Love for Dessert by Hana Aoi review

Love for Dessert

Author/Artist: Hana Aoi

Publisher: Luv Luv Press

Rating: M – 18 and above

Genre: Josei, Drama, Romance, Anthology

Grade: B

Love for Dessert was Luv Luv Press' third release. It is a one-shot collection of romantic stories that all center on sweet like dessert stories.

Love for Dessert – Rei works in an ad agency. Her co-worker Kuze is a real pain in the butt. One evening while working late Rei picks up dinner for both her her and Kuze. She loves sweets so she makes herself some whipped cream for dinner. Kuze hates sweets, but will he like it if it's Rei for dessert?

Icing on the Cake – Yu has everything: money, looks, and style. Her boyfriend Junichiro only has looks. Right when she was about to dump him he shows up in a suit. Does she love Junichiro only for his suits?

Bubblegum Princess - Shina's mom loves to dress her in Gothic-Lolita fashions. She was always bullied when she was a kid. Mayuki always came to her rescue, her knight in shining armor. Ten years later he's coming to live with Shina's family. Is he still the dashing prince that Shina remembers?

Red Bean - Chihiro mistrusts men. Working as a hostess at a bar this point is constantly proven. One day while handing out fliers to bring in new customers, she runs into a classmate from her school. Bean (his nickname) is an adorable and pure kind of guy. Will Chihiro set aside her pride and allow herself to love again?

Sweet Future - Natsumi is so indecisive. She goes so far as to visit a fortuneteller. After losing her job and visiting her fortuneteller her boyfriend convinces her to take a job as a tutor to his boss' son. It seems that Ryo, the son, goes to an all boys' school and has become smitten with Natsumi. What is Natsumi to do?

Puppy Chow - Mana is currently dating Hibiki. Mana likes it when the guy takes charge so she doesn't have to make any decisions. Hibiki on the other hand always asks what Mana wants. When she runs into an ex-boyfriend she remembers their times fondly. He always took the lead. Will Mana leave Hibiki or will she realize that Hibiki only has her best interest in mind?

Luv Luv Press' first release Voices of Love was the first one-shot collection. If I were to compare the two and choose my favorite, Love for Dessert would be the one I choose. Each story was very cute and sweet. Delicious just like dessert. The characters were well fleshed out and interesting even though the stories were shorter. My personal favorite was Red Bean. It is just the type of story I love. I have the tendency to distrust men as well. I'm still looking for my Bean. The artwork is beautiful in this volume. The characters all look different from one story to the next. That's pretty difficult to do seeing how many stories are in the book. The stories are somewhat formulaic but are unique enough to find them interesting. Love for Dessert is a much needed and fresh take on romance and sexy josei type manga.

I have read several Luv Luv titles that have been released and they have really improving the qualities of the titles that they license. Not only do they have great titles their quality is top notch. They may not have fancy dust jackets but the books are scored near the spine to make it easier to open. They also use higher quality paper to print on and the ink stays on the page, not rubbing off onto your hands. Since Luv Luv Press is part of Aurora Publishing, Inc. (publishing books with three different line Luv Luv Press, Deux Press, and Aurora) I have come to expect great things. I haven't been disappointed yet!