I had no idea it’d been an entire year since I’d read any Skip Beat!. At least my procrastination produced an appealing side effect: a nice little stack of volumes to catch up on! Volume fifteen finds Kyoko shooting on location for the TV drama in which she and Ren are cast. Sho happens to be staying in the same hotel, since there’s also a ritzy recording studio nearby, and is … [Read more...] about Skip Beat! 15-18 by Yoshiki Nakamura: B+
Shojo Beat
Vampire Knight 1-4 by Matsuri Hino: B-
The first memory Yuki Cross can remember happened ten years ago when she was five: she’s attacked by one vampire but saved by another, the beautiful and pureblooded Kaname. Kaname brings the human girl to the home of a human he knows and his frequent visits throughout her childhood result in her growing very attached to him. Six years later, the introduction of a boy named … [Read more...] about Vampire Knight 1-4 by Matsuri Hino: B-
Kaze Hikaru 3-5 by Taeko Watanabe: A-
Tominaga Sei, a teenaged girl who has assumed the male identity of Kamiya Seizaburo in order to join the Mibu-Roshi and avenge the deaths of her brother and father, has achieved her revenge. As volume three begins, her mentor and unrequited love, Okita Soji, is urging her to leave because she has accomplished her task, but Sei doesn't want to go and demands acceptance as a man. … [Read more...] about Kaze Hikaru 3-5 by Taeko Watanabe: A-
Kimi ni Todoke: From Me to You 2 by Karuho Shiina: A-
In volume one of this charming series, Sawako Kuronuma learned that by sharing her true feelings she could clear up misunderstandings. When malicious rumors begin to circulate about two classmates who’ve been kind to her, with Sawako named as the source of the stories, she desperately wants to clear up the “misunderstanding,” too innocent to understand that the tales have been … [Read more...] about Kimi ni Todoke: From Me to You 2 by Karuho Shiina: A-
Love*Com 14 by Aya Nakahara: B-
Tall Risa Koizumi and her short boyfriend, Atsushi Ôtani, have been dating for a while and have weathered various obstacles. Their latest opponent is Risa’s visiting grandpa, whose primary objection seems to be their difference in height. He feels so strongly about it that he hires a hostess to seduce Ôtani in order to sabotage their relationship. This leads to two chapters of … [Read more...] about Love*Com 14 by Aya Nakahara: B-