Summary: Maria's frank nature gains her enemies at her new school, but her angelic singing voice inadvertently catches the attention of Yusuke Kanda and Shin Meguro. Can these boys mend her hardened heart, or will they just end up getting scorched?
Booklist Reviews
Maria's blunt nature and intolerance for hypocrisy make her the target of bullies at her new school, but two boys—prickly Shin and cheerful Kanda—each decide to be her friend despite what other students think. Tomori tweaks the "cute boy saves the lonely girl" plotline by making Maria a difficult person to like, resulting in a story with depth beneath a fluffy shojo facade. Maria is a fairly tragic character, unable to integrate easily with society and always dealing with assumptions that people make about her. As she says, "When you fall from grace once, you're a screw-up forever." Even though Shin and Kanda are only beginning to be developed in this first volume, it seems likely that they, too, each have their own troubles to face. Tomori's art has typical shojo elements—large eyes, cute boys, sailor uniforms—but Maria's deadpan love for adorably frilly clothes will likely lead to humorous moments in future volumes. A fine start to a not-too-long series (13 volumes) that will fit nicely in most teen collections. Copyright 2012 Booklist Reviews.
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