i love a good shojo manga but this felt very bland and the dynamics it sets up feel very meh. the mc's 'i am but a secondary character in my own story' also felt boring

I feel like so much happened but also nothing. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t amazing. I know that the start of a story is usually not THAT interesting but I feel like not much has been set up for later volumes. Also the ending had me a bit confused might just be me tho. I would prob only recommend this to people who like typical high school stories and don’t want a bunch of crazy stuff to happen. I would prob read vol 2 just to see what was going on in the end and to try and see if I like the story more as it progresses.

A cute but unoriginal concept with lovely art. Sadly, the translation is extremely unnatural and rather awkward in places, but this may be the standard for manga (which I do not often read). I would be interested in continuing the story but hope the translation improves.

beautiful art !!! also i can smell the upcoming angst and drama from a mile 🤭 so excited for the rest (i hope they don’t make the teacher a predator though)

+tbh i wish it was yur[SHOT GUN]

The unrequited love in this is heartbreakingly accurate, with gorgeous art, but the “ordinary girl” getting jealous over her pretty best friend is too overdone in my opinion and so this didn’t feel like anything new.

I may continue reading this series as it releases because it has potential (and the art is beautiful), but I don’t know yet.

I read this through Netgalley.

I didn't love it. The art was a bit bland, the story didn't engage me very much and I didn't really click with any of the characters.

The smart is pretty, however I found myself struggling to grt into the plot. It's about a girl who sees herself as nothing more than the side character, but her worldview is forced to shift when a boy confesses to her.

It's cute, simple, and sweet. And I think fans of this genre of manga will love this. However it just wasn't for me.

Review to come next week to blog/other places.

I received this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange of an honest review.

This was a gorgeous manga which reminded me of Blue Flag. In this one we meet four classmates and see their lives/love lives.

In this first volume we meet Hikari (with the last chapter being the beginning of Ohtani's part), a quiet girl who plays the French Horn, and is quietly admiring/falling in love with her classmate Ohtani. Problem though? Ohtani seems interested in Hikari's best friend, the cute Mari. We see how this is for Hikari, at first she is all shipping them, helping them both out, but then she starts to wonder. Is this what she wants? Does she just want to stay on the side lines? I really found myself rooting for her to just try to express her feelings. It helps that Ohtani and she have conversations on the way home, plus also at school, and I just wanted to have something happen between them. ARGH! They really would make a cute couple, you know.
Next to having the problem of should she continue to root/help out her friend, there is also the fact that she worries about her monolids and wishes she had double. This one wasn't relatable to me, but I can imagine in Asia/for Asian people this would be something to nod along with. For me I just couldn't entirely understand the deal, Hikari looked beautiful as she is. But I guess there is a whole cultural bit around it. I will definitely be reading a bit more about it when I can.

I loved seeing the four classmates find each other, talk, and have fun together. It was really fun. I liked that there are two sets of friends, Mari and Hikari, Ohtani and Asagiri-kun but they also form one friend group. If that makes sense, haha.

And then there is the mystery of Mari. She is quite shy, but I was always wondering if that was a front or not. Plus, there is a bigger mystery, because what is Mari up to. Where does she disappear to? I am happy that we find out, though of course there are plenty of questions now remaining and I need the second volume!

I am really invested in this manga and I am curious who will be next after Ohtani. Asagiri? Mari? Hikari again (though that would be weird)? I need to know who will start dating who and what is next for these 4!

The art in this one was just absolutely stunning and I loved every bit of it. Some of these are just so frame-worthy!

All in all, I would recommend this one. Fun characters, dash of romance, a girl to root for, and much more. I loved it!

This deffo didn’t need nudity, even censored.
The story and characters seem sweet enough but not sure I’d be interested enough to continue it.

I See Your Face Turned Away 🗣️
🥰 Romance/Shoujo/Slice of Life (High School)
📚 NEW - Vol 1 Published May 2024
🙅🏻‍♀️ No Anime
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The Main Character doesn’t see herself as a main character, she daydreams like she’s just the average best friend of the adorable, shy, main love interest in a harem manga. She goes so far as to ship her with the boy that sits in front of her in class; daydreaming about how cute they would look together and she’s “just their friend”.
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How long will being “just the friend” be enough?
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The boy confesses his feelings for her best friend and protagonist begins to question her own role in their lives. She realizes that she’s allowed to be more than mediocre and be more than “the friend”. She starts to see herself in a new light and contemplates her own feelings and desires in other aspects as well.
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At the end of Vol 1 we find that the super adorable/cute/shy best friend may be hiding something 🤔
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I’ll be here anxiously waiting for Volume 2.
Read if you liked My Love Mix up.
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Thanks to #netgalley for the chance to read #ISeeyourfaceturnedaway for free.

Hikari is a young musician trying to navigate high school as a freshman. Her best friend Mari is super shy and as a plan to get her to open up and meet people, she decides to hook her up with a popular boy at school. Luckily, he already has a crush on Mari.

I thought this was cute. The characters are pretty shallow for now and it seems like there may be the beginnings of a love triangle. There are similarities between this series and Komi Can't Communicate and I prefer Komi. I would have given this a 2⭐ rating if it wasn't for the art. Every panel is beautiful and I really enjoyed that part of the manga. I don't know that I will continue with the series, but if this every becomes a 12-16 episode anime, I would probably give it a go.

First volume of a new shojo series by Rumi Ichinohe.
Mori Hikari is Takahashi Mari’s best friend. Mari is so beautiful that people always notice her; Hikari is “average”. No surprise that a boy in their class, Ohtani, is interested in Mari, and asks Hikari for help. As you can easily guess, Hikari falls in love with Ohtani.
So we have a love triangle, and things get more complicated when we discover that maybe Mari has someone else she is in love with.
Teenage unrequired love is not my cup of tea, but I can stand it if the series is not too long: in Japan, we have 3 published volumes; if it will end soon, maybe I could continue this series.

Since this title has just won the 2024 edition of the prestigious Kodansha Manga Award I was curious to read it.
This looks like a classic love triangle story, but the main character looks like the other one in the blossoming (?) love story. The point that made the read worthy was the anguished feeling hidden between the MC words: she thinks she isn't worthy but just an average person and in being so she doesn't deserve anything life may offer. So she prefers standing in the sidelines, helping her shy best friend (who looked even too much shy, not so much developed), sacrificing the things she wants. The only possible outcome is doomed with unhappiness and pain.
I hope I am wrong.

If this title will arrive in my mother language (Italian) I will continue this little sad story

This manga immediately caught my eye when I was browsing titles. I love a slice of life type of story, and this was just that. As someone who often was the middle man in a lot of relationships back in high school, this story felt familiar. I loved the subtle nuances from the FMC and the back and forth between her and her friends. Overall, I really enjoyed this manga and will be continuing with the series. It’s all so sweet!

This manga was bittersweet and filled with lighthearted angst, leaving me wanting more volumes immediately. The author put a lot of thought into details, allowing the reader to make their own inferences about the characters and their inner thoughts and feelings. The art was well done and enjoyable - I spent extra time on many of the pages just taking in all of the little details. I would definitely recommend this read.

A girl growing up feeling like the side character in everyone else’s life. I think most people have dealt with imposter syndrome at one point, right? This is a great start to a new Shoujo manga series about our main character breaking away from those feelings and finding out what and who she really wants in her life. A very cozy reading experience with beautiful panels. I will definitely be reading more!

Thank you Rumi Ichinohe, Kodansha Comics and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC!

Such a cute first volume! Our main character Hikari, is an average high school girl looking out for her best friend Mari. There are other characters and love interests introduced later on in the volume. It will be interesting to see who ends up with who as there is a lot of unrequited feelings between the characters (character A likes character B who likes character C). This volume is mostly in Hikari's POV, but we do switch to another character for the last chapter. I really love the art in the volume as well as the unfolding story. Will definitely be picking up the next volume!

I See Your Face, Turned Away is a romance shoujo, but interestingly so from the friend's point of view. Hikari is ordinary in every possible way, but her friend Mari is cute, but very shy. Hikari starts imagining Mari and Ohtani together, since she believes they're perfect for each other. Ohtani surely seems interested in Mari and Hikari helps them, but soon notices she herself has feelings for Ohtani. So, a love triangle it seems. For me Hikari's quick feelings feel superimposed, since I'm not a fan of insta love. Also, we don't get inside her head as much I as I would want to and this makes the manga feel a little detached. Hardly anything is happening, which is fine, but we would need something more to make this truly work.

The art is nice and beautiful. It's great the characters have facial expressions and altogether the manga is lively. Getting inside Ohtani's head a few times was a good thing too, since otherwise his persona would be too bland. I See Your Face, Turned Away is a cute and slow series with feelings flying everywhere - if that is your thing, then this is for you. Gladly this is realistic though!

Rating about 3.5 -4 stars
Now this is an unrequited high school love story, where the main character ends up falling for someone that she helps them get closer to their friend ; however, their friend likes someone else. Volume 1 really focuses on Hikari and her perspective- with very few scenes of the others’ perspective. We don’t know too much about her friend Mari besides that she is shy around others or about Ohtani’s friend; but we get a bit of Ohtani’s character. When I first went to read this I was a bit skeptical, I will admit. I can’t really put my finger on why but still enjoyed parts of the story and will see if I continue with volume 2. Definitely a series kinda have to be in the mood to read.

Honestly I feel that Hikari is a relatable character, she is just your average high school girl with insecurities. So far it doesn’t feel like there is a bunch of drama, which is nice since sometimes that's when stories lose my interest. I feel like the series progresses at a good rate and the direction it is going we’ll learn more about the other three characters. I know I read a couple reviews that mentioned that there are some things that could have been omitted as they don’t bring much to the story. I didn’t think too much about that. At the beginning, I had to rethink which character was Ohanti and his friend when they were in the same panel, but by the end I could sorta tell them apart based on their style and personality. 

It focuses on Hikari who is about average in every sense. She is friends with Mari, which you can imagine everyone likes, and she starts daydreaming of who would be good for her shy friend. Then she discovers the one person she imagined would be a good match ends up wanting to get closer to Mari. So Hikari helps him,Ohtani, get closer through simple acts. In the process, Ohtani and Hikari also get closer and she soon realizes she develops feelings for him. She slowly thinks about what she wants versus worrying about others.

The main character is a girl who is friends with a shy beautiful girl and is trying to help a classmate to be closer to her. It starts slowly and it seems there is going to be drama involving the friend group since the main character also likes the classmate. But the characters are nice so I have hopes the next volume will be just as good