The end of the pandemic is near and everyone is slowly getting back into normal life after having sheltered in place for more than a year.

Nokoru Mitsuhashi is a software engineer who works long hours. He configured his tiny apartment to accommodate his work-from-home needs. Once a week he commutes 75 minutes to the office. His job is very stressful since he must deal with incompetent developers who unsatisfactorily do not meet his specifications. (Believe me, been there, done that as a software engineer, and took early retirement!)

Natsu Izumi is a graduate archaeology student. As part of her research studies, she travels to far reaching locations throughout the world. When in her apartment she is writing up reports as part of her research projects.

Nokoru and Natsu are next-door neighbors in their apartment building. They happen to meet while on their balconies. Natsu, the more outgoing and bubbly person, initiates the conversation. Nokoru, the more quiet and reserved person, is hesitant at first but eventually grows to like his conversations with Natsu. In fact, he enjoys their conversations, her gifts of food and other gestures so much that he starts to think about her constantly. He has even created a pie chart of their hectic schedules to figure out when they can squeeze in precious minutes to spend time together. As they spend more time together in and out of their apartment building, a romance eventually blossoms.

However, suddenly Natsu has disappeared and Nokoru is wondering what happened. She has not been in her apartment for a long while. Does this mean the romance and friendship has ended? How will he be able to carry on without her?

I don’t often read manga as I usually don’t care for the artstyle and the dialogue is often strange without a friendly flow. However, I found this story incredibly sweet and I enjoyed the illustrations. I read the story in one sitting and had a warm and tingly feeling when finished.

This was a cute manga about the relationship between two neighbours. I felt that the story was always interesting and it remained realistic throughout. The art style was great and allowed for some funny moments. As someone who often works from home, I related to a lot of the things that the main character did to create a comfy office space! I would love to read more from this author.

Thank you NetGalley and Kodansha comics for providing this e-ARC for an honest review.

I enjoyed the artwork. The story was a little repetitive, but as a short manga it was great for what it was.

This was adorable and funny and I want more stories just like this! A single volume about how the couple met and started dating, set during the pandemic (not complete lockdown).

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Kinetsu Yamada for this ARC.
This is a fast-paced manga where a love story develops between two next-door neighbours during the pandemic. It is a really cute love story and I particularly appreciate that it is the female character the one who takes action and speeds things up between them.
The drawing is very polished and detailed at the same time.

I recommend it.

Published by Kodansha and available November 12, 2024, Home Office Romance follows two housebound neighbors falling in love during the COVID-19 pandemic. I'm not a romance fan but I was interested in this since I heard about it in a webinar held by Kodansha and I'll admit I found it cute. There's been some nostalgia for the pandemic, which at once does and doesn't make sense to me-- the time was traumatic, deadly, and in my home country of the United States, stupidly controversial, so why would you miss it? At the same time, we have a tendency to romanticize traumatic things as a way of coping with and making sense of them. For many people working remotely was a revelation that work doesn't need to be conducted the way we've always been told it must. Home Office Romance gives us the chance to explore our contradictory feelings in the safe environment of fiction. My two issues with this book were 1) the male lead, Nokoru, didn't seem to be falling in love with the female lead, Natsu, as much as she was with him, but this might be because, as I stated at the beginning, I'm not a romance reader so I may not have picked up on things as much as a more seasoned reader would; and 2) I felt there could have been more pandemic content. To me it at times didn't seem to evoke much of the atmosphere of 2020, but that could be chalked up to cultural differences. I don't know how Japan handled the pandemic (probably better than America did if just for Japan's common courtesy of wearing masks when sick being an ingrained thing in society). So I really can't say how well it handles the pandemic. Overall, if you'd like a cute work romance that's complete in one volume, Home Office Romance is a good bet.

Nothing much happened in this graphic novel except a typical cute love story with a tiny predictable twist. It wasn't all bad but my personal preference, I am not a fan of such books. When I saw the description I thought it would be a little, teensy little different.

The art was okay, messy as usual.

Thank you @netgalley for the ARC.

This manga was adorable and cute! I love how there was a HEA, and that the characters worked through their struggles on their own before coming together. <3

adorable romance that happened during COVID, narrated from the man's POV. he worked from home and she's his next-door neighbor. their brief encounters soon turned into friendship then turned into something more. i love that the story concludes in one volume. perfect for a quick read.

I am in love with this story! It feels real and close to home to all of us who felt alone when the pandemic hit in 2020... except that it's adorable and optimistic. A real gem for me.

2.5⭐️ I was given the opportunity to read the ARC. I enjoyed the artwork and it was a nice little cleanser, but not much happened. I wish the romance was highlighted a little more.

Home Office Romance tells a beautiful story of a young computer programmer and aspiring archeologist who happen to be neighbors who meet on an adjoining apartment balcony they share during the COVID lockdown. While they navigate being in lockdown and at home more than usual, the two begin to woo one another and quickly fall in love. I truly enjoyed the emotional depth of the male character and found the narrative to be quite refreshing. The artwork is also very high quality and complements the storyline quite well.

This was so adorable! I loved the way their relationship progressed. I would have loved to see a little more build up once they start dating seeing as it’s a standalone but in general I enjoyed it :)

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the Kodansha for providing me with an eARC copy in exchange for an honest review. I loved this manga, it was so easy to fly through, I was completely absorbed reading this. The pages had so many sweet moments from a not so sweet time in the world 😷

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC copy in exchange for an honest review

This story was so well executed and wholesome. The author really did a great job in establishing our characters and their personalities and then building their relationship. It felt real and so absolutely tender. I totally reccomend this quick manga.

From the end of the first chapter I knew I'd be hooked (and then finished it in one sitting).

This is a complete story that follows two neighbors who discover each other during the COVID-19 lockdown. Finally spending time at home, they meet and they slowly and sweetly fall in love.

The art was lovely and I loved Nokoru's many expressions.

Thank you to Netgalley and Kodansha comics for an arc in exchange for an honest review!

Feat: neighbors-to-lovers, HEA, becoming-your-best-selves-together

The story feels so real. I love how the writer build the character. It gives the actual image of how introvert fell in love. I wish it can be series because I definitely will enjoy their love stories.

This was a cute story but it was not really my cup of tea. I like slow burn romance but this was too slow for me. I didn't find there to be a lot of chemistry between the two main characters so their relationship didn't excite me much.

This was a super cute short romance story between two neighbours!
I loved how they connected over small relatable things and how slowly their relationship built first to being friends and then a couple. This story made me feel so cozy and wholesome and the adorable art and dialogue just added to this. I thoroughly recommend this if you want a light and heartwarming read with characters that feel real and form an authentic connection.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing the E-arc.

What a fun, cozy read! The romance was a beautifully slow, believable build too. So cute!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for an advance copy.