The story was average. The last 15 pages were what truly "hooked" me. The artwork was stunning (it strangely gave me Dragon Quest vibes) I will be reading the sequel!

This manga is right in the top ten of my target with preferences.
As with other (but few) titles related to the Arab world, the story is a gesture to the well-known practices of The Thousand and One Nights. At the moment there is nothing fantastic in what is happening, but the atmosphere is built perfectly. The two main characters behave more than decently and are very cute, lively and funny. In terms of art, I'm also very happy, although for me the girl is somehow strange with these big, round eyes, at least in the situation of this manga.
In general, I recommend it and I would definitely collect it ... I have a weakness for Arabic stories, obviously.

The original of this opinion is in Bulgarian. Sorry for the translation errors. I am adding a link.

I received an arc in exchange for an honest review

I really enjoyed this comic. The art style was gorgeous and the pacing of the volume kept me entertained the entire time. I don't like the concept of Nina having to pretend to be another person, but I'm interested to see where this series will lead!
I feel like it follows the typical fairytale or shojo manga cliches, but I'm here for it.

This is a very beautiful series. The art is gorgeous and it reminded me of other shojo series, such as Kamisama Kiss and Snow White with the Red Hair. It has a likeable female lead, who is spirited and kind, and the setting is magical and different to others I’ve seen. It was awesome to see something new explored.

The problem I find is that the story beats seem too predictable and a bit cliche. I already had an idea of where this series is going to go, and I’m not expecting many spins on the genre. It seems to be playing it straight, with the very obvious relationship forming, and the political intrigue going to happen. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing. The formula works for a reason, and I think it will work for novice readers going into the genre, but if you’re looking for something new and different then you won’t get it here.

This was fun and different to read, I miss reading manga so this was a good reintro into the genre. I liked the story and the characters had decent chemistry. I did feel the beginning was quite rushed but overall great story

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Kodansha for this amazing opportunity. I loved this manga so much, its the type I've been liking recetly. The history love type, and it was great, so unlike others that I enjoyed so much! The plot was different and original andnreally loved it. Im keen to know how this continuous and develops itself. Great amazing drawings and súper interesting. Hyper mega Recomendable if you like this types of historycal romances. And THAT beginning, god I'll die in the waiting to know and for the volumens to come.

What a Great story. I‘m so in love with this Manga. The Cover was the first thing that got. my attention. The drawing of the characters are so beautiful and there are so many details.
The Story is about a Girl who is forced to take the place of the princess to remain the peace in the country. But the more she gets to know the second prince the more she feels like she belongs and has a meaning.
I can’t wait for the second book of the series.

I am glad I was able to read the first volume of this manga and I have to say that I have enjoyed it at every turn. Nina is an entertaining character and her interactions with the prince brings a good dynamic between the two. The story so far with her living in the palace and using the identity of the deceased princess which brings lots of trouble to her along with the fact that she has to learn how to be a princess in a short amount of time. Though it is sad that their meeting was when she was betrayed but I can't wait for the next volumes to come out so I can enjoy the character development and the possible romance between them.

This manga reminds me of another of the same genre but I can't seem to remember it. But I really enjoyed reading this manga can't wait to recommend it.

Volume one of Nina the Starry Bride is a promising start to this priestess-princess/pauper-based royal succession storyline. Having Nina get plucked from the life of a street urchin to stand in as the (presumably dead) priestess-princess is the initial plot, but I'm sure this will have more drama from who will be the eventual heir to the throne, involving Prince Azure and his half-brother. Nina does some emotional labor for the two princes, big surprise there (not). But wait, there's more, because the priestess-princess Nina is currently pretending to be is also supposed to marry a prince from a distant land. A lot of promises are set up in this first volume, and we can only hope the remaining volumes deliver. (I received a free copy from the publisher via NetGalley.)

While this is pretty tropey (classic orphan-becomes-princess due to the actual princess dying) it has potential. The art is quite lovely and I like the characters so far. Nina has a strong spirit and feels a bit more real than other similar princess MC’s I have read, so I am looking forward to seeing how this plays out!

I also liked the secondary characters and palace drama always delights me. Definitely a series to watch!

Okay, so right off the bat I love the artwork style!! It’s mesmerizing, and so visually pleasing aesthetically as well. I’ll admit the cover is what first drew me in, then I read the plot and was sold.

Nina The Starry Bride follows the story of Nina, an orphan ,who lives with 2 brothers for some time. They all steal to survive, since they’re left with no choice. It’s that or get sold as a slave or worse for Nina, her eyes are a dazzling rare blue color so the rich will surely pay a fine price for them.

Lucky for her, and unfortunate for the “real” Alisha, Nina has the same eyes as the priestess Alisha who has mysteriously died in a crash. Desperate to replace her in time to be married to the crown prince of Galgada, a golden eyed prince kidnaps her and turns her into Alisha.

Nina, now Alisha must adjust to life as royalty, and try not to give away her true identity in the process, which will be hard with such a blunt Queen around.

I overall enjoyed this manga to the fullest, I love the bit of mystery and perhaps budding romance sprinkled in, and can’t wait to collect the physical copies, I want to learn about this Prince of Galgada!

There are very good plot points from the aspect of it being a more developed storyline than the usual princess swap theory.
The art and drawing style are very pleasant to look at and I found it to be a very smooth and easy read.
Since I'm used to reading traditional Japanese style manga I found this to be quite a good mindless read that had a very light airy vibe that didn't require much strained thought.
As it is not the most complex plotline it didn't have a great impact on me yet, however I did thoroughly enjoy reading it and definitely think it is very well written. I really like the characters and the way they are portrayed. I would happily read more volumes of this series.

The plot of this manga is pretty cliche. It’s a standard princess and pauper style story except the princess is dead the whole time. If that was my only issue, the book would just be okay. Unfortunately there are a lot of confusing details, especially with how the royal family works, that aren’t ever really explained. The actual setup of the royal family is confusing. I would have greatly appreciated a family tree. Also, people’s motivations are sometimes nonsensical or confusing.

I am really excited for this series. Though the politics are interesting on their own, Nina is an amazing character.
An orphan after the plague, Nina has eyes the color of Lapis Lazuli. After Prince Azure finds his half sister, Alisha, dead on her way to the palace, he seeks a replacement.
Nina is sold by a friend to the prince, and is now posing as Alisha. They seem to truly be growing fond of each other, but she is supposed to be going off to marry another prince in 3 months time.
I am so excited to see where this goes. The art is lovely, and I am excited!

Thank you to NetGalley and Kodansha for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Nina the Starry Bride is about a 15-year-old orphan girl who finds herself kidnapped and asked to become the double for a recently deceased princess. "Alisha" is a priestess-princess arranged to be married soon, but can Nina really take her place without anyone else catching on?

I loved this manga and think it was a great introduction to an interesting fantasy romance. The art style was beautiful and the characters were so much fun to see interact. Nina and Azure honestly made me smile so much, I look forward to seeing where the story goes from here.

Thanks to net galley for an arc copy for review**

The art was good but the story was lacking. It's an interesting premise but alot of this volume felt like filler. I am interested to read more and look forward to learning the main plot and more character development.

Thank you to Kodansha and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Nina the Starry Bride by RIKACHI is a fantasy/romance shojo manga about a street urchin who is kidnapped and asked to become a "double" for the crown princess. Nina is living a rough life on the street when one day, Crown Prince Azure comes and takes her away to the palace. Because of her blue eyes, which are rare, she is the spitting image of the Crown Princess Alisha. Because Alisha recently died in an accident, Azure decides that Nina must completely replace Alisha and pretend to be her. Her duties include deceiving the King and Queen, as well as eventually getting married to a Prince of a foreign country. If Nina is found out, she might be killed for impersonating a princess, and Azure might be punished, too, for his part in the deception.

Overall, Nina the Starry Bride is an exciting blend of action, romance, and fantasy. It reminded me of classic fairy tales like Cinderella, The Prince(ss) and the Pauper, and Beauty and the Beast. I had to keep reading and find out what happens to Nina. Will her true identity be revealed? Will Nina and Azure's relationship develop? Will she be able to deceive the court long enough and to get married? These are all questions I was pondering as I sped through this book. I was so engaged that I ended up finishing in few hours. If you are interested in fantasy/romance stories or in manga in general, I recommend that you check out this book! It was released in April 2021 and is now out on the shelves of bookstores across the U.S.

Thank you to NetGalley, Kodansha, and RIKACHI for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

When Nina is sold into slavery, she doesn't expect to have to go through training to be the double of a dead princess! She must fulfill the reuse in front of the eking and queen or face execution. She makes a bonding friendship with the very young, air, as well as the second prince, and her kidnapper, Azure. A romance seems to blossom between the two, though that might complicate things as Nina, feigning being Princess Alisha, is already set to be married to one of the other prince's!

I absolutely love the art in this manga. It is gorgeous and enjoyable to just take in and admire before going to the next page. I like the general plot, even if it is something that has been seen often enough. There is enough allure and tension that I very much want to read the next volume and wonder just how many volumes the course of this story might take. I recommend for readers of shoujo fantasy and romance.

I wanted to read this because of the lovely cover. I mean come on, talk about gorgeous!!!! But it didn’t take me long to really get into the story. Poor little Nina, hiding her pretty eyes so no one kidnap her into slavery!?!?!? Ahhhh!!!

I just can’t believe she’s fifteen and all this crazy stuff is going on. There’s so much drama and attitude being thrown around. It’s kind of like a soap opera, and I am sooo there for it all!!! It was such an interesting read. Nina is too adorbs and I really like Muhulum too.

I’m also totally in love with the art. The outfits they wear are soooo very beautiful. And Nina’s eyes along with Azure is such a cutie too. Those intense eyes of his. Love it!!

And I cannot wait to see what happens next!!! Why do I have to wait!?!? I want the next issue immediately!!! Will Nina be discovered??? Will the queen continue to be a huge pain in the...well, you know. Haha!!!

I recommend this one to those who adore graphic novels. Especially with lots of emotions and drama and of course, awesome art!!!

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for allowing me to read this for my honest and unbiased opinion!!!!

Will be posted on Amazon also.

ARc Copy....this series shows promise so far. Too early to say how the romance feels (although the Prince is proving to be noble in heart + manners so far). The Central Asian fantasy setting so far is my favorite.point of the series so far.