夏とレモンとオーバーレイ

NATSU TO LEMON TO OVERLAY

MANGA

STATUS
COMPLETE
VOLUMES
1
RELEASE
November 17, 2022
CHAPTERS
8

DESCRIPTION

Sayaka Konno, a stunning office worker for a large company, asks voice actress YUNIMARU, who struggles to find work in her day job, to read her will at her funeral. Despite her reservations, YUNIMARU is intrigued by the sum of money and accepts the invitation. Dreams, daily life, and the wealth of life... Two people from different "layers" spend only one summer together, touching each other's wounds.

(Source: Ichijinsha, translated)

CHAPTERS

REVIEWS

bloominlotus
100/100
when you want nothing but die, then you meet the right person.
full of spoilers

i have no expectations as i read this. i didn't really read the summary at the beginning because i was so fixated by its beautiful cover and title, summer, lemon, and overlay. what an interesting one.

the story was so obvious of how they want to make the readers' feel. it was so obvious from the very beginning and it was so heavy to wonder how it will end. of a girl who wants nothing but to die, hiring a stranger who will read her farewell letter at her funeral. konno was so ready to die. when the summer ends, she will leave the world, and leave yunimaru to speak for her at her funeral. they spent the summer together and it's undeniably became their bestest summer ever.

i love every bits of moments konno and yunimaru spent together. from the cafes, ordering lemon, to the karaoke room, yunimaru teaching konno how to hit high note, to them traveling together with the train stopped at the last stop and spent the night together though it was not a pleasant place, to light a firework, taking pictures, and being happy. they were genuinely so happy with each other it made my heart hurts. the time they spent together in their houses, doing grocery shopping together, and in the bathub. it made konno happy with the summer, it made her smile and laugh, genuinely so happy.

but it didn't make her stopping her plan. she was always so ready to die and the day comes. it was so sad, so heartbreaking, and i cried a lot during that part. when yunimaru ran to konno's place and cried for her because konno was so ready to k-ll herself. konno said, i wanted to know your real name. in hope for someone to cry for her, and yunimaru cried for her. the tears fell on konno's face and she thought, she chose the right person. i don't know i'm just so sad, everything is heartbreaking, but everything is also so beautiful. i love the ending. i love how konno realize that she found the right one for her and i love how yunimaru confessed to her. to wants to be with her. she said she will make konno's place an eternal summer for her, she said she will make sure there's always lemon chuuhai in the fridge and will stock up on fireworks, and they can have salts in the bath every night, she will makes herself useful for konno so konno won't leave her... it was so sad to read that part... and i'm just so glad konno gave herself another chance to live. she gave herself and yunimaru ㅡ nishijimasaki ㅡ another chance to enjoy their life to the fullest, to spend their summer happily, and live their life happily.

this is more like writing a diary of how much i love this piece. this one wins my heart big times. it was truly so beautiful. heartwrenchingly beautiful, heartbreaking, yet so, so beautiful. the ending is beautiful. i love saki and konno so much. i hope they live a happy life, together, forever :)♡ be happy my dear. you two deserve it so much. deserved it the most.
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soldamadrugada
50/100
Heartbreaking and hopeful in equal measure.. A story that delivers a lot in the simplicity of sweet summer days.
Simply one of the best I've read this year, it delivers a lot in its simplicity and light atmosphere. The premise intrigued me from the start and the characters captivated me throught the end. They are written with such care that it’s impossible not to be drawn into their world and start caring about what happens to them. One of the aspects I loved the most was the contrast between the characters’ perspectives on life, the way each of their struggles end up complementing one another perfectly. Their dynamic is fascinating because they reflect and distort one another at the same time. They envy each other in subtle ways, yet slowly begin to admire one another as well, and this tension adds even more richness to the narrative. The bond between them seems superficial at first, but the more time they spend together, the more they learn about themselves and what led them to despair, and they realize that they were the spark they needed to find in life. Their fleeting joys shine even brighter because they exist in the shadow of their harsh realities. The more they share their burdens, the deeper their bond grows, until it becomes clear that each gives the other a reason to carry on when neither would have managed alone. Yunimaru pushes Konno to face the truths she avoids, while Konno helps Yunimaru discover her own resilience and strength, which she had underestimated in herself. In this delicate push and pull, they teach each other what it means to love and care for someone and to be transformed forever by that love.

It’s the kind of narrative that slowly wears down your defenses, breaking you piece by piece with its honesty, but still manages to remain hopeful, sweet, and even funny at times. That balance is extremely rare and hard to achieve, yet the author does it effortlessly. The pacing and variety of scenarios the characters visit every chapter prevents the manga from sinking completely into a in a full-on festival of misery, with each chapter flowing naturally into the next, building tension and intimacy without ever dragging.

I only regret not having read it before, I didn't expect the writing to be so good. There is an extra chapter that is all written that only added layers and layers to the story, the author's prose is very rich, and that shines all throught the story but that final moment is where it was most poignant.

I will certainly take every opportunity I have to recommend this to others! It’s a rare gem; fun and sweet, yet deeply moving and profound. Anyone who picks it up will not only enjoy the journey but also come away with something lasting: a little more hope, a little more empathy, and a glimpse at the new beginning of two lost souls.
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