Yoi Takiguchi has long legs, a deep voice, and a handsome face... in other words, Yoi is such a good-looking guy that most people don't notice or care that she is, in fact, a girl. Indeed, she's had the nickname "Prince" as long as she can remember. That is, until she met Ichimura-senpai... the only person who's really seemed to see her for herself. To her surprise, she's not sure how to handle this new relationship, especially when her newfound friend is a prince himself (and a guy prince, at that). The story of the two high school princes starts here!
This mangaka's style was *chef's kiss*. Alas, the story reads like a very generic high-school shoujo. うるわしの宵の月, translated as In the Clear Moonlit Dusk follows Yoi Takiguchi, a high school girl whose princely appearance has earned her the nickname of 'Prince'. Often mistaken as a boy, Yoi is not used to being seen as a 'girl'. This premise did ring a bell as I remember reading a manga years ago in which the heroine had a masculine appearance and the hero a feminine one. There it kind of worked as the two leads (as far as i can remember) were comfortable quite comfortable with the way the looked. Here, sadly, Yoi isn't keen on being seen as a 'prince' as seems to be indifferent to her female classmates' attention (they routinely confess their feelings to her or simply stare at her in awe). Then she meets Ichimura, who is also nicknamed 'Prince' (i guess they couldn't come up with something more creative?), and he seems to see her as a girl. Shocking. The guy calls her cute and Yoi becomes all flustered in a "who me?" way.
I found the both leads quite bland. I wish Yoi hadn't been so easily taken by Ichimura. That the other girls become jealous of Yoi does not bode well as it promises a classic girl-on-girl hate side-plot that we could well do without. The main male lead is boring and so far his personality revolves around his beautiful appearance and his 'ability' to see Yoi as a girl. The art is lovely, the story & characters mediocre. Maybe those who haven't read many shoujo manga will be able to enjoy this more.
ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I love this whole concept to the story! We have a shy, tall, thin heroine, who happens to be very considerate of the people around her. She earns the nickname of Prince for her androgynous figure and for her heroic acts. When a senpai runs into her, he flat out asks if she is a guy. From there, he can't stop thinking about her, and she can't stop thinking about him. They develop a friendship and sense of trust, and then the end of the volume happens!! Gah! I am so ready to keep going!! Highly recommend!
I'm so down bad for the bro like I'm not even kidding 😭🎀🤏🏻(don't let yourself get misguided by the pink bow i used bro's nowhere near cute bro's SCORCHING HOT !!!)
Sooooo excited to be sharing my thoughts on this manga because I need Kodansha to print this!!
This was a wonderful and refreshing shojo! While I don't feel it's uncommon for shojo manga to have young women characters who struggle with how they look and/or feel insecure, Yoi honestly hits a whole other level in the world of shojo manga! In no way do I meant that as disrespectful to our "Prince" because I just found her story to be one of the most realistic views on self-image that it made me feel seen as a reader.
I think because Yoi's struggle reaches out to the reader, it really stirred my heart to cheer for her. She has such a beautiful and caring heart and want her to see (and understand) that she deserves to be treated like a princess. That it's okay to depend on others, it's okay to be something that is "less" with her "manly image."
Due to Yoi's more quiet nature, I'm very thankful we have the more daring and outspoken Ichimura! I really liked his character and how he really didn't give a crap of what others thought about him. Even though I feel at one time he pushed himself onto Yoi, I admire that he is respecting her boundaries and that he himself isn't pushing lines. He genuinely cares for our main girl and excited to see where that goes!
And speaking of seeing where it goes, I am HYPED for the next book! I am all for "destiny" and then twisting that trope on it's head by seeing if it really IS destiny. I also loved how just because Ichimura's friends are saying one thing, that Ichimura himself is thinking over his intentions towards Yoi. Both of our characters are working through things they are feeling and LOVEEE how they are not afraid to apologize for how they spoke to the other or what they even thought about them.
Again, this whole volume was just super refreshing and deeply enjoyed it! I'm going to have to keep an eye out for this series because I love the premise and how it's a "different" kind of shojo! Definitely recommend!
*(I received an e-copy from the NetGalley. All thoughts expressed are my own.)*
A sweet, heart-warming romance and a gem of a manga!
There was a lot to love in this and its unconventionality earned it the most points. Having the protagonist Yoi playing the role of a "prince" was just as unexpected as her being portrayed with such good looks despite her beauty being an unconventional kind that wasn't usually associated with female characters in manga. The love interest Ichi's level of interest in the protagonist bordered on obsession and the almost voyeuristic nature of the relationship was yet another unconventional aspect of this manga.
Pre-reading thoughts: (26/12/21) It’s sort of amusingly ironic how I saw the cover of this a couple of months back and thought it was yaoi so I gave it a skip and only now have I come back and realised the whole point of this manga is that the female protagonist looks male but isn’t! I tricked myself with the premise😂
I FINALLY READ MIKA YAMAMORI SENSEI'S NEW WORK!! Ok, I've only read one volume, the first one, but I've finally started it. I'm so excited for this new story of hers. I've seen my friends love this and share all kinds of scenes on social media, I'm giddy about getting to those. I have a deep love for Daytime Shooting Star, so I cannot wait to continue reading this story.
In the Clear Moonlit Dusk is a high school shoujo romance about a girl who is known as a prince in her school because of the way she talks and looks and a rich flirty guy who is THE OTHER PRINCE in her high school. Both known as princes, it was just a matter of time before they met. And oh my god I get this huge smile whenever I remember their meeting... and ALSO EVERY SINGLE SCENE WHERE THEY ARE TOGETHER.
I love, love how quickly the romance part started. This guy instantly likes Yoi and think she's the prettiest girl she has ever since. AND HE TELLS HER THAT OF COURSE. He doesn't keep anything inside, all thoughts? He says them. He sort of resembles a Golden Retriever, but there are some stuff that make me not say he's a Golden Retriever boy. He is definitely very flirty and keeps telling Yoi he wants to be with her which makes Yoi super flustered and shy because no one has said that to her. And that's basically how the story goes.
I'm excited to continue because the ending of vol 1? Oh my god. I NEED TO KNOW MORE!
Yoi is one of the school’s princes; deep voiced, handsome… and also a girl. She can’t seem to escape her looks, but a chance encounter with the school’s other prince, Ichimura, means that there just might be a chance of somebody finally seeing her the way she wants to be seen…
So I really like what this book is doing, but it feels like it’s taking its sweet time doing it. I might be wrong, but it felt a whole lot more introspective than we normally get in something like this, but without commensurate anything else to balance itself it kind of wobbles.
I love Yoi’s character, she’s a really great prince-type who just wants to have somebody think of her as an actual woman (I do feel she could probably grow her hair out and the series would end, but shhh…). Despite having her very wounded side, she’s no less of a badass when she needs to be too.
During one sequence where Ichimura steps into white knight her, I was really thrilled that it turns out she can handle herself just fine. More of this type of equal footing between our two leads please and thank-you. She earns her prince title, even as she really would rather not have it, just by being strong and kind.
I think part of the problem is that Ichimura’s a good guy, but he doesn’t have any bite or wounded side to him (he manages one incredibly innocuous boundary violation that he even asks about first, big whoop). Genuinely, his defining characteristics seem to be… popular, rich, two earrings, one mole. Not the most interesting start to our boy here.
In a way, it’s a shame they move past the part where he thinks Yoi’s a guy and is still infatuated with her anyway. There’s a great chance for a little ‘love is love’ message that they don’t manage, although I do love Yoi’s two friends - one is big on her BL and figures that Yoi is close enough that she can ship it anyway.
This is a good book. It’s got good characters, no problematic content, a reasonably okay message, some fun parts (Yoi’s dad and the curry blog guy are great additions), it just lacks a certain spark that would send it soaring for me.
There’s a nice twist at the end that gives Yoi more agency than a lot of books here would do, so I have hopes, but this one is a fine start that kind of bogs down with a lot of Yoi’s internal rumination on her woes (again, they do make a welcome switch to what Ichimura’s thinking towards the end).
Until five seconds ago I didn’t realize this was the mangaka behind Daytime Shooting Star, which gives me even more hope this will get better as it goes on, but, conversely, I feel more assured of my take because it certainly lacks the immediate hooks that that series seeded into its first volume. This is definitely a more thoughtful piece of work.
3 stars. The good kind of 3 stars. I like the idea and I like the characters to varying degrees, this just doesn’t quite pop the way I’d want it to. Still, you could do a lot worse than this book and I am definitely going to keep reading the series going forward.
Takiguchi Yoi is treated like a girl "prince" by her classmates because of her boyish face and thin body. She also acts as the character making her classmates, especially the girls, become attracted to her. Until one day, when she met Ichimura Kohaku, the first guy to tell her she's beautiful and admits that he's in too deep feelings for her.
What in the hell is this?! I love it so much! Gah! I really find it hard to look for quality shoujo and finally! I arrived here! This is really looking so promising. I can't wait to witness Yoi-chan's growth and development!
Although, it's a bit clichéd with the “test-dating” trope, nevertheless, love it! I love it! We just love clichés don't we?! That's why we never get tired of using and consuming it!
*squealing* Mika Yamamori has done it again! Pure shojo gold and I loved every single panel!!! I absolutely cannot wait for the next volume. I’m so happy that Kodansha has released this series from digital jail and is bringing us physical copies!! If you like Daytime Shooting Star or Tsubaki Chou's Lonely Planet, you will also like this one. Unlike, her other series, this one does NOT feature an age-gap romance.
I read the manga a while back and when I went back to my notes to write a review, there were some things that sounded worse that I thought, so I reread it. And yes, it was worse on my second read.
First issue, the nonexistent passing of time. In the first read, I honestly thought that 3-5 days has passed since they first met but nope, the first 3 chapters happen in two days. The main female lead (FL) goes that she's starting to understand the male lead (ML) and I can’t help but facepalm because she just met him yesterday. Moreover, half the book was cringey and awkward. Another inconsistency is how they never met or heard anything about each other when they were both called prince. His house was literally between where she lives and her family restaurant.
The worst thing for me honestly was when the ML confessed that he likes her but not in the “I like you” feeling but more of "wanting to watch you forever" way and I'm just sitting here, wondering what the author was thinking. Did she think this sounded cool and new? Later on, he tells his friends this and they literally tells him that what he’s doing is sexual harassment and that what he feels is more of sexual desire than actually liking FL. Like the author must be aware how much of a creep she's portraying ML to be because of the comment from his friends but is romanticizing it instead and trying so hard to mask it.
I am honestly just shocked at how bad the writing and pacing in the manga is because I have read another work by the author and I don’t remember it being this bad and overly fast paced and the characters acting as if weeks has passed by between them when it was honestly literally been two days! The time between chapter 3 and 4 wasn’t mentioned but I don’t think much days has passed regardless because FL got a fever from a rain shower in chapter 3 and chapter 4 focuses on that. There's a part where ML says there's no blanket when FL has a blanket on already (I was cackling over that page honestly) and then he forces himself on the bed and sleeps next to her for "warmth".
Overall, even though the author’s art style is crazy good and is my type of tea, the whole story was bad. I can’t believe she went to a high school and interviewed students just to give this result. Will I ever pick up the series again? Probably in the future when more volumes are out and with ML getting better with his POV on the relationship since in the end he seems to be starting to see the wrongs in his views.
Thank you NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy for an honest review.
Review copy provided through NetGalley. Not going to lie, the cover attracted me first! However, I'm pleased that my expectations are met.
Yoi has a handsome appearance despite being a girl and she's been nicknamed as the "Prince." Everything seems to turned chaotic when she met another Prince, Ichimura but this time he's a man and to her surprise, he has taken a liking to her.
--------- This reminds me of all the mangas I've read in middle school. It's cheesy, it's fluffy and it's so much fun to read about! Honestly I was taken aback with the insta-love but somehow it suits Ichimura's personality as well.
I really love Yoi's supportive friends too! They're very fun and chaotic, I LOVE THEM.
I cannot wait to see how the series unfold, especially after THAT ENDING? I need Volume 2 now :)
god, the art style is just to die for. so beautiful, I want to plaster all the walls of my room with it 😩 and their interactions still had me cackling and giggling. reread to finally continue the series
INITIAL review from 1 October 2023:
art: 5 ⭐️ story: 5 ⭐️
Oh, this is so cute 🥺 I was giggling, kicking my feet and punching the air, it’s just really sweet and the aspect of Yoi being (seen) as gender non-confirming is really interestingly handled, looking forward to how this will be touched on in later volumes. I live for how Kohaku has taken such an obsession to her! And the preview of Vol. 2 at the same is such lovely touch :)
In the Clear Moonlit Dusk is about a girl who’s popular for her somehow masculine face, cool vibes and tall too. Often mistaken as boy & also being call as a prince when she is indeed a girl. Until one day she encounters with a senpai that called her beautiful for the first time.
This manga makes me go waku waku & fuwa fuwa all the way! I am in love with the beautiful drawn artstyle and in love with Yoi- chan as well. Her vibes really is gakkoi and i really love her!!,!
Trzy z serduszkiem, dużym. Piękna kreska, odrobinę zabawne, przyjemne jako całość. Czasami relacja robi się zbyt nachalna, ale cała reszta wypada bardzo fajnie.