Manga Review: Bergamot & Sunny Day
Bergamot & Sunny Day is a sweet, genuine romance story that pulled me in with its cozy café setting and doting older love interest.
Official Summary
Café worker Riku has just been dumped... again. Despite always giving relationships his all, Riku can't seem to ever make it past the three-month milestone in any relationship. And then there's Josh, the handsome, wealthy owner of the café who seems to have it all together. When Riku wakes up in Josh's bed after what he can only assume is a consolation rebound, Josh shockingly suggests continuing a no-strings-attached fling.
Fooling around with a rich man... will they drink champagne in a jacuzzi? Riku has no idea, but he's not going to turn it down!
Quick Information
Mangaka: Lyre Kitahala
Publisher: Tokyopop
Published: August 31, 2023
Genre: BL Romance, Slice of Life
Tropes: Age Gap, Boss/Employee Relationship
Rating: 18+
Series Status: Single Volume
Review
Riku feels like the most unlucky guy with love, never being able to make it at least three months with any relationship he's had. Josh, the owner of the café, works hard and looks like his life is perfect in contrast. If only Riku could understand why Josh keeps asking him out on a date.
While this manga has a simple premise, I really enjoyed the execution and details that made this story stand out. Riku blames himself for all his relationship problems, but Josh reminds him that it literally takes two to tango, and Riku is not solely to blame for any of his past relationships. Josh is very understanding and tells Riku that it’s ok to grieve for breakups, because no matter how short a relationship is, it doesn’t mean it can’t hurt when it doesn’t work out. Sometimes this fact is glossed over in media and it was nice to see it depicted here.
Often employer/employee relationships in stories can become toxic or show too much of a power imbalance, but this manga manages to stay sweet, romantic, and unproblematic. My favorite part of this manga was how much Josh enjoyed spoiling Riku through acts of kindness. Josh makes time for Riku despite his busy schedule, he cooks him a meal at home, or shows Riku how to blend a new tea. All of these scenes are really sweet. While there are sex scenes, none of them felt gratuitous, and they show the emotions behind the moment rather than just the act itself. The reader gets to enjoy all these little moments which build up and show an actual relationship between two consenting adults which is often glossed over in this genre.
The artwork is lovely and the food and drink looks delicious. The characters are expressive and distinct. We even get to see the characters in multiple outfits. There are even detailed backgrounds which make the world feel lived in. A lot of BL manga I’ve been reading lately just have blank white backgrounds for most of it, so this was a welcome change.
Sometimes I really need a palette cleanser from certain issues that arise constantly in the BL genre, so this story was a welcome respite. If you are looking for a healthy, sweet, and romantic age gap manga with adult characters without the usual problematic tropes and artificial drama, then pick up Bergamot & Sunny Day.
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