2.5 stars

I read the arc of this and it reads as a rough outline of a longer story with finished artwork. The plot has a lot of potential: an accused murderer and an exiled rich girl meet and fall in love. The issue is it is extremely fast paced and this volume alone could probably be paced out into 10 (maybe an exaggeration but I’m honestly not sure because there’s a lot of potential content that could be spanned out into many more volumes). The dialogue is a bit unnatural and rushed and very tell not show, but the plot is strong enough that I didn’t necessarily get bored, though that doesn’t mean I was invested like I should have been. We get glimpses of the characters motivations, but I wish for something more fleshed out. I would really enjoy this novel if it took its time to build the characters and the relationships properly.

I enjoyed this manga quite alot, it could just be the CJ person in me but this story was both cute and holds some interesting meanings.

I wanted to like this. There was so much potential but it just kept jumping around with no real direction. One moment you were talking about one thing then the next it was something else with zero transition.

"Snow & Ink" is a fast paced manga that invests in it's characters quickly and forms intense bonds between them. This is definitely not part of the slow burn genre. Neneo is a criminal that has been sentenced to death and right before the sentence can be carried out, Freya purchases him. She is desperate to escape the judgement of ruining her family business and wants to disappear... what better way to do that than with the help of a criminal? Even though they both seem to have given up on moving their lives forward, the cold is enough to make anyone cling to something warm...

“If it doesn’t work out, then I’ll find her a husband myself. She’s pretty enough, so I’m sure somebody would take her in. But, if she doesn’t want that, I’ll fulfill all her needs. I’ll make sure there’s no room in her life for you, until the very end.” - Neneo

✨ Snow & Ink is a story about Neneo, who committed a heinous crime of murder and was on the verge of execution. Freya Gibson, a young lady from a wealthy family, decided to buy Neneo to protect herself from her own family and to seek revenge.

✨ I was really intrigued from the moment I read about Freya buying a criminal just to protect herself. I thought she must be a rich sociopath who was bored with her life and needed some “sprinkle me with attention.” But nope, she wasn’t like that at all. She’s more of a rich, kind, intelligent, and humble young lady, who was mistreated by her community and disowned by her own family because of a huge mistake.

✨ Then there’s Neneo, who's this total badass who was incarcerated for killing 50 people. He’s practically a psychopath. But there’s always a twist you wouldn’t want to miss. Another character that kept me interested was Halvard, a rich misfit who happens to be Freya’s ex-fiancé. I sense a love triangle here. Ughhh. I can’t wait to read the next volume to see what happens next.

✨ Overall, this has been a wild read for me. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves super fast-paced romance and mystery.

✨ Huge thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for giving me the opportunity to read this amazing manga.

✨ WHAT I LIKED:
📌 When Freya accepted Neneo for who he is
📌 Freya and Neneo kissed multiple times
📌 When Halvard protected Freya without her knowing
📌 When Freya said, “I can still find things I like, even in unfamiliar places.”
📌 Every time Neneo came to Freya’s rescue

✨ TROPES:
📌 FAST - PACED ROMANCE
📌 GRUMPY X SUNSHINE
📌 POLITICAL INTRIGUE
📌 WEALTH GAP ROMANCE
📌 OPPOSITES ATTRACT
📌 VIRUS OUTBREAK
📌 LOVE TRIANGLE
📌 REDEMPTION ARC
📌 A SUBTLE AMOUNT OF SPICE

🖥️ GOODREADS REVIEW: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6798226355

💻 BLOG REVIEW: https://kimthebookdragon.wordpress.com/2024/08/28/arc-review-snow-ink-volume-1-by-miyuki-unohana/

This is HILARIOUS and at the same time serious and ROMANTIC out of nowhere!

I love this manga so much! The presentation, the art sequence, the quiet and the chaotic characters, the unassuming romance quite surprised me!

Love the main characters as well as the prickly side characters!

It IS the story of a romance between a killer and the heiress who saved him from being killed. Both are outcasts and had to leave their past but the past isn’t easy to let go even after all the escape!

Perfect read!

I am so happy the romance is NOT AT ALL CHEESY!

Thank you, Kodansha Comics, for the ARC.

I am hesitant to say this compares to My Happy Marriage (MHM), because although both include two characters being bought together somewhat reluctantly/out of necessity, the relationship for the couple in MHM took some time to develop, where as in this manga it felt more like Insta love. To me, pacing was definitely an issue in this manga. Would have loved to see Freya and Neneo slowly open up to each other, or at least gain a deeper understanding of each other before they could even consider developing romantic feelings. Still don't know how I feel about the fact that she bought him and how he kind of has no choice really. For the start to a series, it was decent, albeit fast passed, a little confusing but mostly okay. Not overly convinced that I'll be reading the next installment in this series, but I am slightly curious about what adventure these characters will embark on next.

This was not really my thing. The description sounded interesting, but I couldn't get over the whole "buying a person" thing. I'm also someone who loves watching characters slowly and naturally grow and learn, but there wasn't really character development here. Things happened way too fast for me to feel anything, and it felt unnatural

This was a really interesting premise and promising first volume. I ended up really liking both leads, as well as the side character introduced in this volume. I'm interested to get a more complete understanding of both lead's histories, as they are explained but not fully fleshed out yet. I think the dynamic between the two was very cute, although surprising that it developed as quickly as it did. I'd definitely read the next volume!

I loved the art style. but it seemed like the story progressed a lot in one volume, their companionship towards each other especially, It would be better if it was forced proximity that develops slowly into caring for one another.

I still enjoyed their dynamic of a disgraced girl, Freya who has nothing and teams up with someone who has done villainous stuff yet still feels remorseful and caring.

An interesting comic. I was drawn inside by the cover. Stylish artwork and colours, and a narrative that engages from page one. Once I started reading I couldn’t stop. Freya is haunted and vilified for losing other’s fortunes. Neneo is a condemned criminal. When Freya buys him to accompany as she travels in a cold world their lives will change. Because when you start to dig there is more to each of their stories. Maybe the warmth that is slowly found in each other’s company can give them both what they need. Thank you to Kodansha Comics and NetGalley for the comic ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

Under a dark background story, this manga is surprisingly wholesome. We have Neneo, the murderer, Freya the disowned heiress and Halvard. The romance between Freya and Neneo was really cute and I am looking forward to dive in their character development in the next volumes. Halvard is my favorite between them. He is just so weird which makes it hilarious.

Thanks to NetGalley, author, and the publisher for access to this title in exchange for my honest opinions and review!

I enjoyed this manga though I found the romance developed between the two main characters to be rushed though it was very sweet how they came to support each other emotionally and with physical proximity. It was intriguing to see the redemption of Neneo when the truth of what happened to the villagers is revealed through his flashbacks and I love how Freya wants to protect him and help him through his trauma. I do wish there was more development of both characters since we only see how they interact with each other and I don’t feel as if I was given a solid personality other than the “cold heiress” and “loud-mouthed guy” archetypes (which are revealed to not be very accurate in the later chapters). The pacing was a little off as well. The scenes did not flow together smoothly, it skipped around and it wasn’t clear how time is passing in the story. Lastly, I wish more of Freya’s backstory was given to the reader, instead of only knowing the rumors about her loss of inheritance and the volatile interactions with violent men in public. Freya did not have any flashbacks, even about her ex-fiance though we had very many through Neneo’s perspective.
I think it’s a good start to a series, though I want to see more characterization and a smoother story pacing, and I would be interested in reading the next installment!

The concept of this and the title drew me to this manga but it ultimately fell short. The story was okay but very, very fast paced and the two characters getting together happened too quickly for it to make sense. The characters themselves fell flat, with the initial intrigue falling away pretty quick as their backstories were revealed very early on. The end was not enough to convince me to continue with the series but I wish the author well!

I had a lot of problems with the story of this manga. What I didn't like:

The plot was non-existant, the characters had unclear motivations and unrealistic personalities and the pacing was so fast it was ridiculous. The main story is that a super rich girl gets estranged from her family and is in disgrace for some bad business management on her part and decides to buy a prisoner who is accused of mass murder on a whim. The two go from enemies to lovers in the span of just 35 pages, and while we're on the subject of tropes, here are a few more from the first chapter:
- man with a criminal past is actually a nice guy just misunderstood
- he is wounded and she has to tend to his wounds (and sees him shirtless in doing so!)
- its so cold out so they need to huddle together for warmth
- only one bed
- she's so innocent and naive he must protect her

Tropes aside, the pacing is whats really the problem with this book; the relationship progresses so fast I had to go back and re-read because I was convinced I was missing a whole chapter. They go from strangers to devoted couple in a few pages and it made them seem like totally different characters.

What I did like:

The art was drawn in a traditional manga style that was well done, aesthetically pleasing and clean. The formatting of the page layout was also well done and I never had any confusion or trouble knowing which text bubble to read next. These two points are what saved me from rating this a one star

Thank you NetGalley for a digital ARC!

This is the first volume in a manga series that follows a soft-hearted, disgraced, heiress headed north alongside an alleged murderer she bought to save him from his execution. This somewhat unlikely pair quickly (VERY quickly) fall in love as they travel north together and find refuge in a little house not far from the heiress’ ex-fiancé. There the three of them work together to help her ex-fiancée with his medical research.

In this first volume I would not say there’s much plot at this point but instead mostly character introductions and the super intense romantic feelings between Neneo and Freya.

This story started off pretty disjointed and the pacing felt very off as our two MCs traveled north. However, once they made it to their little house the pacing seemed to settle a bit.

I would read more volumes of this manga because I’m curious to see where it goes, but I can’t say that I’m super drawn to or connecting with the characters just yet.

You can find my full review on Storygraph!

This manga is both sweet and haunting. It is easy to see why it has taken Japan by storm. I was initially intrigued by the idea of an assassin or killer character playing bodyguard to an heiress. That premise set up some preconceived notions that were quickly subverted by the direction the story took. There are multiple twists on a classic romance tropes, which I think would make the manga appeal to adult romance readers. This first volume also sets up an adventure/road-trip, which is a good hook for the next volume. It's art style is lovely, and the characters are dynamic and interesting. I am looking forward to the next volume.

The art style and synopsis for this manga drew me in but unfortunately I think it missed the mark a bit for me.

The story features a disgraced heiress and a mass murderer. She buys him on a whim to accompany her into exile. The relationship between these two moves extremely quickly. In the span of one chapter we’ve gone from uncomfortable companions to being in some semblance of a relationship.

The pacing for this manga just seems extremely quick. And there’s not a lot of backstory or fluff to pad the story out. Which isn’t always a bad thing, but here it just makes the story look rushed and a bit sloppy.

The art style is quite lovely, however. Aesthetically it’s a great manga. I am not sure if I will continue with this series but who knows.

This manga had a brilliant idea behind it. Ultimately it didn't live up to my expectations. The plot was too quick with no time for character or relationship development, The art style is pretty but it doesn't make up for the lack of a real story. It feels as if these characters were just thrown onto the page without thought. Literally nothing in this whole first volume was fleshed out leading to the majority of the events having no reason behind them and honestly confusing me! It has the potential to be something good in the next volume but there needs to be a serious effort put into it!

Thank you to Netgalley for a copy for an honest review

Ok first volume but I feel the pacing was a little rushed but it was ok, the illustrations are nice but I don’t think I will be picking up volume 2

Star rating: 2 ⭐️⭐️