Stepping on Roses, Vol. 3

裸足でバラを踏め [Hadashi de Bara wo Fume] #3

by Rinko Ueda

Reads R to L (Japanese Style), for T+ audiences. Sumi begins to regret running away with Nozomu and wonders if she loves him after all. Nozomu's love for her, however, is bordering on becoming an unhealthy obsession. When things heat up and Sumi's life is in danger, will Soichiro come to her rescue?

Genres: Manga, Romance, Shojo, Graphic Novels, Historical, Comics Manga, Historical Romance

208 pages, Paperback

First published November 25, 2008

About the author

Japanese name: 上田倫子

She is a Japanese manga artist who does mainly shojo manga. Her works are primarily serialized in Margaret magazine, with series published in collected volumes by Shueisha, though she has also been featured in fellow Shueisha publication Ribon, as well as illustrating the novel adaptation of her own Stepping on Roses series in Cobalt.

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sumi can't catch a break. Her 'nice guy hero' turns into a creepy -possessive guy-her husband rescues her, but then turns verbally abusive again, as he fights his feelings. Action packed episode. 3.5 stars

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am in shock. I didn't believe Nozomu could be any creepier, but apparently it's possible. What a psychopath! It's always the nice guys who end up secretly being serial killers. Like they say about Ted Bundy, 'he was such a nice guy', except for the fact that they found out that he ate people and kept their heads in his fridge. Nozomu may not have murdered anyone, but the guy is a grade-A weirdo. Dude's got major mental problems! The part where hetied up Sumi and said they could die together in the fire was disturbing! Thank god that Soichiro rescued her. What I can't believe is now that creep is working at Soichiro's company. After everything that happened, you'd think someone would have thrown that freak in jail. Apparently kidnapping and attempted murder wasn't a big deal back then.

Soichiro is still amazing as always. He seems like he's starting to fall for Sumi, though he acts like he hates her. However, I have a feeling that he's slowing softening towards her. They would make an amazing couple. She's a nurturer and he's a tortured soul. Works great for both of them. Sumi's bro is still looking as attractive as ever. God, that man is good-looking. He's a jerk and I feel like I should be pissed at how unresponsible he is towards Sumi, but I can't help being sucked in by his douchebaggy charm.

I have no idea what's going to happen next. There are just so many plots afoot, what with Nozomu, the vice president, etc. Plus the random maid lady that showed up. I felt like the volume was supposed to end on a cliffhanger, but I have no clue who the family was she name-dropped. My library doesn't have the rest of the volumes, so I guess I'm gonna search online. I need to know what happens!!

[haven ⋄ f (hiatus) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was worse but also better than all the rest. It's pretty confusing.

There are quite a few spots that would trigger someone so I suggest, if they have triggers and they are reading this, they should stop before reading this volume. What happens here is bad. Don't continue.

The story takes a super super dark turn. Nozomu has taken Sumi as his prisoner and wants her to die with him instead of escaping the fire. She's tied up and gagged. Nozomu doesn't do anything else to her, just lays his head on his lap while the place burns down. Soichiro comes in and rescues them both.

Honestly, Soichiro was such a better guy in this volume. There is only one scene where he's cruel and he apologizes for it afterwards.

Nozomu is so creepy. I honestly do not like him and suggest that he be evicted from the story ASAP and permanently.

Sumi is getting better at being tolerable. I'm beginning to like her.

The art style almost completely changes in this one. Soichiro is drawn by a completely different hand. Sumi looks the same, though. I bet the author got a new assistant.

Now that the main character and the love interest are getting to be likeable, the story gets better except for the creepy guy obsessed with the mc.

[Em Mirra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pending.

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars *may change
i am getting through this so painfully.

[Kristin ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

This series is escalating so incredibly quickly. It's quite terrible, but also very entertaining. I am flying through these.

[Mello ❣ Illium ✮Harry✮ ☀Myrnin☀ Torin Ichimaru · Rating 4 out of 5]

Synopsis:

Sumi begins to regret running away with Nozomu and wonders if she loves him after all. Nozomu's love for her, however, is bordering on becoming an unhealthy obsession. When things heat up and Sumi's life is in danger, will Soichiro come to her rescue?

My Thoughts:

I was right about Nozomu. That guy is batshit crazy. He needs help and he needs it now. He nearly got them all killed!

I was totally cheering for Soichirou in this volume! Despite his terror regarding fire, he rescued Sumi and Nozomu from that inn fire. You go Soichirou! I think he's decided he wants a real family. That's all he ever really wanted as a kid. Now all he has to do is stop being such a tsundere and he can have his happiness!

Sumi for her part is now terrified of Nozomu and I can't blame her for that one bit. It's dangerous for her to be around that guy. At least she learned that early on. I think she may be starting to fall for Soichirou now. Good thing since he seems to be in the same boat!

I'm looking forward to watching Sumi and Soichirou grow into a real husband and wife!

[moi, k.y.a. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Manga çizimleriyle gönlümü her Vol'de biraz daha fethediyor. Soichiro çizgilerde aşık olduğum ikinci erkek ama çok dengesiz. Gene de çok tatlu :D
O Nozumu Bey'i de dövesim var, ne yalan söyleyeyim.

[Yuiko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it :)

[Nikoleta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Getting better and creepier! :D

[Ya Boi Be Reading · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5/5. I'm glad this volume dropped the smuttiness and became more appropriate for its (seeming) intended audience. In those volume it transitions into a full melodrama business soap opera. I don’t think that’s bad. It's definitely more appropriate than the smuttiness of the 1st and 2nd volume. There are still cinders of that though which make me fear it will turn awkward once again. It's hard to take anything seriously when the relationships are at such an intense age-gap and extremely traumatizing situations end up happening to the 15 yr old protag. I can’t get over that the MC is 15 and this seems to be targeted to teen girls. The concept and story beats alone should make this a josei sold to older woman that have enough life experiences to see through the absolute toxicity and insanity in either love interest. But having it in a series seemingly sold to a younger audience makes it seem like its romanticizing unhealthy relationships to its target audience. Ueda also ruined Nozomu. He's gone full psycho. I am now more of a Soichiro x Sumi follower considering they both now have genuine feelings for each other. Which was a genuine well-written and developed part of volume 2 and 3 where Soichiro slowly starts to develop feelings over Sumi's cuteness. But I'm not really follower becuase they shouldn't have gotten married. She's 15 and he's college aged! That's fucking creepy!
Ueda's art is very beautiful here though. It still has the occasional issue where there is too much blank space and some areas have too many lines where others are left barren creating a weird look. But her art is nice and her ability to draw outfits is straight stunning.
I got the volume 4 and 5 from the library but honestly even if this was a step in a more age-appropriate direction I still don't want to read in fear of more creepy stuff happening later in this manga.

[Ceejay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Because of my love of the old black and white movies from the 1930's and 40's, I discovered that I actually enjoy a good melodrama. Ms. Ueda's series, Stepping On Roses, is a great melodrama. Things have begun to take a strange turn in Volume Three. The relationship between Nozumo and Sumi is resolved in an exciting and unexpected way. Soichiro discovers that although Sumi may never have learned to read and write before their marriage, she has a special talent, in addition to her cooking, that may prove useful for his business. Is it possible that Soichiro's choice of a loveless marriage might change? Will Nozumo ever leave Sumi alone, despite a choice that he and his family make? Great reading!!

[David Doel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Volume 3 of this series is the only volume I have, so my rating is a bit unfair. The synopsis of the earlier volumes was helpful enough so that I was not lost reading this.

This is a love story / harem manga where the harem is composed of men. There's an old expression of "a rose between two thorns." I couldn't help thinking of it while reading, because the guys are definitely thorns. At the end of the volume, there are at least three men in the running. I didn't find any that I wanted to be like.

[Hannah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was in a closed room with this as the only option, so I gave it a chance despite despising everything except the costuming in volumes 1&2.

Based on author notes, the "real" story was supposed to start in this volume. It was just extra rape-y with more corporate espionage and family drama. On the plus side, less page time for the deplorable brother.

[-moonprismpower- · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fast paced story but I’m loving every minute of it! Sumi is so precious and sweet. Soichiro fell hard and now he’s just too cute when he’s embarrassed!!! And Nozomu is just a nutty bastard LOL.

[Dana Al-Basha | دانة الباشا · Rating 4 out of 5]

So apparently Nozomu is psychotic! I think he is extremely jealous of Soichiro, I don't think it's about Sumi at all... and I might add that her brother is an asshole!

[Rosenblue · Rating 5 out of 5]

more drama?????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Grace DuBois · Rating 3 out of 5]

These books are really good.

[L.L. Tibbetts · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh...

I chose the 3 star rating because it wasn't boring, but... it could be better.
I want to give the series a fair chance.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

3-3.5 stars

[Cutesy Nay]

–

[˚⊱ Avi ⊰˚ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rereading this after finding a copy at a used book sale and already knowing the whole plot, it still strikes me how sudden the shift is in Nozomu's facade is. He's a creep and fair warning, it does not get any better.

As Hamilton said, his poor wife...

5/5 stars

[Joti · Rating 5 out of 5]

So Sumi was stuck with Nozomu & he tied her up when she tried escaping again & then there was this mini-earth quake & the inn they were at caught on fire & Soichiro came to rescue them - he got Nozomu out too, who was suicidal - that asshole. Soichiro was scared of fire & risked himself to save Sumi (swooon!! <3) & he was injured but ok afterwards. The Ijuin family was very grateful to Soichiro for saving their son & apologized on his behalf for Nozomu kidnapping Sumi & taking her away - & they offered unlimited funding from their bank. Nozomu married this other girl, Miu, & Soichiro & Sumi had to attend their wedding. Miu was really sweet & she was trying to win Nozomu's love but he's weird - don't touch my stuff & freaks out over little things - he has issues. Meanwhile, Eisuke wants more money from Soichiro for putting Sumi, his sister in danger & soichiro gives it to him. Soichiro seems to be warming up to Sumi - he let her change his bandages and stuff. Then one day at work, Sumi came to give Soichiro his lunch & he was in the middle of a business deal with some guy - & the man promised to make the deal if Soichiro played a game of Shogi, this game with him & won. Soichiro wasn't doing well so when he stepped out for a minute & came back, Sumi had won the game for him - & she told him that when she was still poor, she learned to play Shogi & won the money back that her brother gambled away but people stopped playing with her once she started to win all the time. The vice-president of the company is Soichiro's aunt's son i think & they don't like each other much. Miu pays Sumi a visit, wanting to be friends. at work one day, Nozomu shows up to work for Siochiro's company - the Ijuin were lending someone, no one knew it would be Nozomu apparently. The VP has an investigator find out what happened between Sumi & Nozomu & then offers to help Nozomu get Sumi :O ASSHOLE -____- SERIOUSLY. Nozomu is like this creepy stalker obsessed freaky shit. Then the same old man who Sumi beat at Shogi wants her to play against Johnny, this guy Sumi knew from when she was poor. He tells a story of when he offered to marry this poor girl who had a gambling brother & many siblings but she turned him down, b/c she ahd to care for her siblings - the girl was Sumi, no surprise. Sumi & Soichiro don't want the secret to be out that she wwas actually from a poor family, not a rich one. And Soichiro kisses her after!!!! AHHH! FINALLY!!! GOD!!! I'VE BEEN WAITING FOREVER!!!! & Soichiro hates when Sumi does houseowkr or cooks but he woke her up one morning, saying he wanted to eat her porridge & she was so happy :D
The end was just when this servant girl came, saying she was sent from the Kujo household to work for them - Komai tried stopping her but she barged in.
I BSOLUTELY LOVE SOICHIRO'S HAIR!!!! IT'S SO GORGEOUS!!!! :D <3

[Loveliest Evaris · Rating 3 out of 5]

So the story is pretty good. It has a certain charm to it that makes me want to read more.

However..

At times I see glaring mistakes in the art, especially the "splash pages" or whatever you call them (the colored title drawings that may take up one to two pages).

An example is I think the second chapter of this volume with Sumi wearing that black dress? If you look her left shoulder (our right) has fabric between her neck and her shoulder -- I guess you could say the strap part, but on the other side there is no such thing. Her hair or arm or whatever is covering the right (our left), but looking at it from afar it looks off-kilter in some way...

Also, the spread of Sumi lying with thorns and flowers...her left arm (our right) look drastically unproportional with the other. I know it's at an angle, but I make the mistake when drawing arms..the artist lengthened the arms in order to make sure it reached all the way over her head, an amateurish mistake when drawing human anatomy.

And! The title page where Sumi and Soichiro are kissing in a field of flowers. Sumi's left arm (our right..the only one visible) looks very skinny and stretched out.

The mangaka needs a few more practice lessons when drawing this sort of thing, but she draws the faces and bodies very well in the manga story, surprisingly...Just not when her drawings are DESIGNED to draw the eye...Shame.

So Soichiro is warming up to Sumi; but with him it's one step forward, two steps back. And Ijuin's so obsessive with Sumi.



His frustration and confusion with how Sumi is basically a prisoner to Soichiro but still loves him.. I don't think Ijuin is actually that neurotic. Sumi what did you put in his tea?!

Can't wait for the next one. I'm always worried that someone will reveal that Sumi is of lower class..

And at the very end of this volume I thought "Oh great, they're going to introduce an annoying female supporting character. Oh joy."



I find female supporting "cast members" that were not introduced at the very beginning of the story to be annoying; and if they're peppy or try to become friends with the male lead I get even more annoyed. Guys I dont care. They could be trying to hump the male lead for all I care. I find it amusing. But not a new FEMALE character. Just go the fuck away! She better not hang around for long -_-

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this last night. I'm a bit disappointed with the series. I was hoping it would get a bit better. I mainly got the book because of the artwork, being a sucker for girly pictures with flowers and handsome guys. Next time I will be more careful with the manga I buy.

Soichiro's feelings for Sumi deepen even more in this book. But he's still an utter jerk to her. In the start of the book he actually was quite ok to her, then suddenly he got all horrible again! He also is using her, which is disappointing. I understand he was treated badly as a child and I feel so awful for him, but Sumi is a naive, innocent and kind girl, she doesn't need to get his pain! She also starts to develop feelings for him in this book and does not love Nozomu any longer. I also keep thinking Komai is gay, which is really weird.

Nozomu is not at all likable anymore, he tied her up and wanted them to die together when that house caught fire. He kept her captive in the house as well. I would like Nozomu and Soichiro to get into a fist fight. I'm looking forward to it if It happens in this series!

I will continue reading the series. They are quick mangas to read, so I will get through the next one fast.

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

AHHHHH...some crazy stuff starts going down in this volume! I felt really conflicted about how to feel and who to root for. The characters are a bit inconsistent but I suppose that is what makes it interesting. However, I am a little worried at the way the 2 men in this love triangle are behaving. There is a lot of emotional/physical abuse that goes on towards the lead female character. This means one thing if it's in a story but it's a completely different issue when applied to real life. Despite that fact, I'm really intrigued by this story and love that I can work my way through the series so quickly. Hopefully, younger girls reading this story will understand that the abuse going on is not okay and wouldn't allow that behavior into their lives (if at all possible). Anyway, it's still a fascinating book that makes me want to binge my way through the series!

[Dani ❤️ Perspective of a Writer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the way this story is building. I thought it was disappointingly shallow at first only to find layers of depth right below the surface.

Sumi is stronger than you think and I like how we are, like Nozomu, lead to believe one thing about her feelings only to find the truth not near as clear cut.

Soichiro beats back at his own fears this volume which was lovely to see. Nozomu's response to Soichiro's actions was spot on - buckling down to his parent's desires. I really enjoyed the introduction of Nozomu's wife in similar circumstances to Sumi - it made for a nice comparison.

More of Soichiro's back history - love his connection to the butler, Komai. But we also get some of Sumi's back history as well through shogi and a shogi player, which I really enjoyed.

BOTTOM LINE: More lines of plot are added and I'm loving the density in what I thought was a fluffy story.

[Snarky Hatter · Rating 3 out of 5]

As mentioned in my previous reviews, I'm not a huge fan of the romance, but I'm really getting into the business politics. Also, while normally I might be after Nozomu for being a two-dimensional character, I just love how psycho he is. I'm not saying he's a good guy or I'm rooting for him. I just love how simplistically messed up he is. Sometimes it's just nice to have an antagonist who's crazy.

Also, finally! Finally a shojo manga where the heroine knows the difference between love and attraction. Not only that, but Sumi actually says it aloud! Thank the freakin' universe!

[Robert Dufalo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do enjoy it when they add absolutes to character, and I think they have done so with Sumi. What I mean by this is that, is a character is given a talent and then he’s written in such a way that he’s the best in the world, no one could ever beat them at that skill or ability. I don’t know why like, that but I do.
Secondly the plot is getting more complex and moved out of the cookie cutter that I’d talked about in book one.
Well done, I’m looking forward to picking up the rest.

[Miss Ryoko · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, so I take back what I originally said in my volume 1 review about "nice guys finish last." While that sentiment is still true, it appears I was too quick to judge Nozomu as the "nice guy."

But either way, I know exactly how this is going to end. But I'm enjoying the story as it gets the the obvious ending!