Author: Narise Konohara
Manga-ka: Nanao Saikawa
Publisher: June Manga
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: February 2011

Synopsis: “Tohru lost his most of his memory in an accident. He can’t remember anything that happened from the past six years. Struggles, but with time, he slowly recovers his memory. He feels as if he is a different person now, and he hates “the other guy” – the “himself” from six years ago… And thinking, Fujishima was his friend, felt like he was being watched over like a guardian angel but in the end he’s betrayed. Miserable and emotionally drained, Tohru is trying not to relive in the shadow of his past. He is trying to move on with his new life… but harder he tries, he finds himself being pulled in by Fujishima.”

“I wanted to make sure this book had real impact. I wanted to portray a couple who were in love but not happy.” – This is a quote from the author in her afterward, and there is no doubt she has accomplished her goal with Cold Fever. This was a very hard book to read.

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Manga-ka: Satoru Kannagi (Author), Hotaru Odagiri (Artist)
Publisher: June
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: July 2006

Synopsis: “After all the studying he did for his exams, sacrificing time with his boyfriend Yuichi, Wataru gets a measly C-average on his summer prep test. Yuichi’s college classmate Asaka offers to tutor him, and he eagerly accepts. Wataru finds Asaka’s cool beauty and attitude strikingly similar to that of Yuichi’s, and subconsciously becomes vulnerable to his advances. For the first time in their relationship, Yuichi becomes enraged. Will they be able to overcome this new obstacle?”

When I started out reading this second volume of Only the Ring Finger Knows, I expected more tension between Asaka and Yuichi. Throughout the story, I kept expecting Asaka to step up and try to win Wataru’s affections. It seemed so obvious this is where the author was headed with this story. Instead, she spends a great deal of the book endearing Asaka not only to Wataru, but to her readers as well.

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Author: Satoru Kannagi
Manga-ka: Hotaru Odagiri
Publisher: June
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: March 2006

Synopsis: “It’s the ultimate expression of love to wear matching rings with your significant other, showing the world that you are a couple. High school student, Wataru Fujii, also wears one even though he is single. When he accidentally switches rings with a popular and handsome senior, Yuichi Kazuki, they discover that their rings pair up! Since that moment, Kazuki – who is known for being kind to all – becomes strangely harsh to Wataru. They alternate between hot and cold, as in between clashes they begin to sort their feelings for one another. Are Wataru and Kazuki the worst of enemies or are they actually soulmates?”

This is most assuredly your typical boys’ love high school romance, with the harsh seme protecting his feelings by trying hard to hide them and the confused uke denying he even has them. What isn’t typical about Only the Ring Finger Knows is the way in which Kazuki secretly falls for Wataru and all out stalks him long before they ever even meet.

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Author/Manga-ka: Narise Konohara
Publisher: June
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: August 2010

Synopsis: “Fujishima’s wound he suffered from protecting Tooru has healed and he’s finally been released from the hospital. Their life together starts again once more. Tooru wants them to live together as lovers, but Fujishima refuses, saying “I have no intentions of loving you.” Is Fujishima afraid of Tooru remembering something in particular if he regains his memories? The bonds of the past are finally becoming clearer…”

Konohara has taken a lot of chances in this second book of the Cold Sleep series. She might easily have stepped over a line with her character, Fujishima. This book is written entirely from his point of view, detailing his past and how he knows Tohru. There are not many pleasant memories in this poor man’s past, let me tell you. He is deprived of a father’s love, smothered in reprehensible and down right abusive ways by his overbearing and frightening mother, and reviled by Tohru for things he did that he shouldn’t have.

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Author/Artist: Narise Konohara
Publisher: June
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: August 2006

Synopsis: “After losing his memory in a car accident, Tohru Takahisa is taken in by Fujishima, an older man who claims to be his friend. But the taciturn Fujishima refuses to reveal anything about Tohru’s past! Despite the gulf between them, a strange and awkward tenderness grows, even as they are held apart by the tragic events of Tohru’s forgotten past! Dramatic, heart-wrenching romance and tragedy combine in a gripping story where the past and present are intricately entwined.”

Cold Sleep is a different sort of yaoi novel. It delves a deeper into the psyche of the characters and, though we still have just the typical one point of view, the lead isn’t your run-of-the mill yaoi character. He’s a blank slate, sure, but still a thinking feeling man who isn’t afraid to go after the answers he needs.

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Author: Hikaru Masaki
Manga-ka: Masara Minase
Publisher: June
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: March 2009

Synopsis: “Minami has gotten a hot start as a young interior designer. In fact, he’s just been chosen as the primary designer of a new luxury hotel. When Minami enthusiastically goes out to meet his client, Asakura, the hotel owner turns out to be a dazzling, sexy man. On top of that, the overwhelmed Minami finds his contract is actually for a love hotel! Seeing as how Minami lacks experience in this particular area, Asakura promises to show him the ropes. But is it really necessary to try out ALL the beds…?!”

To start off with, I have to share a bit of a personal preference. I’m not a huge fan of forced ‘seduction’. I know, it’s an often-used device in uaoi, and a legitimate plot within the genre – it’s just not one of my favourites. So, that said, now let’s now put my personal preference aside and talk about the book… it’s good.

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Author: Siira Gou
Manga-ka: Sato Tomoe
Publisher: June
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: December 2008

Synopsis: “Nearly a hundred years ago, a spurned lover ended Tomoe’s life. Madame had given him new life, but this gift was not without its limitations. Living again in Japan after an extended time abroad, Tomoe was on the prowl for a new lover. But he may have gotten more than he hoped for in young Taichi Yamagami. Influenced by the ebb and flow of the moon, he could be a sweet, naive intellectual, or a rough, demanding lover. Tomoe has never had a lover quite like this…”

This is by far one of the most interesting yaoi light novels I’ve read. Both characters are flawed, fascinating creatures with at once super human abilities and very human foibles. Tomoe has known too much loss in his life. The idea that he could lose this newfound love he’s discovered leads him to make poor choices. It’s natural that those choices could end up turning Taichi away from him anyway.

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Author: Jinko Fuyuno
Manga-ka: Yamimaru Enjin
Publisher: June
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: June 2009

Synopsis: “Masaki Ashizawa is hired by a restaurant mogul to find a world-class chef for his new French restaurant. He finds the perfect candidate in Shuichiro Tsubaki, the gruff master chef of a small restaurant. But the proud Tsubaki is happy calling the shots in his own restaurant and Ashizawa must go to all new lengths to convince him to accept the offer. What will it take for Ashizawa to clinch the deal? And what secret form his past is Tsubaki keeping form Ashizawa?”

Jinko Fuyuno has created a great cast of characters in this book. So much yaoi relies on pre-fab character constructs but here the author has dared to take those constructs and flip them inside out. She’s still written the book from the uke’s (the “bottom”) point-of-view, but Ashizawa is no wallflower or a timid man unsure of his desires. He has a successful life he’s created for himself with hard work and determination. He doesn’t take no for an answer, or back down from a challenge, even when the challenge requires a lot of self-examination. This attitude of moving forward makes him the perfect candidate to head up the Grand Maison Master Chef’s plan to open a new kind of restaurant. Ashizawa’s first duty—find the best chef for the job.

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Author: Maki Kazumi
Manga-ka: Yukine Honami
Publisher: June
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: January 2009

Synopsis: “I wonder why, when I look at you, I get turned on.” With a few simple words uttered by his best friend Ryoji-Toru’s world flips upside down. It doesn’t help that Toru has secretly been in love with Ryoji for some time. But whereas Ryoji wants a purely physical relationship to satisfy his curiosity-Toru wants more. Can the two ever come to terms with how they really feel about each other?

I must be getting used to the different writing style, because I don’t mind saying I had a lot less time to notice the writing in this book, as I was so taken with the story and the characters. As I think back, I’m not sure exactly what it was that caught my attention so thoroughly, but I will say that I was reading on the bus and I missed my stop – twice! The story line is pretty run of the mill – best friends and unrequited love is not new to the genre, nor is the push and pull of unspoken feelings and poor communication. Seems boys just don’t tend to talk to each other.

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