What do you think?
Rate this book
The Lying Bride and the Same-Sex Marriage Debate Vol. 2
TIME TO SETTLE THINGSLife has been strangely enjoyable ever since Rei's former co-worker, Saya, started staying at Rei's apartment. Rei has always had a bit of a crush on flirty, feminine Saya, but she doesn't want to get her hopes up in case Saya isn't into women. When Rei discovers that Saya had been talking to her husband, the cheery atmosphere changes into something more tense. Saya tells Rei that she'll move out and apologizes for freeloading. As Saya's moving day draws closer, can the two women figure out their true feelings for one another before it's too late?
The final volume of The Lying Bride and the Same-Sex Marriage Debate!
The final volume of The Lying Bride and the Same-Sex Marriage Debate!
172 pages, Paperback
Published March 31, 2026
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
April 5, 2026
This… is a good short series. It gets in, makes its point, really makes its point, and then leaves. I’d have read more, but this doesn’t feel rushed or incomplete for a pleasant change.
The afterword at the end is probably the saddest part, as the mangaka just assumed that same-sex unions would be legal by now in Japan. Yet… not so much. I found this a moving postscript and good explanation for why this is what it is.
Shigisawa and Goto have been living in domestic bliss, but Goto is about to go and fix things up with her husband. You can already tell from the start that it’s not what she wants, but she doesn’t feel she has any choice.
The entire volume focuses down on this one issue and that’s smart. There isn’t time to do more, so keeping it simple is the way to go. Because the problem is not simple, yet the narrative is, you get exactly what you need from it.
Goto’s husband is cusping on being a villain, but really he’s just a very poor communicator about what he actually wants and makes things worse by just trying to do the right thing. When Goto can tell that he’s not being straight with her, it’s pretty rough.
And that leaves Shigisawa right there, Goto’s partner in Sapphic happiness. Except Goto isn’t in a position to accept her friend’s generosity and makes all sorts of bad choices as she’s sorting this out. I appreciate Shigisawa being the responsible one, even as it hurts her.
It was nice that Goto chooses herself before she chooses anybody else in the end, but I do think her choice to completely go incommunicado is a bit at odds with her ultimate choice. I believe it could happen, it’s just… yeah, I wasn’t completely sold on it.
Again, small potatoes overall. I think this does a stellar job with telling a full story in a small space and that’s not easy in manga. I rarely find these satisfying, but this gets it pretty much right.
3.5 stars - better than the mangaka’s last attempt at this, it makes for a good two volumes of manga that has something to say about same-sex relationships. Recommended.
The afterword at the end is probably the saddest part, as the mangaka just assumed that same-sex unions would be legal by now in Japan. Yet… not so much. I found this a moving postscript and good explanation for why this is what it is.
Shigisawa and Goto have been living in domestic bliss, but Goto is about to go and fix things up with her husband. You can already tell from the start that it’s not what she wants, but she doesn’t feel she has any choice.
The entire volume focuses down on this one issue and that’s smart. There isn’t time to do more, so keeping it simple is the way to go. Because the problem is not simple, yet the narrative is, you get exactly what you need from it.
Goto’s husband is cusping on being a villain, but really he’s just a very poor communicator about what he actually wants and makes things worse by just trying to do the right thing. When Goto can tell that he’s not being straight with her, it’s pretty rough.
And that leaves Shigisawa right there, Goto’s partner in Sapphic happiness. Except Goto isn’t in a position to accept her friend’s generosity and makes all sorts of bad choices as she’s sorting this out. I appreciate Shigisawa being the responsible one, even as it hurts her.
It was nice that Goto chooses herself before she chooses anybody else in the end, but I do think her choice to completely go incommunicado is a bit at odds with her ultimate choice. I believe it could happen, it’s just… yeah, I wasn’t completely sold on it.
Again, small potatoes overall. I think this does a stellar job with telling a full story in a small space and that’s not easy in manga. I rarely find these satisfying, but this gets it pretty much right.
3.5 stars - better than the mangaka’s last attempt at this, it makes for a good two volumes of manga that has something to say about same-sex relationships. Recommended.
Displaying 1 of 1 review