3.5 Stars - The story itself isn't something necessarily new to manga (Yaoi especially), but Yaoi fans will embrace this wholeheartedly as it tugs at the heartstrings and carefully paced to provide the greatest impact possible. Also the artwork is absolutely beautiful!

There are Things I Can’t tell you, was a quick read, that features the story of Kasumi and Kyousuke- both friends since childhood and both deeply in love with each other.
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While I wasn’t a fan of the missed communication- seriously these guys would have saved themselves YEARS of pain if they JUST TALKED- honestly men! I truthfully enjoyed everything else about this manga. The artwork was INCREDIBLE. All the details in the panel, it was wonderful. I loved both of the main characters, I appreciated their flaws and I love that Kasumi is bisexual. In such a short amount of the time the author manages to craft a love story that developed for years, and explores both internalised homophobia and mental illness.
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There are Things I Can’t tell you will definitely break your heart but the beautiful ending will put it back together. I loved this and I highly recommend.

This manga was so adorable! It was the story of two best friends who fell in love with each other and didn't want the other to know. It showed how love can make someone stronger or a coward when it comes to facing it. Recommend this manga to everyone!!

This is my first Boys Love manga/graphic novel, and I must say, I really liked it. Kasumi and Kyousuke are two Japanese men who met in grade school. Kasumi comes from a home of loneliness and neglect, and he's withdrawn as a result. Kyousuke is a popular and active kid whose excellence in drawing and design is denigrated by his father, an accomplished graphic designer. They both have wounds, and each is glad to make the acquaintance of the other in school.

Once they graduate they drift apart, however. Kasumi doesn't know why, and it leads him into unsatisfactory relationships. Kyousuke was a child when he recognized his unnatural attraction to men, and he's long since internalized his father's homophobia. He doesn't want to ruin Kasumi's life by latching onto him like a pervert, so he pulls back, thinking it will set Kasumi up for finding the "right" (heterosexual) path. Learning his absence has hurt Kasumi is a big turning point for Kyousuke--and amends are made.

The art was evocative and approachable with little touches of body humor. It's was realistic, not representational, and the sexytimes were not shy. I had no trouble feeling in the moment with these characters, whether the scenes were mundane or intimate. Kasumi is the dark-haired one in glasses, and Kyousuke has light hair. Their opposite looks mirror their opposite temperment, with Kasumi hiding behind his hair and glasses, while Kyousuke is only satisfied when he's winning attention. He works hard for the right kind of attention, and Kasumi idolizes him, loves him, because Kyousuke was the only person in his life who really cared if he lived or died.

Their struggles as a couple are dramatically rendered, and adequately resolved. At least between them. I didn't see any public acknowledgement of their love, but that may be normal and excepted both culturally and within this format.

There Are Things I Can't Tell You by Edako Mofumofu is currently scheduled for release on July 21 2020. Kasumi and Kyousuke are polar opposites when it comes to personality. Kasumi is reserved, soft-spoken and shy; Kyousuke is energetic and has always been popular among their peers. As the saying goes though, opposites have a tendency to attract, and these two have been fast friends since elementary school. To Kasumi, Kyousuke has always been a hero to look up to, someone who supports him and saves him from the bullies. But now, school is over; their relationship suddenly becomes a lot less simple to describe. Facing the world - and one another - as adults, both men find there are things they struggle to say out loud, even to each other.

There Are Things I Can't Tell You is a friends to more romance in manga format. I found the slow reveal of each character's feelings, and the way they struggle with their own self esteem and attraction to each other is very well done. I also liked the secondary characters and the way the story unfolded. Kasumi is shy, clumsy, and down on himself for the most part. Kyousuke seems to be outgoing and confident, but he is just as insecure as everyone else- he just hides it behind trying harder to be perfect and staying on what he thinks is the right path. Finding their happy ever after is hard, and most of the obstacles are their own perceptions of happiness and their ideas about societal views of right and wrong. The artwork is very well done, and adds emotion and detail to the story. I will warn readers that this is a romance and there are some sex scenes, which could get awkward if you are reading in public or have someone sneaking peeks at what you are reading. The illustrated format makes them a bit more obvious, so just be aware.

This book looked super cute and the cover is gorgeous. The cover drew me in and then the fact that the main romance was LGBTQ+ representative hooked me. Sadly, the love for this book ended at the cover. Cons: The characters were unrealistically paired in my opinion, the intimate scenes were very graphic and unrealistic when trying to picture the noises, the ideal is outdated which I think counters the LGBTQ+ representation and there was entirely too much back and forth and unnecessary drama that could have been avoided with some communication and honesty. Pros: The art was simple but nice though I would have preferred more color. The book read quick, though and I did like the determination that one character showed. I also appreciate that there wasn't a "fluffy", unrealistic ending; meaning he didn't get everything he wanted in both career and love. I don't think I would reread this graphic novel.

I loved this! It was such a beautiful romance, and I absolutely adored the main characters. If I had to give negatives, it would be that the "love" happens very quickly. However, this is a first love romance so the characters have known each other for a long time before the story actually takes place. I will give the warning that this is a very graphic manga, leaving little to nothing to the imagination. If you like Shungiku Nakamura or Ogeretsu Tanaka, then I highly recommend giving this one a try! I'll definitely be picking up this series in the future.

As someone who is a fan of heavy angst, I really enjoyed the PINING, the DRAMA, and the EMOTIONAL BANTERS. The amount of times I have to pause and say “Oh my god stop being idiots in love” is too plenty to remember.

Although, I just wish for more slow burn since the pacing was a bit fast for my preference (and I love emotional pain) but overall it did not affect much to my reading experience. The ending is very heartwarming and cute. Despite having a cliche plot format, it was easy to read and not at all cringy for me.

In conclusion: This is some good besties to lovers trope, would recommend.


TW: Adultery, Depression, Internalized Homophobia, Homophobia & Cheating

3.5 Stars

Ok. Here’s the thing. If I had realized this was an erotic graphic novel I probably wouldn’t have requested it. Not that there’s anything wrong with erotic and sexual visuals in a graphic novel, it just really isn’t my thing. Other than that, I really enjoyed the story of Kasumi and Kyousuke coming to terms with their feelings for each other and how they may be viewed by the conservative society they live in and the families they have. Heartfelt and sad but ultimately an HEA.

Received via Netgalley. All opinions expressed are strictly my own.

I liked the initial pace of this book, with the flashbacks helping to fill in the missing parts of our characters history. In the middle of the story the story became a little confusing, and the characters motivations were hard to place. The resolution was nice! Heads up- open door romance!

I recieved this as an Advanced Reading Copy from Net Galley and this is my honest review.

I love gay romance stories. When I was younger two of my favorite manga were Fake by Sanami Matoh and Gravitation by Maki Murakami. So when I saw There Are Things I Can't Tell You by Edako Mofumofu, I jumped at the chance to read it.

This story is about Kasumi and Kyousuke, two guys who are best friends but quite an odd couple. Kasumi is more reserved and quiet while Kyousuke is more outgoing and is quite often at the center of attention. The two have feelings for each other but can't quite find a way to express them. Can these two, who have been friends since elementary school, ever work it out?

So I may not be the target audience for a boys love manga, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy it too. There Are Things I Can't Tell You is super cute and exactly what I expected from something in this genre. Two cute guys with an equally adorable meet cute form a tight friendship but secretly harbor feelings for each other.

As far as I know this isn't an own voices story. In fact, I learned that it's part of a popular genre of books written about gay love by women and for women. Here's where it gets tricky. There are those who have issues with this genre saying that it oversexualizes homosexuality for the purpose of turning it into a kink. I'm not qualified to have an opinion on any of these topics since I'm not part of either of these camps, it's just something to keep in mind when you read this.

That aside, this is a cute, short read that's well worth your time if you're a fan of the genre. The characters were realistic and relatable. The hurdles in the way of the romance was realistic too. It even briefly touches on an important topic or two but in the end this isn't anything other than a boy's love manga. So if that's what you're looking for, you found a good one.

I saw this on NetGalley and was IMMEDIATELY enamoured with the artistic style, which is but one of the things I adored about this manga.

Apart from the drool-worthy illustrations (seriously, these two are so. damn. attractive), this is also a really touching boys' love story about confronting internalized homophobia and choosing to be with someone even when it scares the hell out of you.

Kyousuke Shiina is a talented and charismatic graphic designer who's humble to boot. When he's not pulling all-nighters at the office—because that's just the sort of hardworking perfectionist he is—he's whipping up yummies in the kitchen and making sure Kasumi is doing okay.

Kasumi Amemiya is his opposite: shy, klutzy, and disorganized as all heck. The two of them have been childhood friends since grade school, when Kasumi had no friends (and nothing to live for) and Kyousuke by all means should've never crossed paths with him.

There is SO MUCH ANGST, y'all. This is a slow-burn friends-to-lovers arc with LOTS of doubting of oneself and masochistic denial of feelings ("I must stay away for his sake"), plus a dash of smutty smut.

Kyousuke grew up believing that being gay was wrong, and he grapples with what he thinks is leading Kasumi, the most important person in his life, down "the wrong path." Meanwhile, Kasumi has been in love with Kyousuke all this time, too—but cannot fathom that his confident and charming best friend could ever possibly feel the same.

To borrow a line from Stephen Chbosky, "We accept the love we think we deserve"; and what the two men think they deserve evolves throughout this story, as they grow to accept not just the other person—but also themselves.

How can I describe what it felt like to read? There are honestly no words. Right at the beginning of the story I found myself bonding with the characters. In the course of the story it's completely impossible to let go of these two characters. It is a very moving story, above all it can be light and exciting to read at the same time.

For me this book was a great surprise, it surprised me so much for the positive. I felt that it was one of those books that would end with my heart in my hands, I ended up in a way with tears in my eyes. All I liked most was the drawing, I always liked this kind of drawing and it is very well elaborated.

Honestly, I really recommend this manga, it has everything to be a good reading. Besides that, the main theme of the story is one of the themes that most need to be addressed in books. If you're looking for a story that makes you vibrate with enthusiasm, here it is.

I just felt that sometimes you get lost in the early novel and it breaks the romantic mood. Maybe give the story a little more rhythm. I think it would also be nice to see a little more of their past. However, it was a very successful story, with well created, captivating characters and a narrative that leaves any emotional.

Thank you to the publisher for giving me a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I first wanna start off that this is not your usual manga. It's for an older audience.

I really enjoyed this manga so much! It made me so happy for both the main characters and I was to intrigued about all the events. I loved both main characters I loved how different they seemed but yet they were so alike. I think it was a great concept to the story.

The story develops really well and so do the characters. There are moments where there are flashbacks to erlier days for the characters themselves but those are not annoying at all and actually bring more depth into the story which is nice and prefered.

I loved everything about this story and I would recommend this manga to anyone that I thinj would enjoy it too!!

My Rating : 4🌟
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Kindle/ Netgalley/ July2020
#mabookyardchallengeJuly2020
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Thank you so much Netgalley for copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and not influenced in any way.
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*Second chance/ friends to lovers / unrequited start / Hea
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I am a huge fan of Manga style graphic novels and I was really excited to pick this book up. This book follows our two main characters, Kasumi and Kyousuke, over their years of friendship and how they deal with their feelings along with their other issues.
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I loved that this book discussed the friendship before introducing the development of feelings. It had a strong base to grow on and it added to the emotional value really well. The characters are polar opposites, yet gain strength from each other. It's kind of an unrequited love from both sides, but done with a twist at the end and I really enjoyed that. The two characters put the other's happiness before their own and that results in some stupid decisions being made which was just relatable as hell.
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The artwork and the story flow was amazing!! And there were some scenes where I had to aheemmm close my screen.. aheemm. So beware of that.. But I found the story quite okayish.. The characters, artwork and the feelings it delivered take the top place wrt this manga.

This adult romance manga was a very intimate look into a couple learning to accept their sexuality and accepting love.
I won't speak on the representation but I thought for the first volume we got a firm grip on the characters and relationships. It was also exciting to see male characters be vulnerable and discuss feelings. Many mangas paint males in one particular stereotype but this manga aloud each character to have their own strengths and weakness.
All round adorable and heartfelt!

Tigger warning for sducidal thoughts and homophobia.

Full Review to be posted on GR.

First i would like to thank netgalley and the publishers for letting me read this manga ahead of the publication date.

A painful and heartfelt m/m slow burn romance about childhood friends who are in love with each other. If you like emotionally heavy BL, you are probably going to enjoy this, as It doesnt exactly tries to reinvent the wheel or bring something super New to the format. Still provides an entertaining and emotional read for those who like BL romance.

About the romance itself it does that familiar trope where its not quite clear why they are not together or why cant they just figure it out until since they clearly were into the other which bothered me a bit during the reading but near the end where more information is shared their actions start to make a lot more sense and made it more satisfying to watch especially with two very likable and yet real characters.

This story is cute but also very sad. It's the story about Kasumi a boy who was verbally abused since childhood by his inner circle - family - and the only person that seemed to understand him was his friend Kyosuke an energetic and popular school boy who everybody loved, but with a family that push him to be the best and be perfect even if that cost him to hide who he is or what he loved. I loved how the past and present mixed in this story because we could understand their feelings and why they acted the way they did. It was sad and sweet and the story broke my heart and repaired it at the same time. At the end I needed more! I need to see more happy moments between them.

Thank you to NetGalley and Diamond Books for sharing the e-ARC with me. I'm always looking to expand my reading world, and NetGalley and publishers make that possible in a whole new way. Thank you.

I'm not normally a manga reader, so it took me time to figure out/remember that I needed to read from right to left.
I'm always glad when I find more/different love stories. We need more LGBTQIA representation, so yay for a gay male love story!
I found the longing very real but the storyline lacking and sometimes confusing. The talk bubbles don't always make it clear who is speaking, so the lack of dialogue indicators combined with trying to navigate the direction I was reading, and the fact that one of the main characters is called three variations of his name interchangeably, I had a tough time.
There are also two very graphic (adult and consensual) sex scenes that surprised me. Maybe it was because I was originally reading with the idea of including this is my classroom library. Nope. I'll keep this one separate.

While I enjoyed certain aspects like childhood friends to lovers and unrequited affection, this boyslove novel certainly took its time getting places. And in the end, I’m still not so sure if it was intentionally left somewhat unresolved or if there’ll be a second book.

Personally, I feel that there’s so much more to happen and explore within Kyousuke’s work-life and in dealings with the homophobia of his parents growing up. It’s clear that he’s also dealing with a form of internalized phobia himself and reflecting it onto his relationship (or at times, lack thereof) with Kasumi.

Additionally, Kyousuke although labeled outgoing and well liked – sorta felt flat. He wasn’t engaging in his adult life as he was in the backstories. Plus, he’s very closed off. A lot of this reading was picking up on context clues and short glimpses of what’s affecting Kyousuke personally. Which is a shame since both characters are nicely fleshed out in their emotions and backstories in other extents. So while I understood Kyousuke (minus the confusing ‘I want to be his source of unhappiness’ while wishing him to be happy oddness?), I felt he was more 2D than Kasumi. Who, despite almost sounding like the main narrator based on the synopsis, is only secondary. His point of view merely coming out in a chapter or two mid-way through to offset Kyousuke’s pov and further the angst of the relationship.

And while each character goes through troubling times together and apart, I would have loved to have seen them deal with those issues more openly. Which also lends itself to the unfinished feeling towards the end.

Overall, it’s a good slice-of-life mild boyslove. But blend-able amongst so many other and better stories offering the same conflicts. However, I must say that I love the cover. The fact that Kyousuke can neither allow himself to say I love you nor hear it from Kasumi is never clearly outwardly spoken or revealed in the manga as it is in the implications of this cover pose and in the reading between the lines throughout the reading.

And even though the name is quite a mouthful, I find that I like it as well. There Are Things I Can’t Tell You, has a good mystique to it.