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どうせ、恋してしまうんだ。 [Dōse, Koishite Shimaunda.] #1
どうせ、恋してしまうんだ。(1)
高校２年生の水帆は、最悪な１７歳の誕生日を迎えていた。あこがれの先輩に近づくチャンスはなくなるし、親には誕生日をすっかり忘れられてるし……。“キラキラした青春”なんてない、そう思っていた水帆だったけど幼なじみの輝月(きづき)が、突然、“彼氏候補宣言”してきて！？さあ、きらめく恋の中を泳ぐんだ……！ 「放課後、恋した。」「あたし、キスした。」の胸きゅん青春ストーリーの名手・満井春香の最新作、第１巻！！
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 264 reviews
May 26, 2025
(Thank you Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for a review)
I love this! I love this! First of all, what a way to start the book controversially. And a sports romance with best friend to lover? This manga is giving me butterflies!
To those who know me well enough know that I hate best friend to lover but childhood best friend to lover is significantly different and reading a manga of the said trope is a foreign feeling. Anyway I'm Falling in Love With You is a story of youth and growth of five childhood friends who were raised together in the residential neighbourhood of Koigahama Highland.
Nevertheless, childhood best friend to lovers always takes far too much telling that they grew up together which can be very exhausting. It also heavily relies on flashbacks and unrequited love; which this manga didn't go far from the premise. However, instead of reminding readers every five minutes to the fact that the characters were childhood best friends, the mangaka illustrates this brilliantly by telling the story in a recollection of events from Mizuha Nishino's as 17 years old teenager 10 years prior.
As one might expect, a story about a childhood best friend to lover isn't thorough without some frustrating plot points or events, as illustrated by the interrupted moments between Mizuha and Kizuki, or the fact that they have never really communicated since Kizuki's confession apart from when they see each other. This also made Kizuki's character in the manga appear a little pushy; which I still understand both sides of the characters because, while Kizuki knew exactly what he wanted, Mizuha doesn't.
And being the only girl in the group, you wouldn't expect Kizuki to be the only one who catches feelings. This made me so excited to see where the manga would progress with Shin and Nishino in the picture. I just wished Airu and Shuugo's character would be well accentuated and be as significant as the other two although I realized that this is only Volume 1.
The author also mentioned the original plan for this series which was supposed to take place in the summer of 2019 but due to the pandemic, some changes were made and you can see it nuanced in the manga at how much it has affected all of us. Especially when the manga captured the struggle as well as the love and bond among the characters; signifying the shining and sparkling youth that they only have now.
Overall, this was an adorable and entertaining read. I would surely keep my eyes out on the next release!
Update: They are releasing the anime for it this year (2025) and I'm already enjoying the first episode
I love this! I love this! First of all, what a way to start the book controversially. And a sports romance with best friend to lover? This manga is giving me butterflies!
To those who know me well enough know that I hate best friend to lover but childhood best friend to lover is significantly different and reading a manga of the said trope is a foreign feeling. Anyway I'm Falling in Love With You is a story of youth and growth of five childhood friends who were raised together in the residential neighbourhood of Koigahama Highland.
Nevertheless, childhood best friend to lovers always takes far too much telling that they grew up together which can be very exhausting. It also heavily relies on flashbacks and unrequited love; which this manga didn't go far from the premise. However, instead of reminding readers every five minutes to the fact that the characters were childhood best friends, the mangaka illustrates this brilliantly by telling the story in a recollection of events from Mizuha Nishino's as 17 years old teenager 10 years prior.
As one might expect, a story about a childhood best friend to lover isn't thorough without some frustrating plot points or events, as illustrated by the interrupted moments between Mizuha and Kizuki, or the fact that they have never really communicated since Kizuki's confession apart from when they see each other. This also made Kizuki's character in the manga appear a little pushy; which I still understand both sides of the characters because, while Kizuki knew exactly what he wanted, Mizuha doesn't.
And being the only girl in the group, you wouldn't expect Kizuki to be the only one who catches feelings. This made me so excited to see where the manga would progress with Shin and Nishino in the picture. I just wished Airu and Shuugo's character would be well accentuated and be as significant as the other two although I realized that this is only Volume 1.
The author also mentioned the original plan for this series which was supposed to take place in the summer of 2019 but due to the pandemic, some changes were made and you can see it nuanced in the manga at how much it has affected all of us. Especially when the manga captured the struggle as well as the love and bond among the characters; signifying the shining and sparkling youth that they only have now.
Overall, this was an adorable and entertaining read. I would surely keep my eyes out on the next release!
Update: They are releasing the anime for it this year (2025) and I'm already enjoying the first episode
August 28, 2024
cringy in a “cute” way
March 2, 2025
Mizuho has been friends with four neighborhood boys since her childhood. She likes Saito, the captain of the swim team, and a love triangle forms when Kizuki--one of the childhood group--falls in love with her and starts getting slightly aggressive about it. While she might be starting to reciprocate those feelings, she doesn't want to destabilize her friendship with the others.
Interestingly, this manga which started serialization in 2020 actually mentions the COVID-19 pandemic. It's painful to see how disappointed the swim team is when crucial meets are canceled one by one. But no one at the school they attend is wearing a mask? I can see why, since facial expressions are maybe the critical element in a story about emotion. This is the first time I've seen a mangaka use COVID-19 as a factor in their story, though, so that's pretty cool.
I'm uncertain about the framing device, which shows Mizuho in 2030 in a miserable career, watching a group of young students and thinking how happy she was at their age. It feels unnecessary so far, but I'll keep an open mind.
The characters haven't been developed very far. I don't have a strong impression of what anybody's like as a person, aside from Kizuki being rather pushy.
A FL being surrounded by hot guys, with only a token bestie to talk (only) about guys with in passing, has a trashy reverse-harem vibe to it, so the somber sadness that COVID-19 adds makes that potentially an odd choice, too. I'll give it another volume or two to see how well things coalesce.
Interestingly, this manga which started serialization in 2020 actually mentions the COVID-19 pandemic. It's painful to see how disappointed the swim team is when crucial meets are canceled one by one. But no one at the school they attend is wearing a mask? I can see why, since facial expressions are maybe the critical element in a story about emotion. This is the first time I've seen a mangaka use COVID-19 as a factor in their story, though, so that's pretty cool.
I'm uncertain about the framing device, which shows Mizuho in 2030 in a miserable career, watching a group of young students and thinking how happy she was at their age. It feels unnecessary so far, but I'll keep an open mind.
The characters haven't been developed very far. I don't have a strong impression of what anybody's like as a person, aside from Kizuki being rather pushy.
A FL being surrounded by hot guys, with only a token bestie to talk (only) about guys with in passing, has a trashy reverse-harem vibe to it, so the somber sadness that COVID-19 adds makes that potentially an odd choice, too. I'll give it another volume or two to see how well things coalesce.
January 4, 2022
Beautiful artwork and an adorable start to a very intriguing love story.
Mizuha is one in a group of five best friends since childhood. The other four are all super good-looking guys, but Mizuha only sees her beloved friends. She has someone else she is crushing on, and after confessing to him and being rejected on her birthday she is feeling down. Then one of her childhood friends changes things for Mizuha and she's scared of what that change will do to their friendship.
So I love the artwork in this one. Absolutely beautiful. The love story is very interesting. Classic manga-style romance. I love it and can't wait to see how things progress. I feel a love triangle coming on.
It was short though. I read the whole thing in an hour and that was with stopping to really take in the artwork. It is hard to get invested in characters within an hour. Also, Kizuki needs to step back a bit. She asked for some space, so give it to her. I completely understand her need to breathe and really think it through. It would be a big life change.
I would say this book is for 13+. No content warnings for this volume at least. If you love romantic manga. This is definitely for you.
I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for this chance to read and review this book. This does not in any way influence my honest opinion or review.
Find this review and others on my blog:
https://darklittomes.wordpress.com/
Follow me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/darklittomes/
Mizuha is one in a group of five best friends since childhood. The other four are all super good-looking guys, but Mizuha only sees her beloved friends. She has someone else she is crushing on, and after confessing to him and being rejected on her birthday she is feeling down. Then one of her childhood friends changes things for Mizuha and she's scared of what that change will do to their friendship.
So I love the artwork in this one. Absolutely beautiful. The love story is very interesting. Classic manga-style romance. I love it and can't wait to see how things progress. I feel a love triangle coming on.
It was short though. I read the whole thing in an hour and that was with stopping to really take in the artwork. It is hard to get invested in characters within an hour. Also, Kizuki needs to step back a bit. She asked for some space, so give it to her. I completely understand her need to breathe and really think it through. It would be a big life change.
I would say this book is for 13+. No content warnings for this volume at least. If you love romantic manga. This is definitely for you.
I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for this chance to read and review this book. This does not in any way influence my honest opinion or review.
Find this review and others on my blog:
https://darklittomes.wordpress.com/
Follow me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/darklittomes/
January 3, 2022
The start to this shojo series was great! It's not often I get a win on my first read of the year, but that sure happened with this one!
We are following a young woman who grew up with 4 boys. She has a crush on a 3rd year at school. When his final swim meet gets cancelled due to the pandemic, she tells him not to lose hope, and confesses her feelings. One of her childhood friends is also on the swim team, and tells him to back off. He thinks of her as a woman, and he's going to make it known to her.
He starts to, and she is warming up to the childhood friend. What she doesn't expect is *SPOILERS NOT GOING TO SAY IT HERE*
I am incredibly excited to keep going with the series!
We are following a young woman who grew up with 4 boys. She has a crush on a 3rd year at school. When his final swim meet gets cancelled due to the pandemic, she tells him not to lose hope, and confesses her feelings. One of her childhood friends is also on the swim team, and tells him to back off. He thinks of her as a woman, and he's going to make it known to her.
He starts to, and she is warming up to the childhood friend. What she doesn't expect is *SPOILERS NOT GOING TO SAY IT HERE*
I am incredibly excited to keep going with the series!
November 18, 2021
It’s 2030 and Mizuha is having a very bad birthday. Which causes her to reflect on another very bad birthday ten years prior. Still, she was surrounded by a gaggle of hot boys who’d been her friends forever. Are things starting to change though? And what’s up with this mysterious illness going around?
Yeah, so, you might be taken aback thinking this is some weird sci-fi jaunt about a plague ravaging humanity. Until you realize Mizuha’s birthday is in July of 2020, and, yes, that was actually a thing that happened to all of us (and still is, at the time of writing). Love in the time of COVID-era is here.
How this is by the mangaka behind I Fell In Love After School is rather beyond me - that story was a Madlibs version of every basic shoujo manga of the last ten years. This is, with some reservations, really freaking great and has more freshness in one volume than that story managed in its entire run.
The formula is largely thrown right out the window in favour of a much more interesting story - while nobody is masked in this volume, the spectre of COVID is actually an important plot point as genre staples such as the school festival, the high school trip, and vaunted sports meets are shut down one after the other (the way the gang tries to make up for the school trip is great).
In addition to that little bit of freshness, the confessions and kisses are flying all over the place even in this first volume. Kizuki, the childhood friend who’s most interested in Mizuha in THAT way, is a direct copy of the male lead from the author’s previous work, except way more direct (possibly too much so, we’ll get to that) and into swimming instead, but he has charm for days.
The guys all conform to certain types, but the four guys and one gal pal set-up is a lot of fun and you don’t doubt for a minute that all of them are friends. They joke, they pick on one another, they’re there when the chips are down. It’s important to get that across and it’s conveyed well - I love Kizuki feeding all his friends from his lunch because he hates the broccoli, for instance.
Mizuha also wants to be a manga artist, which is an interesting change for a female lead (it at least hasn’t been done to death). There might be an amount of subconscious projection in how she wants to do a swimming manga, which the well-meaning but heartless editor she shows her work to points out. Her four-panel comic is actually pretty good though.
The real friction comes when Mizuha tries to inspire her swimming senpai and gets thoroughly shot down in her confession with a pretty snarky retort. I love how this funnels into the events later in the book and a cliffhanger that, well, is pretty darn good and not what I was expecting.
Amidst all this, Kizuki is trying to get a lot closer to Mizuha and he has no trouble being forceful and stealing some kisses that are definitely going to be a big ‘no’ for some and I don’t disagree with that sentiment.
Still, he at least recognizes her wishes and doesn’t keep pushing once she says no, except he keeps coming back for more later. Again, this isn’t great behaviour, but having this all out in the open in the first volume is so nuts to me that it kind of dazzled its way past me.
Mizuha is in the position where she had to carefully consider whether she even feels something for the guy she’s known forever and now sees her as something more, while also considering the grenade that could throw into this tight-knit group of friends. Whatever else it may be, it’s good, believable drama.
Also, I am probably giving this more of a pass because of that birthday cake scene, where Kizuki gave even my heteronormative heart a bit of a flutter. That’s the kind of sneaky charm that you have to watch out for!
This could literally go anywhere before it lands on Kizuki - the cliffhanger, the future we start in that gives zero hints, a flock of other boys whose intent remains inscrutable, there’s a lot left to be answered here. As always, the destination can be obvious as long as the journey is interesting.
4 stars - if Kizuki wasn’t quite so forceful at points I think this would have snagged a full five. It is such a crazy improvement over the author’s last book that I nearly read it twice. It’s a delight if you can get past that one hurdle and I would definitely rank it lower if you cannot, and that’s totally understandable.
Yeah, so, you might be taken aback thinking this is some weird sci-fi jaunt about a plague ravaging humanity. Until you realize Mizuha’s birthday is in July of 2020, and, yes, that was actually a thing that happened to all of us (and still is, at the time of writing). Love in the time of COVID-era is here.
How this is by the mangaka behind I Fell In Love After School is rather beyond me - that story was a Madlibs version of every basic shoujo manga of the last ten years. This is, with some reservations, really freaking great and has more freshness in one volume than that story managed in its entire run.
The formula is largely thrown right out the window in favour of a much more interesting story - while nobody is masked in this volume, the spectre of COVID is actually an important plot point as genre staples such as the school festival, the high school trip, and vaunted sports meets are shut down one after the other (the way the gang tries to make up for the school trip is great).
In addition to that little bit of freshness, the confessions and kisses are flying all over the place even in this first volume. Kizuki, the childhood friend who’s most interested in Mizuha in THAT way, is a direct copy of the male lead from the author’s previous work, except way more direct (possibly too much so, we’ll get to that) and into swimming instead, but he has charm for days.
The guys all conform to certain types, but the four guys and one gal pal set-up is a lot of fun and you don’t doubt for a minute that all of them are friends. They joke, they pick on one another, they’re there when the chips are down. It’s important to get that across and it’s conveyed well - I love Kizuki feeding all his friends from his lunch because he hates the broccoli, for instance.
Mizuha also wants to be a manga artist, which is an interesting change for a female lead (it at least hasn’t been done to death). There might be an amount of subconscious projection in how she wants to do a swimming manga, which the well-meaning but heartless editor she shows her work to points out. Her four-panel comic is actually pretty good though.
The real friction comes when Mizuha tries to inspire her swimming senpai and gets thoroughly shot down in her confession with a pretty snarky retort. I love how this funnels into the events later in the book and a cliffhanger that, well, is pretty darn good and not what I was expecting.
Amidst all this, Kizuki is trying to get a lot closer to Mizuha and he has no trouble being forceful and stealing some kisses that are definitely going to be a big ‘no’ for some and I don’t disagree with that sentiment.
Still, he at least recognizes her wishes and doesn’t keep pushing once she says no, except he keeps coming back for more later. Again, this isn’t great behaviour, but having this all out in the open in the first volume is so nuts to me that it kind of dazzled its way past me.
Mizuha is in the position where she had to carefully consider whether she even feels something for the guy she’s known forever and now sees her as something more, while also considering the grenade that could throw into this tight-knit group of friends. Whatever else it may be, it’s good, believable drama.
Also, I am probably giving this more of a pass because of that birthday cake scene, where Kizuki gave even my heteronormative heart a bit of a flutter. That’s the kind of sneaky charm that you have to watch out for!
This could literally go anywhere before it lands on Kizuki - the cliffhanger, the future we start in that gives zero hints, a flock of other boys whose intent remains inscrutable, there’s a lot left to be answered here. As always, the destination can be obvious as long as the journey is interesting.
4 stars - if Kizuki wasn’t quite so forceful at points I think this would have snagged a full five. It is such a crazy improvement over the author’s last book that I nearly read it twice. It’s a delight if you can get past that one hurdle and I would definitely rank it lower if you cannot, and that’s totally understandable.
December 20, 2021
Rating: 4.25 🌟
First and foremost, I'd like to express my gratitude to Netgalley and Kodansha Comics for providing me with an e-ARC of this manga.
From the start to the end, this manga was filled with fluff.🤍🥰
• Childhood friends to lover
• Slow burn romance
• Love triangle
• High school setting
• Supportive friends
• Sports romance
• Protective boyfriend
March 6, 2022
I have to be honest - scary death and disease aside, I would have been enormously relieved if a pandemic had stopped all school activities when I was in high school. That means that I can't really relate to a lot of the emotions the characters are going through in this book, and it's a testament to the creator's skill that I still enjoyed it so much. Nostalgia's a double edged blade, and there's an ineffable something in this volume that captures that.
December 15, 2021
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!
I am sad to say I had to put this on my DNF shelf. Perhaps I will finish it one day but I really had issues with the boy confessing his love and when the girl doesn't respond with the same emotion he refuses to accept her feelings and says anyway "In the end you will fall in love with me." There were also too many nonconsensual, I'm-going-to-grab-this-girl-and-kiss-her-to-get-her-to-love-me for my liking.
I am sad to say I had to put this on my DNF shelf. Perhaps I will finish it one day but I really had issues with the boy confessing his love and when the girl doesn't respond with the same emotion he refuses to accept her feelings and says anyway "In the end you will fall in love with me." There were also too many nonconsensual, I'm-going-to-grab-this-girl-and-kiss-her-to-get-her-to-love-me for my liking.
February 26, 2024
⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ 3 stars ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆
"for me... every day gets my heart racing."
"life without manga wouldn't be the end of the world, but reading can lift and replenish the soul."
i saw the title and immediately requested this because i was so intrigued! i loved the artwork in this graphic novel! overall, the story was cute and really fast paced. something that i found weird and even uncomfortable though was when kizuki would kiss mizuho without her consent. she even told him to leave her alone but he did not take no for answer, so i really didn't like that. some of the tropes in this manga are childhood best friends to lovers and sports romance, so if you like those then i recommend!
˗ˋˏ ୨୧ thank you to NetGalley and Haruka Mitsui for the digital arc in exchange for an honest review! ୨୧ ˎˊ˗
"for me... every day gets my heart racing."
"life without manga wouldn't be the end of the world, but reading can lift and replenish the soul."
i saw the title and immediately requested this because i was so intrigued! i loved the artwork in this graphic novel! overall, the story was cute and really fast paced. something that i found weird and even uncomfortable though was when kizuki would kiss mizuho without her consent. she even told him to leave her alone but he did not take no for answer, so i really didn't like that. some of the tropes in this manga are childhood best friends to lovers and sports romance, so if you like those then i recommend!
˗ˋˏ ୨୧ thank you to NetGalley and Haruka Mitsui for the digital arc in exchange for an honest review! ୨୧ ˎˊ˗
December 13, 2021
I received a copy of this manga through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Yet another reverse harem manga, yay for me as I love them a lot!😍
So of course the characters are big-eyed and mostly light-haired and veeeery very attractive! They have been friends for most of their lives, so crushes between them are complex but unavoidable (it’s a shoujo manga so duh).😜
I liked the smuttier scenes, they were aesthetically pleasing and as the relationships were wholesome then I didn’t feel guilty for enjoying them either!😃
Overall a fun little manga!😊
Yet another reverse harem manga, yay for me as I love them a lot!😍
So of course the characters are big-eyed and mostly light-haired and veeeery very attractive! They have been friends for most of their lives, so crushes between them are complex but unavoidable (it’s a shoujo manga so duh).😜
I liked the smuttier scenes, they were aesthetically pleasing and as the relationships were wholesome then I didn’t feel guilty for enjoying them either!😃
Overall a fun little manga!😊
December 13, 2021
*ARC kindly provided in exchange for an honest review.
OH MY GOD. When was the last time I've read a manga and give me butterflies? I can't remember and I guess it's been more than a decade.
I am so torn between Shin and Kizuki for Nishino. Kizuki is transparent and the sweetest and most thoughtful guy. While Shin is an eye candy for being mysterious and I think Nishino likes him more but she thinks he's not interested on her. Then she starts falling for Kizuki.
OH MY GOD. When was the last time I've read a manga and give me butterflies? I can't remember and I guess it's been more than a decade.
I am so torn between Shin and Kizuki for Nishino. Kizuki is transparent and the sweetest and most thoughtful guy. While Shin is an eye candy for being mysterious and I think Nishino likes him more but she thinks he's not interested on her. Then she starts falling for Kizuki.
April 6, 2024
Oh, how I loved this first volume!
I binge-read some of this series on KMANGA a while back and fell head over heels for it! (I KNEW I had to get it physically and already have volumes two and three preordered because I'm so excited to hold this in my hands!) Typically I'm not a fan of reverse harems unless it's an otome game manga/manhwa, but there is something so sweet and very wonderful about this story that I couldn't help but be pulled in!
I wouldn't say this volume is life-changing exactly, but I deeply love the friendship that Mizuho has with these guys. There is something special that jumps off the page with how they act and talk around one another. It makes my heart feel light and leaves me wanting to stay in this story world and continue to see how things unfold.
Truly, when it comes down to it, reading this manga just felt special. It has an airiness that was exactly what I was looking for, but not shallow in interactions or storytelling. I deeply enjoyed my time reading it and while I love all the guys, I am hardcore cheering for Kizuki!
Definitely recommend it if you're looking for a light and sweet shoujo read with great art! (Truly, why is everyone so beautiful?!)
I binge-read some of this series on KMANGA a while back and fell head over heels for it! (I KNEW I had to get it physically and already have volumes two and three preordered because I'm so excited to hold this in my hands!) Typically I'm not a fan of reverse harems unless it's an otome game manga/manhwa, but there is something so sweet and very wonderful about this story that I couldn't help but be pulled in!
I wouldn't say this volume is life-changing exactly, but I deeply love the friendship that Mizuho has with these guys. There is something special that jumps off the page with how they act and talk around one another. It makes my heart feel light and leaves me wanting to stay in this story world and continue to see how things unfold.
Truly, when it comes down to it, reading this manga just felt special. It has an airiness that was exactly what I was looking for, but not shallow in interactions or storytelling. I deeply enjoyed my time reading it and while I love all the guys, I am hardcore cheering for Kizuki!
Definitely recommend it if you're looking for a light and sweet shoujo read with great art! (Truly, why is everyone so beautiful?!)
March 15, 2024
A cute start to the series! 'Anyway, I'm Falling in Love with You' follows Mizuho Nishino and her four guy best friends, as she navigates highschool life and attempts to make it big with her swim-themed manga. But with the recent COVID-19 developments, trouble may be fast approaching along the horizon.. How will this affect our 5 and their friendship?
Personally, I found the plot a little too fast-paced and stereotypical for my tastes.. but I think you'll enjoy this if you're a fan of highschool harems where the FL is kind of a klutz but all the hot guys are somehow in love with her. It's a popular trope, but I honestly consumed way too many manga series with that plotline during my own highschool days, so it stands to reason that i'd be a little bored of it now.
Whilst there were definitely a few moments that had me smiling, I generally felt like the male lead was a little too handsy for my tastes ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I mean, have you heard about consent my dude?
The plot also jumped around a lot, so I'm not really intrigued enough to continue..
Even so, if you haven't read a ton of manga with these tropes then you might enjoy this one!
Rating: 2.75/5
_ Thank you to Netgalley and Kodansha Comics for providing the eARC for review purposes. All opinions are my own.
Personally, I found the plot a little too fast-paced and stereotypical for my tastes.. but I think you'll enjoy this if you're a fan of highschool harems where the FL is kind of a klutz but all the hot guys are somehow in love with her. It's a popular trope, but I honestly consumed way too many manga series with that plotline during my own highschool days, so it stands to reason that i'd be a little bored of it now.
Whilst there were definitely a few moments that had me smiling, I generally felt like the male lead was a little too handsy for my tastes ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I mean, have you heard about consent my dude?
The plot also jumped around a lot, so I'm not really intrigued enough to continue..
Even so, if you haven't read a ton of manga with these tropes then you might enjoy this one!
Rating: 2.75/5
_ Thank you to Netgalley and Kodansha Comics for providing the eARC for review purposes. All opinions are my own.
March 24, 2024
Thank you NetGalley for sending me a digital copy of this volume.
Our FMC is a future mangaka who grew up with a group of boys that are on the swim team. They are inseparable and very supportive of one another. When she is rejected by the boy that she likes, she finds solace in her friends. But then, one of the boys confesses his feelings for her and vows to make her fall in love with him.
The story started out pretty confusing. I must admit that I didn't know what was going on in the first 2 chapters as some of the panels were hard to follow and several of the characters looked similar. Then there were younger versions of themselves and sometimes their hair was a different color. I didn't know what I was looking at. But at about Chapter 3, it all started making sense and became more linear and easier to follow. The ending of the volume was a bit of a cliffhanger but I'm not on pins and needles to read the next one.
Our FMC is a future mangaka who grew up with a group of boys that are on the swim team. They are inseparable and very supportive of one another. When she is rejected by the boy that she likes, she finds solace in her friends. But then, one of the boys confesses his feelings for her and vows to make her fall in love with him.
The story started out pretty confusing. I must admit that I didn't know what was going on in the first 2 chapters as some of the panels were hard to follow and several of the characters looked similar. Then there were younger versions of themselves and sometimes their hair was a different color. I didn't know what I was looking at. But at about Chapter 3, it all started making sense and became more linear and easier to follow. The ending of the volume was a bit of a cliffhanger but I'm not on pins and needles to read the next one.
December 28, 2021
Arc was given by Kodansha & NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Content/Trigger Warnings: Content/Trigger Warnings: Mentions of a pandemic, astraphobia (fear of thunderstorms), trauma, loss of a parent (in the past), grief
Remember when I said I spend a lot of time in romance manga? Yeah, this is one of those times and I’m so excited for the next volume to come out! Look, look… I love a book who loves to kick the door in with a controversy! And this manga, this freaking manga, delivered with the goods, my friends. Truly, this manga gave me the burst of serotonin that I have been craving lately.
The year is 2030, Mizuha is celebrating another bad birthday when she suddenly remembers another bad birthday ten year prior to this one. Though being surrounded by all of her childhood friends at the time, this was probably one of her toughest birthday thus far. Not only has her crush turned her down and said some mean things to her, but no one of her childhood friends is trying to change their friend group by confessing his love to Mizuha. All of this causes a mixture of feelings with her along with trying to deal with celebrating yet another birthday without her mother.
Truly, the blessing that is this manga because it gives us all the fluff we could want. If you want fluffy goodness then you’re going to love this manga. The author really said give them all the sweetness. One of my favorite themes and tropes within books always has to do with childhood friends. I think my favorite part is how supportive they all are to one another. Always looking out for each other and doing little acts of kindness to help. Not only do we get childhood friendships, but the childhood friendships are built around a reverse harem theme. There’s also the childhood friend to lover trope slowly coming into play, as well. Though everything is such a slow burn and I think that’s the best part. The slow burn hooks you only to pull you into a love triangle. It gave me butterflies on how everything was going to play out.
Of course I have to talk about this single parent household theme. I think one of the most commonly, overlooked themes in books in the single parent household theme. Maybe I’m just a sucker for single parent households because I, myself, am from a single parent household. However, single father households, in my opinion, are so uncommon and deserve to be recognized. I believe with my whole chest that single father households deserve the spotlight because often times we see the single mother household, but rarely ever see the father side of things. The author really captured what it’s like to have that single parent household and even though they’re only glimpses, it warms my heart to see this theme in another manga I enjoyed.
I think my only issue with this manga was how short it was. Now look, I know some of us can read a manga like it’s no one’s business, but this just felt shorter to me. It felt like there could have been more details packed in or even an extra 40-50 pages into this manga. Normally, I spend about an hour reading a manga book, but I flew through this book in thirty minutes. It made being invested in the characters really hard especially when it came to the childhood friend group. It would have been nice to see more of that or get a feel for how everyone views Mizuha, not just her crush or the guy from her childhood friends.
Overall, I think this is a really light-hearted read despite the content warnings. As I already mentioned, I flew through this manga and I wish there were more pages because I have no doubt I would have been more in love with this book, enjoyed it even more. If you’re a manga reader or you’re looking for something that’s fluffy and sweet then I definitely recommend picking this manga book up!
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Content/Trigger Warnings: Content/Trigger Warnings: Mentions of a pandemic, astraphobia (fear of thunderstorms), trauma, loss of a parent (in the past), grief
Remember when I said I spend a lot of time in romance manga? Yeah, this is one of those times and I’m so excited for the next volume to come out! Look, look… I love a book who loves to kick the door in with a controversy! And this manga, this freaking manga, delivered with the goods, my friends. Truly, this manga gave me the burst of serotonin that I have been craving lately.
The year is 2030, Mizuha is celebrating another bad birthday when she suddenly remembers another bad birthday ten year prior to this one. Though being surrounded by all of her childhood friends at the time, this was probably one of her toughest birthday thus far. Not only has her crush turned her down and said some mean things to her, but no one of her childhood friends is trying to change their friend group by confessing his love to Mizuha. All of this causes a mixture of feelings with her along with trying to deal with celebrating yet another birthday without her mother.
Truly, the blessing that is this manga because it gives us all the fluff we could want. If you want fluffy goodness then you’re going to love this manga. The author really said give them all the sweetness. One of my favorite themes and tropes within books always has to do with childhood friends. I think my favorite part is how supportive they all are to one another. Always looking out for each other and doing little acts of kindness to help. Not only do we get childhood friendships, but the childhood friendships are built around a reverse harem theme. There’s also the childhood friend to lover trope slowly coming into play, as well. Though everything is such a slow burn and I think that’s the best part. The slow burn hooks you only to pull you into a love triangle. It gave me butterflies on how everything was going to play out.
Of course I have to talk about this single parent household theme. I think one of the most commonly, overlooked themes in books in the single parent household theme. Maybe I’m just a sucker for single parent households because I, myself, am from a single parent household. However, single father households, in my opinion, are so uncommon and deserve to be recognized. I believe with my whole chest that single father households deserve the spotlight because often times we see the single mother household, but rarely ever see the father side of things. The author really captured what it’s like to have that single parent household and even though they’re only glimpses, it warms my heart to see this theme in another manga I enjoyed.
I think my only issue with this manga was how short it was. Now look, I know some of us can read a manga like it’s no one’s business, but this just felt shorter to me. It felt like there could have been more details packed in or even an extra 40-50 pages into this manga. Normally, I spend about an hour reading a manga book, but I flew through this book in thirty minutes. It made being invested in the characters really hard especially when it came to the childhood friend group. It would have been nice to see more of that or get a feel for how everyone views Mizuha, not just her crush or the guy from her childhood friends.
Overall, I think this is a really light-hearted read despite the content warnings. As I already mentioned, I flew through this manga and I wish there were more pages because I have no doubt I would have been more in love with this book, enjoyed it even more. If you’re a manga reader or you’re looking for something that’s fluffy and sweet then I definitely recommend picking this manga book up!
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March 7, 2024
Anyway, I'm Falling in Love with You is a story about a group of five childhood best friends as they navigate their youth and deal with life and relationships in the beginning of the Corona-virus pandemic.
First off, the artystle is GORGEOUS. I'm a sucker for eye-catching art as it makes the reading experience so much better. To be completely honest, the cover was what made me want to pick up this manga, and it definitely wasn't deceiving, it's beautiful inside and out.
Story wise, I don't think much can be said as this is the first volume and it's setting up the vibe and atmosphere, but it for sure is not boring. Right off the bat there are confessions and conflicted feelings and it makes you want to see what happens next. As in mangakas previous works, there is a sport aspect to the story, and this time it's swimming. I'd be a liar if I said I didn't like a good sports romance, so that is a big plus.
As it is with the story, we're only briefly meeting the characters, so I honestly can't wait to see how all of their relationships work and to get to know them all better in the future volumes.
The only thing I was worried about was the pandemic aspect. I feared it would be depressing and heavily discussed, but it turns out I didn't have to worry about that at all. It was actually very uplifting and hopeful from the very beginning, and I have high hopes it will stay that way throughout the story.
Mangaka said in the afterword that she wanted to 'write stories that would give students hope' and despite the uncertain times that they would be able to look back at their memories and think fondly of them, and so far, honestly, I think she's been successful at sending out that message.
I'll surely be reading the rest of the story in the near future!
Thank you Netgalley and Kodansha Comics for a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
First off, the artystle is GORGEOUS. I'm a sucker for eye-catching art as it makes the reading experience so much better. To be completely honest, the cover was what made me want to pick up this manga, and it definitely wasn't deceiving, it's beautiful inside and out.
Story wise, I don't think much can be said as this is the first volume and it's setting up the vibe and atmosphere, but it for sure is not boring. Right off the bat there are confessions and conflicted feelings and it makes you want to see what happens next. As in mangakas previous works, there is a sport aspect to the story, and this time it's swimming. I'd be a liar if I said I didn't like a good sports romance, so that is a big plus.
As it is with the story, we're only briefly meeting the characters, so I honestly can't wait to see how all of their relationships work and to get to know them all better in the future volumes.
The only thing I was worried about was the pandemic aspect. I feared it would be depressing and heavily discussed, but it turns out I didn't have to worry about that at all. It was actually very uplifting and hopeful from the very beginning, and I have high hopes it will stay that way throughout the story.
Mangaka said in the afterword that she wanted to 'write stories that would give students hope' and despite the uncertain times that they would be able to look back at their memories and think fondly of them, and so far, honestly, I think she's been successful at sending out that message.
I'll surely be reading the rest of the story in the near future!
Thank you Netgalley and Kodansha Comics for a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
March 9, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley and Kodansha for the free e-ARC (my first one ever!!!) in exchange for an honest review!
Read this volume in one sitting, and now I need the rest of the series immediately. The art is beautiful and definitely makes up for the occasional rushed pacing. I still got the gist of things, but I did find myself going back a few pages to make sure I didn’t gloss over key details.
I adored the core group of friends, and I’m excited to see where the story goes in terms of the developing romances against the backdrop of COVID-19. And I just read that an anime is in the works, so I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for that :)
Read this volume in one sitting, and now I need the rest of the series immediately. The art is beautiful and definitely makes up for the occasional rushed pacing. I still got the gist of things, but I did find myself going back a few pages to make sure I didn’t gloss over key details.
I adored the core group of friends, and I’m excited to see where the story goes in terms of the developing romances against the backdrop of COVID-19. And I just read that an anime is in the works, so I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for that :)
July 13, 2025
Me agrado lo suficiente para querer leer el tomo dos.
Con los años me he vuelto más exigente con la trama de los mangas shojo. Lo cual es bueno porque quiero leer algo que valga la pena, algo que aunque no es una trama original, tenga sus elementos únicos.
Me sorprendió bastante que la autora mencionara, de pasada, el Coronavirus. si bien no se enfoca en la enfermedad en sí, indica que a raíz de eso pues las clases se suspenden, los clubs deportivos detienen sus torneos a nivel local, estatal y nacional.
Aunque si siento que se está tomando ciertas libertades creativas, o quien sabe lo que suceda en los próximos tomos.
Ahora, del grupo de amigos. los cuatro están guapos. Quisiera ser la protagonista para darme un taco de ojo con tanto amigo guapo.
Con los años me he vuelto más exigente con la trama de los mangas shojo. Lo cual es bueno porque quiero leer algo que valga la pena, algo que aunque no es una trama original, tenga sus elementos únicos.
Me sorprendió bastante que la autora mencionara, de pasada, el Coronavirus. si bien no se enfoca en la enfermedad en sí, indica que a raíz de eso pues las clases se suspenden, los clubs deportivos detienen sus torneos a nivel local, estatal y nacional.
Aunque si siento que se está tomando ciertas libertades creativas, o quien sabe lo que suceda en los próximos tomos.
Ahora, del grupo de amigos. los cuatro están guapos. Quisiera ser la protagonista para darme un taco de ojo con tanto amigo guapo.
February 27, 2024
Anyway I’m Falling In Love With You is a coming-of-age manga following a group of childhood friends as they navigate high school life and some big changes. Our FMC is the only female in this group of friends.
I loved the beautiful illustrations and was really intrigued the idea of a romance plot set during the start of a pandemic, but unfortunately there were some big things I didn’t enjoy and that let this down. I’ve not read a manga before so maybe this is common, but the pacing felt extremely rushed. I would have liked to have spent more time with each character to get to know them a little more, but this might come in later instalments in the series.
I also felt that the story didn’t particularly flow. I thought it jumped around a lot and I found it quite difficult to follow, which made for a very disjointed reading experience. What’s more, it made me uneasy that so much of this storyline involved a character putting our FMC in strange situations and saying things like “I’ll make you see me as a man” (I’m paraphrasing).
Overall, whilst I thought the illustrations and concept were fab, I didn’t enjoy the pacing or storyline, and I won’t be continuing this series.
Thank you to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for eArc in exchange for an honest review. This comic book is in the “Read Now” category of NetGalley.
I loved the beautiful illustrations and was really intrigued the idea of a romance plot set during the start of a pandemic, but unfortunately there were some big things I didn’t enjoy and that let this down. I’ve not read a manga before so maybe this is common, but the pacing felt extremely rushed. I would have liked to have spent more time with each character to get to know them a little more, but this might come in later instalments in the series.
I also felt that the story didn’t particularly flow. I thought it jumped around a lot and I found it quite difficult to follow, which made for a very disjointed reading experience. What’s more, it made me uneasy that so much of this storyline involved a character putting our FMC in strange situations and saying things like “I’ll make you see me as a man” (I’m paraphrasing).
Overall, whilst I thought the illustrations and concept were fab, I didn’t enjoy the pacing or storyline, and I won’t be continuing this series.
Thank you to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for eArc in exchange for an honest review. This comic book is in the “Read Now” category of NetGalley.
Read
June 2, 2022A beautiful coming-of-age shoujo manga!
This first volume introduces readers to five childhood friends who have known one another since they were kids and live in the same neighborhood and study in the same school. They tend to hang out in the house of Mizuha, the only girl in the group. As they navigate high school life and future personal goals, changes in the group are happening too, as one of them finally confesses to Mizuha!
This manga is beautifully drawn! I love the art style so much; it fits the tone and youthfulness of the story. The story touches on the current pandemic and how much it has affected young adults in their life in and out of school. It makes you sympathize with them and their loss. I think Mizuha’s confusion and mixed feelings with the changes in her life and her group of friends are very typical and relatable, and her grief on her past loss.
So far, so good! I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the story and attention to the other guys in the group besides Kizuki.
Thank you, NetGalley and Kodansha, for the eARC in exchange for honest feedback.
This first volume introduces readers to five childhood friends who have known one another since they were kids and live in the same neighborhood and study in the same school. They tend to hang out in the house of Mizuha, the only girl in the group. As they navigate high school life and future personal goals, changes in the group are happening too, as one of them finally confesses to Mizuha!
This manga is beautifully drawn! I love the art style so much; it fits the tone and youthfulness of the story. The story touches on the current pandemic and how much it has affected young adults in their life in and out of school. It makes you sympathize with them and their loss. I think Mizuha’s confusion and mixed feelings with the changes in her life and her group of friends are very typical and relatable, and her grief on her past loss.
So far, so good! I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the story and attention to the other guys in the group besides Kizuki.
Thank you, NetGalley and Kodansha, for the eARC in exchange for honest feedback.
December 21, 2021
Thank you Netgalley for the review copy.
I finished this, the art is fine…. I didn’t really take to this. The opening is strong, it’s 2030 and our main character flashes back to 2020 in her memories to understand what happened to her. There is a “virus” going around which is causing sports competitions at the school to be cancelled. I thought this would be good, thinking it was a reflection of our times with Covid and seeing how this would be incorporated in the story. Beyond the virus being used a plot device for sports activities to be cancelled there isn’t more to it. I’m not sure if this gets elaborated in the next volume but I don’t plan on reading it to find out.
While I don’t mind tropes in these types of stories I am so fed up with the “guy keeps going and going until girl is forced to fall in love” approach. There was a lot of potential here to make a familiar story interesting but my main takeaway from reading it is Mizuha’s friend overstepping boundaries until she goes ok then.
I finished this, the art is fine…. I didn’t really take to this. The opening is strong, it’s 2030 and our main character flashes back to 2020 in her memories to understand what happened to her. There is a “virus” going around which is causing sports competitions at the school to be cancelled. I thought this would be good, thinking it was a reflection of our times with Covid and seeing how this would be incorporated in the story. Beyond the virus being used a plot device for sports activities to be cancelled there isn’t more to it. I’m not sure if this gets elaborated in the next volume but I don’t plan on reading it to find out.
While I don’t mind tropes in these types of stories I am so fed up with the “guy keeps going and going until girl is forced to fall in love” approach. There was a lot of potential here to make a familiar story interesting but my main takeaway from reading it is Mizuha’s friend overstepping boundaries until she goes ok then.
December 21, 2021
Anyway, I'm Falling in Love with You. is quite good and I'm such a sucker for a friends-to-lovers setting. Mizuha is friends with these four boys since childhood and she's the oldest. It's her 17th birthday and one of the boys, Kizuki confesses to her. He's the baby of the group and Mizuha has hard time seeing him as anything other than that. It's obvious there's going to be a love triangle though, since it seems Shin is into her too. I do enjoy settings like this in a sense, but I wish more time was used to lay the groundwork. Already in this first book you get the big feelings, which eats credibility. I'd love to get to know the characters better and make them work for the love, haha. I hope there's no reverse harem though, we've seen too many of those...
The art looks nice, nothing too spectacular, but finally we have some backgrounds too! The characters all look different and the atmosphere is good too. Anyway, I'm Falling in Love with You. is a nice romantic school series that makes your heart flutter even if it doesn't offer anything new. It's a good solid series.
The art looks nice, nothing too spectacular, but finally we have some backgrounds too! The characters all look different and the atmosphere is good too. Anyway, I'm Falling in Love with You. is a nice romantic school series that makes your heart flutter even if it doesn't offer anything new. It's a good solid series.
December 15, 2021
Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital sample of this book in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.
Another pretty standard shojo where the female lead is in a friend group of all cute guys. For me, this particular manga is set apart from others only by the fact that there is mention of a "virus" in the story that is preventing the students from participating in sporting events and school trips. It will be interesting to see what this virus is. (Covid maybe? This is my first story period where that would be the case if it is.) Anyway, I gave this two stars mostly because of how pushy the male protagonist is towards the main female character. No means no and if he had respected that and the story went from there then I would have rated this book higher.
Another pretty standard shojo where the female lead is in a friend group of all cute guys. For me, this particular manga is set apart from others only by the fact that there is mention of a "virus" in the story that is preventing the students from participating in sporting events and school trips. It will be interesting to see what this virus is. (Covid maybe? This is my first story period where that would be the case if it is.) Anyway, I gave this two stars mostly because of how pushy the male protagonist is towards the main female character. No means no and if he had respected that and the story went from there then I would have rated this book higher.
February 11, 2022
Quality is making me question whether I actually like romance manga (if not, this would be a gen-u-ine 2.2 star! neigh, 2.3 star even! endeavor). Maybe it killed my brain though because I had insomnia but still slept 9 hours the night after reading this. Okay, other things were going on in my life; I should not harp on the author for writing genuinely middle-of-the-line genre fiction. Not that anyone reads these reviews; I'm going through a genrefied life-crisis, but---
Onwards and upwards :)) ya girl just wants to read a sweet romance.
Onwards and upwards :)) ya girl just wants to read a sweet romance.
October 3, 2024
the art for this was very pretty. that's the only nice thing i can say about this tbh. it's... really not good.
the fact that a key plot point is that this is set in JULY 2020 DURING THE PANDEMIC and yet i don't see a SINGLE CHARACTER WEARING A MASK??? the swim team is crying about their swim meet getting cancelled. NO FUCKING WONDER IT GOT CANCELLED!! YOU'RE NOT DOING YOUR PART TO STOP THE PANDEMMY!!!!
and there was no joy to the romance. felt gross and pushy. just.... bad!
the fact that a key plot point is that this is set in JULY 2020 DURING THE PANDEMIC and yet i don't see a SINGLE CHARACTER WEARING A MASK??? the swim team is crying about their swim meet getting cancelled. NO FUCKING WONDER IT GOT CANCELLED!! YOU'RE NOT DOING YOUR PART TO STOP THE PANDEMMY!!!!
and there was no joy to the romance. felt gross and pushy. just.... bad!
January 2, 2022
Firstly, thank you to Netgalley and Kodansha for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
I'm 100% in because of eyecandies and trust me, there are lots of them 😳😌. Okay aside from the many handsome guys and gorgeous girls, the story is what most shojo romance like but it still managed to make me feels butterflies in my stomach. Its been a long time since that 😂.
Mizuha reminisce back to her highschool days where she learns about love and growing up. Childhood friends to lovers are something else, I will say, it gave so much depth to the relationship and I found it awkward yet endearing to see they goes from weird bumbling stage of trying to work out the feelings and wanting to maintain the relationship as it is.
So far, one character stood out as a love interest to Mizuha and that's Kizuki who takes more of a direct approach and not feeling shy to said how he feels. I think he is charming yet sometimes a bit pushy and I cringed at some parts 🤧 but man this dude is handsome. Mizuha was obviously confused and taken aback but there are some real swoony moments Kizuki made and got her really flustered.
I have a soft spot for Shin. Oh boy Shin, why must u be the softest boi ever that i know have crushes but only watching from sidelines. You better step up your game or i might steal u first 👉👈.
So if you love and live for cute shojo manga, you would not be disappointed by this. There are so many feast for ur eyes too 😉
I'm 100% in because of eyecandies and trust me, there are lots of them 😳😌. Okay aside from the many handsome guys and gorgeous girls, the story is what most shojo romance like but it still managed to make me feels butterflies in my stomach. Its been a long time since that 😂.
Mizuha reminisce back to her highschool days where she learns about love and growing up. Childhood friends to lovers are something else, I will say, it gave so much depth to the relationship and I found it awkward yet endearing to see they goes from weird bumbling stage of trying to work out the feelings and wanting to maintain the relationship as it is.
So far, one character stood out as a love interest to Mizuha and that's Kizuki who takes more of a direct approach and not feeling shy to said how he feels. I think he is charming yet sometimes a bit pushy and I cringed at some parts 🤧 but man this dude is handsome. Mizuha was obviously confused and taken aback but there are some real swoony moments Kizuki made and got her really flustered.
I have a soft spot for Shin. Oh boy Shin, why must u be the softest boi ever that i know have crushes but only watching from sidelines. You better step up your game or i might steal u first 👉👈.
So if you love and live for cute shojo manga, you would not be disappointed by this. There are so many feast for ur eyes too 😉
June 21, 2025
honestly the book is fine. the main friend love interest is a little bit of a creep. he forces him self on her by kissing her without consent and pins her to the wall and couch. he's been her friend since they were kids. because of that I'm giving it 2.5 to 3 stars. He never gave any hint he was in to her. so yeah this takes her by surprise. he then basically acts like they're dating without her agreeing to it. this is what toxic guys do.
what saves this manga from being completely bad? the author seems really sweet and wholesome. I enjoyed the Q/A in the back of the book. I also think it's really interesting that the author incorporated covid in. for me personally this is the first Manga I've read that even mentions the pandemic.
I also appreciate that not all of her guy friends are in love with her. for the most part her guy friends actually do seem to think of her as just a friend. the art style is cute too. I'll give the second volume a try.
*this volume was published in 2020. I read this and made this review in 2025. As a new variant of covid is spreading in the U.S. 🙃*
what saves this manga from being completely bad? the author seems really sweet and wholesome. I enjoyed the Q/A in the back of the book. I also think it's really interesting that the author incorporated covid in. for me personally this is the first Manga I've read that even mentions the pandemic.
I also appreciate that not all of her guy friends are in love with her. for the most part her guy friends actually do seem to think of her as just a friend. the art style is cute too. I'll give the second volume a try.
*this volume was published in 2020. I read this and made this review in 2025. As a new variant of covid is spreading in the U.S. 🙃*
March 27, 2025
I’m usually a fan of these type of mangas/stories but this one was a big disappointment to me. Everything is happening way too fast to the point I can’t neither empathize with the characters nor feel even a small hint of romance in what I’m reading. The guy is way too pushy. and please let’s stop normalizing these narratives of non consensual kissing.
I’m not even inspired to read the next volume cause I just don’t get it.
Another thing that throws me off is the design, I don’t know if the author has any connection to Io Sakisaka but the drawing style (especially of the male characters) is straight up copied to the point I was questioning whether I was remembering Io Sakisaka’s name wrong.
I’m a big fan of most Io Sakisaka’s mangas, the stories are always extremely entertaining and heart fluttering so this one in comparison is just a complete failure in my opinion.
I’m not even inspired to read the next volume cause I just don’t get it.
Another thing that throws me off is the design, I don’t know if the author has any connection to Io Sakisaka but the drawing style (especially of the male characters) is straight up copied to the point I was questioning whether I was remembering Io Sakisaka’s name wrong.
I’m a big fan of most Io Sakisaka’s mangas, the stories are always extremely entertaining and heart fluttering so this one in comparison is just a complete failure in my opinion.
February 28, 2024
Um, so I just reviewed this for NetGalley and was so confused because I thought I'd read this before, and sure enough I had in 2021???? Anyways here is the updated review and cheers to my memory kind of working I guess hahah.
2.5 stars out of 5
I feel like the first half of this volume was something I have read before?? I don't know if it's just because it's hard to change up the shojo childhood friends to lovers troupe but it was just very unoriginal and there wasn't anything much that makes it stand out in comparison to the other books in the same genre. There were also multiple mini-genres all rolled into one, so nothing really got explored fully or really even just well if I'm being honest. We also barely got to know the characters, which is a big issue with shojo-type series and the male lead was very pushy... which is a huge no for me, and making him the "innocent" one doesn't change my opinion on that. I did however finish this volume and I gave it an extra .5 star because I would maybe give the next volume a shot but there are just better options out there. This is the type of story that I'd read to remind me of reading manga all day in my early teen years and it just didn't deliver the vibes I needed it to, I'm sure younger shojo readers would enjoy this but there are definitely better options out there to fill your time.
Disclaimer: I received an arc copy of this volume from NetGalley in exchange for my (pretty obvious on this one) honest review.
Old review:
3/5 A decent high school shoujo manga but this would've been a 2-star book for me if it didn't have the art.
I was given access to an early arc pdf of this book so my review is for that.
If this wasn't great or anything new which is kind of expected with shoujo. The only thing different about this manga was that this was set during the pandemic which they only brought up like three times. They weren't wearing masks or anything but just some school events got canceled so it wasn't really that big of a difference from other shoujo. The storyline is basically a girl surrounded by guys that semi like her and one of them likes her enough to tell her. The issue I had with this is that they have all been friends since childhood and she sees them as brothers and I ain't about that family love no matter how popular it gets. The ending wasn't great and you probably would just be annoyed at it like me unless you're like thirteen and don't mind characters developing feelings in two seconds even though they didn't like that character. They also had the "I'll make you see me as a man" trope in this, so ew, you're 16/17 please stop and go back to swim practice lmao. I wish they would've gone more into her trauma response and the event that caused it (was a very small part and not descriptive at all so I don't think a trigger warning is necessary) because that scene was my favorite and the only time I wasn't mad at that character for the way he was behaving towards her.
Besides the storyline being meh mostly the artwork was beautiful. So I know I'm a huge sucker for artwork and most manga's get an additional star rating for it because I hate being harsh on them but trust me this one deserves it I swear! I couldn't really tell the blondes apart though so I guess there is a small fault in the artwork but it was probably just me being dumb. An issue I did have with this visually is the font size and I don't know if it's just the pdf that has an issue with that. I had to scale it up to be quite a bit bigger than manga pages usually are and that isn't going to be something a physical copy reader can do so that's something to keep in mind if you're interested in this.
I think that was everything I wanted to say about this manga so yay a semi "long' review from me! I recommend this to teens but also not at the same time because of the actions from the love interests so I guess read at your own risk, sorry lol I'm not being very helpful. I know as a teen I loved that toxic shit but it did cause me to get into quite a few bad relationships even though I'm not very interested in romance for myself (demi/aro). I will always read anything Kodansha puts up on NetGalley because some of my favorites are printed by them but this was definitely not something I would read again, I might consider continuing it for more reviews but it's not something I would reread or purchase for myself and my manga wall thanks you because I am running out of space lmao.
Disclaimer: I was given access to a digital ar copy of this from Kodansha and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
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NOTES I TOOK WHILE READING THIS, they are in order and pretty much just repeat everything I talked about but I wanted to keep them here since I may have forgotten something.
-Font is a little small on the pdf and I've already zoomed in to the point it's bigger than the physical pages would be.
-Multiple times already stated that they're like siblings and I ain't about that family romance.
-A pandemic setting which is odd because they aren't wearing masks and the only thing bad that's happened is some of their sports and school activities were canceled what?.
- :( page 90 made me super uncomfy lol I hate when they have the "I'll make you see me as a man" trope.
-Okay I usually hate when characters are scared of rain/thunder but that scene was so cute so I will accept it lmao.
-The ending was very meh, it's supposed to be a dramatic cliffhanger but I feel like anyone over thirteen wouldn't be all that affected by it because it kind of just annoyed me. Also, why are almost all the blondes assholes lmao? I also couldn't tell them apart so oops.
2.5 stars out of 5
I feel like the first half of this volume was something I have read before?? I don't know if it's just because it's hard to change up the shojo childhood friends to lovers troupe but it was just very unoriginal and there wasn't anything much that makes it stand out in comparison to the other books in the same genre. There were also multiple mini-genres all rolled into one, so nothing really got explored fully or really even just well if I'm being honest. We also barely got to know the characters, which is a big issue with shojo-type series and the male lead was very pushy... which is a huge no for me, and making him the "innocent" one doesn't change my opinion on that. I did however finish this volume and I gave it an extra .5 star because I would maybe give the next volume a shot but there are just better options out there. This is the type of story that I'd read to remind me of reading manga all day in my early teen years and it just didn't deliver the vibes I needed it to, I'm sure younger shojo readers would enjoy this but there are definitely better options out there to fill your time.
Disclaimer: I received an arc copy of this volume from NetGalley in exchange for my (pretty obvious on this one) honest review.
Old review:
3/5 A decent high school shoujo manga but this would've been a 2-star book for me if it didn't have the art.
I was given access to an early arc pdf of this book so my review is for that.
If this wasn't great or anything new which is kind of expected with shoujo. The only thing different about this manga was that this was set during the pandemic which they only brought up like three times. They weren't wearing masks or anything but just some school events got canceled so it wasn't really that big of a difference from other shoujo. The storyline is basically a girl surrounded by guys that semi like her and one of them likes her enough to tell her. The issue I had with this is that they have all been friends since childhood and she sees them as brothers and I ain't about that family love no matter how popular it gets. The ending wasn't great and you probably would just be annoyed at it like me unless you're like thirteen and don't mind characters developing feelings in two seconds even though they didn't like that character. They also had the "I'll make you see me as a man" trope in this, so ew, you're 16/17 please stop and go back to swim practice lmao. I wish they would've gone more into her trauma response and the event that caused it (was a very small part and not descriptive at all so I don't think a trigger warning is necessary) because that scene was my favorite and the only time I wasn't mad at that character for the way he was behaving towards her.
Besides the storyline being meh mostly the artwork was beautiful. So I know I'm a huge sucker for artwork and most manga's get an additional star rating for it because I hate being harsh on them but trust me this one deserves it I swear! I couldn't really tell the blondes apart though so I guess there is a small fault in the artwork but it was probably just me being dumb. An issue I did have with this visually is the font size and I don't know if it's just the pdf that has an issue with that. I had to scale it up to be quite a bit bigger than manga pages usually are and that isn't going to be something a physical copy reader can do so that's something to keep in mind if you're interested in this.
I think that was everything I wanted to say about this manga so yay a semi "long' review from me! I recommend this to teens but also not at the same time because of the actions from the love interests so I guess read at your own risk, sorry lol I'm not being very helpful. I know as a teen I loved that toxic shit but it did cause me to get into quite a few bad relationships even though I'm not very interested in romance for myself (demi/aro). I will always read anything Kodansha puts up on NetGalley because some of my favorites are printed by them but this was definitely not something I would read again, I might consider continuing it for more reviews but it's not something I would reread or purchase for myself and my manga wall thanks you because I am running out of space lmao.
Disclaimer: I was given access to a digital ar copy of this from Kodansha and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOTES I TOOK WHILE READING THIS, they are in order and pretty much just repeat everything I talked about but I wanted to keep them here since I may have forgotten something.
-Font is a little small on the pdf and I've already zoomed in to the point it's bigger than the physical pages would be.
-Multiple times already stated that they're like siblings and I ain't about that family romance.
-A pandemic setting which is odd because they aren't wearing masks and the only thing bad that's happened is some of their sports and school activities were canceled what?.
- :( page 90 made me super uncomfy lol I hate when they have the "I'll make you see me as a man" trope.
-Okay I usually hate when characters are scared of rain/thunder but that scene was so cute so I will accept it lmao.
-The ending was very meh, it's supposed to be a dramatic cliffhanger but I feel like anyone over thirteen wouldn't be all that affected by it because it kind of just annoyed me. Also, why are almost all the blondes assholes lmao? I also couldn't tell them apart so oops.
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