Hana nomi zo Shiru
Only the Flower Knows

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The story was simple and straight forward and the development of the romance between the two main characters took place in a relatively logical and gradual way; so don't expect the main duo to jump in bed with each other right off the bat. At one point I even questioned why the tag "Yaoi" was added to this manga.

What stuck with me most was no doubt the art, very beautiful. I'm not sure what it is, but Takarai sensei's style gives off a very "tranquil" vibe, fitting in nicely with the shounen-ai genre. The scenes which had to portray the characters in a state of ... shock, embarrassment, etc. still kept in line with the normal drawing style: so no over the top facial reactions or sfx.

The main duo was solid, although more time was spent on the background of one. Even though more time was spent on the past of one of the main characters, the other main character could still hold his own. Mainly because he was portrayed as such an honest and charming guy.

I think I might've enjoyed the story more if I had found better scanlations for some of the chapters, but that's just a minor complaint. If you're relatively new to this genre or just feel like reading a cute romance manga (if you don't mind the lovebirds being both guys), you should give Hana no Mizo Shiro a try.

I have a bit of a sad obsession with this series and I also absolutely adore the artist.

Story:
JUST SO ADORABLE. So many moments where I'd have to just stop reading and cover my face with my hands because of how sweet they were. There is not really unnecessary drama and nothing is too typical in this manga. The seme is so kind and gentle, so many "AWWW" worthy moments because of him. The story is not overdramatic but still manages to be really interesting.

Art:
Beautiful art. Too beautiful. It's just what I expect from Takarai Rihito.

Character:
I fell in love with the couple! And there was ... a good amount of character development. After you read the whole manga and then decide to re-read it from the beginning, it's quite clear how much change the characters went through and I think that's amazing! Misaki and Arikawa have such unique personalities, it's so interesting.

Enjoyment:
I really enjoyed reading this manga... As you can already tell from my review so far! It's just so damn cute and it's not one of those typical yaoi manga's all crazy about having sex - even when they don't know each other well! In Hana no Mizo Shiru, there is true love (I think so!) and you don't get smut until a good amount of chapters.

Yep, so of course I have to rate this manga 10/10! The cuteness is too much I could not handle yet I still re-read this manga on a regular basis. =3=

I have to admit the very first chapters are really unimpressive and I was tempted to drop it, but I’m glad I didn’t because it does pick up rather well after the third chapter. Satisfying ending.

The plot, although simple, does make for an interesting short story.
The premise, however, is rather banal. This is the typical “I drop my phone and the love of my life picks it up, our eyes meet and we live happily ever after” kind of deal, so don’t expect some complex developments. Still, the side characters and the addition of ‘the flowers element’ make the whole thing come together.

As far ... as queer/lgbt representation goes, this is were this manga is rather lacking (like most BL/queer manga anyway *sigh*) or maybe I’m not the target demographics? From bizarre stereotypical ‘urges’ to the bs trope ‘I’m not gay, but you are the exception’, and even if the latter could be debatable, I wasn’t really given any evidence of this not being the case while reading. However, one aspect that is well portrayed is the characters’ development in their acceptance of each other and their sexuality. Also, there is smut, but it does not feel out of place or there just for the sake of being there, but instead fits well with the progression of the story.

A funny plus (for me) is that one of the main characters has very bad eyesight so I could somewhat relate to that lol.

The artwork and style is clean and cutesy, which complements the story well. All in all, despite the hiccups, it’s not a bad pickup if you have a few hours to spare.