clean romance

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Lenni Reviews: “Dogs and Punching Bags” by Kaori Ozaki

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Nichiko returns from a complicated life in the city to her small hometown to see her dying father and meets Chimaki, a strange yet chipper guy who is obsessed with saving and/or helping to make up for a tragic mistake in his past.

This is just beautiful. It’s funny, sad, poignant, and amazing to experience. It’s sad and melancholic in the beginning, but it’s a story about finding a place where you can be your best self and be happy despite a sad past. This would be a perfect 5 out of 5 for me if not for my admittedly personal opinion that cheaters fucking suck and don’t deserve a happy ending without seeing some kind of justice. 4.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Plus-Sized Misadventures in Love!” Vol. 2, by mamakari

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

As Yumeko enjoys her new outlook on life, the investigation into the incident that cost her her memories is ongoing, making it seem that, despite her optimistic outlook, not everyone around her can be trusted.

This is one of those stories where I’m not sure if I want it to get super serious. I want this to be Yumeko’s new lease on life, not how horrid her old life was. Some of the jokes at her expense aren’t very funny as a plus-size woman (let us feel cute, for fucks sakes…) but I am a sucker for characters like Yumeko: positive, hard working, earnest… That little light in a cynical, dark world. Much like in Hirayasumi, I don’t want that light to go out, no matter how strong my curiosity around the incident might be. 3.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Plus-Sized Misadventures in Love!” Vol. 1, by mamakari

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Yumeko is miserable, believing herself unworthy of love, much less worthy of her work crush, Keisuke. After what is assumed to be a suicide attempt erases her memory, her personality completely changes to a confident, outgoing person. As she learns about her former life, the cause of her accident may not have been her own doing.

It’s clear that there’s an underlying mystery clouding all the fun positivity Yumeko brings to this story. Something dark enough to warrant trying to kill her. While that’s a compelling plot, I’d read Yumeko just being fabulous and enjoying her new life. Even if the stereotype of her always eating is there (can we drop that joke, for fucks sakes…), it’s clear her newfound confidence and boundless positivity are the highlight of this story, and it’s so sweet to see her make everyone better around her. 3.7 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Love’s in Sight!” Vol. 8, by Uoyama

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Morio and Yukiko get their trip to the beach, Morio meets Akaza (Yukiko’s father) and they couple takes their first overnight trip together. Izumi finally handles her crush and Yukiko begins to think about her future and attending college.

Now that they’re established, we’re in full on slice of life territory and it’s adorable. They’re both such cinnamon rolls and even the asides with Yukiko’s father and Izumi moving on are heartwarming. It’s just sweet and light and I love reading it. It’s entertaining enough that I look forward to more adventures with them. 4.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “My Special One” Vol. 6, by Momoko Koda

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

While Sahoko and Kouta are enjoying their relationship; we take a break to spend time with Emika Nanase; an actress with a crush on an idol singer named Kanato Asuma. When she finally gets the chance to shoot a show with him, she tries to be as brave as Sahoko and confess her feelings.

Is it bad that I don’t care as much about Emika and Kanato as much as I cared about Kouta and Sahoko? Her motivation doesn’t feel as original as Sahoko’s, more like a generic crush to confession pipeline without the same back story as Sahoko. Emika focused her entire career as an actress around getting to Kanato which simultaneously is sweet and sad, since she’s not doing it for herself and she can’t focus on that job around her crush. I just didn’t find her fumbling endearing and wanted to go back to our main couple. 2 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible” Vol. 12, by Nene Yukimori

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

While on the class trip to Kyoto, Kubo and Shiraishi both work up the courage to finally confess their feelings to each other.

This is the perfect sweet ending to the series. As fun as it is to see them interact or in Kubo’s case struggle to interact with others; there does come a time where it would get repetitive and it’s best to stop on a high note. Overall, Kubo and Shiraishi are a sweet couple to follow and I think the point this series ends on is just perfect. It’s a clean, heartwarming little YA romance that made me smile and if you like this genre, I think it will make you smile, too. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Like a Butterfly” Vol. 4, by Suu Morishita

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Suiren and Kawasumi walk home together and as they spend more time with each other, Suiren is getting more confident. She’s more vocal in front of others and gaining more courage to do things like ask Kawasumi to meet up with her more often.

Kawasumi’s fumbling is so natural and completely in character. I like his gradual progress towards opening up more and getting closer to Suiren, It’s sweet and if you like stories of bumbling young love, this is a chill manga to read. 3.9 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Like a Butterfly” Vol. 2, by Suu Morishita

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Suiren’s feelings for Taichi continue to grow while Taichi still doesn’t want to be bothered with dating and all its distractions; including Koharu who is determined to get Taichi to like her before the summer is over.

This volume is mostly set up to get the pieces in place for Suiren and Taichi to go see fireworks together. Their shyness is endearing and really sweet but I have to say there’s a lot of waffle in this. Part of me was hoping they’d hurry up and get to the point. The back and forth is going to get tedious if it continues like this. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Chef’s Kiss” by Jarrett Melendez, Danica Brine, Hank Jones & Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou

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Ben cook is on the hunt for a job to put his English degree and love of writing to good use. Facing multiple rejections, he applies for a job at a restaurant to make money while he’s still writing. However, he not only has a talent for cooking and enjoys it, he develops a crush on Liam, chef at his new job. Now, he starts to question what he wants for his future.

This is a classic story of a young adult finding their way but told with some wacky characters and beautiful, vibrant colors. All the personalities here are so unique without coming off as having one quirk and no substance. This had the right mix of fun and drama but I would have liked some closure concerning Ben’s parents. But Watson is a fun twist here. You’ll see when you read it. 4.9 out of 5.

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