Sometimes you start a yaoi book and you just know you’re going to love it. The characters are hot, the art is great, the story has a strong start and hooks you right away, etc…all of this bodes well. Spell was one of those for me, a real page-turner that I loved instantly, and beautifully done in every aspect.
The story centers around Natori, a college student whose friend Takeda drags him to a social mixer. Natori is initially bored but ends up meeting another of Takeda’s friends, Kisugi, and they hit it off right away, drinking until the early hours. The next day, Takeda tells Natori that Kisugi is bi, and though Natori feels awkward about this he likes Kisugi’s company so much that he continues to hang out with him, which incites the jealousy of his longtime female friend Yasuha. And soon, Natori starts to realize that he has feelings for Kisugi…
…made more complicated by the fact that Kisugi already has a boyfriend, Tooru. Natori struggles with his feelings and the possibility that he might be gay, while Yasuha has an inner conflict of her own to sort out. Dun dun dunnnnnnn…
The story is very (even surprisingly) well done. The pacing is perfect, and the writing/dialogue, mostly from Natori’s point of view and revealing his inner struggles, is some of the best in any yaoi book I’ve read in the past few months (maybe along with Othello). He’s intensely conflicted about the possibility of having feelings for Kisugi, whether or not to tell him, how to feel about Kisugi’s boyfriend Tooru, and what being gay in general means. The story feels very real, like something that could definitely happen on any college campus, and the characters quite authentic and relatable.
Fujiyama’s art style is very recognizable, and I knew by the cover before seeing the author that this was the same person who did Ordinary Crush and Sunflower. I really love her art style – it’s fluid and full of movement, she has a gift for expressing a lot through a minimal amount of strokes. Her characters’ eyes are not too exaggerated and she doesn’t rely on them for facial expression like some mangakas – she has a gift for drawing the subtleties of movement and body language and expressing emotion through linework and form. Her compositions are somehow placid yet kinetic, and serve as a great reflection of the contrast between her characters’ tumultuous inner feelings and the outwardly hesitating nature in which they deal with each other and their emotions. I get the sense that Fujiyama is a confident artist, with a clear idea of how to tell the story she envisions (I mean, maybe not, but it comes off that way to me).
Rare in yaoi but perhaps not as rare as I once thought since the last few I’ve read have had one, Spell has a strong female character, Natori’s childhood friend Yasuha. A further unique thing about her is that she’s very likable and sympathetic – many women characters in yaoi play the villain role or a competing love interest that the reader is meant to dislike, because they’re obviously rooting for the main male pairing instead. Yasuha is unusual in that sense and I’m happy about her inclusion and role in this story.
There is also a mutual hand job scene in this book which I thought was just soooooo hot, hotter than the sex scene even. The fact that they both can’t hold back anymore and the loss of control aspect and then both do it at the same time is just hot. as. fuck. It’s also the more realistic thing that would happen I think for a guy who’s never been with a guy rather than just going down on each other like it’s going out of style. No sex pics because I feel like out of context of the story they won’t have the same effect…hopefully anyone curious for the steamy scenes will read the whole thing, I think in this particular story they’ll be much more impactful that way. 😉
I also have the promo postcard that came with this book, but oddly I found it stuck as a bookmark in another yaoi book I got from somewhere else. I really like these and wish June still did them – it’s dirt cheap to get a few hundred or even a few thousand of these printed up, and they make nice bookmarks (or, for those of us who shop in the Meals for One aisle, fridge magnets).
Overall, this is an excellent title that has a really great plot, fantastic characters, and beautiful art. The story feels genuine and realistic and it was a very satisfying read. I think this is also a great book for those new to yaoi or just starting their collection because there’s not a lot of contentious stuff in it and easy to get hooked on – it doesn’t reinvent the wheel or anything but doesn’t really have to, it’s just a really well put together story in every aspect.
(TL;DR) Spell is a simple yet authentic tale of a college boy inwardly struggling with his emotions as he realizes he’s falling for another guy. The pacing is perfect and the art is beautiful – Fujiyama excels at subtleties of body language and linework rather than relying too heavily on the eyes for expression. A super enjoyable and genuine story with great characters that is very easy to love.