Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon

by Shio Usui

Synopsis:

Asahi has never been big on romantic love—her top priority has always been family. But now that Hinako is in her life, her feelings about romance seem to be changing. Asahi still doesn’t know exactly what that means, but one thing is for sure: her feelings for Hinako are growing more intense by the day. Are Asahi and Hinako destined for more than friendship? Find out in the final volume of Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon!

Wow, there’s a lot to love about the final volume of Shio Usui’s Doughnuts Under A Crescent Moon. I was sure it’d take longer to get here, since it’s been a pretty slow burn so far, and it seems like neither Asahi nor Hinako were very comfortable with their feelings.

I really loved the scenes with Hinako’s mother, adding a bit of depth to that relationship; I feel like a bit more time was needed on that, because she was introduced in person so suddenly, and it didn’t feel like she matched up with the version of her we’ve been seeing overshadowing Hinako. In a way, that’s how people are, though — the shadows something casts don’t always look exactly like the thing that cast them. The scenes were really sweet and necessary.

And I loved the fact that both Asahi and Hinako seem to be explicitly romantically interested in each other, but asexual. There’s no skirting around their love for each other, but also no skirting around the fact that Hinako’s made it pretty plain she’s not interested in kissing, and doesn’t understand that kind of love.

The whole series came as a bit of a surprise to me, and I’m really glad I gave it a shot.

Rating: 4/5

Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon

by Shio Usui

Synopsis:

Hinako wants to get closer to Asahi, but there is still a lot she needs to work out. What will happen when she turns to Fuuka in her time of need? And how will Fuuka handle her own feelings for Asahi?

Volume three of Shio Usui’s Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon digs a bit into Asahi’s feelings, through the character of her childhood best friend, Fuuka, and through her argument with her sister (and the sleepover afterwards).

The sudden love triangle did feel a bit frustrating, because just as it seemed like Asahi and Hinako were getting somewhere, Fuuka stepped in and asked Asahi out. It felt a bit jarring pacing-wise, like it should’ve come before — but it does help Asahi and Hinako start to work out their feelings and where they stand as well, so it’s obvious in retrospect what purpose it serves narratively. Otherwise, there’s very little push for them to actually do something about the connection between them.

And of course, I laughed a little about the totally unnecessary “only one bed” trope.

Rating: 4/5

Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon

by Shio Usui

Synopsis:

The distance between Hinako and Asahi is closing! What started as a typical coworker relationship has blossomed into friendship. But now, Hinako has started to wonder if her feelings for Asahi go even deeper. Could this be love?!

Volume two of Shio Usui’s Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon continues to a be a slow-burn: at times, it’s not obvious that there’s a romance angle coming, because it just focuses on Asahi and Hinako’s friendship. That said, Hinako’s feelings are pretty clear, even if she struggles with and doesn’t understand them, and it’s obvious that Asahi has been way too focused on looking after her sister to even think about romance, but maybe now’s the time.

The handholding is so cute, and the fact that their new friendship clearly gives them both a boost. There are a couple of odd moments that I notice other reviews picked up on, e.g. Asahi surprisingly commenting that it seems like Hinako loves her mother a lot. That said, it’s worth remembering that Asahi doesn’t have the same perspective as we do: she knows that Hinako’s always quick to pick up her phone for her mother, and always thoughtful about her. Hinako hasn’t really explained her history and where her insecurity comes from, so how would Asahi know?

Anyway, this continues really cute, and I’m interested to see how things work out.

Rating: 4/5