beta
4/5
[18+, school life, romance]
+ classmates
+ asexual spectrum
+ healthy relationship and communication
Good manga about couple finding out what works best for them in bed. Communication ftw!
4/5
[PG, school life, drama, found family]
TW: abusive family, ableism, bullying (not between MCs)
+ classmates
+ friendship/bromance
+ found family
+ good depiction of disability and abusive family
BL undertone, two disabled people learning to help themselves and each other.
[PG, university life, rom-com]
+ friends to lovers
+ sweet and light read
Oh man oh man?? Why don't this have a much higher rating? The dynamic of friends to lovers here is EXCELLENT, and the writing is actually good, like the flow of banter and conversation between MCs is natural and entertaining. Makes me miss an era where BL authors actually tried and cared about good storytelling more than drawing porn. Definitely on my re-read list!
4.5/5
[18+, school life, romance]
+ friends to lovers
+ straightforward relationship
A good one with realistic dialogue and development!
4/5
[18+, school life, slice of life]
+ rivals to friends to lovers
+ sweet and relaxing
Abut two boys who are so different in every way but their love for running.
4.5/5
[PG, fantasy/magical realism, rom-com]
TW: beastmen, interspecies relationship
+ strangers to friends to lovers
+ cute art
+ wholesome
A heartwarming manga about loving and accepting yourself. Simple with little conflict but still well written! The adorable creatures in the background is also a huge treat.
4/5 so far
[PG, slice of life, school life, comedy]
+ classmates
+ fun and light to read
+ my favorite kind of dynamic
The classic delinquent x honor student pairing! I've lost count on how many times I've read BL works with the exact same formula, but hey. When it's good, it's good, you know? It's still an enjoyable read for me, and a good, quick read when you can't be bothered with something long and plotty.
4/5
[PG, romance, slice of life]
TW: huge age gap
+ strangers to lovers
+ sweet and heartwarming
+ straightforward relationship
About a recently divorced 40 year old man and a young cook who works in his favorite restaurant. I love the interaction between the two, you can really feel their age gap in the way they behave, but you also can feel how they complete and make each other better.
4/5
[18+, anthology, romance, psychological]
TW: trauma, self harm, homophobia
+ 2 couples: friends to lovers and strangers to lovers
+ touching
Revolves around 4 men who are connected by one BL manga. I really like this author's works, and while this one's not their best, it still has their trademark warmth and comfort to it.
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I highly recommend Neko x Neko.
https://www.mangago.me/read-manga/neko_x_neko/
It's about an already established couple who have been together for a few years already. One day the uke suddenly gets the desire to push down the seme. It's a good story and it's so rare to found stories about seke/reverse couples.
id also recommend rivalry (sanggeuk) and big&big ! both are consensual, good characters and art... big&big is super funny too and rivalry is very interesting (with clichés but in the entertaining way)
and Love so pure!!! their love really is pure... for both couples in it
midnight men is a also a good story with gorgeous art
If you want a good dom/sub dynamic series set in the real world, i HIGHLY recommend https://www.mangago.me/read-manga/my_partner_s_tastes_and_fetishes/
It's so so good and has really healthy dynamics, includes aftercare, redefining boundaries and discussions after scenes (and the dom sticks to the boundaries until the sub gives permission in the future to push them in their play), and when the sub uses the safety signal/safe word, the dom stops *immediately*. Some of the kink is RACK and CNC but they handle it really well (again, it's negotiated and discussed). They may be idiots who are bad at feelings but their kink dynamic is a really good one.
Ooh, will give it a try, ive seen people complimenting it before but never rly got into it. Thank you so much for the rec!