In You and I Are Polar Opposites, teen Miya Suzuki is chatty, perky, and concerned with what people think. Her crush, Tani, is mild-mannered, likes to read, and doesn’t concern himself with what people think. In other words, as the title indicates, they are polar …Read more »
Before You Discard Me, I Shall Have My Way with You is a long title, but it does get across the basic premise of the story. Agnès has been engaged to Prince Lucilleur since they were kids, and he’s someone who’s sometimes kind — but …Read more »
Stitches by Hirokatsu Kihara and Junji Ito is a collection of short horror stories and urban legends that are allegedly based on real happenings. It consists of nine prose stories with illustrations from Ito, then you turn the book the opposite way and read a …Read more »
In the Name of the Mermaid Princess stars Mio, a princess who is also a mermaid. There’s a problem, though — her parents are human, and she lives in a country where mermaids and other “unhumans” are discriminated against and made to leave the kingdom. …Read more »
If the Villainess and Villain Met and Fell in Love opens with the villainess, Brigitte, getting dumped by her fiancé, the prince. Though she’s already been engaged, they’re still only in high school, and her ex is hanging out with another girl who wants to …Read more »
Kazuo Umezz, the famous mangaka behind such titles as Drifting Classroom, Cat-Eyed Boy and Orochi, might be best-known for his horror work, but My Name Is Shingo feels distinctly science fiction. It opens with a robot narrating to us about its birth, and then moves …Read more »
How I Met My Soulmate stars 20-year-old college student Yuuki, who is hoping to find her soulmate. Her friend drags her to a mixer, where Yuuki just ends up hanging around with a drunk guy, trying to help him feel better. Drunk as he is, …Read more »
Sometimes being an otaku is difficult. My Lovesick Life as a ’90s Otaku opens in 2021, where 42-year-old Megumi is stunned her 16-year-old daughter is able to live so openly as an otaku. Megumi muses that things were different in her day, and then most …Read more »
King in Limbo opens with a dream that the reader knows must have importance, though that hasn’t been revealed yet. In fact, King in Limbo has a lot of mysteries going on. It takes place in 2086, and it’s been eight years since the pandemic …Read more »
The manga Romeo has nothing to do with Romeo and Juliet, but instead is a yaoi manga concentrated on the supernatural — and sex. The main character, Kouyou, is a Lycan who slays gargoyles. The book opens with some very detailed databases on him and …Read more »
Tokyo These Days is a contemplative manga that looks at life, meaning, Tokyo, and the manga business. Kazuo Shiozawa is retiring from his job as an editor in the manga business, after being there for thirty years. He says he is not “valued there,” though …Read more »
Since I Could Die Tomorrow opens with 42-year-old Sawako Honna, who keeps getting sweaty. That’s not the end of it, though. She’s also having heart palpitations, anxiety, and her body gets cold. It isn’t long before someone suggests to Sawako that she might be starting …Read more »
The BL manga Depth of Field opens with musical prodigy Hayakawa tearfully quitting music. After this, Hayakawa starts musing about Konno, a boy at school who both gets described as “hard to approach” and “a surprisingly nice guy.” The two begin hanging out together on …Read more »
One More Step, Come Stand By My Side is a unique and unusual manga short story collection. It consists of seven stories: “When the Time Comes,” “Ten Minutes Later, the Cops Showed Up,” “A Tranquil First Night,” “Ain’t That Nice?,” “Paradise,” “Nothin’ Wrong with That,” …Read more »
In The Ice Guy and the Cool Girl, Himuro is the descendant of a snow spirit, but that doesn’t mean he’s off doing supernatural things. He works in an office, like a regular person. Unlike a regular person, though, blizzards rise up when he focuses …Read more »
Danica Davidson
