Gimai Seikatsu
Days with My Stepsister

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I doubt that many people will see this review since this LN isn't that popular as of now. This was a really refreshing read and I'm glad that I started it.

To delve into the positives, the male lead and female lead are both good characters, and I hope that they get even more development in the future. They can act maturely and reasonably, and it's great to see people who can communicate so openly. The romance aspect is slowly built up instead of just being dumped on us suddenly. The side characters are not the most developed, but they all have their own little ... quirks that make them enjoyable. Not much to say about the story since it's mainly SOL and there isn't much to delve into.

Volume 1 and 2 are both great reads, with Volume 2 being more romance centric than the first novel. I'll update this review after the release of Volume 3.

Now onto the negatives. As another reviewer mentioned, there are parts that can get repetitive and slow. This is mostly internal dialogue chunks though, and I would actually recommend just skipping over them after you've read them a few times (pretty easy to identify) for maximum enjoyment. There are also some instances where the story decides to excessively explain some things that don't really need to be explained with that much detail (once again this is just background stuff and internal dialogue bits).

Edit for volume 3: Volume 3 was definitely the best volume so far. It spices things up more while keeping the same enjoyable format, despite the author still rambling too much when it comes to inner monologues. I think so far this series has been a great subversion of certain tropes and it's still a very good read. Here's hoping that the author can keep things fresh. Easy 8-8.5 for now

This series has gotten quite popular. It won a spot in Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi which is amazing. I've been making a review on each volume and this is the review of the 4th volume.

Been a while since I read this series, I liked the amount of retold information and scenes in this volume. Not too boring nor too vague, just the perfect amount. I think the author has improved on his writing style, not much of description of the place, which was hella boring in v3 if I remember correctly.

Spoiler warning!
It was said in the book that anyone with little exp. ... with the opposite sex will fall for them for the smallest help and support because they don't have any expectations of the opposite sex. There's a reason for people to love each other, which is why I found the point of their dating not being good because the have no exp. and fell for each other. I think it's completely okay because there should be a reason and it could be whatever as long as it's ethically right.

And as always, nice guys finish last. [This is unrelated to the paragraph above, incase you're confused ;) ]

Thanks for cclaw translation for the articulate translation, they never disappoint me.
If you have made it this far, thank you and you are amazing.
Stay relentless.

A cup of pure and clean water with a spoonful of honey. This would be how I describe the book in one sentence.

Gimai Seikatsu, portrayed a beautiful story between our two main characters, Ayase Saki and Asamura Yuuta. One very important feature which attracted me very much in this book is the characterization. The development between our two main characters Saki and Yuuta is what makes this book so good. The author depicted the feeling in their heart very nicely, we can see how their thoughts and beliefs have soon changed as the story goes on. This light novel switches between both Yuuta's and Saki's ... POVs, so the readers can understand what both of the characters thinking at that time. Unlike other stepsisters generic light novels with a lot of horrendous drama, Gimai Seikatsu actually portrayed a very realistic story throughout the ordinary slice of life.

Obviously, this is a romance story. But the romance takes place very slowly, however, as I mentioned the development between both of the characters is keep going every volume. The reason I would say this series is a cup of pure and clean water with a spoonful of honey is that throughout the ordinary slice of life, it actually shows some of the sweetest scenes I have ever seen. The series did not force some very romantic, and cute scenes like other light novels which focused heavily on fluff. The reason I said it is sweet is that our two main characters sometimes will do some very little things, very little details which are truly heart-warming. It can be just a sentence of admiration, it can be just a very little considerate movement during the story. These little things make the story so sweet.

This is definitely a very worth reading series I would recommend it to everyone, especially to those who love reading stories with a heavy focus on characters' development and depiction of their feeling. I have now completed volume no.5, and I would say what a beautiful ride, volume 5 is what everyone would want to see in this series I would say. I'm glad the story goes like that in volume 5, I can now die peacefully. I would definitely consider this as some of the best romance light novels I have ever seen.

Also, do not always judge the book by its title. (>ᴗ•)