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Description
From Viz:
Poor Sumi Kitamura… Her irresponsible older brother Eisuke keeps bringing home orphans for her to take care of even though they can barely afford their own basic needs! Just when Sumi's financial problems become dire, wealthy Soichiro Ashida enters her life with a bizarre proposition: he'll provide her with the money she so desperately needs if she agrees to marry him. But can Sumi fool high society into thinking she's a proper lady? Moreover, is it worth giving up everything for this sham of a marriage?
Type
Manga
Related Series
N/A
Associated Names
نمشي على الورود حفاة الأقدام 玫瑰契約 裸足でバラを踏め ก้าวย่างบนดอกกุหลาบ Hadashi de Bara wo Fume Hoa hồng đỏ (HĐức) Hoa hồng tình yêu (ĐN) Stepping on Roses Stepping on Roses Barefoot
I mean I dont know if I could recommend this in good conscience. But I mean it's okay. But other manga do the cliches/tropes in this manga better. The story at times loses focus. The characters are a mess to say the least and the action of the lead with another character make zero sense going by what he does
I read the author's other series, Tail of the Moon, and liked it so I decided to give this one a whirl too. At first, I was really into it, even though I could tell right away that it would be a predictable story line. I liked and sympathized with Sumi and enjoyed to the typical yandere-like actions of Soichiro. But somewhere in the middle of the series, it totally lost it's magic. The characters suffered from SERIOUS mood swings and personality changes and the relationships/reactions were so unrealistic it was laughable. I mean, I know it's a shojo manga but c'mon!
Spoiler (mouse over to view)
Don't get me wrong, I found Nozomu's crazy switch to be awesome and unexpected (it genuinely made me shiver at points!), but the fact that both Sumi and Soichiro were seemingly fine with him kidnapping/stalking/painting disturbing images of her is just so ridiculous. Sure, Sumi seemed nervous around him at times, but she kept willingly going back to him which just floors me. They both seem just totally oblivious. I mean, after Soichiro saw that painting of Sumi, shouldn't he a be a little more concerned/angry/disturbed??
Along the same lines, I can't believe that after all the crazy stuff Nozomu does, including almost raping Sumi and then chasing her down with an ax, how can the author just wrap this story up by showing him (with his equally crazy wife) content and happy? He spends the whole series creepily obsessing over Sumi (ie. he kept her rice ball? All I could think was GROSS) to the point of no return and then magically turns a new leaf at the very end? This makes no sense to me.
Also, the romance is really weirdly paced in my opinion. It feels as if they went straight from the "I hate you/we're only doing this for money" phase into the "I never want to be apart from you" phase. I was confused while reading because suddenly they were supposedly in love without any proper romantic development.
But overall, I did enjoy reading this series. The art is lovely and there were some funny/interesting bits. Also, despite the abrupt ending, Nozomu's character was fascinating. I've never seen a mangaka truly capture the crazed/dual-personality like she did with Nozomu. He felt like a villain straight out of a horror story, which was very exciting! So, I would recommend reading if you're looking for a casual shojo read, but be prepared for a bumpy ride.
The reason I love this manga so much is only because of Nozumu, the male yandere in this story. It would had gone to the cliche tropes if it wasn't for his axe swinging to smack every rooms door lol. His character is great, and I think that's the only reason I kept reading this story(plus, the fact that it has a nice art) and would have love it more if only
Spoiler (mouse over to view)
he and Sumi wasn't really related by blood, and that Souichirou went to the ship and just go back 20 years later while Sumi is like an empty shell looking at their Nozumu jr. Lol. Well, too much for my planned alternative ending *shrugs*
Well, I could also praise Sumi for her hardworking personality, Souichirou's tsundere character which made me like him too(but really, I was always squealing whenever Nozumu stares very scary in every scene, really, he gives me the goosebumps!)
The ending was a bit rushed, pretty predictable and smooth after all the drama, but I was expecting MORE from the story, but it's still nice, I can proudly say that I rate this overall 7.5/10(bonus points for the art and Nozumu's epic character!)
I started reading this manga solely because some blog says it has an honest-to-goodness yandere character. Well, let me say this: He's probably the most memorable male yandere I've ever seen so far. As for the manga itself, well....I have mixed feelings about it...
Spoiler (mouse over to view)
The Good ::
1. Pretty art style = the characters and sceneries were generally nice to look at. I particularly love the way the author draws the expressions - so intense xD. However, I can't help but notice inconsistencies at the quality at times.
2. DECENT Heroine = Miss Sumi is a decent MC for a shoujo. She's naive and uneducated, yes, but the manga succeeds in making me understand her circumstances. Sumi does have some development over time and I can't help but root for her. Her clumsiness does get on my nerves sometimes.
3. The "Villain" = this is only the biased opinion of a girl who loves male yandere characters. Nozumu has taken a place in my heart as the most memorable. I really would've loved it if he won in the end - bad endings for everyone! Sumi would be married to her brother (that's f**ked up), his father would die out of pure sadness, Souichirou went aboard the ship and come back years later only to find a soulless Sumi holding Nozomu's children. The worst outcome would be that Sumi develops Stockholm syndrome-like symptoms.
I got carried away. Anyways, it was fairly clear even from the beginning that there's something fishy about Nozomu. Who the hell would blatantly show affection on someone's else's wife in broad daylight? Where did the axe-swinging come from?? He's utterly pathetic and ridiculous, but the things he does...Jesus, this f***er is crazy and I love it, hahahaha.
The Meh
1. The Romance = it was so typical. Girl gets forcefully married to some rich jerk with an oh-so-dark past, and they fall in love for real blah blah Guy chooses girl over money blah blah HAPPY EVER AFTER. Souichirou is childish and tsundere (meeeeh), but he does try to grow up over time.
2. Mediocre Over-arching story = *continuation of 1* Whelp, in my opinion, the story was predictable, except when Nozomu's involved.
The Bad
1. Out-of-the-blue personality switches = There were times that characters would act OOC out of the blue and with no legit explanation. Plot holes would often result from them. For instance, why the servant guy (forgot his name) betrayed Souichiro we'll probably never know. Also, in the real world, no one would would go from batshit crazy to melo in too short a time. Heck, no one would allow those people to roam the streets. I'm talking about Nozomu here, in the ending.
2. THE MELODRAMA!!! = most of the time I'd be laughing my butt off over how stupid every human interaction was.
3. The Rushed Ending = it could've ended much better. I will never understand how Nozomu gets to walk free after all he's done, or why his wife Miu still loves him. Is she crazy as well? It was all so rushed that it left a sour taste in my mouth.
Fans of The Shining may like this manga: It contains a scene where one of the characters starts breaking down doors with an axe in search of the MC. Yes, I'm serious. And sadly, this isn't a horror story. Don't get me wrong, I love drama (Bokura ga Ita and Mars for shoujo examples), but this manga is SO DRAMATIC that the characters, who suffer from bizarre mood swings, personality changes, lapses in rationality and the typical shoujo misunderstandings, are essentially caricatures who bear no resemblance to actual human beings. Logical plans are occasionally devised and instantly abandoned. Loose strings, lying everywhere, are kicked around by the characters as they run around in emotional turmoil. Everything works out with both their professional and personal lives in the end - but don't ask me how.
All that said, this manga isn't absolutely terrible. There are cute and funny bits. Despite the excess of drama, the plot being old as the sun and the inconstant characterization, I didn't drop it and I didn't feel viciously angry after finishing it. But it's the equivalent of watching a television show like Jersey Shore - the bizarre behaviour of the people is interesting, but there's no substance there whatsoever.
I swear. This manga has the most evil bad guy of any manga I've ever read.
Loved it.
Has a lot of typical shoujou stuff (tsundere/arraigned marriages/miscommunication/etc etc), but stays interesting despite that. Has a lot of heart. Also has a lot of STUPID. But, yeah. Still love it.
At first i thought i'll just read this manga to kill time, but the next thing i know i was so hooked on the story, my feeling became 'I want to read it'...though i still think for their age, the characters look tiny and cute, should be more mature looking haha
Spoiler (mouse over to view)
Man chapter two marriage was so funny! When he kiss her she was like "what the..."
It's always "u disobey me I'll throw you into the sea" funny indeed ^^
In the next world we'll be together, hahaha what te heck! Chapter 13
Chapter 19 oh she doesn't want it(kissing only) to stop, now she like it ei~ with shuichirou~
This is really a comical manga, most of the time I'm laughing
Sumi is a really strong woman, after all the scolding from her dear husband, she takes it as it is, and somehow manage to think of other people's feelings first rather than herself, and feel sad for other people == wah, is there any human being like that...
Man this Nozomu guy is really obsessed with Sumi, it scares me~ How he trembles while taking up the onigiri made by sumi that was thrown into the dustbin oh my gosh...chapter 27 yer obsessed obsessed chapter 29 naked painting kiss yikes
So funny Komai was at Sumi's place when he decided to leave master haha c28
Whenever Nozomu touch Sumi I'm like what the h*ll...
Wao this girl' strong man! Even helping her husband get back his title woohoo~! Chapter 50
Dude this Nozomu guy is getting scary and scarier due to his one sided love~ ugh~
Blood related siblings?!! Huh, of course they were, knew it from the time he said you look like my mother...
Huh, Souichirou didn't get on the ship, no way~...huhuh I knew it~~~~
Dang the whole story was cute~
And about Komai-san going to work for Nozomu, why did he do that? Betray Souichiro? Or just in need of a job?
I've only read to chapter 10 but I feel like I can't continue, how can the male protagonist do what he does?!
Seeing him forcing his wife to leave whilst the children were running along behind crying made me feel teary, and what's with the female protagonist smiling just two seconds later thanking the guy?!
It was dramatic, sure, the girl cried, sure, there's the whole poor vs. rich aspect... but I really enjoyed this story. I liked the girl, I did not find that she was completely without use and she did something to help herself and others around her. There's nothing particularly new about the plot, but everything is stretched out to the extreme.
Which is why I like it. I profess to be a fan of the male yandere, and that was the reason I read this. In fact, I LOVED the yandere character, I have no idea why that type of personality is so appealing to me but he really was everything I love to see.
The art is really pretty, I love the the girl's hair and all the clothes were gorgeous.
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