All Love

Quitting her job, Suzu comes back to her hometown after six years. On her way back home, she fell into a hole, and was saved by Sou, the guy who dug that hole. Her first impression of him was horrible. But Suzu started to be attracted by this guy, who weaved his way into her heart before she realized it?! (Source: Aerandria) Includes two one-shots: 1. The Third Confession 2. Happy Birthday (side story of Heart no Ousama)

I found Yuru Koi to be a sort of shoujo romance with a more realistic twist. While it's listed as josei, it's light enough for younger readers that are on the mature side. As with a lot of shorter manga, the romance was underdeveloped, but I wouldn't say it was dissatisfying. In fact, it delivered more than a typical short story but less than a full length one. The thing about romance in shoujo is that a lot of times it seems to happen spontaneously. That first glance or even unfortunate interaction is utterly important in determining the blossoming of a relationship. Even though the charactersin Yuru Koi are adults, as characteristic of a josei, the story fell prey to a couple that got together right away. I would have preferred that the mangaka took more time in making this happen, but she did use the rest of the story to examine their relationship. Aside from some great artwork (attractive people with young eyes though rather large noses and lips, smooth lines and innocent expressions), the heart of the story lay in the forming of their relationship. The heroine Suzu seems almost like a lost child before she runs into the handsome Sou. Though their getting together is a little hasty, they do realize their actions were quick and get to know each other. They're adults, after all. Suzu even says so herself that Sou knows more about her than she does about him. There are even some cute moments in between them that are not horribly cliche. There isn't any extraordinary about the main characters, but they are likable. Suzu is a woman you can relate to due to her uneasiness in where her life is going, stuck in between being young and old yet still looking for her calling. Sou appears as the average handsome mysterious dude in the beginning, but when his real self shines through he is surprising in many ways. An intriguing aspect of this manga was the setting. Modern stories are usually set in cities and suburbs, but this was all in a small town in the countryside. Suzu's family runs a charming bakery and Sou is a skilled potter. It was a refreshing little change from other manga. I also found the ending of this manga to be quite satisfactory, and the accompanying oneshots weren't half bad. While I can't say this is a perfect manga, it was better than I thought it'd be for its length. I'd say it's a light snack for a romance lover.