On a whim, I bought "Gerard & Jacques Volume 1", published by BLU, yesterday at World's Biggest Book Store. I don't have many Fumi Yoshinaga books, but this is because I deem her covers too ugly to be worth a purchase. I was, most definitely, proved wrong!
I think Fumi Yoshinaga's books are well-suited to male readers because her characters share much more in common with gay men than your average Yaoi manga. Even though Yaoi manga is fantasy, Yoshinaga-sensei will present her stories with a realistic quality that will appeal to gay readers.
Rather than being pretty, Gerard and Jacques are expressive and raw men compared to, say, Haruka Minami's doll-faced boys. Jacques is not a bumbling uke, but rather a loyal subject to Gerard and would do anything for him (in Yaoidom, this means sex as well). Gerard met Jacques at a whorehouse, then promptly freed him and took him as his servant. The story gets more interesting as Gerard's full back story is told later on in the book. There is no plot device here that forces these two characters together for no reason. They all meet and develop their relationship logically.
I have been avoiding Fumi Yoshinaga's books, and for that matter, BLU's books, for the longest time now and now realize what I was missing. It was a fast read, but definitely a memorable one. The explicit sex was more meaningful between these two characters, and I really appreciate what BLU was trying to accomplish: a well-written, memorable read for fans of Yaoi, but equally suitable for gay readers as well.
May 9, 08 EDIT: Please do not get the impression that this is a gay men only blog. I wish for Gentlemen AND Ladies to gain insight from my reviews.
