Customer Reviews

Better Than A Dream

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have bought more June's manga (& novel) than any other publisher, so I'm always a little skeptical when buying any June's novel because of how awful...most of the novel I read/own have been edited. Beside that point, most novel/storyline just doesn't go well with me, so I bought this one out of whim because the art is beautiful (get ready to drool) and the back summary sound interesting (it says more than enough). I can feel the angst just from the summary alone. XD (My favorite kind of story)

Well, I wasn't disappointed. X3 The story was solid and interesting. The characters has good development. You get to know the characters and personality by the end of the novel. Yuuki, the uke, isn't the wimpy kind nor does he sound feminine. (My favorite kind of uke) He is as masculine as the Kamishiro, the seme. <3 Kamishiro also isn't the mean and bully-kind of seme. He's not an abusive seme and you'll come to really like him the same way you will come to like Yuuki and Yuuki's friend Shin, who also play a big part in the storyline.

I admit to have shed a little tears while reading this book. It's very touching and sweet. It's a good book so I do recommend this novel.

However, there are a few missing words and grammars here and there, but other than that everything flow very nicely so the reading should go smoothly. I would say this one is almost on the same level of editing as Ai no Kusabi, which pleases me. =)

This one really surpasses my expectation of a Yaoi novel. OK so this is my 4th one. But having read alot of M/M romance and Yaoi mangas, I think I can fairly say this one is really good. The setting itself is lovely, quaint and dream-like as the story takes place in a little cafe attached to a house in a backward town against the mountains in Hokkaido. The story itself starts off in an almost surreal way as an old dog is waken up from its dreams by a stopping bus.
As for the 3 characters, Yuuki, Kamishiro and Shin, each of them is distinct and well developed despite this being a slim 250 pages Yaoi novel. Theirs is a love triangle revolving around the cafe/house owner, Yuuki. The mangaka has done a remarkable job dwelling into Yuuki's emotional pain. Yuuki could not move on as he could not let his dead lover, Tsukada, go. He could not bring himself to accept Shin's love. Shin is Yuuki's close friend and has been a pillar for Yuuki since Tsukada died. Then one day out of the blues, a rugged man with a limp appears. He is Kamishiro with a mysterious background. Kamishiro is also a chef by trade and more or less forced Yuuki to hire him. Thereon, it is one emotional ride for the 3 guys as they try to sort out their feelings, more so for Yuuki who is forced to confront his pain and feelings. I really enjoy this one and finished it in one sitting. The sex scenes are well done too and the graphics interspersed among the pages are lovely. As commented by one reviewer, both Yuuki and Kamishiro are not your typical uke and seme. Yuuki is strong in his own way and a pretty aggressive sexual partner. Kamishiro is special in his silence and I wish the mangaka has written the story from his view point too as I would love to read how his feelings for Yuuki grows.
This is one emotionally driven love story, with angst filled and touching moments. One could easily forgive the publisher for some typos. Strongly recommended for Yaoi and M/M romance fans.

I found Better than a Dream to be more real in a sense than many other works coming out of DMP. It has to do with Yuuki's relationship with his friend and his newfound relationship with the strange and mysterious Kamishiro. Yuuki is still healing from the death of his lover Tsukada, an adventurous risk taker who dies in an avalanche. Things don't really get cleared up until the end, and then it's a little too late to really make sense of things, instead I was kind of scratching my head going "huh"? I found that Yuuki's friend, Shin, made this little novel more interesting, his needing to wait and give Yuki some space before trying to fill in Tsukada's place made sense until Tsukada comes into the picture and Yuki is immediately taken by him. What I found this novel to do was play out more like a soap opera, the writing seems more solid and the plot doesn't really wander off. The illustrations were very sexy and the cover was very dream like. I do recommend this novel though to other yaoi fans, it is a good read and maybe better than a dream.

-LS,C

This is my favorite gay/yaoi novel to date - couldn't put it down. The illustrations were beautiful and hot...I felt there was actually a fun and exciting plot besides the very erotic and romantic sex. The main characters and even the secondary characters make you care about them..this story is particularly for lovers of fine cooking and mountain climbing (you'll see what I mean.) I don't understand why the typos/left out words can't be fixed in editing - it is distracting..but not enough to keep me from loving and re-reading the book. Romantic without being overly gooey and mushy (except the sex), One last thing: I found both the seme and uke to be quite masculine - no simpering, huge-eyed uke in this book. Read it!!

Tsukada and Yuuki were living their dream. The lovers had their own place, a tiny café with living quarters nestled at the picturesque foot of Mount Asahidake in Hokkaido, that Yuuki had inherited from his grandparents. Not only did it provide them with an income along with Tsukada's job at a sports equipment store but Tsukada got to indulge in his other passion: mountain climbing. The love birds were living in what seemed like paradise to them, until one fateful day one year ago. While guiding a group of mountain climbers on a tour arranged by his boss, Takai, the worst possible thing happened. A small avalanche buried Tsukada under the snow even as he protected his climbers. Yuuki still has not gotten over his lover's death, and worst still is how haunted he is by the day of Tsukada's death. Yuuki had cheerfully been waiting on customers, with the mountain in full view, while Tsukada lay upon it dying. In fact, he did not even learn of his death until Tsukada's boss managed to contact him, as same sex relationships in Japan have very little legal protection, so when emergency services mobilised and next of kin were informed, it was Tsukada's parents who were told, and who collected the body, refusing Yuuki's status as their son's life partner. Suddenly bereft of the one who gave his life meaning, their five year relationship dismissively trivialised and treated as an unwelcome pariah, Yuuki struggles deeply with his grief and survivor's guilt.

He plods on in his daily life, opening the café, serving customers, and looking at Tsukada's beloved mountain. Former schoolmate Shin comes by everyday to keep him company, and to share a drink, often spending the night. Yuuki can't even drink however, as his depression has him so keyed up that drinking before bed makes his sleep worse, and he can't get a decent night's rest without sleeping pills any more anyway. Into this walks a mysterious, scruffy stranger. He walks into the café, orders one of everything on the menu, and then critiques the food. Yuuki is surprised at the scruffy man's actions, though intrigued. He's tall, athletically built, but walks with a pronounced limp. And then there is the strangely nostalgic ruck sack he carries...it is exactly like the one Tsukada carried. The stranger turns out to be named Kamishiro, and he has come to take the position Yuuki has advertised out front. Yuuki was hiring someone to mind the tables, but this guy turns out to be a five star chef, and he is intending to work in the kitchen. Telling Yuuki that he'll work for the small salary plus room and board, he demonstrates he can cook foods that the locals will be happy to eat. With no reason to say no, Yuuki accepts, to Shin's dismay. There is something about himself Kamishiro is not saying, and when added to the fact that he is a lot like Tsukada, Shin realises this could change things for Yuuki, and not necessarily for the better. Just what secrets is Kamishiro hiding, and what made him come seeking the small café known as Fuuka?

I quite enjoyed the gentle melancholy pace of this tale. A lot of ground actually gets covered in the 200 odd pages, touching on topics such as the rights of gay couples, to how one deals with grief and moves on. With relationships built on mutual attraction, deep affection, and feelings of tenderness, this is one of the few Boy's Love stories that I can see really fits firmly into the romance category. It is quite simply NOT about the sex, though we do get some of that. Instead, Sakuragi delves deeply into the emotional and psychological aspects of love and so hands us a beautiful portrait painted in muted colours. The depiction of the emotional watershed moment for Yuuki is as manic as it should be, and while the lovemaking scene after it is so frenetic as to be almost comical, it strikes a chord with those who have experienced deep loss as to the extremes one can go while dealing with the well of buried emotions that come erupting forth, perhaps inappropriately. Yuuki has trust issues in general, and when you understand how he was dealt with by Tsukada's family the day of his death and afterwards, it is no wonder. Toss in the feelings of abandonment suffered by those who are left behind as part and parcel of their survivor's guilt given circumstances like those, and one fairly wants to weep with compassion for the friends and family left affected by the tragedy one year ago.

The cover alone wanted to make me read this, though I have to admit from the cover one would expect a plethora of steamy romps through the kitchen and bedroom from that image. Which, of course, is NOT what one gets, though once read, the cover is seen from a different perspective, and yet, remains appropriate. The book's illustrations are just as gorgeously rendered by the artist, Katsumi Asanami. They have a feeling of delicacy about them that almost belies the utter realism of the backgrounds and facial expressions. There are not a great many pictures, but what is there adds much to the story and it would be a poorer book without them.

Rated at an 18+ due to mature themes and depictions of sexual situations, this is available as a paperback from most manga outlets and as well as a Kindle edition to own via Amazon. This title can also be rented short term by persons of age over at the publisher's online reading service, Emanga.com,so you can try before you buy,and also where you can also read a sample for free before buying. I'd like to thank Digital Manga for providing me with my review copy.

I like this story don't get me wrong it is sad. But it is also a love story. I love the way that they grow and change. I hope that you can enjoy it the way that i did.

I really liked this book. It was very well thought out and the characters were likable. It is also a good book for those that do not like non-con because theres not any in this one! ^_^

This was an angsty novel. Actually, all the angst came from one character and it was understandable why he acted the way he did. It also had drama and humor, all in all it was a pleasent read.

I expected to get a manga with drawings - cartoon like but it was a novel