In the fourth volume of Nakamura Asumiko’s first Yuri series, small crimes are on the rise at school, and Ruby is determined to get to the bottom of it.  Is it a ghost, or  curse stealing everyone’s items…or a criminal? The answer is, of course yes, in Mejirobana Saku, Volume 4 (メジロバナの咲く)

First-year Marjorie is saying that the Tarot cards have spoken and the news is not good. Overwrought, she blames Ruby, and another first-year, Bryce. As Marjorie begins to lash out, she and Bryce are implicated in the thefts, but the story turns dark when it turns out that it is one of the older girls that is the mastermind. and her methods of manipulation are unsavory.

That mystery solved, it is  vacation time! Steph, Ruby and Liz all go to the Amalfi coast. Steph, her damaged foot already bleeding from walking too much, literally runs away from someone who seems to think they are friends. One mystery has been solved, but another has begun. Who is this young man to Steph? Ruby tries to understand Steph, but the older girl freezes her out.

This series is one of the gems of Rakuen Le Paradis magazine. I’m always pleased and surprised that it continues. And given where this volume ends, we are going to have to have at least a volume more, which continues to please and surprise. Ruby and Steph have become much more than the sum of their plot points and I look forward to finding out Steph’s undoubtedly emotionally fraught story. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 8
Characters – 8, Marjorie took up a lot of air
Service – 3
Yuri – 7

Overall – 9

Volumes 1-3 of A White Rose in Bloom are out now from Seven Seas, Volume 4 will be out this summer

In the wake of the final episodes of Whisper Me A Love Song anime finally seeing light of day, and the cancellation of a Blu-ray release, I wanted to finally take a moment and catch up on the manga  a series that is one of the top titles serialized in Comic Yuri Hime.  I read Takeshima Eku’s series in the magazine, but it is easier to see the story progress when I read it in a collected volume. ^_^ And I apparently forgot to review Volume 9, which is the final arc in the Aki / Shiho conflict, woops.  Don’t worry – if you watched the anime, you’re basically caught up. ^_^

Sasayakuyou no Koi wo Utau, Volume 10 (ささやくように恋を唄う) came with a little 24-page booklet that centers Shiho and Aki, and a a photo of themselves taken at a photo booth in better times, before the band break-up and Shiho’s spiral into whatever it is that she became. It is cute, and poignant and – in the bigger picture – a little silly, because these characters are like 17 years old and this huge falling out was probably 3 years ago. Life is so much more when we are young, because we have so much less to compare it to.

The majority of this volume follows Shiho and Aki as they go on a date. This is a rather huge moment for the two of them, and we watch every cringe and cute moment to see if they can navigate through the coral reefs they’ve both built up around themselves. Aki is a master at pushing Shiho’s buttons, but Shiho surely must get props for actually trying.

Yori stays over Himari’s house and once again, they discuss consent. In a very entertaining scene Himari’s mother cops to knowing that they are an item and welcomes Yori into the family. It was nice to see a scene where a parent just accepts her child’s girlfriend with a smile – there will be no fraught coming out for these darlings.

So, now, Himari and Yori are ridiculously happy together and now that Aki and Shiho are a couple…what’s next? Well, Aki’s younger sister and Himari’s best friend Miki has a sempai in the brass section of band, Aya. Aya reaches out to Miki’s older sister, Aki, who reaches out to Yori and the next thing Aya knows the whole band and Himari are in on her struggle to decide whther to tell Miki her feelings. Aya does fess up, but when Miki learns that everyone in the entire cast knew before she did, she understandably gets royally pissed at Aya! Is their relationship dead on arrival? We’ll have to keep reading to see if this is another Yuritopian school. ^_^  That is to say, yes, it is, and probably they will get together cutely.

Takeshima Eku’s art is instantly recognizable at this point. Her characters are cute, endearing, sincere and frequently seen at dramatic angles. The adorable-ness of everyone here is at Level 9000. Now that Shiho is reformed there is no one to really even dislike… although she’s probably be a prickly favorite for at least a few more volumes. ^_^

Sasayakyouni Koi Wo Utau just continues to be a really sweet series, that is growing just a little every volume.

Ratings:

Art – 9
Story – 8
Characters – 8
Service – 0
Yuri – 8

Whisper Me A Love Song, Volume 1-8 are available in English from Kodansha, Volume 9 is headed our way in autumn 2025.

inee’s Love Bullet, Volume 1 (ラブ・バレット) is best known for being saved from cancellation by a social media campaign begun by lexie on X – which happened while I was on vacation and mostly offline, so all I could do is marvel at the response! ^_^ Of course, once I could get myself a copy. I did. And what I found honestly surprised me.

Cupids have gotten a modern upgrade since Ancient Greece. No longer using bows and arrows, cupids are armed with guns and artillery. But their mission is mostly the same – pairing people up in romantic relationships. We learn that cupids are people who died before their own love was able to blossom – and they can earn their way back to life by creating enough pairings, but of course there are conditions.

We meet our protagonist Koharu as she and three other cupids ponder the fate of a trio of young people in a fast-food restaurant. A battle breaks out as the cupids split on which pairing they prefer, Koharu takes a risk and solves the problem.

The story then moves backwards to show how Koharu became a cupid. We already know that the premise is a poignant take on love, and Koharu’s story continues in that vein. When her first mission turns out to be very personal, I noted to my wife that this series is quite original, but very sad. As I mulled it over, I found I would describe it as straight-up bitter, rather than even bittersweet. The art is fun, even as it is quite violent. Explosions and bullet impacts are heart-shaped, for instance. The combination of extreme action and Greek tragedy makes for a pretty unique work that is likely to appeal to completely different audiences for different reasons.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – A bitter, but well-conceived 9
Characters – 8
Service – Guns and fighting mostly
Yuri – 8

Overall – 8

In a world in which more Yuri means some stories will go under the radar (and, globally, publishers often don’t promote more original Yuri work in favor of school girl romances that offend no one and take no risks) Yuri fandom is making its voice heard more often – a topic I plan on writing about as soon as I have a moment. ^_^ In this case, inee’s series has been given a second chance at life, a fitting fate for a story that offers the same choice to its protagonist.