I love korean BL webtoons that are mainly focused on a slow (very slow!) burn romance with a lot of drama, tons of behind closed doors sexual tension and many pretty boys. The premise is also super interesting (red string myth). I loved this first volume so much I will become feral when volume 2 drops.

4 stars!

If you love best friend's brother, fate, forced proximity trope then this one is for you!

The manhwa follows the MC where he is in love with his best friend and his unrequited love for him. But little did he know that his best friend's brother was in love with him the whole time. I will say that there are some iffy moments in terms of like the ml seemed to be a bit manipulative??? But overall it was a fast paced manhwa that can get you out of your reading slump!

Thank you Ize press, yen press, and negalley for this e-ARC in exchange for a honest review!

I really love the red string theme, the unrequited love is killing me though. But I guess all is well that ends well, so I'm rooting for you, Jigeon!

Overall 4 out of 5 for me. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

At first glance, this is a pretty standard BL but it's got a little twist by incorporating the whiskey of the red string of fate. Who doesn't swoon at the idea of having a fated partner? I was really intrigued by the idea that there are physical symptoms of the rings. Given, this assumes that you and your ring partner are actually compatible because otherwise that is just tragic .

However, I was not a fan of Jigeon using Wooseo’s feelings for his brother to be with him. I wish he had just organically tried to woo Wooseo rather than use this manipulative tactic.

Tied to You was a story with a fun premise. I liked the gradual development of the relationship between the two main characters. The artwork, too, was pleasing throughout with some lovely panels and page layouts. By the time this first volume ended, I was invested in the characters and their story, so I would definitely be happy to read on in volume two, to see where this slow-burn start takes them. I am giving it 4.5 stars.

Wooseo has been in love with his best friend for years. But fate has other plans.
What happens when fate ties him to his best friend’s…brother?

I’m not usually one for love triangles, but this yaoi manhwa had me swooning and melting at every page. Cold and stoic CEO Jigeon crushing on sweet Wooseo was positively adorable and I need more of this immediately.

The added fantasy element of the red rings just made this read even cuter. Who doesn’t want to believe in magic? In special rings that appear when you meet the one person meant for you?

My only problem is, I don’t know how I feel about Jigeon using Wooseo’s feelings for his brother to be with him.
I’ve read other reviews saying he comes off a bit manipulative, and that the age gap seemed a little iffy. I didn’t get that vibe, only two people struggling with unrequited love and trying, albeit not in a healthy way, to find solace and comfort.
And I get that age gap is a trope not many can get into, so if you don’t enjoy it maybe steer clear of these guys.

I’m expecting tons of drama between these three, but hopefully they all find happiness in the end. Can’t wait.

Thank you Yen Press and NetGalley, for providing me with this arc in exchange for my honest review.

In a world where fate can tie you together and you won’t be able to sleep without your fated partner once you’ve made physical contact with him/her after becoming an adult, Wooseo Shin becomes part of a very complicated love triangle.

This was a very engaging story with cool art with a sophisticated feel, I found it really fitting especially for the parts with Jigeon.

Wooseo is a top student at college. He was able to go to his preferred college together with his best friend Jiseok, thanks to Jiseok’s older brother Jigeon, who tutored Wooseo.

Wooseo is an insecure and nervous character but he is really sweet and considerate. He’s in love with Jiseok but it’s unrequited love.. Wooseo has lost touch with Jigeon and we eventually find out why. It complicates things even more..

After seeing Jigeon again when Wooseo becomes an adult and he accidentally touches him, they both fall ill and get their rings which means they’re fated partners and they need to find a way to sleep together like in just sleep. They find solutions and Jigeon stays really cool and composed, he’s almost cold but there is (even though he’s really good at manipulating people) a heart in there, but Wooseo worries a lot. Wooseo is scared that Jiseok will find out and that Jigeon hates him,…

Eventually we find out that things aren’t (or possibly aren’t) what they seem and I guessed some of the hidden feelings or secrets, but not all of them.

Jigeon was the cool older brother and successful CEO and almost treated Wooseo like his pet xd. Wooseo was cute and easily manipulated and I really loved his friendship with popular but nice guy Jiseok at first but I’m not so sure about that anymore after some things happened at the end.

I wasn’t the biggest fan of certain behaviors but this was very entertaining and I wanna read more! I need to know where this is going.

This story was so sweet and heartwarming, but at the same time it broke my heart. The characters have depth and I couldn't stop reading - I had to know what happened next. The way the story is spun is just breathtaking.

I loved the story, the pacing and the artstyle. Can't wait for the next volume!

** I WAS GIVEN THIS BOOK FOR MY READING PLEASURE **
Copy received through Netgalley

~

Tied To You, Vol. 1, by WHAT, Chelliace

★★★★★
272 Pages
Themes: forced proximity, fated mates, best friend's brother, unrequited love, love triangle


Tied to You is an adorable college-age romance. Weaving together themes of unrequited love, friendship and fated mates, it spins a new take on the red thread of fate.

In this world, it's commonly known that a red thread connects two fated hearts together. Most believe it's only an urban legend, but everyone knows about it. The red thread connects two people and they're unable to sleep or function without one another, once they discover the thread after they turn 20. All it takes is a single touch to know and they can see the thread between them.

Wooseo is in love with his best friend, Jiseok, but knows that Jiseok is straight and they've been friends for so long that they can't be connected by the red thread. But when he bumps into Jiseok's older brother one day, Jigeon, and the red thread appears between Wooseo and Jigeon, things begin to unravel.

Wooseo is a heart-on-his-sleeve type of person, but he's been holding back a lot to hide his feelings from Jiseok. Conversely, Jigeon has been shutting his emotions away for so long – with absent parents, he's had to grow up fast and be the parental figure to two siblings – that it's second nature. Until the red thread starts to force their hand.

I loved that the red thread connection didn't make everything perfect for this couple, but actually made it more complicated and forced them to face things they'd been avoiding. I also loved that it wasn't in any way sexual; they just had to sleep beside each other, which was a really cute and sweet twist.

There was a lot of story packed into this one volume, which was awesome! I love a long volume, especially when we got to see flashbacks from each main character, explaining their past relationship with each other and how that's affected the present day. At first I really loved Wooseo and Jiseok's friendship, but the cracks soon began to appear and feel more like Wooseo was being used by his friend, even though it may have been unintentional.

Sometimes, manga stories move fast and I've grown used to that, but this one took a nice length of time to explore the characters and their complex relationships before progressing. I loved the pacing, the artwork and the hints of what might happen in volume two.

I am absolutely in love with the recent influx of YA BL manga on the market lately, and this is another great story. I've already added it to my cart, to get the paperbacks on my shelf!

Thank you to NetGalley, Yen Press, Ize Press, WHAT (artist), and Chelliace (story) for the opportunity to read this manga in exchange for an honest review.

This manhwa follows Wooseo, his best friend Jiseok, and his friend's older brother Jigeon. In traditional folklore, it is said that a red ring of fate will tie a person to their soulmate. When a ring appears on Wooseo's finger, he aims to find out who he is tied to, only for it to be Jigeon. But Wooseo has always really liked his best friend, Jigeon's younger brother Jiseok. Jiseok has made it clear there's a certain type of girl he likes and even hints at someone specific, but when he sees Jigeon and Wooseo growing closer, a strange jealousy blooms within him.

In what appears to be a potential love triangle, this 337 full-color volume is only the first half of a gripping boy love romance for older readers (college audience). An excellent start with a promising end to come.

I really liked this one! It’s a little dark, what with the age gap, but I love a brother’s-best-friend trope and the added twist of soulmates and an unrequited crush made this a fun read. I liked that the characters were complex and not cookie-cutter good people—their individuality made for a compelling story. I will definitely be reading the second volume!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC!

Thank you IZE Press and Yen Press for allowing me to read and review this volume! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Fated partners / Red Thread of Fate
Love triangle
Age gap romance
Unrequited love
First Boys Love title for IZE Press (Hopefully there will be more!!)

When you become an adult a red ring can appear on your finger when you come in contact with your soulmate. If you try to remove the ring, it can cause death. You must stay with your fated partner as it can cause terrible side effects if you don't.

College student Wooseo Shin is in love with his best friend Jiseok Kang. One night he hangs out with Jiseok and by accidentally bumps into Jiseok's older brother Jigeon. Later that night Wooseo falls ill and the red ring appears. When he finds out his fated partner is Jigeon, he's shocked and disappointed. They decide to strike a deal to keep it secret and figure out a way to deal with being fated.

I'm not a huge fan of the artwork but it definitely grew on me as I kept reading. I've always been a fan of the red thread of fate theory, and the way the author incorporated it in the story is intriguing.

I like the love triangle between Wooseo, Jigeon, and Jiseok. Technically Jiseok isn't interested in Wooseo but there are very tiny hints of something brewing there. The tension and dynamic between Jigeon and Wooseo is kind of hot and I'm here for it. I'm looking forward to volume two and seeing where their relationship goes.

4.5 stars

This is a really light start to a cute yaoi manga. I really liked seeing both povs here - and I think that’s what makes this one so special. It is a slow burn though and I will have to see if I want to continue, maybe one more volume to see how slow the burn really is!

The art style is definitely gorgeous and light. It’s very beautiful!

The concept of soulmates was very intriguing, especially when combined with a good amount of yearning and unreciprocated love.
However, I found Jigeon's manipulative behavior to be problematic and it felt like Wooseo didn't have enough space to express his true desires.
Additionally, I was confused about how they were able to keep their bond and relationship a secret from Jigeon's brother, given that the rings on their hands should have been quite noticeable.

Tied to You is a soulmate trope exploration that's less about soulmates and more about the romance of dating a manipulative man who is a walking red flag and you either enjoy this kind of things or you don't. Normally I am firmly in the camp of Keep This Away From Me, but I was curious to see where the sibling angle goes with it, and I honestly admit I love a chance to read a webtoon in a proper book format (my eyes hate the vertical scrolling so much). Volume one sets the scene, and only hints at this being Romancing the Red Flags kinda story; and the soulbond itself, normally a trope I dislike, was handled with weird capitalist solvable-issue mentality, which I thought made the set up a bit more palatable. Long story short, I raced through his volume and picked up the rest of the webtoon online: a remarkable indication of me willing to overcome vertical scrolling to find out whether the manipulative mister man will land on his face or not. If you are interested in finding out an answer to that, see the opening sentence to this review :') So overall, not my best manhwa read, but clearly kept my interest long enough to continue.

I'm mystified by the number of people leaving a good rating for this. I might have been torn about what to rate this if it weren't for the age gap, but we'll get to that in a moment.

First, TW for pedophilia and grooming

On one hand, Tied to You is easily binged, angsty in the best way and has some of my fav tropes (soulmates, pining, unrequited love). On the other hand, Jigeon is a walking red flag and I know that it's going to get blown off and accepted as okay despite him being a manipulative psycho predator. He had been looking at his kid brother's friend when he was tutoring him as a CHILD and they have a seven year age gap which means if I'm understanding correctly this is a relationship between an 18 year old and 25 year old. Not only is there a massive power balance because of the age gap, but Jigeon is also the CEO of a very successful company and actively uses his money to help Wooseo, further creating power imbalance between the two. He spends the majority of volume 1 manipulating everyone around him (including his younger brother and Wooseo), in any way he thinks will work to overstep Wooseo's boundaries and convince him to have a relationship. I get that people enjoy dark romance and taboo topics, but this isn't that. There are even panels drawn specifically to show the massive size difference between the two, which only makes Wooseo look like an even younger child.

While this was something I was all set to love before I began it, I can't in good conscience recommend this manhwa.

A very cute start too a really interesting concept. Wooseo is a college student in love with his best friend. In this world, after your 20th birthday if you touch your true partner, a red ring is found 24 hours later on your ring finger! Wooseo's partner is a big surprise to him, and their relationship starts to develop. Great start!

Thank you Yen Press and Netgalley for this eARC, these opinions are my own. I think the thing I like the most about graphic novels, apart from all the pretty artwork, is how they’re quick reads! And that even though it’s a quick read they still manage to pack a lot of depth into them! Wooseo has fallen for his best friend Jiseok but he doesn’t know if he likes him back. Things get more complicated when when he ends up with a red ring on his finger. The ring is said to connect you to your fated partner and can only be triggered when you come in close physical contact with the person. Even bigger problem the red ring attaches him to Jiseok’s older brother Jigeon. Also it’s said that if you don’t sleep, as in get some zzz’s, with your partner you won’t be able to sleep at all and could even lead to death. Jigeon and Wooseo most sleep together but they also hide this from Jiseok. It’s difficult for Jigeon though because he fell for Wooseo a long time ago. Will the two get some sleep? Will Jiseok find out? Is he interested in Wooseo? A cute romantic story of two people both in unrequited love! Very much an age gap slow burn that left me craving volume 2! WHAT and Chelliace did a great job with this!

I love red string of fate stories and BL, and this story is soooo lovely. I love the depth of each character, how they have multitudes. I'm sad that there's not a second volume out yet. How am I supposed to wait until August?! The pilot volume of this manwha introduces the story/plot and characters in a way that leaves nothing to question. There's even a a POV from Jigeon's side!

I'm in love. I need more. If I write more here, I'll likely spoil some things soooo I won't.

3.5⭐️

**ARC provided by the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review**

I've read stories about the Red Thread of Fate before, but this is the first with these characteristics, which made it interesting. Not being able to sleep unless you're with them forces you to interact with that person. I do have to say that it can lead to uncomfortable and/or problematic situations, and that gives me mixed feelings. The age gap between Wooseo and Jigeon is not the biggest I've seen, but it doesn't seem just a number in this case. They act a little like siblings with a big age gap.

By the end of it, though, I was fairly invested. It's certainly entertaining. I wouldn't mind continuing this series.