Captive Hearts, Vol. 1

Is a beautiful girl - boy tale. The boy is atractive to the girl and vice. But as allways the life and manga is not as simple as that. The fantasy take care of that. Converting the love- romance in a master -slave relation. If you like romance this tale is for you.

The title story "Captive Hearts" is part one of a newly released English version of Matsuri Hino's manga. Its about thievery and the results of it's greed coupled with the potential of true love. As with most mangas the main characters over act a great deal, melodramatic seems to be a key element of manga, but there are also some truly touching scenes between the two main characters Megumi Kuroishi and Suzuka Kogami. Generations ago, we are not told how many of pasted nor if generation is a time or a reproductive measurement, the Kuroishi ancestor stole from the Kogami family and was cursed to always serve them in body, heart and soul. Megumi grew up in the Kogami house where his father was the butler but never had to deal with this curse since the master's family left the country and was presumed dead for 14 years. With the only surviving member, Suzuka, returning, the curse to serve hits Megumi hard but harder still seems to be their love and Suzuka's sense of morals and ethics. It's a sweet female dominant/male submissive story that I wish there were more of in the English market. There are also two other shorter, perhaps one-shot, stories of a romantic bent. "Real Storm" looks at a schoolgirl crush and a strange teacher. "Let Time Freeze" follows two life-time friends who realize that they are in love this means they must defy her family. All three are contemporary stories though "Captive Hearts" has the potential for historical flashbacks. I was not as impressed with the two shorter stories and this is the reason for the -1 star in the rating. The art work is standard for the genres of manga I read. I look forward to other volumns.