Review: Home Office Romance by Kintetsu Yamada

Home Office Romance
by Kintetsu Yamada

My Rating: 4 stars

Genre: Contemporary Romance/ Graphic Novel
Age Category: Adult
Type of romance: m/f

Blurb:
Nokoru has been working brutal overtime at a demanding job when the pandemic lockdown finally gives him the chance to telework from home. This new situation (and the time he saves on his commute) lets him rediscover old passions and new hobbies. The lush garden he creates on his apartment balcony provides a chance to get to know his cute neighbor, Natsu, a graduate student in archeology. How do two adults build a relationship amid “social distancing,” when face-to-face interaction is frown upon, even dangerous? It feels like a tall tale to find an office romance at home, but these are strange times…

My Review

I received a free copy from the publisher through Netgalley and voluntarily reviewed it.

One of my reading goals from last year was to read more graphic novels, so I requested a bunch on Netgalley and this was one of them. I only got around to reading it this year, but I am so glad I got this one as it was really good. Home Office Romance is set during the Covid pandemic with the main characters working from home and they meet each other as they are neighbors.

I thought this was a wonderful slice of life romance story. It was super sweet with some hints to steamy stuff happening. I really liked reading about these characters and they felt realistic and real. They each had their own lives and I liked seeing them connecting with each other and talking about mutual interests. I liked seeing how their romance progressed as they grow closer. I also appreciated how there is very little drama or conflict. When a miscommunication of confusion occurs they actually resolve it quickly and nothing got drawn out, I really liked this. The ending was romantic and sweet and gives a glimpse of their future.

The art was very well done, at first I didn’t like how Nokoru was drawn, but eventually I came to appreciate the subtle differences in his expression and liked how he was drawn more. Natsu is drawn so vibrant and alive and I really liked how obvious her emotions and expressions were drawn. The romance has a bit of a grumpy-sunshine vibe and is all told from the guys points of view.

I appreciated how this is a complete story in one volume and the ending wraps things up well. Most graphic novels have multiple installments, but this book has the whole story in one volume, which was nice.

To summarize: I really liked this graphic novel. It follows Nokoru’s point of view as he falls in love with his neighbor when he starts working from home during the pandemic. This book was romantic, cute and sweet and I really liked it. the characters felt real and realistic. Any miscommunications or confusion got resolved quickly and there was hardly any drama or conflict. I liked the art-style, I had to get used to Nokoru’s expressions, but then I appreciate the subtle differences in his expressions. Natsu is very vibrant and her expressions are very obvious and clear. I had a great time reading this one and am glad I read it.

Links:
– Goodreads
– Bookbub
– Amazon
– B&N
– Kobo

You can also read my review on Goodreads and Bookbub.