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MANGA: Ore to Joushi no Koi no Hanashi
Ore to Joushi no Koi no Hanashi – Nanameguri
Tomoaki Takanashi has just started at his first proper job and soon learns that his manager, Chikashi Tokunaga, is gay. The other employees all know, too, but they also all know that Chikashi’s romantically interested in Mr. Furuya, the CEO. Although Tomoaki’s taken aback by such an open and welcoming company, he soon realizes that he can’t keep his eyes off Chikashi. Are these feelings… love!? This is a cute love story between a straight subordinate and his gay manager.
A Love Story Between My Boss and I is as cute as promised and a great opportunity to ogle people in suits. It’s a workplace romance between a trainee who goes for what he wants and the passionate gay manager hopelessly in love with their straight silver fox CEO.
There might be pining, but I’m happy to report there are no love geometries here. The CEO, Furuya, is happily married and is a staunch supporter of his two employees’ blossoming relationship.
Chikashi is a strict boss but a complete dork everywhere else. He agonizes over the risk of dating a straight guy who might one day wake up and realize he’s not interested in a boyfriend anymore. Meanwhile, the straight guy, Tomoaki, had no issues whatsoever that he was suddenly in love with his male boss.
The two idiots navigate the crisscrossing of their personal and work lives as their co-workers gossip good-naturedly and their CEO pushes them in the right direction. Their workplace is refreshingly progressive and accepting of Chikashi’s sexuality. It is so progressive that employees pass out on the floor overnight, and nobody bats an eye.
The plot might be cliché, but this is a really fun manga. I laughed at the stupid expressions on the characters’ faces, the nosy co-workers, and how much of a mess Chikashi is when he’s completely sloshed. Furuya, the true hero of the story, has his own chapter, a more subdued backstory that gave weight to the entire manga.
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REVIEW: Blood Boss by Davidson King
Black Veil: Blood Boss – Davidson King
Vampires, mermaids, and witches…oh, my! Black Veil is full of them all, but at the end of the day, it’s The Blood Boss who has the last word. Ever since The Final War, Vampires rule Black Veil, and with The Blood Boss in charge, peace reigns.
Keeping the vampires under control is a task Cain takes seriously. Humans have accepted his rule, and anyone who seeks to destroy his territory is given swift punishment. His promise to keep Black Veil safe comes with great sacrifice and selflessness; never does he dare hope for more in life. Until one day, a man walks through his front door and changes everything.
Jayce has a happy life. His adopted parents love him, he wants for very little, and he lives every day to the fullest. But when a normal evening turns into a nightmare, and Jayce is forced to come face-to-face with The Blood Boss, the world as he knows it feels like a lie.
Then a great secret is revealed, and nothing is what it seems. Cain and Jayce must work together to stop the forces uniting against the vampires. Life and love are in jeopardy as they fight those who seek to destroy them. Can Cain and Jayce keep Black Veil from crumbling into the sea when every attempt to do so seems impossible?
Black Veil is an exciting new paranormal series from Davidson King. We best know the author for her contemporary romantic suspense, Haven Hart, and, its spin-off, Joker’s Sin.
The setting is reminiscent of Haven Hart, taking place in a city ruled by the mysterious Blood Boss. It’s a time after humans nearly destroyed themselves and supernatural creatures stepped in to save Earth. When things settled, vampires were on top of the food chain.
The vampire lore has little interesting twists that I liked, such as the blood magic and the custom of treating the humans they fed from with reverence instead of livestock. Apart from vampires, there are dragons, creatures of the sea, witches, and perhaps, shifters and whatnot in the future books.
Jayce is an adopted son of a kind-hearted couple who loved him as their own. He was forced to work off their debt from the Blood Boss after his dad failed to pay. I didn’t warm up to Jayce. He has a temper that tends to flair in inappropriate times. It was supposed to make him feisty, but IMO, but he lacked the charm to pull it off.
The Blood Boss is Cain, the first vampire. I liked him better. He’s a strict leader, but he’s fair and just. I suspect he’s the biblical Cain since it was mentioned several times that he was accused of killing his brothers.
Sadly, the romance didn’t work for me. The progression of their relationship wasn’t convincing. And I didn’t feel the chemistry.
The rest of the book was much more entertaining. It’s a story of a young man who discovered his voice is more powerful than he realized and that his real parents sacrificed so much so that he lives. There were so many things to unpack here, and I was super hyped when secrets were revealed. This was more than just vampire romance! This was cosmic!
However, sometimes it felt like things were crammed and shortened to fit the required page count. The plot could have benefited from a longer book. The narrative suffered from too much tell versus show.
But even with these issues, I was fascinated with all the goings-on. Also, this is just the opener, so we can expect some of the juicier threads explored further.
Blood Boss is the beginnings of an epic urban fantasy series. It’s a story about secrets, sacrifice, power, loyalty, and families lost and found. It might not be perfectly composed but it still hit the right notes to make me look forward to the next piece.
Rating
3.5 Stars – that place between like and loveSoundtrack: Blood Sings
Artist: Suzanne Vega
Album: 99.9F
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BLOOD BOSS
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SOUNDTRACK: Blood Sings by Suzanne Vega
Black Veil: Blood Boss by Davidson King
Blood Sings by Suzanne Vega, a song about meeting one’s father for the first time, for a book about a young man with a powerful voice who learned who his blood family was and their sacrifice.
When blood sees blood
Of its own
It sings to see itself again
It sings to hear the voice it’s known
It sings to recognize the face -
When blood sees blood
Of its own
It sings to see itself again
It sings to hear the voice it’s known
It sings to recognize the faceOne body split and passed along the line
From the shoulder to the hip
I know these bones as being mine
And the curving of the lipAnd my question to you is:
How did this come to pass?
How did this one life fall so far and fast?Some are lean and some with grace, and some without;
All tell the story that repeats
Of a child who had been left alone at birth
Left to fend and taught to fightSee his eyes and how they start with light
Getting colder as the pictures go
Did he carry his bad luck upon his back?
That bad luck we’ve all come to knowAnd my question to you is:
How did this come to pass?
How did this one life fall so far and fast?When blood sees blood
Of its own
It sings to see itself again -
MOVIE FEATURE: Love in the Time of Civil War
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BLOG TOUR: Grayality by Carey PW (Excerpt & Giveaway)
