Love in titles

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66c. 1 volume of The Rules of Love (恋の掟).




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Written and illustrated by Erica Sakurazawa wiki for author

From Tokyopop
To experience true love, sometimes you have to break the rules. Taku is a total player and a sometime-gigolo who has a little black book a mile thick . But when he meets a shy girl named Chizu who falls head over heels for him, he tries his hardest to change his playboy ways. This poignant volume from Sakurazawa-san depicts Taku and Chizu's bittersweet summer of love.

Some points:
- borrowed from interlibrary loan since I read a review of her other manga called Aromatic Bitters, and thought it was interesting.
- I didn't know what to expect, but I approved Chizu's decision and action.
- A standalone and third book of the mangaka that I've read.
- It's about relationship/love beyond puppy love and high school angst.

Bottom line, I'll borrow more of her books.


66d. 2 volumes of Fall in Love Like a Comic! (まんがみたいな恋したいっ!, Manga Mitaina Koishitai!).




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Written and illustrated by Chitose Yagami

From Viz
Vol 1: Rena asks Tomoya to be her boyfriend, hoping that gaining some experience in dating will help her improve her manga. Rena is positive that Tomoya is only dating her to help her out, but that doesn't stop her from falling in love...
Vol 2: Rena goes on vacation with Tomoya, hoping their trip will be a romantic getaway. She wants to further their relationship, but does Tomoya want the same thing?

Some points:
- Borrowed from local public library just because they are available. I have read unfavorable reviews about the series, though.
- This one is 180 degrees from the previous manga
- The art is not bad. The story is nothing memorable if not out right boring. I flipped through the 2 volumes in 1/2. I don't care for either main characters.
- This is like smut for tween! The main thing is how hot the hero is, making out and kissing, nothing else.

Bottom line, it's not for me.


66e. 1 volume of Ugly Duckling's Love Revolution (乙女的恋革命ラブレボ!! - Otometeki Koi Kakumei Love Revo!!).




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Written and illustrated by Yuuki Fujinari

From Yen Press
Welcome to the prestigious Saint Leaf School, where, among other things, the boys are so pretty they give the girls a run for their money! Amidst this bed of flowers exists one Hitomi Sakuragawa, a sweet girl with a not-so-little weight problem, who lives in a nearby apartment owned by her doting older brother. Hitomi also happens to have pretty much the best luck on the planet: Her neighbors are some of the hottest guys in school! But will she need to steel her willpower, cut out the cookies, and slim down before they’ll even give her the time of day? Or will they be charmed by her kindhearted, genuine personality? It won’t be long before Hitomi discovers that the road to a healthy lifestyle is paved with hilarity!

Some points:
- lyschan - Lys!!!!!
- I didn't know what to expect. I don't see why the boys would be interested in Hitomi. Sure she's nice but they all seem to know her and my hunch would be that they are all interested in her, even sensei - maybe he has a paternal feeling (?)
- I've pre-ordered #2 and I certainly hope that we know more about her personality or herself at least, interests and such.
- The male characters are very much alike, I had to double take many times to distinguish them by their hair styles. Luckily, sensei always wears headphones, so he stands out. 1 guy always wears visor ... but waka and Ichinose look quite similar.

Bottom line, on the fence. Sure nice to see a name of someone I know in print :)


67. 7 volumes of Love★Com (ラブ★コン, Rabu★Kon, sometimes spelled Love*Com).











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Written and illustrated by Aya Nakahara

From Viz
Vol 1: Rather than bow to the inevitable, Risa and Atsushi join forces to pursue their true objects of affection. But will their budding friendship become something more complex?
Vol 2: Risa's getting really confused about her feelings for Ôtani--she doesn't know if she wants to help him get back together with his ex-girlfriend or keep him all to herself!
Vol 3: A new student starts out as Risa's rival for love, but ends up proving how important it is to be honest with yourself!
Vol 4: Risa has finally realized that she has feelings for Ôtani, and can't wait to confess her love. But dense Ôtani won't take her hints! With the help of all their friends and a romantic beach vacation, can Risa get her affections past his thick head?
Vol 5: Heartbroken by Ôtani's rejection, Risa had decided to give up on ever getting together with him. But a chance encounter with her musical hero Umibôzu helps Risa get back in the fighting spirit. With a new surge of self-confidence, Risa is ready to go after Ôtani. He'll never know what hit him.
Vol 6: Ôtani wins tickets to the Umibôzu concert and asks Risa to go with him. Could this be the answer to her dreams--their first date?! But as fate would have it, Ôtani gets sick the day before the concert. Concerned (about her friend and the date), Risa visits his sick bed and gets her first kiss! Or does she? Was it an accident? Does Ôtani even remember it?
Vol 7: Risa is sick of having her emotions yanked back and forth by her feelings for Ôtani, so she decides once and for all to just be friends. But when she tells Ôtani that she's getting over him, he freaks out and tells her not to! Has the comedy duo turned into a couple?

Some points:
- Borrowed from interlib loan.
- I like Risa and her 2 girlfriends. The many faces of Risa - I particularly like the fish face :P
- It's funny at times. And Risa does look like a fish when she's unhappy/frustrated.
- The characters are cute. I can't hate Otani, though, even though he's the main source of Risa's sadness.
- Sometimes meaning well does more harm than good. I wonder if left alone, Risa and Otani would eventually get together - but then there would be no story to read.
- The twist on Seiko is awesome, I didn't see that coming :)
- Valentine's day is just a drag for Risa and Otani! They don't get any breaks.
- Mighty! How cheezy and hilarious. Who knew he was such a mature and nice guy?
- Volume 7 is the end of the arc.
- I skimmed most of the author's notes because the font is so hard too read and after a couple of earlier notes I've lost interest. Interestingly, she mentioned that she doesn't like the kanji for like/love "su ki" so she wrote it in hiragana.

Bottom line, onward to 8.

Continuing series: Manga

• Planetes 2-4.2 - The End
• Your and My Secret 6
• V.B. Rose 9
• Girl Got Game 5-7

Rambling

• Tweeter experiments: after 8 months and 97 tweets later, I deleted the account last week because it doesn't seem to be for me. It was fun while it lasted. Heh!
• Rereading 14 volumes of From far away 2 times - happy sigh. What a great series. While rereading it, in vol 3, there is a 3rd part of a one-shot called Girls have a lot of room in their hearts which I like so much that I got a bunko last year 女の子は余裕(Onnanoko wa Yoyuu!) - in this bunko, there are 2 stories the main one, and ちょっとフライデイ (Chotto Friday - Maybe Friday) which is also cute. But I like the main one and have looked at it many times :)