We follow Nina Kamiyama as she tries to forget her life as an Idol, and to move past the trauma she suffered as one. Idol girls are forced to abandon a lot of things or they end up getting kicked out for not being everyone's idol. When whispers of a man groping high school girls starts going around it sends Nina into reliving things she's been trying to forget. She's not really popular in school and perfers to be left alone. When one of the girls she knows gets sexually 'attacked' and blows it off as nothing it makes Nina angry and upset that she acts like it's okay and that's how the world is. I do enjoy the story Aoi Makino is sharing with everyone and I think it reveals a lot in our world today as girls/woman of all ages are dealing with these type of advances. I can't wait for Volume 2 to come out!

Thank you to NetGalley, Viz Media, and Aoi Makino for the opportunity to read Not Your Idol Volume 1 in exchange for an honest review.

I like drama. When I read the blurb for this book, I figured it would be interesting. Yeah...well...I was ABSOLUTELY BLOWN AWAY by how absorbed I was in this story.

After Nina, an Idol in a major group, is assaulted with a knife by a fan, she leaves the group and changes her appearance to that of a boy to try and protect herself. The assailant is still at large, so she can't be too careful.

Her classmates know she's a girl, and Hikaru finds an interest in her choices of appearance..and more. His sister is a major fan, and even though Nina isn't going by her Idol name, Karen, Hikaru still recognizes her and praises her as an inspirational Idol on his sister's behalf.

When friend and Idol partner Sara mentions an anonymous envelope of photos having arrived at the agency, she contacts Nina to let her know to be safe. Coincidentally, Nina is starting to notice that Hikaru shares some similarities with the hooded man who assaulted her, but he's the first man she's ever trusted. What will she do?

This was an absolutely fantastic manga and I definitely want to continue this series.

Trigger Warning: Sexual Assault

I am very curious to see where this book is going. I finished volume 1 and feel like volume 2 can't get here soon enough.

This is a psychological suspense type of story. A girl gives up a life of being an idol after she is attacked by a fan.

One thing that did make this book hard to read were the scenes where boys at the school were justifying rape. There was a lot of talk about how girls dress and how they do it for the attention. The main character was amazing how she stood up to them.

The book explores gender identity and what roles everyone falls into. In the beginning the main characters is looked down on for wearing pants instead of the skirt with their uniform. There is a lot of potential and I can't wait for volume 2.

By Aoi Makino

I really enjoyed this book! I thought the concept was cool and the characters were interesting. The plot had me sucked in until the last couple pages and then I was disappointed. It was a plot twist I didn't like at all, but I still want to read the next book to see if it is explained in any way.

I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

I really enjoy graphic novels but I really couldn't take to this one. I felt the story jumped about too much and too quickly between scenes and I found it hard to follow and understand in places and I couldn't get my head around the writing style.
The plot had some great ideas but I just dont think they were executed as well as they could have been throughout the novel.

⭐⭐⭐ 3 Stars

This manga explores the impact of assault on a young girl and how her relationships and gender identity can be impacted by such a life-altering event. The assault is not gratuitously presented and its aftermath is used to show the phycological effect of the assault and the PTSD our protagonist Nina experiences after such a traumatic event.

However, I didn’t find this thriller captivating, despite the excellent art the story felt poorly paced. And what really takes away from the story is all of the misogynistic dialogue, that although is challenged, continues throughout the volume. I know this is only volume one but I think more could have been done to make the other female characters more three dimensional.

You Should Read This Book if you Like:
+ Atmospheric Reads 🎆
+ Discussions on Sexual Assault ✍️
+ Manga with a message 💭

Trigger Warnings⚠: blood, stalking, victims blaming, molestation, panic attacks.

This was a fast read, and while the concept was a good one, the execution wasn't as strong as it could have been.

I found that the flow was off. While I don't have an issue with flashbacks, there would be some that were clearly labels and others would just randomly appear. I had difficulty with figuring out who was speaking throughout the story. Discussing difficult topics like physical assault, harassment, sexual assault, and stalking are so relevant, but there was also a lot of reinforcement of rape culture, and I felt that the "she's asking for it" trope was overused. The main character doesn't seem to have anyone around who is invested in her well-being, and I was curious where her family was, especially seeing that she was in her first year of high school. I struggled with identifying with any of the characters, and while it ended on a cliffhanger, I wasn't curious enough to find out what happens next to want to read the next one.

The drawings were beautiful, but ultimately the story fell short of the mark for me.

First time reviewing this type of book and honestly I loved it! It was short and sweet but OMG that cliffhanger ending! Long story short, Karen a former idol is struggling to fit into to everyday life. She doesn't have a lot of friends especially because since she was assaulted by a fan, she's begun to dress as a boy. Eventually she warms up to a fellow student who shares with her that his own sister was once harassed by a teacher but seeing Karen in the pop group helped her get some of her confidence back. Slowly but surely Karen begins to like her fellow classmate but the threat of her assailant resurfaces. Is her new friend hiding a darker secret? Could he be the one that hurt Karen? I'll have to catch the next volume in order to find out!

I am no stranger to graphic novels, this is the first Manga I have read. The story was jumping around and really confused me. It took me a while to even 'get' what was happening. I did find that the logo printed in the centre of every page very off-putting. it distracted me from the story.
I think a trigger warning is needed, as I wasn't expecting sexual assault to be in this. also, some of the things the characters said were quite inappropriate.

I went into this manga expecting something with a fiery heroine and a sweet but idol-obsessed love interest. Instead, I got a deep manga about how women aren't commodities for male entitlement. That's the main theme and I am HERE FOR IT!!!

In such a short volume, this manga addresses so many things, some of which people might consider spoilers so <spoiler>the effects of being attacked both mentally and physically, how some women drag others down as "not real women", the double standards that women face from society, the sexualization of underage female idols, the groping problem on Japanese trains, and so much more.</spoiler>

We follow the main character Nina, who is not a girly girl and all the guys talk about how ugly she is, except for Hikaru, who is more interested in Judo. Little do we know that Nina has a secret- she's actually an ex-member of popular idol group Pure Club. The main plot of this volume is Nina fighting for girls' rights and becoming close to Hikaru. But everything might not be what it seems.

I was some impressed by this manga and I can't wait to read the second volume. Congrats to Aoi Makino for tackling such a hard topic and doing it so well. I'm excited to see where we go!

After a frightening fan experience, pop idol Karen (real name Nina) retires from the lifestyle, dresses like a boy and goes to public school. She slowly begins to make friends with her peers, especially fellow student Hikaru. Although Hikaru eventually recognizes her, his gentle nature calms Nina. When photos of Nina appear in public, it seems that her cover is about to be blown. Worse - is Hikaru the one who did it? Is he the one who hurt her?

The art in this volume was beautiful despite the large watermark on the ARC. This is not your typical shojo manga. It is a story about what it means to be a girl in a society that is not always respectful of women. Very timely for an English translation of an older work.

This manga was a surprise. It is so insightful, and the message is so much bigger than a manga series. Within these pages, Karen, an ex-idol, is dealing with trauma from an assault at a hand-shaking event. She has shut herself away, changed her name, and her appearance in an attempt to hide from the man who hurt her. She has moved and gone to school under an assumed name and is just trying to be invisible. This all changes of course, and I won't spoil it for you, but in a world where #MeToo has become necessary, this manga brings to light the effects of crass and inappropriate behaviors on women, and even touches on the way women have been brought up to endure this behavior. I'd like to give all my kudos to this author, and I am very much looking forward to reading vol. 2.

I received this as an ARC from @Netgalley, in exchange for my honest review.

I liked this one. It’s the story of a young girl who was once a teen idol. Then a man ruined it for her. She’s chopped off her hair, stopped wearing dresses, changed her name, and decided to try to live a normal life. Thing is, once you’ve been a superstar, there is no such thing as being normal. Still she tries. She’s even found a nice boy. Maybe. I mean he could be her attacker, right? Maybe? And the band really isn’t the same without her. They need her to come back. But what does she need?

The ending is a really big cliffhanger, not a fan of that. Otherwise I loved it.

I really enjoyed the first volume of Not Your Idol. The artwork is very well done and the plot isn't one I've read a million times. It touches upon what girls go through being treated as a sex symbol and the after effects of an assault. I really think this series has great potential and will be keeping an eye on new volumes.

I have been looking for some manga series which are more likely to appeal to girls. This is likely to do so. I liked the empowerment message and also the message regarding beware of strangers. It is very difficult to read manga on the kindle I have found and this detracted a little for me. I assume this title is the first in a series and look forward to reading the next one. I am still a novice with regard to reading this form of book and so find it hard to comment on it. The drawings are clear, the characters are perhaps a little predictable for an adult, as is the plot but I do not believe these comments would be a detract ion for the target audience.

I saw someone else's review and reread the book. Again I found the Manga format on the kindle difficult but I did feel the book is asking important questions of its readers, such as should you hide away after an attack? Should you call out anti social behaviour? Does everyone have an ulterior motive? Are these questions pertinent in every country?

I am still not sure about the ending. Was some framing going on or was Hikaru the original attacker? I still assume that this is the first in the series and these questions will be answered in later books. It felt as though there should be one or two more chapters to explain what had happened.

It took a little while for me to get used to reading a manga and to understand the story. Once I was settled, I did enjoy the story, but I do feel that it would jump around a lot to different scenes and it was confusing and took me out of the story briefly.
I'd be interested to continue on with the series because this did address some difficult topics, however there were times when some things that were said came off as inappropriate and didn't sit all that well with me.

Thank you to Viz Media and NetGalley for the e-ARC to read and review.

Warning: Includes topics of sexual assault and gender discrimination. Reader discretion advised.

I'm ambivalent about this first volume of "Not Your Idol." I don't dislike it but I don't necessarily like it.

Most of the characters in this story I either strongly dislike as a character or disagree with their point of view on what's happening within the story. However, the story's biggest strength is the variety of opinions (the good, the bad, and everything in between) on the important issues of sexual assault and gender discrimination. This I think brings an apt realism.

The art was good, one of my favorite art styles in manga. A few transitions between scenes or past/present were jarring. But each time I was able to reorient myself within the story.

The ending was great, leaving off on an emotional high. But I think I would have to read volume 2 to really know if I want to continue this series.

*ARC provided by VIZ Media via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Rating: 3/5 stars

Content Warnings: assault, sexual assault

Not Your Idol, Vol.1 by Aoi Makino is a graphic novel based on a young girl who at one time was part of, essentially, a girl band. Something happens at a fan event that causes her to quit the band, change her name, and move schools to where she’s anonymous.

I enjoyed the story for the most part. There were times when the flashbacks or story transitions were somewhat confusing, but it could have just been because the version I read didn’t have the completed artwork and polished edges.

I am curious how the story will continue so I might continue with it if I come across new volumes in the future.

Thank you NetGalley for the advance copy for my honest review.

I was intrigued initially by the story's concept, a teenage idol attacked by a fan who then removes her from her former life. As she assumes a new name and dresses like a boy to draw little attention her way, one boy starts to break through her walls, but he may have his own dark secrets.

This was a little tough to read, the dialogue seemed a bit disjointed at first. It definitely took some getting used to. The story was a little hard at points based on some of the language which objectified the female characters quite a bit. It was harsh in some ways, yet it is not entirely untrue of how some men act towards women.

I will say that I felt almost confused by the ending. Karen had gone through so much pain and yet when she learns Hikaru's secret she seems perfectly OK with it. That just doesn't seem realistic. I don't think there was enough plot development to show how she could possibly be OK with this.

All in all, the first volume of Not Your Idol was interesting, but not fully developed in my opinion.

<b>2 stars</b>

*Thank you to the author and Netgalley for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review*

I was really interested to see how this story would unfold; the idea was there but I personally didn't like how it was executed. I found the story didn't progress smoothly, it felt quite disjointed like it was jumping to different scenes too quickly and I was getting easily confused about what the point of the story was at times. I also really didn't like all the female bashing "asking for it" trope. There was too much of that, obviously to highlight the issue the book it targeting but it was overdone for me. This could have been approached better in my opinion.