Claire

Potentially a mildly spicy take but I just didn't vibe with the first half of this. Undoubtedly it's a me thing. Still I was strongly considering DNF-ing. But Bright Spaces pulled me into this collection's frequency. It is incredible and has me wanting to re-read those earlier stories (alas, somebody is waiting for their hold at my library and I feel the guilt already).

Haunting. Chekhov makes you feel awash in drowsiness and longing for sleep. Then the nightmare starts.

The premise is enticing and the story and themes were suitably entertaining but I did feel like either the writing style or translation were a barrier to me enjoying the book as much as I thought I would have. 

Having said that I think if I had approached this book expecting almost a Light Novel, even middle grade experience, it would'be been a solid 4 star read. So I'm intrigued to see what a re-read would bring.

I've recently got into Final Fantasy 16, a game which is decidedly similar to the game featured in ‘...Real-Life Boss', one-half of the relationship is oblivious almost beyond belief, and there's unrequited love. This manga combines all three of these and makes for pure Claire catnip.

The art is incredibly cute and the romance itself is so sweet it's likely to send you into a diabetic coma - but you'll absolutely have fun doing it. The mangaka has done such a wonderful job here that even the miscommunication between the two main characters is endearing, an adjective I never thought would ever apply to that trope.

I'll definitely be continuing with this series. Maybe even collecting physically what feels like it could become a new comfort read for me!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing a free copy of this manga in exchange for an honest review.

Hopefully one day I'll be in the mood to finish this. It's different to anything I've read before but I think I just want a quick primer on shamanism before reading a full book.