from being drawn out way too long, going in circles and dialogue that feels a bit immature given the disturbing subject matter. If the narrative was a bit tighter, maybe 3 or 4 volumes instead of 10, it would've been more impactful and gotten the message through much more effectively. It repeated itself too many times, some chapters felt like identical clones of each other that were made just to pad out the length.
A good series overall, but it has some glaring weaknesses that prevent it from being as good as it could've been.
***
If you're looking for some dark ambient music for reading horror, dark fantasy and other books like this one, then be sure to check out my YouTube Channel called Nightmarish Compositions: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPPs...
June 22, 2018
This manga is so... weird(?)
October 27, 2021
Never-Ending Monochrome Night chapters are basically things going from bad to worse in an unrelenting arc. A lot of things happen, but my disbelief gauge starting breaking. I found myself saying "really?" a lot in this volume.
The most interesting thing is that Shio's memory is starting to resurface and the possibility of the fallout from all this is what really kept me going. Things are starting to tip towards the point of no return and I'm really starting to wonder how Sato will get out of a lot of it.
Not as strong as the first volume, but still very enjoyable in that 'watching a trainwreck' type of way.
The most interesting thing is that Shio's memory is starting to resurface and the possibility of the fallout from all this is what really kept me going. Things are starting to tip towards the point of no return and I'm really starting to wonder how Sato will get out of a lot of it.
Not as strong as the first volume, but still very enjoyable in that 'watching a trainwreck' type of way.
August 21, 2023
saw a lot of people saying this was a really interesting psychological horror. my mistake was that i was on reddit lmao. the premise is definitely, uh, different, but its attempt at a "looks sweet, is actually twisted" story (along the lines of DDLC) falls flat for me. every other character is a total pervert who sato turns yandere on? it gets boring fast. this would be much more interesting as an exploration of sato and shio's relationship vs the real outside world where sato is trying to maintain her secret home life, but it seems to be going down a different path
April 3, 2021
I expected more chaos in this volume. However, the art and character development were good. I liked hearing Shio's side of the story. I recommend this to people who like suspense and thriller mangas.
October 2, 2022
Shio is so sweet- protect this little girl! This volume mostly focused on Shio going outside for the first time (much to SOMEONE'S dismay). This manga is so strange and I can see it continuing down a very disturbing road. I will continue on with this story..
September 4, 2019
Still creepy and messed up, but I cannot look away!
November 2, 2019
When I think that this series can't get anymore twisted it surprises me with another heart jumping volume! I need more!
November 22, 2019
1.5 stars.
February 13, 2024
Dark and disturbing, can't wait to read more ^^
September 3, 2024
I don't understand how can the little child be with the serial killer even after finding out the truth like why I don't understand if this is love or something else.
March 8, 2025
2,5/5⭐
March 22, 2025
She slayed (real)
July 2, 2025
AHHHH, it’s so addicting to read and so interesting!!. Can’t wait to read the rest of the books!
November 24, 2025
Actual: 3.5/5
December 3, 2025
The toxic yuri is insane
December 25, 2025
bastante meh en comparación al primero pero mola igual lo loca que está la prota LoL
May 12, 2022
Protect Shio Chan !!
October 31, 2020
It was a bit disappointing that half of this volume is a side story.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews