Let me start by saying just how pleasantly surprised I was by this story. Unsure what to expect at first, I found the storyline delightfully compelling and by the end, I was yearning for more. I was regularly yelling at the screen for the happy ending I was hoping for, and Sakura did not disappoint!

The story began with your typical otaku-type figure struggling to find her place in the world. She was hungry for a fresh start, and as a nervous ball of energy, she marched forward into her new reality. Immediately introduced to the other important figures of the story, we see exactly who we will be getting to know over the next chapters. There was some foreshadowing laid down for us right away with a tarot reading from the resident edgy-occultist Shiori, and as someone who loves tarot, I knew I was hooked at this point. Her reading was interesting and did well to help me understand the challenges that would soon befall our heroine!

The author does well to really lay in the fact that Izumi had a troubled past without ever outright saying it. What was surprising to me was just how supportive her mother was, and it was so wholesome! The mother was so loving and caring that it really came as a breath of fresh air to see how much she loved her daughter and supported her journey towards adulthood. Really, the connection that the main character had with her inner circle was so well written that it made me wish I also had an equally wonderful group of friends to surround and support me! It's no wonder the world was obviously so jealous of her!

The love interest was a fantastic addition. You see your boy tropes thrown in there, from the athletic boy who has serious naive puppy dog vibes to the awkward, too-cool-for-school gamer boy who was essentially the cat in this dynamic. Both male leads had wonderfully different personalities that made them enjoyable to follow and made me, as the reader, wonder who was going to win out in the end for Izumi's fragile heart. The real similarity between them came from their protectiveness and how good-natured both were.

The reason I wanted to give this story 5/5 stars was that it was such a wholesome feel-good romance that really made me want to keep reading. Sakura did a great job writing a compelling story of youthful healing and blossoming young love. There were little twists and turns throughout, adding in moments of drama and complication, but in the end, with such a strong cast of characters, there was nothing that this group of friends could not overcome.

So in the end, I recommend you listen to what the tarot cards are telling you, take a break from your favourite manga, and put down your baseball bat to dive into this game of love!