A moving coming-of-age story that showcases a fierce, dynamic heroine who speaks her mind.
Meet Maria Kawai—she’s gorgeous and whip-smart, a girl who seems to have it all. But when she unleashes her sharp tongue, it’s no wonder some consider her to be the very devil! Maria’s difficult ways even get her kicked out of an elite school, but this particular fall may actually turn out to be her saving grace...
Maria finally gets to be with her beloved Shin, but her mysterious inabiilty to speak continues to haunt her. Because the cause may be related to her past, she decides to go to Yokosuka, the town she grew up in. What life-changing surprises await her there?
The beginning of this manga was awesome. It had a great potential, it looked different and with strong characters and the first volume was a 5 star for me, but it declined to the point that I can't pass over volumes 10 and 11, I just can´t.
The 2 stars is my rating for A Devil and Her Love Song entire series: 5★ for the firsts volumes, 3 ★ for the ones in the middle and 1★ for volumes 10 and 11. I'm not reading 12 and 13.
So even her grandparents blame her for her own birth and how she was conceived? And oh, her father stalked her mom after he raped her, but thats ok because he loved her. Yea not cool at all. And Shintaro is manipulating in this one, and I wish when Shin stoped Maria from hitting John he would have instead. Ugh, I HATE this turn if events so much. I do feel like Maria could have forgiven John in a much different way that's more realistic- just realize that hating him does her no good and leave. Just-yea this one sucked so bad...
i think it is possible to tell a story about forgiving your mother's rapist but it would take a lot more time and attention to complexity than this volume offered. i really wish she'd have ignored this plot thread entirely than have handled it so poorly. 2.5 stars
3 1/2 stars, really. I'm not sure I like how easily the conflict in this volume was resolved. I just don't appreciate it. Still, this story is very deep.
the whole "forgiveness for raping my mom" thing was wrapped up a little too soon, but I think Tomori tried very hard to show that there was justification for it.
At first, I was so angry to see Maria’s “father” living a happy life but then I realized that life isn’t black and white. There is that gray area in between. No one is truly “evil”. We all have it in us to do “evil” things. Making mistakes doesn’t make you “bad”. It just makes you human. It was nice to see John change his ways. He was atoning for his sins in his own way. But I do feel like Maria forgave him too easily. But it is just a fictional story and we can’t dwell on it too long since the series ends in two more volumes. Now, I am worried about Shin. I have a feeling he’s going to “run away” after he felt guilty for being mote worried about his hand than Maria….
Throw Eros in the garbage. Along with rapist Father John. Eros again for KNOWING AND SETTING UP A REUNION WITHOUT MARIA'S KNOWLEDGE. Shin can stay in the garbage where I've been consistently leaving him, but it's not like he did anything especially horrible this volume. Newly found grandpa? Straight into the trash. Bratty orphan? There's still room in the can!!
Yusuke is still a sweet boy who can do no wrong. He should be endgame, not Shin.
If I hadn't read so far with only two books left, I'd drop it. But whatever.
Another good volume, good pace and plot. I definitely like the progression of the story here, I like how this second main story arc (after Anna left) has really been what the series is about. It has been about Maria, and her growth. I am actually glad of some of the revelations in this volume, but also sad for the characters. I can't believe I am almost at the end.
Honesty she should’ve never got with Shin. He’s a literal walking red flag. Insecure, no confidence in himself, constant worrying, laughed after an argument, smiled while admitting he forced himself on her, etc. It’s just pathetic.
Yusuke is so much BETTER than all the possible male leads why was he friend zoned ugh.
Se que es controversial pero a mi sí que me ha gustado este tomo y creo que se trata bien el tema del padre de Maria. Ahora sí, la dosis de angst entre Meguro y Maria sigue in crescendo y se viene aún más en el siguiente tomo :')
This one was pretty heavy. I can't remember ever hearing that Maria was born as the result of a rape before. Maybe because of that, it felt like all these issues were stirred up and then resolved in one quick volume. What I don't get is that, if Maria's mother had been writing to her father for years, so much so that he fell in love with her, and if she loved Maria so much, what is the real reason she committed suicide? Because she was lonely? Severe depression? Some sort of victim's guilt?
I'm just glad Maria was able to get her voice back, even though that seemed rather inexplicable, too. I guess an almost-drowning followed by spontaneous singing will do that for you. I'm glad Shin has been there for Maria so much, in such a supportive, defensive manner. Now if only he will let her be there for him as he deals with his hand issues. Which, by the way, probably wouldn't be so bad if he hadn't been avoiding it and ignoring the obvious pain and numbness for so long.
It seems clear that Shintaro is out of the picture romantically at this point. I will admit to be surprised that Maria's father was his foster father, and that was one of the reasons he initially came to find her. That seems like a pretty big lie for Maria to shrug off and forget about, but that's big of her, I guess. If anything, their relationship will probably end up being more brother-sister than anything else.
My poor Yusuke. I thought he had given up on Maria and was whole-heartedly supporting her and Shin together, but obviously his mind can't necessarily make his heart behave. When he saved her from drowning and then gave her CPR, the look on his face was unmistakable. And then when Maria thanked him for saving her, and he asked if Shin told her anything else (I'm thinking he's talking about the CPR), he looked both scared and hopeful. As much as I like Shin and Maria together, part of me still wishes she loved Yusuke, because he seems to be a much steadier, cheerful, supportive guy. AKA, exactly like the standard second lead in all the dramas I watch, the guy the girl never picks, the best friend.
Since Maria's birth and family issues seem to be resolved, I'm guessing the next volume will deal with Shin and his hand, which will be a nice change of pace, hopefully.
This is a heavy volume. Maria meets her father. The man who raped her mother. and rightfully so, Maria is angry at this man.
But Maria sees now that he is a Priest and has been a foster parent to Shintaro.
Maria is right in her anger. And I honestly can't blame her for hating him. Yes, he helped in her creation, but while doing a horrible act.
There was a theme of a forgiving in this volume and I did like that. However, I felt the forgiveness that was given to Maria's father happened too quick.
Sure, he is living a different life. But does that change what he did? Does that change how it affected Maria's mother and even Maria herself? Rape is serious and not something simple to be pushed aside.
And I am not saying that Maria shouldn't forgive him. I felt, though, that she was being forced to forgive him because he had changed because he was now doing good things. I felt especially Shintaro was forcing forgiveness because Maria's father had been good to him.
And forgiveness isn't something that happens fast. You can't forgive quickly. It is a progress, not for the person that you're forgiving, but for you. Forgiveness takes work and you need to work through things before you can truly forgive. And that's okay.
It is okay to feel anger when something horrible is done to you or someone you love. And I wish Maria would have been able to work through it more, instead of the author making her forgive so quickly.
This was still a good volume. A lot of character growth for all of them. And I just wonder what Shin is doing? Does he feel bad? Does he feel he's not good enough for Maria now?
I can't believe there are only two volumes left. But I'm looking forward to reading the next two.
You guys, there’s only two more volumes in this series. It’s going to be over in February. How is it so close to the end already?! I don’t understand.
I love seeing Maria grow and find out more about herself and her past. It’s so exciting, and horrible, and good for her.
I’m not going to go into detail, because a lot happened in this book. There was a big internal fight for her to go through because of a few things that she found out, and it’s so hard to see her upset and angry, but she’s coming out of it better, and that’s good. We found out a lot about Maria and her parents and grandparents in this volume, as well as a surprise with Kurosu that I was really not expecting.
There was also some development with Shin and Maria. At this point, I’m not really sure how I feel about them, especially since it seems like Shin isn’t really listening to her, or is trying to shelter her, when it’s not his say what she knows or doesn’t know. Maybe I just want more Yusuke? I don’t know.
I love Maria. I just want her to mature and be happy.
Anyway. I want the next volume, and can't wait for it to get here.
Maria finally gets to be with her beloved Shin, but her mysterious inabiilty to speak continues to haunt her. Because the cause may be related to her past, she decides to go to Yokosuka, the town she grew up in. What life-changing surprises await her there?
My Thoughts:
This is a very life-changing volume. Maria travels to her old home to try to get some closure on everything that happened with her mother. There, she meets someone unexpected and we find out that Shintaro has had a connection to Maria for a long time and that's how he ended up at their school. Meanwhile, Shin's hand is getting worse and once he realizes it, he starts to protect it. I think he's thinking badly about himself again. He's worried about his hand and it causes him to hesitate when reaching out to Maria at crucial moments. She doesn't notice he was doing that, but knowing Shin, he probably thinks he isn't good enough to be with her or something.
We get to meet Maria's grandparents in this volume and it's tense at times, but it looks like they'll be closer now. Surprisingly, Maria's father is impossible to hate. I actually rather like him.
I want Maria and Shin to be happy, but I'm worried...
There were some issues/situations that were glanced over in this volume, and a few were resolved in an annoyingly rushed manner. Even though I do not agree, necessarily, with this chunk of story line, doesn't mean that dragged the whole thing down. It's definitely looking at a scenario through a different cultural lens, and some readers may have a bigger problem with that. An element or two stooped to soap-opera-level, and I shook my head at it (that doesn't happen that way..). But, the author wanted that as a plot device, and she ran with it. Okay. I'll let you have it.
Despite those unnamed flaws (for spoiler's sake), I did like how this volume took up the theme of forgiveness and being bigger than hatred. Hate would have been so easy for Maria in this volume, but she strove to be better than that.
On the other hand (hah, I guess that could be a pun), I really want to punch Shin in the nose right now. He started off as an intriguing love interest, but now he's getting obnoxious, in his own way. Not as bad as that Shintaro guy, but still. Punch in nose.
So much happens in this volume! Maria still suffering from shock and having lost her voice decides to find some answers to her past. She goes to her hometown of Yokosuka with her friends Shintaro Kurosu, Yusuke, and Shin. She discovers more about her mother, father, and even her remaining family. She and Shin are trying to connect as a couple, but they are getting lost in the translation (so to speak). It seems Shin is feeling a need to protect her even more, and is forgetting to take care of his damaged hand. Which looks like it has gotten worse since the fight between him and Maria. It feel like he's preparing for something. He sees himself having problems protecting Maria from the harsh truths and dangers of the world. It looks like he may martyr his relationship with her because of his feelings of inadequacy in not fulfilling those personal promises. I really can't wait to read the details on this new development.
Really hate how people are framing John RAPING A CHILD as a “mistake”. No, this was not a silly little mistake. This is a man who CHOSE to rape a young girl and ultimately caused her to suffer both physically and mentally all because he was a sick fuck who wanted sexual gratification from a child! The author is truly demented as fuck to think that someone like that should be forgiven just because he’s such a good man now and in the church and all that bullshit. He should’ve been locked away and castrated, but of course he never had to face any consequences for his actions and all the hurt he caused. Fuck him and fuck this author! And fuck whoever thinks John is worth any redemption.
I don't like Maria's boyfriend, Shin. I don't think I'll ever forgive him for what he did in a previous volume, which always leaves a sour taste in my mouth.
But, I can see why she would feel the way about him that she does. She feels that she is alone, and he helps her to realize she is not.
However, I still don't feel completely happy about how some things are being resolved in this series. -------------------- This volume was provided to me as an eManga by VIZ Media, via Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed here are my own.
This series ends in two volumes. It can't be soon enough. I only continue to read this series because I check it out from my library and I've come this far that two more to go isn't asking too much (I hope!).
A Devil and Her Love Song started out a much stronger story than it has become, dwindling into silly coincidences (even a bit much for a shoujo manga) and sopping with over-the-top drama. I'm so glad that there's still great shoujo manga out there, just not here.
This was a super heavy volume wow. So much happened. The only manga that I've read that was this angsty was Mars.
On the other hand, I'm glad that this plot was finally resolved. Was it easily resolved? I don't know. All I know is that this plot was dragged for too long. Also, I cannot find it in me to forgive John completely. But then again, I don't forgive easily.
I was real pleased with this one because we learn even more about Maria's past but not only hers but her mother and father's as well. And we can definitely see a change in Shin and Maria's relationship.