Reviews

Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon, Vol. 1 by Shio Usui

bookph1le's review

4.0

I thought this was nicely done, with lots of subtle touches about how society treats women. I don't think it's uncommon to feel as if makeup and clothing are armor, and I resonated so much with the idea of having to behave a certain way and meet certain standards in order to be deemed "normal" by the larger society. I'm all about seeing more forms of media depicting how painful it is to attempt to shove yourself into a box that's far, far too small for you.

I can't say much about the romance at this point because I don't think there's a whole lot there yet. I like that being together makes these characters feel seen, and I hope that future installments will show them learning more about who they each are inside.

claire1349's review

funny hopeful reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

senseinia's review

lighthearted medium-paced

4.0

ehmannky's review

funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was so cute and unexpectedly moving and I wish I could rate it more than 5 stars. You follow Uno Hinako, who is desperate to be seen as normal (and straight, though it's clear she doesn't know that part yet), and her slow-building friendship with her more stoic coworker, Asahi Sato. This is just going to be a manga where the message is that being loved and loving someone is such a beneficial way to be in the world and that it can help you get better and I am so excited for the rest of this series. ♥

phantomsparrow's review

emotional lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

glitterbritta's review

lighthearted

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

xmhughes's review

5 stars

rereader33's review

3.0

This was a cute first volume. I appreciated the emphasis on conforming to gender roles in order to enter a relationship with someone as well as how being in a heterosexual relationship will magically make you "happy" and "complete". This is absolute bullshit for a number of reasons, but I liked how this mentality is so damaging to adults, especially ones struggling to figure out who they are and what they want.

That being said, I didn't really connect with the characters and felt that the story was too slowly paced for the payoff towards the end (if that makes sense). Not only that, but I felt some of the scenes went on a little too long and the dialogue/ inner monologue got a bit repetitive. The artwork/ art style were really cute, though, and I loved how expressive Uno and Subaru are.

Overall, this was a nice, sweet first volume. I don't think I'm going to continue with it, but I do recommend it for anyone looking for a cute adult yuri manga.

panda's review against another edition

So so so cute

kaicifer07's review

3.0

This was a good read! I liked the MCs and writing. My favorite character was Satou's little sis!!! She's so cute!! I love how relatable both of the MCs are, they both are going through something while falling hard for each other.