User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
Vol. 1 ★★★★★
Vol. 2 ★★★★☆
The first volume of this series was absolutely adorable perfection, but this one didn't
quite live up to the same level for me! I felt like there was a lot of unnecessary drama, and honestly, this volume made it hard to like Niko as much as I liked him to begin with, because, while I do totally get that his family life has gone to hell and he's in a lot of pain, the way he treats Fynn at times is really unfair.
All of that said, I still love Fynn, I valued the emphasis on safe sex and the fact that Niko never gave Fynn a hard time when he wasn't ready, and I think these two lil' beans are super precious so I really wish there was going to be a volume 3. 💔
Thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Rating: really liked it
The sequel is betterNiko and Fynn's relationship went downhill. Rooting from the previous jealousy of Zoe, and Niko's family problems, and the fact that they decided to hide their relationship from everyone at school—it made Fynn uneasy, anticipating a break-up from Niko who's slowly drifting away from. Loved how this book has more angst in it than the first one, and the atmosphere get to be a little serious. But the ending was everything! This series is really cute. And I'm in love with the character concept art!!
Rating: really liked it
So freaking cute.
I felt for Niko, I was able to relate to what he was going through with his grandfather.
I hope this story continues because it is so cute.
Rating: really liked it
A sweet and gentle European example of BL manga,
Star Collector by Sophie Schönhammer and Anna Backhausen is a lovely find.
Centred on the growing relationship - perhaps a bit on the insta side - between 'bad boy' Fynn and the dreamy stargazer Niko, the plot accompanies the reader through the ups and downs of new-found love, its insecurities and little misunderstandings.
The two characters are both lovely and endearing. Fynn is slightly adrift in life, not sure of his place in the world. Niko is determined and focused, but marked by a difficult family past that he has trouble sharing. Will Fynn and Niko manage to build up a new future and reach the stars?
With a trait that made me think of Kanna Kii's works, and that is nuanced, evocative and elegant,
Star Collector is a recommended read for all fans of coming-of-age stories and BL manga.
Rating: really liked it
5/5 ⭐️
Aaaww I love the way it ended!
Rating: really liked it
I received this comic from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.
The final volume in this superduper adorable duology. I was delighted and squeeing when I saw this book up on Netgalley. OMG, the second volume! I wanted to see how the relationship between Niko and Fynn would continue (please no rivals or that silly crap) and if we would get tons and tons of romantic scenes.
I am reviewing this one as I read~ So come along while I read.
Aww, Fynn, you are adorable that you don’t care how early it is, instead just hop on your bike and cycle to your sleepy boyfriend. That scene when he arrived and Niko opened the door sleepily, awww! And then there was a sexy scene, though Fynn, boy, Niko said he was tired.
The cuteness continues, and I am delighted that both of them are still watching the stars together. Fynn is learning what the different stars are, while also having cute moments with his boyfriend. Squee!
Mm, something feels off. If I had gotten such a heartfelt reaction, such a confession of love, I would have looked way way happier. What is going on? Is there a rift growing between my two cuties? Nooooes!
While I was a bit pissed at Niko for pushing away Fynn like that at the party, I could also understand. This doesn’t seem the right crowd to come out to. I am sure there are people who will accept it, but there would be plenty who wouldn’t. Combined with how drunk everyone is getting…
Argh Fynn, you should understand that Niko has different friends and that he tells them stuff at his own time. That he hasn’t told you doesn’t mean you need to go pissy at your ex. :| Also, pick the right moment. That moment just wasn’t, AT ALL, the right one. Good grief. I get that you want to know things, I GET IT. But please, pick another timing.
sighsMore drama, though I can imagine that Fynn is now getting a bit antsy about things. Niko keeps dodging, keeps going back to sex, then getting angry when Fynn doesn’t want it because he first wants a good chat. Then he also learns that Nico doesn’t want to come out at school, which again, I respect and understand, but yeah, that can endanger a relationship. Because Fynn doesn’t care, and wants to be with you all the time and hearing that he can only be with you for the time that no one else is around… that fucking hurts. It finally all explodes, and I am sorry, I just wanted to smack Niko on his head. Dude. No. Just no. I was so on Fynn’s side on this whole exchange.
I did think the next part felt rushed. I mean we go from arguments to them talking, which is good, but it just felt as if Niko had magically flipped all the way in just the span of one night, which doesn’t seem real. He was so against it, and pushing a lot against Fynn, and now he is OK? And then someone else magically shows up, and sorry I was just rolling my eyes at this whole situation. And then Niko once again resorts to that and sorry, but please. Dude.
They do finally have the talk, and it made me happy to finally know more about Niko. I still think that Fynn is overreacting.
The visit to grandpa? Aww, that was just so sweet, though I was crying with how the conversations went. The author did a great job at capturing someone with alzheimer/dementia. I have worked for some time with people with alzheimer/dementia, and this was just spot on how conversations/interactions with most of them went.
Haha, I love Fynn’s mom.
snortsAh, the sex talk. I can imagine that it is not the best scenario to imagine, having get a dick in one’s butt (or put your dick in someone’s butt).
And so this one ends with a very hot and steamy scene (and I already thought their normal sexy times scenes were smoking, but dang this one takes the cake). The ending had me in tears, that was just so sweet and I am so happy for this couple.
All in all, a pretty fabulous volume though at times the pacing seemed a bit weird/off. I am glad that we got some sexy scenes, learned more about Niko, got to see this couple grow (though with some frustrating moments), and of course… the art was freaking fabulous again. Dang, that art. So beautiful.
I would recommend these two volumes to everyone looking for a nice and sweet LGBT comic.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
Rating: really liked it
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
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Ugh that was such a cute wrap up to a little duology! There were definitely questions answered and the art style was stunning as always.
This volume definitely dealt with a found family theme, parental abandonment (especially when it comes to having an LGBT child), coming out, first times, and acceptance. If you are into any of those themes, I definitely recommend
Star Collector.
Flynn finally has his guy and he is ready to all the cutesy, ugly couple things like all the other kids in school. However, every time Flynn gets close to Niko, Niko pulls away and puts distance between each other. Letting it slip one night, Zoe (Flynn's Ex) tells Flynn that Niko has family issues and refuses to say anything else. Struggling with Niko's keeping secrets and him not wanting to have their relationship out in public, Flynn fears that their relationship will fail. All he wants is for his boyfriend to trust him.
What I loved most about this volume is that it introduced a lot of themes that mean a great deal too me. Especially the coming out theme. We definitely get two ends of the spectrum of coming out with acceptance on one end and being shunned on the other side. The mangaka and illustrator definitely bring these themes to life through each of the panels and the flow of the pages. As the plot gets thicker you just want to know more.
The one thing that I wished was explained more was Niko and his father's issues. All you get is that there is an issue and part of it might be because he is gay. But there is more to that story and we aren't really given it fully. Then of course we have Niko's grandfather and there is so much going on there. Also there might be family issues between the dad and grandparent's that isn't really explained. So slight plot holes.
And of course the romance development was so well done in this volume. The romance was slowly built whereas in the first volume it was very quick. There was that build up to the first time and then their build on the emotional side. They started to understand each others faults and strengths. They definitely are opposites but are really great together.
I definitely wish we had another volume. There were so many things I wanted more of. I wanted more build between Flynn and Niko. I wanted more of the background with families. Especially Flynn's dad. I would have liked to meet him and how he would have reacted to his son being gay. I wanted more of the emotions between the two. And I also would love to see how they would have gone into the school year.
But this was still cute and I really loved this manga duology! So go read it. ❤️❤️
Rating: really liked it
I was so pleased that I managed to get a review copy of this manga from Edelweiss+ It is a lovely story about two young men who are in a relationship together. One is rather laid back and the other is a nerdy stargazer, so it is really an opposites attract story.
In this second volume the couple become closer to each other, but there is some friction between them. Fynn is drifting at school and not doing so well. He really cares for Niko but senses that there is a barrier between them. Niko has secrets but he doesn't want to let Fynn in. Niko doesn't seem to be too comfortable with telling people that he and Fynn are together and this causes another barrier between them. It feels as if the relationship will be over before it begins. Will their love survive these early problems?
I actually enjoyed this second volume more than the first because it explores the characters in more depth. Stargazing is still the icing on the cake of this relationship but seeing them grow in their appreciation of each other is great. The artwork is still just as good as in the first volume.
This is a lovely romantic manga and I am looking out for the next volume.
Copy provided by Edelweiss + in exchange for an unbiased review.
Rating: really liked it
I really liked the story of this manga. The plot flowed very nicely and there were plenty of ups and downs. But not so many that it seemed unrealistic. I liked how the relationship between Niko and Fynn developed throughout the book. I didn't always like how Niko would treat Fynn, I felt like he was pushing him away instead of just talking to him. But then I thought, when it feels like your whole life is falling apart it's really hard to sit and explain something to someone that you thought would just love you without expectation. But I also see where Fynn was coming from as well. He needed Niko to confide in him because he felt like Niko didn't trust him enough to tell him what was going on in his life. Overall, I really liked this book and I'm pretty bummed that this is the last one. I would love to read more about Niko and Fynn. I would recommend this manga for fans of slice of life or sweet yaoi manga.
Rating: really liked it
This was so beautiful. Volume two has more reveals about Niko's past, no spoilers but I cried. Being someone who has experienced a family member with memory problems, it hit me hard.
This is such a love BL manga. Everyone should read it.
CW: Homophobia, Unsupportive Family Members, Family Member with Dementia/Alzheimers
Rating: really liked it
It was so nice to get a change to see what happened next with Fynn and Niko!
Unfortunately, I didn't love the story line quite as much as I did in the first Volume.
The art was still great and I still absolutely love Niko's character.
Rating: really liked it
I’m glad to have the chance to read this series at last. And it was a wholesome that I anticipated. Wonderful art and heartfelt story. I could have gone on reading about Niko & Fynn forever, I’m just saying 🥰🙌
Rating: really liked it
3,5 stars
A cute little teenage love story that's been told a thousand times.
Rating: really liked it
wdym this is the end? i need m o r e
Rating: really liked it
PLEASE let there be a Volume 3 of Star Collector.
What a magnificent accomplishment. The story of Flynn, a high school student who may not graduate, his boyfriend Niko, a star gazer who hopes to work for NASA after graduation, and their friend Zoe comes to a beautiful, bittersweet end in this second volume of Star Collector.
Now that they are together, Flynn is head over heels in love with Niko. But new relationships can have their insecurities, and Flynn doesn't understand why Niko can't share a family secret with him even though he told Zoe. Adding to the insecurity is Niko not wanting to let others know they are a couple. Part of the beauty in this manga is the way the artist-authors show both the lingering, intermittent immaturity of these two teens with the way their love for each other, their earnest desire to care for one another, spurs them into maturity.
It's not just the story or dialogue alone that makes this manga beautiful - it's the glorious artwork, the near perfect decisions about pacing, the detailed settings, the body language and facial expression, the textures and visual style that, combined with the story, sets this work apart. Watch for close-ups of Flynn and Niko and notice how the tilt and angle of a head or the intensity of a gaze communicates visually more about what's happening inside them than words alone can. In some panels, we can feel Flynn holding his breath, anxious about what comes next.
Anna Backhausen, whom I assume is responsible for most of the art we see on each page, has found the perfect balance between linear gesture, expressive brushwork, and finely detailed realism that explodes off the page with an intimacy and immediacy that we might expect from painting. The aesthetic quality of immediacy can not be overlooked here. We immediately grasp the mood as it's conveyed through Backhausen’s mark-making, not just through the coded symbols for emotions (e.g. the hatched lines over cheeks and eyes showing embarrassment or self-consciousness) or the descriptive content of a panel (e.g. what is happening). The way a line, brush mark, or texture is laid down on the page has the feel of a real artist’s hand at work, a hand imbuing each mark with a distinctive feeling connected to the whole. We grasp the tacit and explicit levels of meaning and mood simultaneously. Each panel has its own visual gestalt that is integrally tied to the gestalt of the page and thence to the manga as a whole.
We don't need to know the reasons why the artwork works - what is most important is that it does. Here we get to the heart of why manga, graphic novels and comics can, at there best, be so compelling. The artwork has to resonate with us, it needs to trigger emotions that reward our looking simply because the looking is pleasurable, even as the imagery we see spark associations that weave layers of meaning around us - meaning informed by our past as well as by our anticipation of what we have yet to experience. Combine this resonance with a story, with words strung together setting up their own vibrations, their own rhythms and tensions, well, then you have a symphony in visual form.
Anna and Sophie: Brava!! Please, let us have one more movement to the exquisite music you've made in Star Collector. Judging by the fan art that this (comparatively short) two volume story has generated, I'm sure I'm not alone in this request. Other manga need twenty volumes to generate the excitement you've accomplished in two.
