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Lenni Reviews: “Firefly Wedding” Vol. 1, by Oreco Tachibana

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

Satoko is a Meiji Era noblewoman with a heart condition who has a duty to her family to get married; as she feels it will prove her worth. She knows her time is limited so when she is kidnapped, she offers the man hired to kill her – Shinpei – her hand in marriage in exchange for her life.

This manga manages the seriousness of the situation and the doofyness of our main pair very well. One second they’re fleeing Satoko’s captors in a bloody massacre and the next Shinpei is gushing about what married life will be like with the biggest puppy dog eyes. So, be aware there’s a ton of violence. I actually hope they work this out and get together as he’s really interesting and Satoko is stronger than most characters give her credit for. She’s like a less annoying Akemi. I am so excited to see what happens next. 4.9 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Rainbow Days” Vol. 13, by Minami Mizuno

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

Natsuki and Anna are finally at the school festival together but will he finally be able to tell her how he feels before the day is over?

Now that they’re together, we’re in the “figure out how to couple” stage and move on to other possible pairings in the series as they all head into summer vacation. These bits of slice of life scenes was so much better than it has been in the previous volumes. There’s something about the energy here that’s more entertaining and interesting. We’ll see if we get more pairings to follow in the future but I’m cool with we just get more of these teen shenanigans for a bit. 3.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Let’s Do It Already!” Vol. 3, by Aki Kusaka

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

Keiichiro has a packed summer schedule and Yuri manages to get a summer job just so she could see him more often. But when they attend an overnight study camp, through a series of misadventures, they end up in the same bed.

I’m glad the feelings between these two are genuine. There’s wacky moments and to me it’s a little much for Yuri to keep going so far for just a scrap of Keiichiro’s attention in his absurdly packed schedule but he clearly cares about her and is trying to do what he feels he can within the confines of his family’s demands. It’s sweet and nice to see with the other series I’m reading where one partner has deeper issues or ulterior motives. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “I Wanna Do Bad Things with You” Vol. 3, by Yutaka

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

Fuji’s next idea for a prank on his brother, Koichi, is for them to beat Koichi on a test to lower his ranking. To do this, they must enlist the help of Kei, who offers to help Mamori study to get her poor grades up to par.

Kei is… An interesting way to work more fanservice into this but… Okay. This volume is one of those situations where it’d be better if Fuji didn’t care what his brother did and visa versa but I’m old and out of fucks to give. Teens think everything is such a huge deal so yeah, I get it. I also sympathize with Mamori as she struggles to make friends and has been used before. I do wonder what exactly Koichi stands to gain by snooping on Fuji and Mamori aside from thwarting the bad things they get up to but clearly this is building up to something. I just hope this adorable friendship doesn’t break. 3.9 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Neighborhood Story” Vol. 4, by Ai Yazawa

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

When Mikako wins the Grand Prix award, she is offered the chance to study in London for a year and a half, all expenses paid. She hesitates to accept because it will separate her from Tsutomu.

After Mikako makes her decision, we fast forward to our cast as adults and then transitions to the characters from Paradise Kiss; which is an interesting choice. I think it would have been better to use the time to see how (spoilers) Mikako’s studies in London affected her relationship with Tsutomu because that could be some good drama right there. It didn’t quite stick the landing for me. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Otaku Vampire’s Love Bite” Vol. 1, by Julietta Suzuki

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

Hina is a vampire who loves anime and since she’s never bitten a human, she gets permission from her father to move to Japan where she can be closer to the media she adores. Her neighbor, Kyuta, looks exactly like her favorite character but has none of the fictional man’s personality. Despite this, they do become friendly even though Kyuta is hiding something from not only Hina but his own friends as well.

Hina is adorable. She really makes all this fun and I love characters who are bubbly and cute but will flex their considerable power when necessary. Of course, Kyuta is the perfect deadpan foil to her otaku energy. I wonder if this series will keep it’s light hearted tone or if it will go a more serious/dark route as I can see the potential for both given what happens but we’ll see as the series continues. For now, I’m enjoying the positivity. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “My Special One” Vol. 8, by Momoko Koda

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

After multiple misunderstandings and misadventures, Kanato decides it’s time to confess his feelings to Emika.

These two teeter between adorable idiots to annoying bumblers, if that makes any sense. They can be so damn cute but also make me wanna facepalm because they’re so keyed up about what MIGHT happen or what the other MIGHT be thinking that they fumble with what is ACTUALLY happening. They so talk it out but it happens so often that it’s not always funny. It starts slipping into frustrating. I didn’t wanna rage quit the book or anything, though. They’re silly and totally fit the tropes of a young adult romance 3.6 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Let’s Do It Already!” Vol. 2, by Aki Kusaka

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

Yuri and Keiichiro still find ways to be together under the weight of Keiichiro’s family’s oppressive rules. Their latest threat is Shinobu Kasuga, a spy for the family who is trying to break them up.

Kasuga’s plans to break up our main couple are funny but also creepy. I want to lean more towards funny but nah, he gives me the ick and I hope we don’t see much more of him. Other than that, Yuri and Keiichiro are just trying to find ways to get to know each other and spend time together. They do seem to really care for each other so it’s easy to root for them. I do wonder how long we can ride this gimmick or if it will feel tired in the future. 3.7 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Sakura, Saku” Vol. 4, by Io Sakisaka

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

Saku worries that Kotono may also have feelings for Haruki as they are still pretending to be dating to throw off her ex.

This was really sweet and I appreciate Saku and Kotono talking things out instead of letting all these doubts and questions fester but honestly, I am really worried about Kotono’s ex. He is a walking talking red flag that I could see getting violent and I don’t believe he’ll completely back off. He needs to be dealt with before I feel I can enjoy Saku and Haruki getting closer. It’s this mental axe hanging over the plot for me. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Neighborhood Story” Vol. 3, by Ai Yazawa

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

Mikako and her friends heat for Mariko’s family villa for the summer but Mariko’s first love, Shu, happens to be staying next door, causing conflict with her current boyfriend, Yuske. When they return to Yaza Arts, the upcoming school festival gives the chance for the students to show off their work.

Maybe I wasn’t in the right headspace when I read this but, (SPOILER) after Mikako flipped out on Tsutomu because he was so jealous of her new assistant, Seiji, I was checked out. He had every right to be more upset with her than he was, even if his jealousy was unfounded. Yes, she is hardworking, talented, and has big dreams; but the way she put him down stuck with me and I wasn’t rooting for their relationship so much anymore. 3 out of 5.

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