How to Win Her Heart on the Nth Try

by Ichine Kamijo

Nagi Yoroizuka, a twenty-seven-year old systems engineer at a software development company, is facing down her thirties with no sign of romance. She works hard at her job, but things never seem to go right. Then, when a series of mishaps leaves her at her lowest point yet, a childhood friend reappears to offer her a hand. Not only is this genius engineer warm hearted and good looking, but he also gets along great with her! There’s just one She’s only ever seen him as a friend, while he’s been hiding his feelings for her their whole lives. But even if she’s willing to give him a chance, will trauma from her past prove too much to overcome?

Genres: Romance, Light Novel

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 21, 2022

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting, and slightly odd, story. It's textbook friends-to-lovers in many ways, with Keigo having been in love with his childhood friend Nagi for two decades, but it also attempts to go a little further by showing that his unwavering devotion to her at times leads to him making some very questionable choices. I appreciate its attempt to show that love can lead people to do stupid (and borderline illegal) things, but I didn't quite buy Nagi's emotions. I think the best way to describe it is good enough to read, but unlikely to blow you away.

[Lordan Jee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Emotional whiplash. Was pissed and frustrated but Did I kick my feet like a little girl and have insane butterflies in my stomach? Yes.

[Brian McCullar · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was very intrigued to read this light novel because most romance stories, particularly in Japanese literature, tends to focus on teenage couples. The classic high school "Will they? Won't They?" type of story beats, and while I can understand their general appeal, I can't help but feel disengaged from them because, well, I'm a 30 year old man (as of the time of this review.

This light novel on the other hand, focuses on characters in their late 20s, in their work environment. And while it is a classic childhood friends to lovers story, I was definitely more drawn to it because of the characters ages.

As far as the novel itself goes, I can't dive too much into the plot without risking spoiling the book, since it is so short, but we essentially have a young man and a young woman, who were childhood best friends and now co-workers, with the guy having always been hopelessly in love with the woman and of course, she was never aware of this. Nothing groundbreaking or new there, but old tropes still have their place and value in my opinion. What is worth noting though, is the characterization.

In so many books, especially those with a romantic element or component, the male protagonist is a Gary Stu type. Naturally good at EVERYTHING, absolutely perfect in every way, says the right thing every time, blah blah blah. Yeah no, not Keigo. The guy is inherently very flawed, to the point of even acting problematic at times, which I personally really liked as I felt it captured a very real part of the youthful relationship dynamic, and I feel many people could probably relate in some way. It's important to note that neither I, nor characters in the story, glorify these problematic actions, but their inclusion does make the book feel more genuine.

Nagi, the female love interest, is also depicted really well, despite having the tired "clueless girl" trope that so many authors love to use. Despite the initial annoyance though, she does develop in the book slowly over time, even somewhat catapulting in the end to show that she's perfectly capable of handling business when she needs to, while still being kind, loving, supportive and an overall good partner.

The pacing of the story was solid, I never felt like it dragged and it didn't feel like it was rushing ahead of itself too often either. The ending was sadly fairly lackluster to me, and while I understood what Ichine was going for, I found the delivery and overall end result to be more than a little flat.

One thing I feel compelled to point out, is how this light novel, reads much more like a traditional western novel. It doesn't have the same pacing or simplistic structure that's typically seen in light novels in order to make them more appealing to the reader, and while that's a positive thing for me, for diehard light novel only readers, this may be a letdown.

Another side note I want to leave, is praise for the handling of the tech company/programming elements. My brother double majored in computer science and dabbles in programming, and according to him, from what I relayed to him, the book was very accurate in its terminology regarding computer programming, and believable in the issues the team faced whilst at work.

This was a fun one, it's not perfect, it's not too original or deep, but it's a good 3.5 out of 5 star book, give it a go!

[Sydney · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF'ed on pg. 172

Welp. I tried to stick this one out but was not enjoying it. This was my first light novel, and I am still looking forward to trying a different light novel soon.

How to Win Her Heart on the Nth Try by Ichine Kamijo is about Nagi, who is twenty-seven years old and lacking a love life. Just when she thinks she might reach her thirties without a significant other, her childhood best friend Keigo reveals his romantic feelings towards her. Nagi then has to discover if she will only see him as a friend and if this is her opportunity for a successful love story.

One reason this novel did not work for me was the social awkwardness of the characters. Nagi and Keigo have trouble communicating with each other and other people. I was also confused as to why Keigo is in love with his childhood friend Nagi. It seemed like he never had a reason other than for the plot and to center his whole life around her.

Some of the plot points also felt like they were moving too fast. It took almost 150 pages for Nagi and Keigo to admit to their feelings and begin dating. I am all for the slow burn, but this one was not good. Once they start dating, they do not make an effort to spend time with their partner. Nagi even mentions that she forgot they were dating as they reached their one-month anniversary. Nagi also does not seem to have feelings for Keigo, she is just afraid to turn him down and hurt his friends. So she just goes along with things that make her uncomfortable.

What made me stop reading was the dubious consent on Nagi and Keigo's one-month anniversary. Keigo invited Nagi to his apartment to spend time together and celebrate their anniversary. At this point, the characters have not even kissed each other. They go from never having kissed each other to having their first kiss and a heavy petting session. During this time, Nagi is not excited about what they are doing and even seems to regret it a couple of days later when they see each other again.

Keigo also made me cringe during this scene. Keigo counted down from ten when he asked Nagi what she was comfortable with him doing rather than giving her time to think about what she was okay with doing. Then he has some not-so-great things to say like, "I wasn't planning to, but there's kind of like this switch that gets turned on" in response to Nagi saying that she thought he said he was not going to make any sexual moves on her.

I looked through the end of the book and know how it ends, and I have no interest in continuing. I am sad to say that my first light novel has a DNF and a 2-star rating.

tropes: childhood friends, friends to lovers, workplace romance, miscommunication, jealousy (both sides before getting together), socially awkward hero and heroine, light novel

[Kei Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe I'm unromantic but Keigo is like a series of red flags. 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩

🚩 Manipulates coworkers (including Nagi's uncle) to get closer to Nagi.
🚩 Only gives lip service to consent and takes their relationship from hand-holding to third-base in like ten minutes even though Nagi never says yes.
🚩 Gives Nagi the cold shoulder when he realizes she forgot an offhand remark she made a decade earlier that he's apparently constructing their whole relationship around?
🚩 Keeps key information about his career aspirations and decisions from her WHILE THEY'RE ENGAGED.
🚩 PUTS SPYWARE ON HER COMPUTER AND PHONE???

Girl, throw the whole man out.

[Dyhara]

dnf @ 60%

[Di · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a sweet romance. An easy read with lots of heart warming moments. Though I wish we had a little bit more at the very end, I enjoyed this one very much.