Sugar Princess by Hisaya Nakajo

Title: Sugar Princess
Mangaka: Hisaya Nakajo
Age Group: Youth +
# of Pages: Approx. 200
# of Volumes: 2
My Rating: 3/5

Eighth-grader Maya Kurinoki does a double-axel (a skating move) on the ice for the first time to convince her brother to move around on the rink. And she pulls it off even when her style is all wrong! This one move changes everything when Eishi Todo, a skating coach, scouts her for skating. At first she is reluctant to accept but then she decides to take a stab at it.

As a beginner, Maya has to train until she reaches level six so she could be placed in the junior division. To do so, she has to team up with the talented young skating star Shun Kano to improve. Except he doesn't want to teach her because she is a clumsy amateur!

Hisaya Nakajo is famous for her long-running series, Hana-Kimi, which is a crossdressing high school love story. The artstyle have changed over time since Hana-Kimi in the early 1990s and in my eyes, I think the character drawings have became much worse. I prefer her old style. Maybe because the main character is younger, therefore the eyes are much bigger. I'll have to see her latest works to determine how much she have changed her art style over time. In terms of plot, I have to say it is a bit cheesy. I'm sure that at the end, Maya somehow becomes a great skater and win the championship with Shun. (Not a spoiler, just a prediction). I don't like the plotline because I'm sure the message is along the lines of "You can get whatever you want if you try hard enough." And I absolutely dislike stories have have to do with working harder or friendship taglines. Recommended for shojo lovers.