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.

Thanks to the publisher for giving me an eARC in exchange of a honest review via Netgalley.

TW: INTERNALIZED HOMOPHOBIA, PARENTAL ABUSE, DEPRESSION


This was my first contact with a manga and it couldn't be better! The whole story is beautiful and engaging, even being sad and I got more in love in each page.
The couple became one of my favorites since always and I cared about them the whole time.

The protagonists are very complex and bring a lot of important themes to discuss. I started reading waiting for a sweet and cliche love story, but after a few time I wad crying because of the couple and seeing a lot of things that they live in my life.

The romance evolve in little pieces while the caracters understand more about themselves and everything was made in a beautiful way. I smiled, cried, screamed, droped my phone and even more. I didn't think that I would feel so many things in 270 pages of a manga.

The secondary characters coud be better made, and Kyousuked's work could be less showed to give space to Kasumi's problems. These little details could be changed.

I read a few reviews after writing mine and realized that I didn't gave attention to a lot of details in my 1st reading. I don't know why this happened, but I want to re-read soon.

The art is beautiful and they made me feel the whole experience. If was different I probably wouldn't like so much.

I recommend a lot this manga for who wants to read a LGBT+ romance that isn't made just of sex. Both characters are complex and also their relationship.

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.

× Thanks to TokyoPop and NetGalley for the ARC. It was provided in exchange for an honest review ×
Kasumi and Kyousuke are best friends since their childhood and both start to feel more for one another.
Homophobia and japanes society expectation for a men force the two friends to drive apart. When they find each other again as adult, they tried to tame their feelings and stay on the right path.
This comics is heartbreaking, it show how the world and specialy japan as a long way to go when it comes to homophobia and queer couple.
They cant be together cause they think that is not what they supposed to be and who they supposed to love and those expectation make them miserable and far from bein happy. Far from this perfect life that society sell as the "right one"
It is a one shot and the art style is beautiful and light.
There is some nfsw scene, so it is an adult comics.
I loved it !

Here we follow Kasumi Amemiya and Kyousuke Shiina who have been friends since their elementary school days and we see snippets of their relationship from then till now that they are both 27 years old and are functional people in the society. Kyousuke is a graphic designer at a company and he is always trying to prove himself and this sort of stems from the insecurity he feels and his childhood trauma of having a father who seems to never see good in him. He has a very loveable and outgoing personality that overshadows his pain. Then we have Kasumi whose parents made him feel he was a mistake and they wished he was never born so they never treated him as a son. So he has been carrying that baggage around. When they met in elementary Kyousuke helped Kasumi be more outspoken and participate in activities and they were friends until Kasumi confessed his love for Shiina and everything broke apart.
Years later they meet again and the feels they had before still existed. With Shiina still battling with his feeling for Kasumi (he believes that everything is either right or wrong) and the society focused father he had definitely drilled that into him. He believes that showing his love for Kasumi would be wrong and it would make him unhappy.

This book just makes me think "what really is happiness?"
I hope you check it out

Courtesy to Netgalley and Diamond Book Distributors for providing me an e-ARC of this manga.

Recommended for fans of BL mangas/ novels/ a short manga gateway of this genre.

My thoughts on There are things I can't tell you

The story tells two boys who have total polar opposite personalities, struggles to express themselves out loud even to each other. The illustrations of this manga is amazing and heartwarming, some were even drawn in a cute way. The pace of each of the storyline was really smooth and I have to say most were emotional (you get to see the character's past stories). I really like how the storyline goes, them accepting who they are (being really optimistic of their true feelings, gradually, and not trying to change despite how the major society may preceive).. by listening to what their heart tells. It was really beautiful to see how they find strength in each other, too.

Content/ Trigger warnings: Bullying, Homophobia, Mature graphic illustrations (18+)

Rating: 3.8/ 5 🌟

I found this story pretty contrived and didactic. I personally did not get very much out of reading it.

This book was an interesting read. It featured internalized homophobia, depression, and affairs. Both of the main characters had developed backstories, which was a nice addition. I was worried when I started reading that it would be rushed, but this was not the case, and I will also add that I enjoyed the ending and found the story to be satisfying and fully fleshed out. This was my first yaoi read, and it was very serious and heavy, but still a worthwhile read.

This was such a nice story. It is very different from what I'm used to read. I think is the second time I read something in this genre and it was a good experience. I loved the art. It looks well-made and the characters were very beautiful. The story was interesting, not too complex but attractive enough to keep my attention the whole time. It was a little frustrating at times. Both main characters were likable and they seem so perfect for each other, but the lack of communication made me mad very frequently. Overall it was nice. Can’t say I love it but I did like it and I had a good time reading it.

This was my first ever Manga book. And I thought it was a really good one! I finished it is a single itting - i was so hooked!
1. Through the considerably long time period covered, the author is really able to show the character growth throughout. Moreover, the backstories of both characters are really well explored.
2. The story of mutual but unexpressed love was also well expressed, not directly via words, but rather through the actions each character did towards the other, especially what Kyosuke does for Kasumi.
3. The mental health representation was well done. How past experiences and especially experiences with the parent figures and guardians while growing up can shape the person, is portrayed well in the case of both the characters.
4. Despite the relatively short size of the book, the author was really able to bring in various elements apart from the central romance angle and I especially loved that.

overall, it was a really good book and i am happy that this was my first manga read!

I'm usually against high melodrama in romance because it could all just be solved if people actually talked to each other, but there is something about the relationship between Kasumi and Kyousuke that made me feel like I totally understood their reasons for hiding things from each other. I engaged with them and connected with their reasons.
It's amazing how much backstory and character development Mofumofu fits into one single volume. Kyousuke reads as a totally real person struggling with figuring out who he is and how he wants to live. It's easy to see his motivation and understand why he makes the choices he does. Kasuma is a bit more of an enigma, but the little glimpses you get of his past and his life made me want to hug him and not let go.
The art is simple and there were a couple of times when I wasn't sure who was who. However, it fits the story, and expressions are often enough to convey feelings at a glance.
Overall, a great love story with a message of acceptance and living life for yourself. Definitely a recommended read. Just keep in mind that the Mature rating is definitely earned.

Many happy thanks to NetGalley and Tokyopop for the early read.

Internalised homophobia is a difficult thing to write about and I loved how this thing was portrayed in the book.

Kyousuke and Kasume are our leads who have been friends since school days. From the start of the book, we see these boys are close and then we are given flashback when they met in high school. Both of them are attracted to each other but there are fears.

The idea of ‘he deserves better’, ‘ I am not good enough’, ‘it’s wrong’, in relationships are common. Especially if we care about the other person and when it mixes with internal homophobia along with depression, things do get complicated.

I really enjoyed reading the manga and I would recommend it to people who wants to read something dramatic. See, the main issue with this pair was lack of communication and it’s understandable because the situation and the characters were battling their inner demons, so if you are into these kinds of plots, you would surely enjoy it.

There isn’t much explicit content but whatever is it is not censored.

I am rating it 3.4 stars.

Thank You, NetGalley for this ARC.

this was a very well executed story. it's very rare that I've read a story where the mc who is a top has trauma and denies the relationship because of that trauma. these characters are so soft, and I found myself crying for them on multiple occasions. I would love to read more about them as they learn to be honest about their love for each other and grow together, but if the author doesn't wish to pursue the story line further, the ending is satisfying. I look forward to other works by this author.

Full disclosure, I was hesitant to request this, even though the cover art was so appealing to me, bec I was afraid it'd be one of those GFY BL mangas I could no longer stand. But I badly needed a graphic novel read between my other books and saw that this was still available to read. I'm glad I asked for this, bec this was a good one and the queer rep, as well as some questionable behavior on the LI's part, were deftly handled.

My fear of one-sided pining on the part of one of the protagonists is introduced very early on in the story, so while I was weary that this was gonna be painful, I also appreciated that it didn't begin with false pretenses. After establishing how close Kyosuke and Kasumi are in the early chapters, we are taken back to their first meeting in high school, Where most of the drama started, and the slow build-up of emotions is carried steadily toward the rest of the book. And omg, they had to go through A LOT.

I liked it. It reminded me of heavy dramas I enjoyed in the past -and those rarely had queer leads so this was a welcome improvement-, and the art is pretty. But if you don't like miscommunication as the main conflict, maybe skip this one. Things would've been resolved earlier if the protagonists were just super honest with each other.

Then again, I would argue that it would be out of character for both Kyosuke and Kasumi to just say everything outright. What I liked most about this is the fair portrayal of people struggling with their sexuality. It isn't always pretty, and people do stupid things out of desperation or confusion, but it can still be quite beautiful at the end. It gets better. And these characters got the happiness they deserved.

It ends with HFN, thank goodness, and it is also explicit, though not very. Just right if you're looking for something stirring, with servings of spice.
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*The eARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley for free in exchange for an honest review. Thank you.⁣⁣

So let's talk about There Are Things I Can't Tell You. Besides the fact that I wish I could have more.

You've got two very different leads who've known each other since grade school.

--->Kasumi and Kyosuke. Who are both btw still two massive cinnamon rolls I hold dear to my heart and I wanted to protect at all cost throughout the book.
description

Kyosuke is popular, confident, and naturally talented. While Kasumi is unassuming, unsure, and reserved. The main story takes places after college with flashbacks to their adolescence. Which I liked because it helped clue us in to the "why's" without info dumps or chopping up the book in different segments.

There is a ton of yearning on both sides that I felt that I could touch it physically. I think the exceptional art might have helped that along as well. Essentially, these two have a love that that neither is sure of acting on, but for two totally different reasonings. The thing is they both think they are doing what's best for the other. However, we come into their relationship at the boiling point where choices are made, confessions are said, and mistakes happen.

This overall was pretty wholesome, while still having mature emotions and mildly explicit images.

Trigger Warning: there are themes of depression and internalized homophobia.

Thank you the Diamond Book Distributors/Tokyopop via NetGalley for letting me read this in exchange for an honest review.

This manga is about two men who have been best friends since they were boys. They both struggle with their own inner demons and secret feelings. I loved how sweet this story and the relationship between the characters was. I also really enjoyed the pacing. Sometimes these kinds of stories can drag with all the angst but this was really well paced and heartfelt. Thoroughly enjoyable!

A beautiful story! With brilliant artistry! It was a very easy and very lovely read. If you're thinking about picking this up because the cover is beautiful, the story follows suit.