as the topic suggests I'm looking for romance manga, preferably shoujo or josei where the characters are in a sexual relationship during some point of the series. However, I'm not looking for your typical smut where it's the entire plot of the story, rather a story where it's used as character development or as a basis to show the development of their relationship. Kare Kano and Mars come to mind as good examples, I'm sure I've read others but I can't think of them off the top of my head.

Thanks for your suggestions.

Kimi wa pet

lovely ghost kana.

Aishiteruze Baby?
Boku ni Natta Watashi

Paradise Kiss and other mangas by Yazawa Ai
Red River
Zig Zag Don maybe (it's not sex that "builds" the relationship... more like sex that makes things awkward)

Avatar by tassyn.livejournal.com

Reading: Kingdom, Sangokushi, Historie

Almost any josei manga by Minami Q-ta, esp. my current fave The Crimson Boy which is ADORABLE and a non-smutty but very gentle and lyrical approach to sex.

Also...

Basara - takes them AGES to get to it, but they do

Kimi Kara no Resume - lovely and realistic

Ingenuo - several sexual relationships implied + nudity

Les Bijoux - oh boy, yeah, with gender-bending (not "smut" though)

H - several sexual relationships implied (main guy's a host)

Kare wa Tomodachi - enough angst to give you heartburn + implied sex

Vampire Girl - and others by Fujiwara Kaoru

Nana - you've probably read it

Mars and Eternal Sabbath - both AMAZING stories by Souryo Fuyumi

Operation Liberate Men - non-smutty social commentary on a society where men are subservient (and the pretty ones are used for sex)

Midnight Secretary - borders on the smutty approach but smut with plot I guess?

Edit: You ok with yuri? Because I can think of many GL recs... Lol.

Not to make this sound like a shameless plug, but I'm currently working on a Josei series called Heart o Uchinomese! that fits the bill. The story revolves around particular key characters amongst a group of friends. 🙂

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