Lenni Reviews: "Komi Can’t Communicate" Vol. 1 by Tomohito Oda

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Hitohito Tadano has started at an elite high school and just wants to blend in until he can graduate. That's until he ends up seated next to the prettiest girl in the school, Shoko Komi. After a while, he can't help but notice Shoko never speaks and asks her if she has trouble talking to people. While Shoko may appear to be the perfect aloof princess, turns out she gets so terrified to say the wrong thing, she ends up saying nothing. Having opened up to him by writing on the chalkboard, Hitohito decides to help Shoko with her dream: to make 100 friends.

I kinda love this manga. I adore how Shoko doesn't have any sort of disorder or anything, she's just SUPER awkward. Watching the kids around her fumble to figure out what the heck she's doing is funny and it's genuinely sweet that Hitohito wants to help her out. I'm betting there will be some really interesting personalities Shoko will encounter on her quest for 100 friends and the story makes it really easy to root for her. So unless this takes some sort of horrible dark turn, I'm on board with this series and look forward to more! 4 out of 5!

If It's for My Daughter, I'd Even Defeat a Demon Lord Episode 2 Review

By Justin D Williams

Dale is a well-known and highly skilled adventurer despite being so young. One day, he's on a quest and goes deep into the woods and finds a little devil girl named Latina, who is just skin and bones. Latina is branded with the mark of a sinner, but Dale decides he can't just leave Latina there and decides to become her guardian. Thinking to himself, "Latina is too cute, I don't want to work," he ends up doting over her before he even realizes it.

Lenni Reviews: “Orbit” by Leigh Hellman

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*This book was sent to me in exchange for an honest review.

Committed troublemaker Ciaan Gennet runs afoul of the law one too many times and ends up sentenced to probation at a spaceship port facility. He blonde hair makes her a target for bullies so she hopes to keep her head down and serve her time without incident. But when a captain with obviously suspicious cargo docks his ship, Ciaan gets caught up in a multiplanet conspiracy that puts her life in great danger.

Perhaps a little slow going until Ciaan ends up on the spacecraft but it’s still interesting. Great characters, awesome worldbuilding, and a great spin on some dystopian concepts. We have a smart woman of color as our main lead and I love reading about a motley crew of space rebels. Very cool book. 4.9 out of 5.

Lenni Reviews: "Beastars" vol 1 by Paru Itagaki

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

In this comic, the high school is divided into predators and prey and one student among them is selected to be a 'Beastar' - essentially their version of valedictorian as they exemplify the best of both predator and prey. But when a prey student is found dead, tensions are high and loner wolf, Legoshi - a friend of the murdered student - is struggling with his control with so much fear around him.

As I was reading this very sketchy drawn book, I didn't think I would like it. I was concerned it would be to "on the nose" with the predator/prey aspect only to find it more nuanced than I'd assumed. This is one of the more original manga outings I've read in a long time. While the art style may feel strange at first, the characters draw you in. An impressive first volume and I do hope to continue this series.

And yup, totally got the Bella Legosi reference.

4 out of 5.

Lenni Reviews: "Fourth Generation Head: Tatsuyuki Oyamato" by Scarlet Beriko

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is rated 18+

Tatsuyuki Oyamato may be 4th generation heir to a yakuza family but all he cares about is partying and getting girls. Until he finds himself attracted to a man. After a drunken hookup, he wakes up with someone who proves to be more than just a random dude as he knows Oyamato and his infamous family.

Hooooo boy, this is a dark one. The guy Oyamato sleeps with - mild spoilers - turns out to be Nozomi Koga; the son of a man who once owed money to the yakuza. When Koga was a kid, the yakuza came to collect and found his father had been sexually abusing him. Oyamato was also a child and thought Koga was a girl because of his long hair and the creepy way his dad dressed him.

This book is rife with sexual assault; which is offputting (of course) when it attempts to combine it with the romance forming between Koga and Oyamato. I don't want to spoil too much but yeah, major rape trigger warnings here. It feels almost wrong to say I like it. The art is well done and I adore the main pair. They make the hardest parts of this book worth it for me. 4 out of 5.