Kawahara. Volume 3 Cover Art Cropped, A Star Brighter Than the Sun, Viz Media.
A Star Brighter Than the Sun – Information
Author of Story: Kazune Kawahara
Chapter Count: 5 volumes, 20+ digital chapters
Status: Ongoing
Content Warnings
These content warnings do not reflect the contents of the review below, only the literary work itself.
- Mild bullying
Spoiler Disclaimer
This recommendation post may contain small plot spoilers for review purposes. Any major spoilers are hidden by default and are able to be revealed via click or tap.
A Star Brighter Than the Sun – Plot Summary
This manga series is the perfect fit for shoujo lovers who enjoy super soft and fluffy romances. It follows Sae Iwata, a high school girl who is much taller and stronger than the other girls around her.
Due to her stronger build, she often helped out her classmate and childhood friend Koki Kamishiro, who was smaller for his age back when they first met in elementary school.
Regardless of their size difference, Sae adored Koki’s radiant personality and kindness. She even fell in love with him quite quickly! But as they got older, Koki grew taller and more capable. They drifted apart during junior high, but near the end of their junior high years they get a chance to revive their previous friendship through a Sports Day assignment.
Sae struggles with her feelings for Koki, feeling that he is much too radiant for an uncute girl like her. But once they reconnected and even end up in the same class in their first year of high school, she decides to pursue her love anyway!
Kawahara. Volume 5 Cover Art, A Star Brighter Than the Sun, Viz Media.
Why You Should Read A Star Brighter Than the Sun
Plot:
I feel like it is a bit early to review this series, but honestly it’s just so cute and feels like the kind of shoujo I’ve been missing lately. I can’t help but go ahead and talk about it!
A Star Brighter Than the Sun is a slightly slow and super sweet romance series that follows a group of characters as they make memories during high school (with a focus on two main characters).
So far it is a calm, sort of slow-paced story that lacks any insane drama or major excitement, and instead shines bright with its lovable characters and an adorable blooming romance between childhood friends.
It isn’t the slowest romance shoujo I’ve ever seen, but it does delay a clearly feasible relationship for at least a few volumes. Even then, I think the pacing and timing of the romance is perfect! A Star Brighter Than the Sun a great choice for readers who want to relax with a soft and easygoing romance manga with pacing that isn’t too fast or too slow.
This series has a very wholesome and sweet feel to it, but can also be a bit funny at times, too. I felt really happy finding another fluffy romance to enjoy, and one that has a solid childhood friend trope for the ML! It is so sweet seeing these characters build a stronger relationship despite being shy or insecure. This romance manga series is perfect for those with a sweet tooth, haha!
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Although this series may feel like your typical shoujo manga that brings up common tropes, I think A Star Brighter Than the Sun actually does a pretty good job of shifting those tropes positively while still portraying a classic shoujo feel.
Additionally, I haven’t come across many of the commonly hated tropes such as dragged-out miscommunication—in fact, the characters in this series are actually pretty good at being honest with their feelings and clearing up any misunderstandings quickly.
A Star Brighter Than the Sun is a pretty easy story to enjoy as long as you aren’t too impatient and love really fluffy romances!
Characters:
The characters in this manga series are so adorable and cute. The main two are actually more similar than they think, too!
Sae is a kind, mature, and sort of insecure girl. She’s more of a calm, quiet, and less outgoing sort of character, which is why she really focuses her attention on the capable, popular, and bright Koki Kamishiro. Unfortunately, Sae is unable to see that she is also a kind and lovable person—she can only seem to notice how much bigger she is than all her girl friends.
We’ve seen shoujo leads similar to Sae before—such as Haruna from High School Debut or Risa from Lovely Complex—which are sort of portrayed as a type that don’t fit into the usual shoujo FL stencil.
The difference between those two characters and Sae is that Sae really feels less outgoing or goofy. She’s more like the type to try not to inconvenience anyone and always makes an effort to put others first.
I honestly really liked the calm-and-quiet girl representation, regardless of how she stands out with her height. Sae’s character doesn’t feel gloomy or annoying due to her insecurities—she just seems like a very normal young lady who is still learning to love herself. She might be a bit shy, but not so shy that it prevents her from being honest or stating her feelings about different things.
A Star Brighter Than the Sun also has a lot less drama and loud comedy than those other two series I mentioned, so I feel like this series differentiates itself quite well. Anyway, let’s talk about the male lead next!
Although Koki is described as one of the most popular boys in school, he gives off a different feel than other shoujo male leads that are described as “popular” or “cool.” He seems like a more caring, protective, ball-of-sunshine type who unsurprisingly notices all of Sae’s good points. If you liked the male lead from Ran the Peerless Beauty, I think you’ll like Koki a lot, too.
He’s got his own share of insecurities, which makes these two characters feel so sweet, humble, and overall just super cute! Koki is also refreshingly honest and forward about his weak points, how he feels, and when he’s upset towards others. Overall he’s a really likable male lead.
To be honest, neither of the characters have any strong faults other than shyness or the normal amount of insecurities, so they both have some straightforward paths in terms of character growth. It’s yet another aspect of this series that makes it very easygoing and lighthearted!
Art:
A Star Brighter Than the Sun has a very standard art style in terms of shoujo manga. The clothing and environments, which are often school-related, are well done and help draw you into the story. The art, in general, is polished and pretty. However, what really matters for this series is the main characters.
Outside of their heights, the two main characters look a little basic, but in a good way! It helps them appear more relatable or realistic. Not every shoujo needs to have super unique or individualistic character designs. However, the mangaka does a really nice job at portraying the characters’ lovely personalities and growing feelings through their expressions and adorable interactions.
Although these characters are both just normal students, each character’s point of view makes the other appear incredibly radiant, which just makes this romance shoujo even more sweet.
Lastly, I love how sparkly and shiny this series is. Not only does it make me happy as a shoujo enjoyer, but it also makes the series perfectly match its title.
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Kawahara. Volume 1 Cover Art, A Star Brighter Than the Sun, Viz Media.
Any Cons?
I do want to mention that although I think this manga series is absolutely adorable, it isn’t for everyone.
First and foremost, A Star Brighter Than the Sun could have easily formed the main characters’ romantic relationship very early, but instead this series involves the common shoujo trope of dragging out the romance a bit even when the two characters clearly have an obvious chemistry.
This can be frustrating for some, but for easygoing slow-burn enjoyers like me, I didn’t mind at all. I enjoyed seeing two silly characters struggle to confess their feelings and dance around the fact that they clearly like each other. I will say again, however, that is isn’t the slowest of the slow burns, so you won’t necessarily be waiting for ages or anything.
Additionally, there was one aspect of the series that was a bit annoying for me personally, and that was the presence of Kouki’s cousin. The character herself is totally fine, but the constant worrying from the FL on whether or not Koki had romantic interest for his own cousin was disturbing and annoying. Perhaps other readers won’t mind this, but I am tired of seeing this kind of trope in romance manga.
Anyway, one other con that readers may not enjoy is the possibility or perhaps teasing of a love triangle occurring in the series. Personally I think this trope is being done well in this manga, and have a feeling that it will play out well. I really liked the second ML, too. I guess we will see how things develop in that aspect!
Final Thoughts
A Star Brighter Than the Sun seems like it has quite a ways to go considering the number of volumes available in Japanese, so I’m really excited to see how this sweet romance progresses!
I think any shoujo fan will love this adorable manga series, and recommend it to any new reader that would like a lighthearted romance. There’s also an anime adaptation that turned out super cute, so that’s an option as well~
I hope you enjoy this series as much as I have! ♡
Disclaimer: Many images used for this blog are for illustrative purposes only, are not owned by me, and are under ownership of the artist or publisher.
Images Credit: Kawahara, Kazune. A Star Brighter Than the Sun, Viz Media, 2025.
