My Boyfriend in Orange by Non Tamashima

Last night I finished reading My Boyfriend in Orange by Non Tamashima, and of all the manga I’ve been reading lately, this one hasn’t given me a book hangover like the others have. I still devoured all four volumes in one sitting, but I’m not as anxious to see what happens next either.

It’s not that it’s bad, but it has that one element that I’m not crazy about – a constant reminder about the age difference between the main couple. On one hand I get why it’s there, the story is about a firefighter and a teenager so there’s an obvious age gap; but at the same time, it doesn’t have to be brought up in each chapter. The difference is made even more obvious by Moe’s antics too. There are times she really does act the age of a teenager in love, and Kyosuke’s reactions tend to seem more like an older guy being embarassed by the attention. But there are other times where it doesn’t matter how old they are, the chemistry works.

This is one aspect I’ve really been enjoying about manga lately. A lot of it has been focused on teenagers, but their ages were not really important – it was easy to forget they were young. I mean, here in the US, how many sixteen year olds do you know would be allowed to live on their own while attending high school? I’m not talking about dormitories either. So while the couples I’ve been reading are young, it’s been rare where their age has been mentioned – so it’s been a glaring element throughout My Boyfriend in Orange.

That’s not to say I haven’t enjoyed My Boyfriend in Orange though. At it’s core, it is a firefighter romance and there’s definitely some hot firefighters involved – Kyosuke’s five man team is featured a lot – and they have no problem taking their shirts off. Gotta love that. And while I’m not salivating for volume five (which there better be with the way volume four ended), I am very interested to see what happens next.

Kyosuke may be a firefighter, but he’s shy when it comes to girls, and Moe’s attentions totally have him unbalanced. It’s really cute to see his reactions. He is a bit hung up on how much younger she is, but that’s not stopping him from thinking about her either. He’s curious, and interested, but there’s something in his past that’s stopping him from pursuing her. Thankfully, his maturity helps to level out Moe, as she can be a bit of an airhead (Kyosuke’s words, not mine).

Like I said previously, Moe can be a bit…starry eyed. There are times I thought this isn’t going to work, it’s puppy love, but she ends up pulling it together and being a little less ditzy when confronted with an obstacle. She’s in that stage between finding love every other week and finding the one – so it’s going to be interesting to see how this romance of hers goes.

Overall, My Boyfriend in Orange by Non Tamashima is a cute romance and I can’t wait to see how Kyosuke and Moe get through their current predicament. Now I just need to figure out when volume five comes out. *grin*

Hot firemen, now in the world of shojo manga! High school student Moe has moved to a new town after the death of her father. Moe’s already having enough trouble fitting into her new class as it is, so she’s totally mortified when she ends up being “rescued” by local firefighter Kyosuke during a fire drill… in front of all the kids at school. But the embarrassing incident might be a blessing in disguise, because gruff-but-kind Kyosuke gives Moe the courage she needs to leap out of her comfort zone as she aims to leave her loner days behind. Not to mention she’s soon falling head over heels for him…!

Currently there are 4 volumes in the My Boyfriend in Orange series.

About Jackie 3282 Articles
I am a 30-something SAHM with two adorable boys and a supportive husband who is very tolerant of my reading addiction. I love to read and easily go through about a dozen books a month – well I did before I had kids. Now, not so much. After my first son was born, I began to take my hobby of reviewing a little more serious and started Literary Escapism to help with my sanity. I love to discuss the fabulous novels I’ve read and meeting all the wonderful people in the book blogging community has been amazing.