By Akiko Higashimura | Published digitally by Kodansha Comics I spent all my time wondering “what if,” then one day I woke up and I was 33. Thirty-something Rinko Kamata and her two best friends from high school, Kaori and Koyuki, are still single. They’ve happily spent the last decade getting together regularly for girls’ nights out, during which they get sloshed and … [Read more...] about Tokyo Tarareba Girls, Vol. 1
Josei
Chihayafuru, Vol. 1
By Yuki Suetsugi | Published digitally by Kodansha Comics Chihayafuru is a long-running josei sports manga series about a girl who discovers a passion for the Japanese card game, karuta. The very factors that made me sure I’d love the series also made it an unlikely licensing prospect. Happily, Kodansha Comics has started releasing it digitally! I still can’t quite believe … [Read more...] about Chihayafuru, Vol. 1
Everyone’s Getting Married, Vol. 1
By Izumi Miyazono | Published by VIZ Media I’ve grown a bit wary of josei romances. I’d prefer them not to be smutty, or to derive much of their drama from misunderstandings, or to feature a controlling male lead. Happily, Everyone’s Getting Married avoids all of those things! Twenty-four-year-old Asuka Takanashi enjoys a successful career as a real estate broker, but … [Read more...] about Everyone’s Getting Married, Vol. 1
Haunted House
By Mitsukazu Mihara | Published by TOKYOPOP I blame my “meh” reaction to Mitsukazu Miharu's Haunted House—which I honestly wanted to like!—on the back cover, which promises that readers will be “kept guessing—and giggling” by the behavior of Sabato Obiga's flamboyantly goth parents. I might've smiled a time or two, but that's about it. The basic premise here is simple and … [Read more...] about Haunted House
Honey and Clover 9-10 by Chica Umeno: A
These are the final two volumes of Honey and Clover, so there will be spoilers here. Beware. Be sure to have some mental palate cleanser on hand—fluffy shoujo may work for you but I turned to shoot-’em-up seinen—when you finish Honey and Clover, because, man, is it depressing! It’s not that I’d expected everything to turn out rosy, since much of the plot revolves around two … [Read more...] about Honey and Clover 9-10 by Chica Umeno: A