Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the book.

This was the beginning of a funny and cute story, with a very interesting premise of fake dating that makes true feelings emerge.

I really liked the plot, however it felt a bit rushed and like we didn't get a proper introduction beforehand.

At certain points I had the impression that the protagonist, Akari, was being a little coerced into accepting the fake relationship. I hope that this will be improved in the next volumes.

Akari and Chizuru are fascinating protagonists, who have a fun chemistry. And I was a little surprised by the presence of more adult scenes, although there was nothing explicit.

I really liked the art and the design of the characters, they are charming. I can't wait for the next volumes to be released.

It was a nice premise with fake dating to help him with his music but there wasn’t much else. I loved the cover and that’s what initially drew my interest, but other then that I’ve felt like I’ve read similar plots.

[RATE: 3.5/5] I was expecting a quick and funny romance of out this volume 1 but I mostly got a quick and sexy one haha

I really liked the use of the name Sayo and Serenade for the romance, but it still doesn't really match up for me on how it ended up being a pseudo-lover thing. They're also getting a bit too fast yet we didn't got much from the story, I would have liked a bit more development from the musical perspective. I really hope the whole "what is it to be lovers" question to be developed in the next volume, as someone who put a big importance to the sexual attraction and romantic attraction, I really hope they'll make this right and not only going around the sex part.

Really enjoyed the art as well, it was super pretty and also loved the colored pages!

So it was a very nice and quick read, but hope the next volumes will go more around the music creation and a better understanding of the lover-thing. I'm hoping to read next volume when they come out :)

Cute manga, characters are well drawn and the plot is interesting. Some of the scenes just feel unnatural and uncomfortable which is not really how you want to feel when reading a manga. It felt like the MC was forcing herself to go along and that is not enjoyable personally to read.

A more mature read that seems like it could lead to a sweet romance. The main characters decide to enter into a friends with benefits relationship in order to spark some inspiration for the composer Chizuru. The lady, Akari has just broken up with her cheating boyfriend and agrees without realizing how it would effect her emotionally. Even though this story seems very interesting to see how it turns out, the characters were just a little flat for me. I don’t really like Chizuru all that much, Akari is alright but not the best main character I’ve read from. I still think many will find this enjoyable so I hope more people read it!

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

A Serenade for Pretend Lovers, Volume 1 by Tochika Nekome is the perfect romance manga for fans of fake dating storylines. The story revolves around Akari, who has just caught her boyfriend cheating on her. While on an assignment to visit the musician, Chizuru, he gives her an offer she can't refuse. He'll agree to be the subject of her documentary as long as she pretends to be his girlfriend. What will Akari do?

Overall, A Serenade for Pretend Lovers, Volume 1 is a delightful and funny romance manga that will appeal to fans of rom-coms. One highlight of this book is the artwork, which is stunning. The characters are drawn beautifully, and it made reading this book a pleasure. Another highlight of this book is how engaging the storyline is. This book made me feel the whole gamut of emotions - from happiness, to sadness, to anger. If you're intrigued by the description, I highly recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in June!

A Serenade for Pretend Lovers 1 was a fast-paced story with beautiful illustrations. I'm a huge fan of the fake dating trope, so I was excited to start this. I love the set-up of needing a muse to write his romantic soundtrack and her needing to do this documentary. Unfortunately, the spice overwhelmed the character development. They didn't seem to have enough bases for a connection before we jumped straight into constant making out. There is a lot more to a relationship than sexual compatibility. It looks like that will shift a bit in Book 2. So I would give it another book to hook me.

tl;dr
A fake lovers tale with pleasant artwork and lots of page space dedicated to sexy moments. A great easy read, although a little light on plot.

About
Akari Sayo is having a bad day. She's caught her boyfriend cheating on her, and even worse, it turns out SHE'S the the one he's keeping on the side, and the other woman is the one he's serious about. On top of that, she's just had a difficult new job dropped on her - filming a documentary of a composer who keeps refusing her company's requests. But when the composer learns her name, he suddenly asks her to pretend to be his lover! Maybe a fake relationship is just what this broken heart needs.

What I Liked
Shoujo manga has such a wide range of emotion, from tearjerkers that dig through deepest corners of the heart, to light and ephemeral candy-coated tales to excite. A Serenade for Pretend Lovers sits pretty firmly in the second category, at least for now. This is a great read for anyone looking for a breezy and sensual jaunt, with just enough plot to tie sexy moments together. Characters and plot points are painted quickly with a wide brush, leaving most of the space in the story for kisses, physical intimacy, and a scene that gets very near to sex before it's interrupted. Of all the cast, the main character's best friend Izumi is probably my favorite. She seems pretty smart, and I like her style. Artwork is pretty straightforward shoujo fare in the best way - delicate lines, copious use of tones, and easy-to-follow paneling. The design for the love interest Chizuru in particular is pleasantly unique for shoujo, and I love how he looks. Localization is also straightforward, with nothing too clunky to read.

What Wasn't For Me
My favorite part of the fake lovers trope is when the characters have to act out their relationship in public. This volume didn't have any of that (although the preview indicates we'll might see some in the next volume), so the readers haven't yet gotten the full juicy drama notes of the heroine running into her ex while she's on a fake date. The plot is interesting enough that I'm actually kind of disappointed we didn't get more of it.

I love fake dating trope so much and this one is quite interesting, the whole set up with the documentary and all.
Sayo, is your average josei manga cutesy female lead and Chizuru is your weird, talented and super handsome ML. Their interactions are great and the flow of the story is nice.
Also, there’s just a tiny bit of spice 🌶 but I think it sits right with the way the story flows, if it was more it would be weird.

A Serenade for Pretend Lovers is an excellent graphic novel for readers who love manga and fake relationship tropes. The story follows a woman who works at a film station and is in shock to find her boyfriend is cheating with her. While on the job, she meets a musician who is looking for a muse for inspiration.

I absolutely adored the illustrations in this comic. I would have appreciated the entire book in color but the black and white graphics were still impactful and beautifully executed. I would be interested in learning more about these characters in the next part of this series.

I love a good fake relationship trope if it's done well and the first volume of this series is hitting a lot of the right notes. There is an interesting premise--famous composer needs a muse and the muse needs a story for her job--and definite chemistry. The artwork is also pleasing.

The consent issue is a little fuzzy at times, but toes the line without crossing it. As a youth librarian, that always makes me nervous--but as an adult librarian, I would 100% collect this romance title.

(First of all, thank you so much NetGalley, publisher, and author, for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review)

Synopsis: Akari Sayo works at a TV station, and was on the job when she just happened to see her boyfriend—who just happened to be cheating on her. Before she can resolve anything, she's asked to manage a documentary about a musician, Chizuru Kobuchi...but when he tries to shut her out, she barges in, determined to do her job right! But moments later, when he learns her name...he asks her to be his lover? Akari's having a long day, and it looks like it isn't over yet!

As always, this book caught my eye first of all because of the cover. It has beautiful drawings, and it's easy to read. Even though the kissing and fake relationship does not make sense to me at all because of the quick development I am curious of how love will appear in both of them in next volumes.

I received an e-ARC copy through Netgalley, ahead of release, in exchange for an honest review.

I don’t have any specific content warnings for this book though I wouldn’t recommend it for young readers as there are some sexually charged scenes.


We all know I’m a sucker for the fauxmance to romance trope so when I saw the summary of this book, on Netgalley, I knew I needed to get my hands on it.


First, we meet Sayo who happens to witness her boyfriend cheating while she’s on location for work. Then out of nowhere, the chief director lets her know that he’s no longer in charge of the month-long interview with the composer and musician Chizuru Kobuchi…now she is. Not only did he just pass her the reigns but their first interview with Kobuchi is today!


This is a hilarious case of: girl meets guy…girl thinks guy is hot…guy proposes fake dating…girl is flabbergasted…then agrees because why not fake date a hottie?


I can’t wait to get to know this couple more and see them develop genuine feelings for each other! Looks like, so far, this will only be digitally released on: Apple books, Izneo, and Kobo.

Very cute! Definitely quick paced, and a quick read.

If you're into fake dating and instant physical romance, this is definitely for you. I think the idea behind it is cool too, and I like the story so far. I will definitely grab the next one.

Characters are a little one dimensional, but that's to be expected this early in. I think there's a lot of room for growth, and the preview for the second book (which I love, by the way. I wish that more manga has previews) definitely points towards more character development in future installments.

Big thanks to Kodansha Comics for the e-ARC of this manga. This review is being given honestly and all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Overall 2.5 rounded up to 3 based on enjoyment.

I liked the premise of this as bd thought it had a good set up but was kind of hoping for more. I am looking forward to the next volume though!

[Thanks to Netgalley and Kodansha for an ARC in exchange for an unbiased review]

Out filming for her job, Akari catches her boyfriend cheating on her with his actual girlfriend. While she recovers from this blow, she’s forced to take over a documentary of popular composer Chizuru, currently scoring a romantic movie. He’s got artist’s block and no dating experience, so a fake romance ensues, one that might help the two of them in the real romance department.

How played out is this trope where two people pretend to be dating and then end up together? Let me spare you the shock - it’s very played out. Moving this to an adult space is theoretically a nice touch, except it makes things even more ludicrous than they usually are in the typical high school setting. These two are very, very unbelievable.

And Chizuru might be all ‘oh, I do not know romance’, but he sure knows his way around the female form, giving Akari barely enough room to breathe at some points. Honestly, these sections where he’s getting her all hot and bothered are the best parts of the book, as they’re at least generating a little heat together.

Yes, he’s had many a woman, we learn, but apparently this isn’t enough and he needs to have a fake romance, which looks an awful lot like just doing what he always does to have many a woman. Chizuru’s problem might be Chizuru, I’m just saying.

(Also, do you really need romantic experience to write the score for a romantic film? Thank god they didn’t hire him to score a horror movie…)

Well, that happens and they’re going to fall in love and his manager’s a jerk and they sort of try and do something with the documentary angle, but it doesn’t amount to much, which is just about everything in this story if I’m perfectly honest.

Poor Akari’s just here to be slobbered over and enjoy it. The single best part of this story is the look on her face when Chizuru first puts forward this nonsense idea to help him with his work. That’s genuinely funny.

This is just so overdone and when they actually do look like they’re headed for a super-fast consummation, it naturally gets interrupted, sparing us from any distracting horniness that might have livened things up. There’s nothing here that you can’t predict if you haven’t read even a small number of romance titles.

Akari’s wacky antics only carry her so far and Chizuru is annoying. Your tolerance for broody pretty boys with hearts of gold will undoubtedly affect what you get out of this one, but it’s a bit of a snore. Neither of them is particularly interesting and the writing and art are underwhelming - the full page pictures that open the chapters are way better and hint at a story that doesn’t need such laborious crutches to be good.

2.5 stars - round up if you haven’t had enough of this style of story. Even in that genre, however, I would say that this isn’t even especially notable. Definitely not for me.

The MC is a journalist and is given an opportunity to interview this famous young composer, just as she discovers her ex has been cheating on her. The musician decides they should pretend to be lovers so that he's inspired to compose the soundtrack for a movie he's working on.
The story is typical for Manga, but I did not enjoy the fact that it felt as if the MC was a sex worker, and not really entering in a relationship.
Nice drawings and consistent story, but I won't be picking up the next instalment purely because it's not my cup of tea. I much prefer Shoujo, sorry.

This was a really sweet and compelling story.
It’s been a long time since I’ve read any manga, especially a mainly shojo one and I was really pleased with this one.
First, I really liked the drawing, which to me is important because I have trouble staying in the story when I don’t like the drawing style. Here the art is all fine lines and subtle tone changes, which helps the flow of the story.
Both characters are intriguing for different reasons and while we don’t know them well since it’s a first book, that first tome however does make you want to know more.
It intrigues you enough to want to keep to it.
I’ll make sure to check out the next installment.

Thank you Netgalley and Kodansha for the opportunity to review this early!
Going into this volume with the premise, I wasn't sure how this story would turn out. I was surprised when I enjoyed the flow of the story and the main couple. Both MCs are put together due to work circumstances and have to adapt to finish their respective assignments. The music aspect here felt unique since not many romances focus on the behind-the-scenes of composing. Although, I'm not sure if I feel like I can root for this couple going forward. I think the chemistry between them at times is very forced which I understand is a plot point. However, knowing that this will turn into an authentic romance, I can't honestly say I would enjoy it. I think this series has room to grow and may surprise readers in later volumes if they decide to take the chance.

Review

First off let me start by saying thank you to NetGalley and kodansha comics for giving me early access to this in exchange for my honest review!

Akari Sayo who works for a television company us been tasked with managing a documentary about the musician Chizuru Kobuch. She goes to his house to start interviewing him but he says he turned down the documentary and tried to close the door on her. Akari isn’t taking no for an answer so she barges in, as soon as Chizuru learns of her name he changes his mind. He agrees to do the documentary if she agrees to be his lover.

I flew through this volume so fast, I’m ready for volume 2! Akari is honestly so relatable and funny, I mean if a hot musician asked me to come over you best believe I’d be there in two minutes haha. I have such an ache in my heart though because I don’t want her to get hurt. Although the little snippet we got for volume 2 does show that Chizuru may be catching some feelings too so who knows what will happen!!