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

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Kei x Yaku: Bound by Law, Vol. 01
by Yoshie Kauruhara

★★★★☆


Kei x Yaku is an interesting story about two opposites who are drawn together by the same goal. Shiro is a male escort to various male politicians and involved in a crime family, while Ichiro is a police officer in a special branch. They encounter each other when Ichiro is tasked with investigating Shiro quietly, due to his connection to the politicians he's been associated with. However, upon meeting, they discover they have another link: Ichiro's mentor, Rion Nakaba, is also Shiro's older sister.

Rion Nakabi is an off-page third main character, in my opinion. The story centers around her, including many flashbacks about her with the two main characters. While Shiro and Ichiro have to fake being boyfriends to join forces, we explore just as much of Rion's life as theirs.

Rion went missing, believed kidnapped, and a video of her torture was posted online, then mysteriously deleted not long after causing a hype online. There's been no sign of her ever since. In the meantime, Shiro has become an escort and part of a crime family, simply to investigate her disappearance, after finding clues in her diary. Ichiro has wanted to investigate ever since she went missing, but has been warned off by the head bosses. When he bumps into Shiro, they both see an opportunity to investigate without anyone getting suspicious or getting in their way.

I loved both Shiro and Ichiro equally. They're total opposites but are equally interesting and wonderful in their own ways. I loved how they managed to find a rhythm with each other while continuing their own lives.

The artwork was lovely, with a few chibi style panels thrown in. I loved the addition of the bonus panels in between the chapters. I also really appreciated the glossary of terms at the end, which explained the meaning of the title, which really suited the story and the characters.

All in all, I'll be looking forward to the next volume.

This is a mystery detective story that started with a policeman and yakuza in a fake dating arrangement in order to investigate the disappearance of someone they are both close to.

The story is super interesting and funny. The chemistry between the two leads is undeniable. The mystery part of the story is very well done and keeps the readers on the hook as well.
Thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for the review copy. I can’t wait to read the next volume!

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
🌶️

This was a very quick and easy read, with a ton of surprisingly humor-filled moments and silly banter. It's a fairly interesting opening to this world and these characters and I am really excited to see what's in store for the future.

I found this manga really fun, suspenseful and wholesome. I enjoyed the dark edginess, the comedy and the character dynamics. I’m eager to continue this series. Highly recommended for manga readers, and those into thrillers who would like to try a visual experience.

If you've picked up this story because the art looked hot, I have great news for you - it's even better under the cover! Seriously, I was really pleasantly surprised that it walked the line between "two hot dudes are investigating crimes undercover" with "violent yakuzas bedding politicians to uncover secrets" with "two derps roped into cohabitation under false pretenses and it's hilarious". Well-done, honestly. It's obviously not realistic, but it's smooth and slinky and pushes the right buttons and makes you laugh while also giving plenty of competence porn to admire -- that's an easy win in my books. The overarching plot holds attention and develops well, too.

Thanks to Kodansha and Netgalley for an ARC, I really enjoyed this one.

This plot is so interesting and the amount of comedy and seriousness kept me hooked till the very end of this volume. The lead characters were amazing and well penned. Plus the illustrations are so beautiful, the expressions are amazing.
I am definitely looking forward to the next volume now.

Kei X Yaku: Bound By Law 1 was a delight! What a way to start a series. I'm hooked, can't wait to see what happens next.

This is a slow burn but with plenty of almost steamy scenes to keep you going while it builds. The dynamics between the two leads is fun and I'll be fervently awaiting to see how their relationship expands and becomes more.

The art style is slick, the scenes dynamic and the core mystery is intriguing enough to continue building the plot around.

I would certainly recommend this to others.

I received this in return for an honest review from Netgalley.

A good start to get to know the characters and to set the scene. The drawing style is very pretty, and I would like to know more.

Thank you Kodansha Comics for providing the ARC.

First of all, I dont read manga just because I dont know where to start. Kei x Yaku is about Ichiro, an agent with the Tokyo Metropolitan Public Security Bureau, and Shiro, a yakuza hotshot whose bed partners include a considerable amount of influential male politicians. Ichiro is tasked with seducing Shiro. Later they discover they are both trying to figure out the same cold case and team up.

It was laugh out loud funny and the characters were fantastic. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this and look forward to reading more of their journey in finding out what happened. One critique is that I didnt realize it was to be read right to left so the first 10 pages were confusing - totally my error since I havent read manga before.

4 stars!

This was an interesting trope of a yakuza teaming up with a cop, BL, bromance, and the art is cute which is a bonus!

so far the plot is very interesting. the manga looks good, we have a policeman and a member of the yakuza teaming up. we will see how the plot progresses and how the conflicts develop.

I will 100% be buying my own copy of this!

BL, fake dating, policeman x yakuza, gorgeous art, complex characters, and rivals working together to a common goal (solving a mystery) and hopefully falling in love? Sign me the heck up! Ticking all the boxes for me 😂😅.

I absolutely loved this volume! Just enough details about each (secretive) character and the events they’re investigating are revealed that I am already so very hooked on this story and really want to know more ASAP and I cannot wait until volume 2! 😭😭

This is a rare sequence of events where I'd already seen and loved the live action adaptation of this before reading the manga. The show was incredibly well done but ended on a vague bromance/found family note. I'm so happy we're finally getting translations for the manga that actually leans into the slow burn romance of the leads and has a lot more character depth. Can't wait to read the sequels since it seems unlikely we'll get more seasons of the show.

Really good start to a series. Ichiro is a special agent hautend by the disappearance of his partner he isn’t allowed to investigate. Instead, he’s made to tail Shiro, a yakuza getting too close to male politicians. Turns out, he’s looking for the same person. The men decide to team up, which they have to keep a secret from their respective organisations, so they pretend to be a couple living together.

This had a good balance of action plot and comic elements. There were only three chapters and some bonus comics, so the investigation—and the men’s relationship—didn’t really get anywhere yet. But I liked both characters and would like to follow their story further. Illustrations were good too.

A super fun, quick read and I'm definitely invested in the mysterious disappearance and politicians' involvement! I'd definitely read the next installment.

I've really been enjoying manga with yakuza characters lately for some reason and this was a decent one. It's opposites attract, fake romance, and (sort of) enemies to lovers tropes all in one. This volume does a decent job of setting up the story and making the characters interesting. There's quite a bit of humor mixed in to balance out the the darkness of what's going on. I have a lot of questions about Ichiro's boss, I think I hate him, and I want to see where that storyline goes. Shiro and Ichiro's dynamic is good and I have high hopes for how their relationship will progress in future volumes. At this stage they are just pretending at being lovers in order to investigate together. I really want to see that move forward. Overall, a decent start to what I hope will be a good series.

Ichiro's latest assignment from the bureau is to go undercover and find info on Shiro who has been involved with several politicians. They put up a fake dating facade to find who was responsible for the death of someone course to both Ichiro and Shiro.
There were short back stories given in between the ongoing events and both get to know one another more and co-operate with each other. There were some funny moments but no romance in this part. This is just an intro without any serious revelation or cliffhanger.

Like a crime story with a good mystery to crack with some funny moments of these guys trying to pull off being in a fake relationship. This made me giggle a lot, I love the guy who is playing the bad guy. Can't wait to see where this goes and if they solve the case.

Ichiro Kunishita works at the public security bureau. He wants to investigate the disappearance of his missing mentor. Shiro Hanabusa is a yakuza lieutenant. He is known to bed certain influential male politicians. Ichiro is tasked in approaching and seducing Shiro. Their first meeting goes horribly awry. They soon discover they have “someone” in common.

Shiro and Ichiro make the unlikeliest partners. Their differences make them so entertaining and fun! Their “relationship” is more of a ruse than an actuality. However, there is a hint of possibility between them…

Hardcore BL lovers may be disappointed with this manga. If they want spicy, erotic, naughty scenes, there are none in this volume. I definitely plan to pick up this manga and future titles for my personal library (and to re-read whenever the whimsy takes me)

😭😭😭 I need to know what happens next.
The tension and the mystery is all so fun.

I love how they’re building everything up.