Chasing After Aoi Koshiba is wonderful in every way and one of the best yuri mangas I've read. It starts from a high school reunion and Sahoko wanting to meet Koshiba after so long. Then we plunge into their school days and how Sahoko desperately wanted to be the cool girl's friend. Sahoko used to be a nerd of sorts, but now is well liked. Koshiba is boyish and used to play basketball, but cannot now because of family reasons. Slowly these two girls get to know each other and it all started with Sahoko's accidental kiss. This is a slow-burn series and very realistic. We get into Sahoko's head, which is wonderful, but at the same time we meet other students and the characters actually have their own personas. Such a wonderful start with a hint of sadness. This is truly girls' love for girls (and not for guys like these usually are).

The art is so nice and lively too. It's light, but profound and heartwarming at the same time. I have to keep reading this, really. I want to know what happens and I hope this will keep the adult feeling to it, the steadiness. I wish we get to see them old too, that'd be perfect.

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
This was so fun to read. If you're an anime or manga fan and you love yuri stories then I'd highly recommend. This one talks about finding lost love, self - discovery and overall, it adorable. I liked the drawings, the artist did the characters really well
There are lots of flashbacks in this as the MC takes us back to when she and the love interest met. I loved that aspect as it helped with the buildup. Can't wait for the next one!
I highly recommend this. Vey interesting!

This was okay, but it felt a bit all over the place. I didn't really get why Sahoko was so obsessed with Aoi as they don't seem to have much crossover. There wasn't much depth to the story or characters.

I enjoyed this, it was fun and cute. Sahoko got a little annoying because of how obsessed she was with how she was perceived by others and social media. But I’m guessing she will grow out of that as the story goes on and hopefully she will become less self-centered.

I really liked the development of the friendship between Sahoko and Aoi and I’m excited to see how it continues to grow in future volumes!

Unfortunately, this one fell a little flat for me. I enjoyed reading it, the art was great, but the characters were too much like the girls in high school who made my years of school miserable. Other than Aoi Koshiba, none of the characters were particularly likeable, especially not Narita.

I was also not super fond of the moment of fat-phobia, (though it was quite small), that took place.

I'm not against reading the next volume when it comes out, but I'm not really in a rush to read it.

Chasing After Aoi Koshiba is a sweet manga packed full of romance and incredible illustrations.

The cover photo and internal coloured pictures alone make this book stand out. It's so pretty and elegant for being a manga. I like seeing these kinds of books around! Then throw in some LGTBQ+ representation, a sweet and romantic storyline with those illustrations? This book just screams awesome. On top of all of that, I just really enjoyed it. I wish I had the opportunity to sit down and slowly read through a print copy, it's that sort of good. You'll soak yourself up on this fantastic story and not want to leave.

Side note: I like the dresses in this book. It's a weird, quirky thing that stood out to me. Pretty manga dresses = my thing.

This book is going to be hit or miss for some people. It's definitely a more artsy book with a "will they? won't they?" story line. Overall, I think it's just a fun manga read to slip away from reality into.

Three out of five stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

So cute, funny and heartwarming.
The art style is so gorgeous.
I just want more of it please.

If you’re looking for a sapphic manga, this is it!
Go read it!



Disclaimer: I received a copy of Chasing After Aoi Koshiba, volume 1 in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.



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Thank you to Netgalley and Kodansha for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review!

Chasing After Aoi Koshiba volume 1 is a pretty good start to the series. Sahoko is your standard ditzy main character that's very concerned with staying popular, even though she feels like she's hiding her true self. When she notices Aoi, she immediately begins to admire her for her honesty and tries to befriend her.
The overall mood of the story seems like it'll be a bit angsty or bittersweet, which has really piqued my interest. However, some plot points that bring Sahoko and Aoi together seem a little forced. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to reading more about them.

Very fun and light and leaves you wanting to know more! Excited to get ahold of the next volume and continue on with Aoi and Sahoko's journey in both the past and present storylines.

It's really difficult to like Sahoko because of her self-centeredness and hunger for popularity. However, these negative traits leave a lot of room for character development.

I really like Aoi's character but I don't see any chemistry right now between her and Sahoko. I might read the following volumes just to see if there's something going on with Anna.

I hope we can see Sahoko's growth in the following volumes.

2.5\5 Personally I did not enjoy the plot of Chasing After Aoi Koshiba, and I can’t see myself continuing with the series. Sahoko is insufferable, and I don’t find myself rooting for her whatsoever. However, at her age, I understand her struggling and being more judgemental of others because she does that to herself, but her attitude really takes away from the story to me. I think it is more realistic (along with the conversations characters have) but that isn’t enough to keep me going.

I think(?) this is a yuri series, but we start it with a weird accidental kiss following an awkward conversation. I like the potential romantic interest, she is really sweet but this first volume doesn’t really give us a feel of the characters outside of surface level assumptions. Even though Sahoko is thinking some more complicated things, I can’t help feeling detached from the characters. I think others may enjoy this more than me, especially if the plot and character development improve!

Thank you to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for the Arc!

Sahoko is your average pretty teen who is focused on popularity and her looks until she finds herself drawn to another female classmate, Aoi. At first she thinks it is just admiration and a longing to be her friend but after accidentally kissing her she struggles with her feelings might be more than friendship. The manga is interesting since it starts with Sahoko as an adult remembering her time in high school as she anxiously awaits Aoi to show up at their high school reunion after being estranged for several years. A realistic look at young love drifting a part and I'm curious to see how their lives will merge once again.

This isn't the most original plot I've ever heard of but it was executed very decently that it managed to keep me interested through the entire volume. The art was definitely stunning and Anna's words at the end definitely made me want to learn more about what happened between Sahoko and Aoi. Perhaps Sahoko will learn to be less mean to people she deems "unpopular"?

Overall, so far it's a sapphic manga that has lots of potential. I definitely look forward to the second installment!

Un agradable, fresca y cómica historia de amor que va surgiendo poco a poco entre dos chicas de secundaria que, desde la primera página, nos damos cuenta que sucedió algo que las hizo distanciarse años después de la graduación. Esto hace que me quede con la intriga por saber qué ocurrió con ellas, porque se las ve tan bonitas y pareciera que todo marcha bien.

Este es un manga muy fácil de leer, ligero y con mucha comedia. Me resultó agradable y me aseguraré de recomendarlo cuando salga a la venta.

¡Espero leer la segunda parte!

DNF

This one sounded so good! A sapphic love story that went back and forth between the past and the present but unfortunately, I just didn’t enjoy my time with it and decided to stop reading it about halfway through.

I just got tired of all of the fatphobic comments, all the “loser” comments and the insults our main character kept saying to herself about everyone and just overall, I didn’t like the vibes of her and the story.

I still implore you to check this out if you’re interested! This wasn’t the manga for me but it might be the one for you!

"Chasing After Aoi Koshiba" Volume 1 by Hazuki Takeoka & Fly is the first Yuri title I have picked up in about a decade. I always shyed away from Yuri titles due to the predominance of the male gaze, which is not to my taste. This is not in any way like that but certainly has a 'gaze' in the characterisation, panelling, composition of shots, etc

The story follows Sahoko Narita, a third year at university, attending her high school reunion and feeling disappointed to learn that Aoi Koshiba will not be attending. We then travel back to second year in high school to see how the two first met. This first volume is set mostly within high school and only starting and ending with present day.

High school Sahoko wants to be popular, pretty and fawned over. She wants to be with the cool kids and takes great effort to make everything appear effortless. She is drawn to Aoi who lives life like a free spirit. But do opposites attract?

I have to say that as a predominantly BL reader I could see this being done as a BL and I would eat it up with a spoon! The side characters are the main strength of this title, though! The friends have personality and interest and there has to be a side story spin-off in the works for the female teachers that help guide the teen versions of the characters. If not, we should start a campaign or something!

The set-up, side characters, and promise of character growth and relationship progression has me itching to read more. That hasn't ever happened before for a Yuri title. Well done, Aoi Koshiba! Well done!

Rainbows and Sunshine Book Blog
May 7, 2021
This manga was incredibly cute and I just want to gush about the characters! The art is so gorgeous and I really liked the writing and it was also unexpectedly funny.

The story is set it two timelines, the current college one with the highschool reunion and a flashback to the highschool years. Sahoko is very relatable, especially the clumsiness and awkwardness around Aoi. I loved seeing both Aoi and Sahoko get to know each other. The ending leaves us with a lot questions and I atleast some of them are answered in the sequel.

I had a lot of fun reading this volume and I really can't wait for the next one! Highly recommended!

*ARC provided by Kodansha Comics via Netgalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review

Okay, WOW. I adored this. I will admit that this was my first yuri-manga, and I was so excited to be chosen to read it.

First - The art style is absolutely beautiful. I have this horrible tendency to not read any manga where I am not already interested in the art style. It adds so much to a story, therefore it can take so much away. But never fear, Chasing After Aoi Koshiba #1 did not disappoint.

Second - I really love the trope of Sahoko being this ditzy, pretty girl who cares about her popularity. Because, she genuinely does, but there is clearly some sort of driving factor behind it, she's not an "airhead" type character, which I appreciate.
Koshiba is a character I see myself relating to right from the get-go. Perhaps not from her popularity or exact home life situation, but from the way she feels pressure to continually conform to her "tomboy" image, and how doing more "feminine" things means everyone will make fun of her. As someone who is queer and strays towards a more masc appearance, I can totally relate to this feeling, especially in Highschool where this takes place.

Third - It's honestly been such a long time since I've read a manga that I genuinely want to continue and am invested in from book one. It's cute, it obviously has some hidden layers to it (that I cant wait to discover!) and there's almost 100% chance of heartbreak in some form or another, and my romance-loving heart knows it's going to hurt, and I'm here for it.

Thank you once again to the publishers and to netgalley for making this read possible!

This was such a cute first instalment!
I'm hoping as the volumes go Sahoko learns to be less judgemental, because at the moment her inner dialogue is hella mean -,-" and bugging me big time.

I really enjoy the time skip/flashback aspect of this story, it has me really curious about what happened between Sahoko and Aoi in the past and how it's affected them in the present (also super curious about how certain side characters were involved (keeping it spoiler free haha, but if you know you know).

Overall, a super cute first volume with plenty of potential for the rest of the series.
Can't wait to read on and find some answers (and possibly shed a tear or two because I can totally see the potential for that too).

I received a free e-ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

I liked it!

I found this book so hard to categorise in my shelves; I try to categorise by trope, but I couldn't put it in anyone. The reason for this is that even though we had a romance, I don't think we were given enough to go off on.

Aoi Koshiba and Sahoko become good friends yes, but we never get to know if they ever get past that. There was one kiss, and then I think they were only friends, which makes it so hard to write this because WHAT DO I EVEN WRITE. What I was waiting for was only hinted, and the present bits didn't completely make sense because, again, things were only hinted at.

I loved the pining, and the awkward bits, a bit of the meeting the family, and l ots of doing stuff you're not even interested in to feel close to the other person, but we had like no romance.

So, this is a seriously short review (I can't believe this is only 5 paragraphs), but I'm definitely waiting for more.