Lapin's Reading List!

Depths of Malice | 악의의 농도

Currently on: Chapter 70

Thoughts: I usually hate reading Villainess stories because they are always the uwu sweet feMC getting magically transported/reborn into an evil woman's body but she is a sweetpea and has to convince the princely MC that is in an arranged marriage with her that she's a different person, etc. Those stories are all BORING and feel the same to me. But this villainess manhwa?? I'm weak for it to be honest. This is not a ~deep~ read at all but it is SO entertaining to me in a very soap opera way. It had me cackling gleefully when Rita/Verta was able to exact her revenge on the shitty and abusive men in Verta's life (including getting a pedo's pp cut off. justice) Rita/Verta does NOT hesitate to be manipulative, ruthless, selfish and flatout EVIL which is very refreshing to me, as this genre for women always puts the doe-eyed, Disney princess-esque female leads on a pedestal.

Rita/Verta is the very definition of GASLIGHT GATEKEEP GIRLBOSS and I love it. (Also I really love the yandere-ish second ML, he's unhinged and willing to help in her schemes...I wish they would end up together but I know that she will end up with the princely one. yawn) TWs for sexual assualt, explicit sex, and violence. Deffo not for kids. 18+ only.

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正反対な君と僕 | Seihantai no Kimi no Boku | You and I Are Polar Opposites

Currently on: Chapter 24

Thoughts: A romcom currently being serialized. Suzuki (feMC) is an energetic loudmouth that has fallen for the quiet and blunt Tani. This manga is about their blossoming relationship. It has a simplistic and charming artstyle and pretty funny/cute moments. I really enjoy the cast, their friendships with each other, and Suzuki in particular because of relatability (she is goofy and can be a nervous wreck at times, a pretty good rendition of a teenage girl.)

I feel like the writing is believable for an all teenage cast. This is a silly, fluffy read (not an original storyline at all but im also the kind of person that can read coffee shop au fanfic of the same two characters falling in love 100 times so...), I really enjoy this easy and light-hearted reading. Hoping it gets popular enough for an animated or live adaptation ^_^

what kind of stuff you can expect to read:

薫る花は凛と咲く | Kaoru Hana wa Rin to Saku | The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity

Currently on: Chapter 50

Thoughts: Romeo & Juliet story about a smart girl from a prestigious academy and the "delinquent" from the school literally next door. cute and wholesome, any drama that happens is resolved pretty quickly and all the characters are lovable. sugar sweet. i really adore MC, he's so cute and thoughtful. this manga shows the lovely side of teen friendships. Some people criticize this manga for being cheesy, but I don't care! I love the cheese!

ゆびさきと恋々 | Yubisaki to Renren | A Sign of Affection

Currently on: ? i forgot lol

Thoughts: A love story between a deaf girl and a handsome popular guy that travels a lot. the art is beautiful and i really like the feMC (mostly because she is cute..sue me) but i'm not really into the MC tbh. i do like that he puts in effort to learn JSL for Yuki though. kind of reminds me of my favorite j-drama called ORANGE DAYS without the emphasis on music. i hate that there are stupid love triangles tho. too annoying and i dont have patience for it as an adult LOL

今、恋をしています。| Ima Koi | Right Now, I'm In Love

Currently on: ? i forgot lol

Thoughts: Very fluffy story about a shy girl who regrets she never confesses her feelings to whomever she has a crush on. She vows to confess to her next love. Enter Yagyuu, a boy that protects her from a groper. There's instant-love etc. but I'm reading just because it's cute tbh. Theres nothing of substance, just a bunch of dates but the fact that the characters are so straightfoward with eachother is refreshing.

ここは今から倫理です。| Koko wa Ima kara Rinri desu. | We Shall Now Begin Ethics

Currently on: Chapter 13

Thoughts: An ethics teacher teaching morals to troubled students. Takayanagi seems to have some sort of a troubled or dark past himself. I really like the chapters that have to do with sense of self, self worth, introspection, etc. Not a fan of the chapters of the boy students being shitty in general, delinquents and rapists...Idk why they would need a teacher to tell them that's wrong. Also I hate the chapter about the female student who seduced teachers for attention because her older sister was the favored child (speaking from experience, I would not have gone around trying to seduce ugly old men for attention LMAO) Mostly reading to find out what the deal is with Takayanagi's background. Also I hate the art. (lol)

僕になった私 | I Became A Boy

by shimaki ako
published: 2004-2006

Thoughts: Momoko is your average teenage girl—ready to start the school year and make friends, partake in all things girly...like maybe finding love! But of course, the universe is a funny thing, and she gets the exact opposite of what she wanted, and is thrown into an all boy's school because of certain circumstances. Now she has to navigate her school year as a boy. Sound simple? It is! It's a very trope-y premise, simple in story and execution. Is it anything groundbreaking? No. Did I enjoy it the first time I read it as a teenager? YES! And did I enjoy it now, as an adult?

Well...yes and no. Momoko is the kind of heroine that annoys me nowadays in shoujo. She's pretty passive, and portrayed as very weak and girly, ditzy, etc. The MC and Momoko also suffer from instant-love (after going through a very short Shoujo Slave™ arc), there really isn't much build up to their feelings growing, or their confessions (yeah..Momoko's confession was kinda like HUH? excuse me miss?? she asks to be his sex slave?? kinda cringe as an adult but I'm sure as a teenager, I was scandalized in the best of ways LMAO , so the manga itself is not anything deep or meaningful. But I was able to enjoy it for what it is, a fluffy rom-com with the typical shoujo heroine, and the protective strong male lead.

Those wanting a story that examines gender roles and whatnot will NOT find it here. Shimaki Ako kind of dips into these topics a very tiny tiny bit, but nothing comes from it, really. The crossdressing is just a wacky plotline, and the main premise is Momoko and Kunio, and their love story, and the gags that ensue from Momoko being a biological female in a male space. Also speaking of wackiness, a lot of the story events and resolutions require some suspension of disbelief. Boku Ni Natta Watashi is definitely a product of it's time, so a lot of the dialogue or plot points might rub certain types the wrong way that is unused to the antics of sekuhara & okama in Japanese media.

The art is beautiful, simple, and faces expressive. The clean bold lines are a real pleasure to look at. A lot of the panels really focus on the character art versus atmosphere or background. The characters themselves are beautiful! I really love how Shimaki Ako put a lot of effort in making the boys look handsome, haha! However, I do find the art style kind of atypical for something in the shoujo genre of it's time, which generally featured thin lines, whimsical look of the characters/atmosphere, just a certain wispiness if you get what I mean. (But ofc that is just a generalization and not meant to say that ALL shoujo of the time looked like that!)

I did enjoy reading Boku Ni Natta Watashi again, purely from a "popcorn flick" standpoint. It is nothing deep, nothing new, nothing Shakespearean or thought-provoking but it was cute, and the fluffly moments between Kunio and Momoko still made me smile.

その恋はいちごのように。| Sono Koi wa Ichigo no You ni | This Love is Strawberry Sweet

Thoughts:

Nothing here yet!

Men Who Hate Women: From incels to pickup artists, the truth about extreme misogyny and how it affects us all

by laura bates
published: 2020

Nothing here yet!

dropped

The Remarried Empress

the remarried empress:stopped when feMC left to live with the love interest (not husband.) his mysteriously and seemingly clever/cunning personality went away and he became annoying and lame. i enjoyed it up to that point tho. stopped around chapter 114

Iijima Yabai Yatsu

iijima yabai yatsu: as soon as it was revealed that the girl made the mc bully her for sexual(??) gratification and that she was the one that was akshully the bully...i stopped. maybe chapter 1 or 2. i can enjoy some twisted stories but this one was stupid and just coombait for weird men with issues

Ashita, Watashi wa Dareka no Kanojo

ashita, watashi wa dareka no kanojo: a grimdark bitter "love" story about young women that get into compensated dating/prostitution. it's popular i guess but i don't enjoy stories and characters that are miserable for the sake of being miserable. i don't feel like the mangaka handles some of the messages and topics surrounding trauma and struggle without it being...trauma-porn, or glamourizing it in some fashion. just my opinion. i also didnt like any of the characters but i guess that was the point.