Book 967: Our Dreams at Dusk (Our Dreams at Dusk #1) – Yuhki Kamatani

I found this one on a list of manga to read after really enjoying My Love: Mix-up! along with I Hear the Sunspot. So when I saw my local library had a copy of this I put it on hold and grabbed it before our weekend away earlier this month.

At heart, Our Dreams at Dusk is a coming-of-age and coming-out story. Tasuku has moved to a new town and he’s been outed and has to come to terms with either being open about it or trying to continue to hide it. So this one is not as light and fluffy as many of the other BL Manga I’ve read.

This one has the seriousness of Sunspot, but with some of the humor and over-the-top energy of Mix-up! So it’s probably somewhere in the middle for me, but I could see it overtaking Mix-up as my favorite manga depending on the next couple of volumes.

This is a slow-paced book and a slow reveal that I thoroughly enjoyed. I think we’ve met the love interest, but I’m not 100%. The protagonist is Tasuku who is coming to terms with his sexuality and has stumbled across a community center that provides support to those in need.

And this is what immediately sets this one apart from almost all of the manga I’ve read except My Brother’s Husband. The center so far has provided at least one adult example of an out LGBT character for Tasuku to look up to and it is 100% adorable and I’m here for this type of responsible representation. I’ve seen on the cover of Volume 4 that a wedding happens and it gets me so excited about where this series is going!

There are some dark undertones around suicide that I missed until I got to the end and upon a re-read, I definitely noticed them more. The most beautiful panel for me was when Tasuku found out the woman he was working with was a lesbian and had a partner. He realizes that he could be gay and that’s when we see the guy he might have a crush on and is probably the love interest (I have my fingers crossed at least) it is a stunning scene with various pieces of glass bursting out of his chest showing all sorts of interactions (real or imagined I don’t know) with that character.

Recommendation: This may be my new favorite BL Manga. I’m not sure where it’s going, or even 100% of who the love interest is, but seeing the covers I have a few ideas. I could see where a lot of people would see this series as being super slow, but I’ve always enjoyed a slow build and simmer in any romance novel.