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A review by jaimesamms
Only the Ring Finger Knows: The Lonely Ring Finger by Satoru Kannagi
3.0
This is most assuredly your typical yaoi high school romance, with the harsh seme protecting his feelings by trying hard to hide them and the confused uke denying he even has them.
What isn't typical is the way in which Kazuki secretly falls for Wataru and all out stalks him long before they ever even meet. To Wataru, Kazuki is simply a respectable, popular upperclassman who doesn't figure much on his radar otherwise. It never occurs to him that an older boy might have feelings for him.
The issue of the two boys discovering how they feel and coming to terms with it is dealt with in an uncommonly sensitive matter in this story, and that appealed to me a great deal. It wasn't a angst-ridden fest of self-loathing or candies and popcorn, flower-strewn love in. It was realistic and honest, and in the midst of an otherwise ordinary story, that was a fresh take.
The ring featured in the series title proves to be an elusive bond between them, and I felt true authenticity in the naive importance the boys put on the physical object. It sweetened their fumbling first steps into love, reminded me of some of the silly things people do in high school.
I'm not sure, in this book, if the translation or the original Japanese text is the source of the sometimes awkward phrasing in this story, but I did notice sometimes the wording seemed stiff. I also noticed some very simple and straightforward use of description I found added to the sweet feeling of the whole story over all.
The illistrations I found quite sweet as well. There is a marked difference in the way the artist depicts Kazuki, being the older boy, from the wide-eyed uke, Wataru. I know this is a common technique, but I was impressed with the consistency of the character details. Some really lovely illustrations in this book made it a pleasure.
What isn't typical is the way in which Kazuki secretly falls for Wataru and all out stalks him long before they ever even meet. To Wataru, Kazuki is simply a respectable, popular upperclassman who doesn't figure much on his radar otherwise. It never occurs to him that an older boy might have feelings for him.
The issue of the two boys discovering how they feel and coming to terms with it is dealt with in an uncommonly sensitive matter in this story, and that appealed to me a great deal. It wasn't a angst-ridden fest of self-loathing or candies and popcorn, flower-strewn love in. It was realistic and honest, and in the midst of an otherwise ordinary story, that was a fresh take.
The ring featured in the series title proves to be an elusive bond between them, and I felt true authenticity in the naive importance the boys put on the physical object. It sweetened their fumbling first steps into love, reminded me of some of the silly things people do in high school.
I'm not sure, in this book, if the translation or the original Japanese text is the source of the sometimes awkward phrasing in this story, but I did notice sometimes the wording seemed stiff. I also noticed some very simple and straightforward use of description I found added to the sweet feeling of the whole story over all.
The illistrations I found quite sweet as well. There is a marked difference in the way the artist depicts Kazuki, being the older boy, from the wide-eyed uke, Wataru. I know this is a common technique, but I was impressed with the consistency of the character details. Some really lovely illustrations in this book made it a pleasure.