This is such an interesting view of reconnecting with your lost/ first love. And not only that, but realizing that the one that got away moved on without you. I think it really highlights how universal these stories can be. I really enjoyed the writing style, and it made me want to keep reading so I could find out what happens next between the characters.

The art in Pink Candy Kiss is beautiful, which was enough to make me pick it up. The story and the characters on top of that make it a wonderful read. It's always nice to read manga that features adults dealing with the kinds of problems adults have -- in this case, it's our heroine Takara questioning compulsory heterosexuality. Emma also seems to have her own problems in spite of a seemingly blessed life, but the author is keeping quiet on that for now. I think that's a great strategy to keep me hanging on for volume 2.

This series is great for anyone wanting queer manga about and for adults. Our main characters are in their thirties, the development of feelings and complications feel realistic, the artwork is gorgeous with soft lines. I'm enjoying getting to know the main characters, and the couple of side characters we have are intriguing as well. There hasn't been a ton in the way of major plot events, but I think that makes sense for the first volume and establishing the characters' relationship dynamics.

With Even Though We're Adults and How Do We Relationship wrapping up, it's great to see another josei yuri title making its way to the US. Pink Candy kiss has a similar premise to Even Though We're Adults, but tinged heavily with nostalgia. Taka and Em were close friends in middle school, and reconnect 20 years later. Taka has just been broken up with by a man who she didn't feel particularly strongly about, but seeing Em ignites a passion in her she doesn't understand. Em is married, but doesn't feel connected to her devoted husband, and only comes out of her shell with Taka, even these decades later.

Uozumi's art is gorgeous, airy with a soft line and filled with expressions of furtive desire and reserved longing. This first volume is defined so much by a sense of deep-seated yearning, as Taka slowly comes to a romantic awakening.

A heartfelt love story about 30-something women reconnecting in the city after a long absence. Criticized as not being possessive enough, freshly dumped Takara runs into her childhood friend Ema by chance and is mesmerized by how much she has changed. The two women begin spending more and more time with each other, and Takara starts to question if what she's feeling is more than friendship, but if so, then how to navigate them with Ema being a married woman now. This is a sweet start to a mature yuri story, and I'm glad to have a title with adult characters in this genre.

Tension, tension. tension. This was a beautiful first wlw manga volume, that I think showed a very real coming to terms with your sexuality story for a woman who lives in a more conservative society. Takara reconnects with a middle school friend named Ema, who fondly remembers her as her closest friend. But, Ema also makes Takara remember something she had kept suppressed for years, that she was attracted to her and had even attempted to kiss Ema before they parted for all those years. This volume focused on building the backstory of these two, their friendship, and where they're both at now at 33 (side note: I LOVE that this story revolves around adults). I really enjoyed this, the chemistry between these two was palpable, the angst was out of CONTROL, and I'd love to continue reading this.

Viz Manga is kicking off April with the first volume of Pink Candy Kiss, originally released in Japan as Tsumetakute Yawaraka. Ami Uozumi’s grown-up tale of two school friends reconnecting after 20 years twists together complicated feelings of love and friendship into a slow-burn yuri romance. After her latest boyfriend abruptly breaks up with her, Takara runs into Ema: a shy middle school friend who has since gotten married and now runs a bakery. It’s a surprisingly joyous reunion until Takara remembers why they drifted apart: she once tried to kiss Ema. And on closer reflection, those feelings haven’t changed.

After feeling unattached to multiple boyfriends, Takara finds this reemerging infatuation difficult to cope with. It’s difficult enough admitting her feelings for a woman for the first time. But that woman also happens to be happily(?) married. Not to mention Takara isn’t sure what her feelings mean. Seeing a manga like this focusing on women in their 30s is refreshing and brings a whole new set of considerations into the mix. Plus, Uozumi’s art is absolute eye candy. This will be one to stick with well past the first volume.

ARC from NetGalley.
This book was so sweet and filled with middle school angst even with its protagonists being 33 years old. Although it had those angsty vibes, it didn’t feel childish. It’s a great story about childhood first crushes and love and the complexities of realizing that you’ve fallen for someone of the same gender. The characters are sweet and I love the friend. Sometimes manga can be iffy with queer representation and this one isn’t perfect but it felt more accepting than a lot of other manga I’ve read. The issue is more with her being married and coming to terms with her sexuality rather than internalized homophobia. I would love to read the rest! It is an adult manga so I wouldn’t buy it for my library but it would be lovely in a personal or public library.

I knew I was going to love this manga but I didn't realize it was going to rip out my heart and stomp on it. I mean that in the best way. This was everything I wanted and so so much more. I am begging for the next volumes because I need to know what is coming next for these two!

This gave me so much stress! I spent the whole volume wondering if she'd mess up and cross that line that shouldn't be crossed 😭

Thank you to Viz Media and NetGalley for the DRC. So happy to see more LGBTQIA manga get published.

Okay, I don't know where this is going but I truly hope there is no <spoiler> cheating </spoiler>. Like I'm all for them rekindling but please, don't cross that line.

This is a pretty interesting premise and I'm excited to see where it goes. Childhood friends reconnect and one realizes she's low-key in love with the other and wants to kiss her...except she's seemingly happily married. The angst in this is going to be so brutal, I can already feel it. Regardless of how it ends, I'm seated.

I liked this volume a lot. The characters are interesting and I enjoyed seeing their tension and chemistry as the relationship grew. I

Thank you to Netgalley and VizMedia for my arc in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

I thought this was a very sweet introduction volume. The art is gorgeous and the writing itself is quite good. The story of an unrequited love, especially same sex, and figuring out one's sexuality, is really well done here. I'm definitely enticed into yearning for that second volume.

Thank you NetGalley and Viz Media for the digital ARC of “Pink Candy Kiss” by Ami Uozumi!

I just finished reading “Pink Candy Kiss” and it’s difficult to not just write an incoherent mess about how cute and bittersweet this first volume was and how much I want to read the next one. Takara is a great protagonist, and you really sympathize with her gay panic over realizing she has feelings for her childhood friend, a married friend! Ema is so cute and sweet, and you can totally understand why Taka would fall for her. The plot writing for this first volume was good, the romance is developing at a slow simmer but it gives you just enough small moments to satisfy lovers of the sapphic YEARN. So much romance manga is set during high school, and I get it, first love is very sweet, but as an adult reader it’s harder to relate to a teen. “Pink Candy Kiss” is just as sweet, but you have adult protagonists looking back on that first love with the added experience of age and other relationships. It’s *chef kiss*, very good. The art is also very pretty, I love the little added sparkle in some of the panels. The paneling also flows well as you read and adds to the emotion of different scenes. I feel like this manga would be a great starter for an adult romance manga reader wanting to try out the Yuri genre, or a Yuri reader who’s looking for a good Josei Yuri manga.