This is pretty much a typical high school romance story. If you like manga and have been reading for a while, you've read similar stories a hundred times over. That doesn't mean that it's something terrible, there's a reason they're so popular and enduring and keep reappearing.
Ao Haru Ride has heart and the sweetness of first love wrapped up in a cutely drawn story that contains two great messages: there is such a thing as second chances and being true to yourself is always the best.
Yes, the plot so far is a bit generic. However, this is the first volume and just setting up the rest of the story. I like what I read and I have a feeling that things are going to get very interesting (and even sweeter) in subsequent volumes. Definitely put this series on my radar of series to read further.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Viz Media for the chance to read it in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley for giving me the chance to read and review, "Ao Haru Ride, Vol. 1" by Io Sakisaka. To say I loved this manga is an understatement! The art was beautiful. The story has a fantastic flow to it. The story is about a young girl named Futaba who dislikes boys but decides to change her mind when she meets Kou Tanaka in junior high. Before Futaba can confess her feelings for him, he moves away due to his parents getting divorced. When high school starts, Kou is at her high school! Even though she loved him in junior high, she is not sure if he is the same person or not. This is a great story of growing up, cliques and even love. I am eager to read the next volume!

Thank you to NetGalley, VIZ Media, and Io Sakisaka for the opportunity to read Ao Haru Ride in exchange for an honest review.

Also known as Blue Spring Ride, I always felt like this is the work Sakisaka is best known for, and it has been on my list for a while, I just never got around to it. I enjoyed Strobe Edge and recently read the Galleys for Love Me, Love Me Not Volumes 1 and 2, also by Io Sakisaka. I likewise have the anime for Blue Spring Ride, thous it sits on my shelf collecting dust. I just haven't got around to watching it yet, but after reading the manga, this may have just jumped up to the "next" slot on my watch list.

The manga starts off with a short chapter taking place during junior high: Futaba isn't really interested in boys. They are tall, loud, and obnoxious. But not Tanaka. He seems quite the opposite of most boys, and Futaba takes notice. This could be a perfect romance. Tanaka seems to like Futaba, but when he overhears a comment she makes to a male classmate, she may have messed everything up and lost her chance.

Now in high school, where the rest of the series takes place, Futaba still thinks of Tanaka, wondering where he moved to and what might have been if she hadn't said she hated boys. After three years, Futaba runs into a boy at school that must be Tanaka, but he has a different name, and he looks and sounds different. Even though his parents divorced and he has a different name, this boy is still the Tanaka Futaba liked all those years ago, her first love. But things change over the years. Can they ever find a place that resembles the way they once liked each other, or are they just too different now?

This is a fantastic first volume, and I can see why this title is so popular. This is definitely a mang aI will continue reading. There's only 13 volumes...and 6 light novels...Let's go!