First Love Shoujo Manga - Your Gimmick

Daytime Shooting Star

June 11, 2021

Name: Daytime Shooting Star (Hirunaka no Ryuusei)
Mangaka: Yamamori, Mika

Volumes: 12 (Complete)
Licensed: Viz (12 Volumes: Digital/Paperback) – (Complete)
Type: Manga
Genre: Slice of Life
Age Group: Teen

Summary:
15-year-old country girl, Suzume Yosano, has to move to Tokyo to live with her uncle due to her father’s transfer. She bumps into a mysterious man who ends up taking her to her uncle’s place after she gets lost. Turns out, Suzume will be seeing him a lot more often once she starts school because… he’s her homeroom teacher!?
–Manga Updates

Graphics Rating: 4/5
Plot Rating: 3/5

Opinion: This series is SO POPULAR I’m surprised it took me so long to read it. But beyond that, I ended up being disappointed.

The art is very nice and fairly unique. This Mangaka has a very identifiable style and I quite like it. It remains very soft and shoujo while avoiding all the sparkle and excess.

As for the plot. I won’t post spoilers but there are quite a few twists and turns throughout the series. I was kind of cringing the first half of the series but I really enjoyed the ending. It was at least interesting to keep up the suspense until the very end. That said, if you’re here for loving romantic relationships it’s mostly conflict until the relationship is resolved in the end.

My biggest struggle with this series was how boring the heroine was. All her friends seemed SO much more interesting than her. They had hobbies and struggles, ups and downs, all the heroines’ struggles seemed to revolve around men. Boring.

If you’re a fan of persistently positive heroines that have no personality this is the series for you. It’s not bad, I just expected better due to popularity.

Final Rating: 3/5

Extra: None

Purchase:
Comixology
Kindle
Nook
Google Play
iBook

Ao Haru Ride

June 5, 2021June 4, 2021

Name: Ao Haru Ride
Mangaka: Sakisaka, Io

Volumes: 13 (Complete)
Licensed: Viz (13 Volumes: Digital/Physical) – (Complete)
Type: Manga
Genre: Slice of Life
Age Group: Teen

Summary:
Yoshioka Futaba has a few reasons why she wants to “reset” her image and life as a new high-school student. Because she’s cute and had a demure personality she was ostracized by her female friends in junior high, and because of a series of misunderstandings and mishaps, she couldn’t get her feeling across to the one boy she has always liked, Tanaka Kou.

Now in high school, she is determined to be as unladylike as possible so that her friends won’t be jealous of her. While living her life this way contentedly, she meets Tanaka-kun again, but he now goes under the name of Mabuchi Kou. He tells her that he felt the same way as she did when they were younger, but that they cannot go back. Will Futaba be able to continue her love that never even started from three years ago?
–Manga Updates

Graphics Rating: 4/5
Plot Rating: 3/5

Opinion: I thought this series was really cute and sweet for the first 3/4. But there’s this weird story arc that I could have done without towards the end.

The art is very unique to Sakisaka Io. I love her soft and whimsical art. She also is really good at making unique heroines that don’t all look the same. They are similar but there’s a lot of differences.

The Heroine and the main male lead are both very interesting and unique. While their actions, especially the male leads actions, are frustrating it seems very lifelike for a bunch of teenagers. The heroine is very likeable who does a great job of balancing her caring personality with sticking up for herself when needed.

Where the series falls apart is the entire (Love Triangle) section. It came off as messy and obvious. I was bored at this point. Although it is kind of realistic the entire arc could have cut and the series would have been better.

Final Rating: 3/5

Extra: None

Purchase:
Comixology
Kindle
Nook
Google Play
iBook

Suteki na Kareshi

June 5, 2021May 29, 2021

Name: Suteki na Kareshi
Mangaka: Kawahara Kazune

Volumes: 14 (Complete)
Scanlations: V.04 Ch.14 (2021)
Type: Manga
Genre: Drama
Age Group: Teen

Summary:
“I want a boyfriend!”

Kozakura Nonoka always fancied having a boyfriend. Upon entering high school, she was certain that she was finally going to get one, but fast-forwarding eight months to December, she was still single as ever. Desperate, she attended a goukon (a group blind date) where she met Kiriyama Naoya, whose first words to her was “You’ll never get a boyfriend.”

Now, what would this strange meet-up lead to?

–Manga Updates

Graphics Rating: 3/5
Plot Rating: 3/5

Heroine for Hire

May 24, 2021May 14, 2021

*This post contains affiliate links that I receive compensation from

Name: Heroine for Hire
Mangaka: Amakura Fuyu

Volumes: 4 (Complete)
Licensed: Kodansha (Complete: Digital)
Type: Manga
Genre: Slice of Life
Age Group: Teen

Summary:
Shuko Kodakamine is strong—too strong, by the standards of some. She hopes to make a good high school debut, but that plan goes up in smoke almost immediately when she injures the attractive, charismatic Serizawa-kun…and later suplexes him, to boot! But when Serizawa-kun finds himself in hot water with a jealous boyfriend, it’s Shuko who comes to his aid…and he comes up with a ridiculous proposition: If Shuko becomes his bodyguard, he’ll make her the most important girl in his world!
–Manga Updates

Graphics Rating: 3/5
Plot Rating: 3/5

Ichinose Kyoudai wa Gaman Dekinai

May 24, 2021May 13, 2021

Name: Ichinose Kyoudai wa Gaman Dekinai
Mangaka: Sakurai Mayu

Volumes: 2 (Complete)
Scanlations: V.02 Ch.08 (Complete)
Type: Manga
Genre: Slice of Life
Age Group: Older Teen

Summary:
A new big beautiful guy is transferred in Hoshino’s class. Wait! He’s Ichinose, the troublemaker of middle school. At that time Hoshino has written a love novel between Ichinose and his new stepbrother. When the novel was discovered by a classmate, they make fun of them and triggered Ichinose’s wrath. Then ichinose transferred. Maybe was Hoshino’s fault? And now he’s back!
–Manga Updates

Graphics Rating: 5/5
Plot Rating: 5/5