Manga Renta: Cohabitation Game Review

The full title is: Cohabitation Game ~ Sexual Lessons from a Dashing Wolf by Non Akina

….but that uhh didn’t fit into the bar. That’s right, it’s not that typing that makes me realize how much I love trashy steamy romance and embarrasses me, no siree!

Never been loved and never had sex, Shiho, a romance novelist, is in a rut. But then she meets the super-handsome, capable actor (porn star), Kou… and a twist of fate means the two start living together!
“You want it, don’t you?” he whispers as he holds her close and forces his tongue into her mouth…
New experiences await!!

Look at that, doesn’t it just sound like the good kind of trash you love to read? I know it did me!

My record on smut romance has been spotty lately. I mean, last time I got the urge to read trash I read Salacious Showbiz Manager and that was errr… yeah. That was an experience, to say the least. So I was a little worried clicking on this I would get something that horrible, if that’s possible.

And… it’s not!

The novel starts with these two pages (censored for this review)

And just with that, I knew it would be a good light read.

Shiho is a romance novelist who had a great debut novel, but her followups aren’t making waves. To get buy she’s writing light and steamy novels. Then, to make matters worse, she’s supposed to be writing steamy novels and she’s never been kissed, let alone have sex, so she doesn’t really know what to do and her writing reflects that.

Kou is a struggling actor. He does porn for a living, but he really wants to do real acting roles. He’s a popular porn star because of the ~emotion~ he brings into the roles but that doesn’t translate to real cash because he’s homeless. Kou errr, trades his wares, so to speak, to basically go from house to house so he has a place to stay.

Shiho interrupts a deal he’s making and he goes to stay with her. She doesn’t want her first time to be with him, so in exchange for a place to stay he cleans and cooks. When they both find out their real roles — steamy romance author and porn star — they get in an argument and that turns into a steamy scene.

Afterwards they basically live together and act like a couple without being a couple.

Everything is a perfect mix of cute and steamy! There’s a lot of heart in both characters and I enjoy how there’s scenes of both laughing during the act and little awkward moments. It makes it realistic. And I actually teared up a bit at the end!?

There are certain elements of the plot that are predictable, because these stories always go the same way, but it’s done well and I’m not going to hold it against it. If you’re going to be predictable, you need to work it well, and this does it. There’s more heart and characterization in this short series than there is in entire romance novels, to be blunt. The author expresses emotion really well. You feel like you can see them start to want to be an official couple, but can’t admit it.

Aaaah, I just can’t express how much I enjoyed this. The art is fantastic, the plot is cute and steamy, the ending is so sugary sweet you’ll get cavities… Really, the only negative thing is that when it ends, you feel empty inside and want more! Why is it only 7 chapters when Salacious Shit is longer and so so so so much worse?! THERE IS NO JUSTICE IN THE WORLD <—- example of emptiness felt inside after finishing