Café Liebe 01

私の百合はお仕事です! / Yuri Is My Job! #1

by Miman

Die Highschool-Schülerin Hime hat nur ihre Beliebtheit und ihren Traum von der Million im Kopf. Als sie gedankenverloren die Treppe hinunterstürzt, verletzt sie Mitschülerin Mai versehentlich am Arm. Da diese nun nicht mehr ihrem Job nachgehen kann, muss Hime für sie einspringen – als Bedienung im Themencafé »Café Liebe«. Die anderen Mädchen nehmen sie überschwänglich auf und behandeln sie schon jetzt wie ein Mitglied ihrer »Schwesternschaft«. Doch kann Hime sich mit ihrer neuen Rolle anfreunden?

Genres: Manga, Yuri, Romance, LGBT, Graphic Novels, Young Adult, Queer

168 pages, Paperback

First published January 22, 2019

Reviews

[destiny ♡ howling libraries · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sigh. This had so much potential to be adorable. It did a lot of things right: the art is really cute, the little cafe is unique and interesting, and some of the side characters are hilarious and totally lovable. Unfortunately, the entire thing is ruined by how immensely nonredeemable the main character is!

Hime kicks off the volume by immediately informing the reader that her only goal in life is to convince people that she's as "cute" as humanly possible so she can grow up to be a billionaire's trophy wife. She goes on and on about how adorable and lovable she is, how she can't bother being friends with anyone besides this one person at her school because nobody else's companionship will help her reach her "goals", and how perfect she considers herself to be. Of course, we're expected to watch her blossom into a Good Person, but it's so heavy-handed I couldn't stand it, and no amount of poorly-attempted humor or romantic tension between characters could save this story.

Thank you so much to Amazon Vine for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

[Rod Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

An unlikable protagonist sinks this slow and silly book. Hime starts out bragging about how she is a gold digger whose main goal is to become a trophy wife. To accomplish this, she pretends to like everyone so they will like her back. A minor accident causes her to become a temporary waitress in a cafe where the staff pretends they are students in an all girls school. Between orders, they act out soap-opera scenes between their characters to entertain the clientele. None of the side characters are interesting enough and the situations aren't humorous enough to offset the the dreariness of the wait for the main character to become a better person.

[Mehsi · Rating 2 out of 5]

A girl gets roped into a yuri cafe… sadly it wasn’t my favourite.


I had bought 3 first volumes of manga during a sale. This is the second one, I still got one manga left, I left that one for last as I am not too sure how I feel about a gynaecologist manga. 😛

I thought this would be a funny and cute manga about a girl getting roped into being a waitress, but instead it wasn’t, or well that is what happens but more that the characters and their personalities just weren’t my cup of tea. Plus, I found the whole roping in without consideration going a bit too far.

The MC think she is adorable and cute (and sure she does look like that) but her inner stuff… not always a fan (especially when she called those who expose her lies as unpleasant… um whut?), though I did feel sorry for her a few times. They roped her into this whole mess and wonder why she can’t do everything. HELLO? She is new to this job. Instead of constantly dismissing her you could actually help her? In an honest way. Not the sister-play thing way.

Then the peeps at the waitress cafe… no freaking thank you at all. None of the characters were my favourite and I don’t believe for one bit the girl broke her arm just by falling like that. She could move it around like no problem. I have broken my arm twice in the course of my life and believe me, moving my hand or moving my arm without much pain? Not possible. I wonder if the girls of the cafe just needed a new victim, um member to their cafe antics? That is how it felt to me. Especially since the girl could do everything with her arm.

I also saw the reveal coming a mile before it happened. 😛 I do think it is hilarious though, especially given how that person looks now.

But the art was pretty nice at moments. Like during the parts with them playing the role of sisters. With the roses and the sparkles. That was just pretty. And I have to say that the author did a good job on Hime’s expressions. She’s got a lot, most of them inside herself.

So while I love the yuri scenes, I love the title and the cover… sadly I am just not going to continue this series.

Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/

[Isa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basically, this manga series is about a bunch of gay girls who put up a front in exchange for popularity, peace, or self-protection. It's a spoof of several classic yuri manga tropes while dealing with complications from misunderstandings, manipulation, and mayhem. But mostly it's a lesbian comedy.

If you're not familiar with yuri (wlw) manga tropes, let me start off by saying the extensive use of "sister" when the girls are acting in the cafe is not intended with an incestuous vibe, in fact, very rarely has it ever been used that way, but instead it's a relic from a time where young lesbians and sapphics covered their closeness with the safety veil of "we're just like sisters!" See also: today's oft-used cover of "well, we're, uhh...roommates." Classic yuri went full-on with the idea of ~pure~ and sisterly relationships, which were an appealing lens for the rest of the world to label a relationship that in reality, was romantic and/or sexual.

So moving on, the protagonist is a girl who uses her natural cuteness as a means to drive a well crafted facade of an innocent, naive young lady who is loving and kind to everyone. Inside, she's carefully planned out her life of being adored by everyone around her until a very rich man decides to take her as his trophy wife, earning her a life of luxury and exaltation. Around her, her best friend secretly has quite the crush on her, which she hides in order to not make their relationship awkward or worse, end. Unfortunately, our protagonist bumps into a woman who makes a big show about how much her arm absolutely, terribly, extremely hurts, and gets roped into covering for her at work, a work that ends up being a themed yuri cafe. And there, stands a beautiful girl who for some reason, absolutely hates her guts. And as her life's mission is to be loved and adored by everyone, she can't just let that be, can she?

Ahem. I've read, well, quite a lot of yuri manga, even more now thanks to more licensing companies willing to bring it over. While the sometimes-labeled ~pure~ ones are nice and all, at least when not written as a fetishized view of sapphic relationships, my favorites are the ones that feature a bunch of--I say this lovingly--dumbasses because they're fun and feel like the author wants to write more creative women characters than the same three or four popular tropes. I enjoyed reading this one a lot with how it both subverts and embraces classic cliches that come with the genre of wlw manga, and how it deals with the many faces people put on in their daily life, for whatever reason, be it profit, protection, and peace. Definitely will be keeping up with this series.

[Veronica · Rating 3 out of 5]

I described this to a coworker as "Ouran High School Host Club, but with lesbians" and you know what I stand by that. (Down to the variety of potential romances available to the main character.) I haven't really read a lot of the old-school yuri that this series is parodying but it's still quite funny on its own, and the art is lovely!

[Aleksandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am conflicted about this manga.
On one hand, I enjoyed the art, the characters and the setting of a theme cafe. On the other hand, it has weird tones. For example, it doesn't seem like girls who are play-acting all-girl school yuri are actually gay girls themselves. I am not a fan of the gayness as a performance, however this cafe doesn't say gay girls it says private all girl school where girls are very close to each other. It might be a play on Class S trope, I don't know enough to make comparison. What I do know when two girls call each other "sisters" and they behave like they are dating I'm side-eyeing the crap of this "sisterhood".

The cast of characters is full of complex and unlikable girls. The protagonist Hime is a liar, she knows she's cute and she uses it to her advantage to get everybody to like her. She wants to marry rich and do nothing. She manipulates people, she cares about herself first and foremost. Also she is a big clutz. Hime is messy and a mess and I like her.
Kanoko, Hime's friend, is a shy girl who has a dark side. She also doesn't hesitate to manipulate people to achieve her girl.

There might be enemies to lovers plot line or maybe unrequited best friend's feeling toward her friend will turn to a romance. So far though, yuri is literally only their job. (what did I expect?! it is right there in the title)

I was considering dropping the series because the sister thing bugged me but by chapter 6 I was lowkey invested and I liked the reveal at the end, so given the chance I might continue on with this manga.

Yuri is My Job is Ouran High School Host Club meets lesbians meets the disaster girl protagonist. It has an appeal. The art islovely and expressive, it adds bonus points to the manga

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is both a fun story and a send-up of Class S yuri as a genre. I'm not thrilled with the way people treat Hime (especially since she was forced into the job), but I'm looking forward to seeing how it develops.


Full Review Eventually Appearing on ANN.

[Eressea · Rating 4 out of 5]

我以為我的英文足夠好了....
結果這本比看純文字英文書還要看不懂
漫畫電子書沒辦法點一下查單字
看不懂就隨便了
所以大概只看懂六七成
但有些英文日漫又很好懂
是翻譯風格的問題嗎?
書末的名詞解釋倒是很詳細~

看完還是受不了去維基查角色的漢字姓名
不管看多少本英文日漫
日文姓名羅馬化之後都覺得很彆扭無法習慣
但東立應該是斷尾了只好硬看英文了

[Jillian -always aspiring- · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

I honestly feel like this is a mix of Ouran High School Host Club and Maria Watches Over Us (Maria-sama ga Miteru), and it’s difficult to root for the characters because their cuteness does little to alleviate the heaviness of their negative personalities. I do love the art, though.

[Village Idiot · Rating 3 out of 5]

this rating and review is for volumes 1-13.

the premise (and the setting) is ridiculous but i didn't really mind that. it's got kind of a ouran high school host club vibe, and the salon scenes reminded me of old yuri manga which was fun.

hime and yano are easily the best part. they're idiots but i love their dynamic for some reason. and yano is soooo adorable 🥰

... unfortunately half the time their story gets sidelined because this manga does that thing where the focus shifts onto different characters/pairings in different volumes. and to be honest irdgaf about any of the others.

kanoko's character in particular irks me bad, and a few volumes are about her. it's irritating to the extreme, am i supposed to be rooting for this spineless parasitic creep....???

sumika is a good girl but even her parts were boring. you basically just feel bad for her because omg kanoko is the worst. nene was fine but again that goeida person..... ew. like a grown woman assaulting and creeping on high schoolers....... a punch isn't enough, that woman should be in jail.

what else is there..... seriously i just want more hime and yano 😭

[oko slonia w dupie weza · Rating 2 out of 5]

eee

[india :) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I honestly don't have a lot to say about this but I think its pretty solid and I will continue reading the series. I'm ready for some more action. I like this kind of love triangle between Kanoko - Hime and Hime - Ayanokouji.

[Kiwi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trochę się bałam, bo to jednak kolejne szkolne wlw, ale tomik jest tak uroczy i zabawny, że ani trochę nie żałuję przeczytania go.

[Rereader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reread update as of 6/4/2020:

Bumped my rating up from 3 to 4 stars

Omg, Hime is such a little shit and I absolutely love her! I didn't realize how fucking unlikable and manipulative she is in the beginning, but damn this girl is not playing around! I did like this more on the second reread, and the only complaint I have is that Hime doesn't really get any formal training on how to do her job, but is expected to do it right. I've never worked in a cafe or restaurant, but I'm pretty sure there's more training than, "here're the basics, watch your senpais to know the ropes, do your best!" Maybe this is more realistic than I think, but it kind of bothers me that Hime screws up a lot and while she's definitely at fault for most of it, some of it is that she never gets any formal training. Anyway, still love this series, give it a shot if you're interested!

Original review done on 2/4/19:

This story was completely different than what I thought it was going to be, but in a good way. The summary on the back will have you think this is the standard "girl is straight but meets other girl and starts thinking she's not" but the actual plot is much different. Hime has to work at a cafe after injuring the manager and meets Ayanokouji, who she thinks is physically attractive but Ayanokouji hates her. The problem is Hime uses a cutesy facade to make everyone love her because she wants to nab a rich husband and be a trophy wife, but that facade starts slipping the more she interacts with Ayanokouji.

What I appreciate about this setup is that Hime is not a likable character from the start. The fact that she is using a facade to get what she wants AND is more concerned with her facade than anything else makes it hard to relate and sympathize with her. I am totally okay with that, though, because it means she has a lot of potential to grow and it makes me more excited to read the series (also that cliffhanger is a killer!). I also appreciate that the story addresses the main issue with a characters like Hime-the fact that their facades make communication difficult due to a lack of trust. Ayanokouji is frustrated because she doesn't know who the real Hime is and by extension what's an act and what isn't. Communication, especially in a cafe, is crucial and Hime's facade makes it difficult not just to interact with coworkers but difficult to do business. I'm so glad the series addressed that and it gave me a lot more respect for it. I did enjoy this first volume and am interested to continue with the series.

[Kathaflauschi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vielen Dank an den Verlag für das Rezensionsexemplar. Hierbei hat mich der Titel angesprochen. Ich liebe einfach Mangas die in einem Cafe spielen und so habe ich mich Hals über Kopf in diesen Mange gestürzt. Man lernt am Anfang Hime kennen, die in der Schule beliebt ist und jeder sagt, das sie süß ist. Natürlich badet sie in dieser beliebtheit, den sie möchte ja auch später einen Reichen Mann heiraten. Dann muss aber auch noch ein Unfall passieren, bei der ihr nichts passiert ist, aber dafür eine andere Schülerin verletzt hat, die gerade auf dem Weg zu ihrem Job war. Über Himes Kopf hinweg, wird entschieden, das sie von nun an den Job übernimmt, solange die Schülerin Mai nicht arbeiten kann. Was aber Hime nicht wusste, das in diesem Job das Süß sein und beliebt sein ein Muss ist und ihr immer wieder Fehler unterlaufen.

Hime war für mich Anfangs ziemlich Oberflächlich und arrogant. Sie hatte nur eines im Sinn, hübsch auszusehen und einen reichen Mann zu heiraten. Das sie jedem etwas vorspielt, war ihr egal und auch das alles gelogen ist. Mai, die Schülerin die verletzt wurde, war mir gleich symphatisch und auch die beste Freundin von Hime war mir gleich symphatisch. Die beste Freundin hat sich Sorgen um Hime gemacht und ist somit auch in diesen Job gerutscht. Auch die anderen Mädchen, die in diesem Cafe arbeiten, waren mir symphatisch, bis auf eine. Sie hat ebenfalls wie Hime vorne rum als nette Person gemacht und war doch ziemlich hinterhältig und hatte Hime sogar im Visier. Aber es gibt einen bestimmten Grund weshalb sie so zu Hime ist. Deshalb gibt es auch einen fiesen Cliffhanger hier, der sogar ziemlich spannend endet. Man ist durch diesen Cliffhanger einfach gezwungen den zweiten Band zu lesen, der aber erst noch erscheinen muss. Ich freue mich schon auf den zweiten Band und auch auf die Charakter, obwohl manche mir erstmal nicht symphatisch waren. Aber sie passen einfach zu der Story, ohne sie wäre die Story langweilig.

Der Zeichenstil ist auch hier wunderbar detailreich und bei dem Cafe hatte ich selbst lust, mal dort hinzugehen. Man wusste auch sofort, um was es in der Story geht und man war einfach schon nach den ersten Seiten voll drin. Ich habe den Manga in einem Zug durchgelesen und bin echt gespannt, wie es mit der Story weitergeht.

[Andre · Rating 1 out of 5]

For fucks sake, is this lesbian themed or just some dumb kind of host cafe? (what theme anyway? The summary says german girls elite school but they don't look like that) I am here for the lesbians, no lesbians and I am out!!!!!"
I could find nothing on that "Das Herz des Mädchens", no idea whether that Backfischroman exists or not, any honestly I start to not care. Too much text, too cluttered and I am really losing patients. This is sooo slow. And if Backfischroman usually features the time between 1850 and 1950 I doubt this here would feature the interesting times of that period.
At about 42 % into the manga I was: This is it, they haven't done anything remotely lesbian outside of their job and even there its even less than Sailor Neptune and Uranus, so screw this.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely a great start to a yuri series. This was pretty amusing and a breezy read. The lead is... a little self-centred, but it’s pretty clear that growth and changes are afoot. Framing the story in a cafe that leans hard into yuri tropes is smart because it lets them do real world stuff while still using the all girls school trope.

[Laura]

Not sure how I feel about this yet. Art is cute and kinda like the tropes being employed, but idk…

[Emy · Rating 3 out of 5]

it’s really cute ngl ngl just not my usual genre so i’m finding it difficult to get fully immersed.

[Ayxan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oof.
Hime, the protagonist, is really annoying. I totally get why her “Schwester” hates her, I would too! Especially because she’s so fake. Although I kinda do get her motives, and who wouldn’t want to marry someone rich... but nevertheless, I hate fake people so much. Having them as a protagonist makes the read pretty difficult at times.

As much as I dislike her, it is throwing me off how much pressure the others putting on her. First of all, Hime didn’t choose this job, she was pretty much forced to do it. (Which is karma and I don’t mind.) However, she’s never done this and secondly, it’s a cafe in another language. Well, the theme is at least. With dishes being in a language someone doesn’t understand, that’s hard. They could at least be more understanding regarding that and especially give her maybe a list of all the dishes that are served there? How should someone write down an order of a dish name they’ve never heard of?

What I also really hated was the sister-bond thing.
I don’t know why people love sexualizing & romanticizing siblings, mostly sisters, but it’s so annoying. Japan or probably Asia in general has a serious problem with that.
Not saying it doesn’t happen in other continents too, but the fact that this is one of the most popular tropes in anime & manga, does say a lot.
Look, if the characters genuinely like each other (platonically), I wouldn’t mind. But forcing it on people? Nah, man, not with me. 😭

I do like the artstyle though. It’s gorgeous, but too good for this – rather toxic seeming – series.

I wonder, is this really gonna be GL or is the Yuri tag just the role play?
Then again, their job is to pretend to be a student in an all-girls school. It doesn’t say anywhere that they’re pretending to be lesbians, except that the costumers love that type of thing. So will the only Yuri part be mere fan-service? 💀
For now, I can’t see any couples becoming canon, except maybe Ayanokouji & Tachibana.
Konoko definitely has a crush on Hime – which i don’t understand – but it’s unlikely they will end up together.
I really hope it's not gonna be "enemies to lovers" trope tho! These are the worst!

Since I’m only reading this because I’ve heard it’s getting an anime this spring, I really hope the anime changes a few things and makes it more likable! 😭

[the.sapphic.library · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not really familiar with the whole concept café thing (Hime seems to think it's weird but she's not that surprised so... Is it a manga thing or can we find places like that in every big Japanese city?) It took me some time to get it exactly but I guess Hime took her time as well ! (I just hope the whole concept isn't made just for the male gaze because it looks a lot like how Yuri manga for men are written...Like the whole Schwestern thing is just how men picture that phase where teen girls kiss each others and make out but it's not really gay because they're just experimenting before they get married and anyways it's not real sex... yeah that homophobic bullshit :))
That lady-child boss is a true bully though... like I've rarely seen such an unbothered manipulative girl. Is it how she recruited her whole staff ??

I still enjoyed the manga because the characters are just incredibly written. I love how the author just laughed at clichés and made a "manipulative" cutie whose goal is to marry rich. You go girl ! Kanoko is just as interesting and I love how Hime was still able to make one true friend who loves the real her.
I'll probably read the rest of the series, I'm really curious about what happens next

[Kate Long · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stars: 4 Stars
Format: Print
Series: Incomplete
Steam Level: Not Steamy

I picked up this title during a yuri sale on a website I like because I thought the title and the premise behind it was funny. And I’m glad I did!

Quick Thoughts:
- The characters are fun and not what they seem at first glance. Though (the short blonde) Hime annoyed the crud out of me and I didn’t really care for her at first
- Hime has this weird thing she calls her facade that took me a bit to understand at first but you get a better grasp what she means by this later on
- The art is cute and their expressions are very readable (which can be an issue in some mangas) and it was easy to know when they were putting on an act (cue flowers and sparkles which is both hilarious and useful)
- I think this is the first time I’ve read anything from Kodansha Comics. I like their translation, it was smooth to read. Also they kept the honorifics which is super useful
- The setting being a girls school themed cafe is hilarious and greatly entertaining. It also lets just the five main characters interact without there weirdly being no other student interactions, no “hey what about class” wondering, and no “where are the adults in charge?”
- In the very back of this first volume are some explanations about certain phrases they kept and certain things/people. Also in the back of each book is like a couple paragraph explanation about something at the cafe that sounds like it came out of an employee manual which is a nice touch
- In this manga the “inspiration” the owner has for the cafe is from a made up series (book? Manga? Something printed) called A Maiden’s Heart. To me, it reads like a spoof/inspired by Maria-sama ga Miteru (in English Maria Watches Over Us) and I think those at least familiar with the anime will see the similarities (it also made me giggle)
- Volume one ends on a cliffhanger! A very good cliffhanger so I recommend having book two ready

Overall I’m super glad I picked this series up. Hime annoyed me a lot but I ended up enjoying her character in the end. Will definitely keep reading this series.

[ElsaMakotoRenge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adorable volume! Cute innocent girl/girl relationships without being all graphic, what’s there not to like? I’d highly recommend this volume to anyone looking for a sweet funny storyline. I don’t want a bunch of sexual content in my manga, so it was great to read a specifically girl/girl volume that had NONE of that.

Hime is not very likable at the beginning at all, but we can already see character development by the end of volume 1, so I’m looking forward to seeing how she grows.

P.S. please tell me Hime and Kanoko are endgame, it’s obvious Kanoko has a crush on her but Hime is utterly oblivious lol.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like this one. I bought this on a whim when it first came out cuz I was excited that Kodansha was getting into yuri/yaoi and I can say that I don’t regret that. This isn’t a groundbreaking story but I would say that it is very fun and cute. There very very little romance in this volume and I’m excited to see how this unfolds. There may be a love triangle in future volumes so be aware of that if it isn’t your thing but personally I love them. I’ve never read a yuri love triangle either so I’m hella hyped. I’m definitely gonna be buying the rest of these volumes.

[Chris Gernon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’d give this a 3.5. Yes, the protagonist is pretty terrible, but I’m guessing this is the beginning of a character growth story. The weird setting has a bit of an Ouran High School Host Club vibe, though the characters aren’t as clearly defined (yet). Everything is ridiculously implausible, but the story encourages you to just roll with it. A hilarious twist at the end hints at all kinds of drama in the next volume. It’s not that unique or impressive, but I’m interested enough to see how the next volume or two go.

[Larakaa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit weird for me, because the main character is quite unlikeable in my opinion and the idea of a German Café doesnt click. It's more drama than girls love, too.

[Cristina Patón · Rating 4 out of 5]

i was very wary coming into this one bc from the outside it seemed like the same yuri type of manga it's parodying. i was wrong!! in fact, if you have been exposed to all-girls-school yuri before you will find this one very funny

[august · Rating 3 out of 5]

getting vague vibes of ouran highschool host club

[your neighborhood friendly book python :D · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charming but not charming enough to keep me wanting to finish the series

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

L'ambientazione è molto carina e interessante, riguarda un cafè a tema in cui le cameriere recitano di trovarsi in una scuola femminile. Anche le dinamiche tra i personaggi per ora mi incuriosiscono, è un manga con un buon potenziale, ovviamente parliamo di una storia molto leggera e spensierata... Spero che possa continuare a intrattenere, e chissà, magari approfondirsi.