Pretty short, but lovely BL I'm gladly adding to my personal physical collection after reading!

Iku is an otaku recently relocated to Tokyo. He enjoys his simple life until one day he starts seeing ghosts. Despite his best efforts to ignore them one actually follows him home! And discovering the mystery behind this ghosts death will be a huge shock..

Art was beautiful, if not a bit crowded in panel which made it a bit hard to appreciate it all. I enjoyed the storyline, who doesn't love a ghost and time-loop mystery!
I look forward to more books from this author.

Rating: 3 for unusual story line
My Thoughts:
The publishers use the term otaku when describing the main character, Iku. Otaku is like a subculture in Japan and describes someone obsesses with something like manga, computers, etc. to the detriment of some kind of social life.
Anyway this is a paranormal love story between Iku and the ghost that he lets into his life. at 23:45 Mimori disappears to replay his death. Perhaps because this kind of story has played out in movies before, the manga seems to assume we are connecting to these other movies and seems to be a bit erratic about the plotline, either going too slow or skipping over.

I know this is a series, but I think I am done after this one.

From the Publisher:
New Tokyoite and college freshman Iku is living the otaku dream-except for the fact that
he can now see ghosts. One day, he bumps into Mimori, a super friendly spirit that
haunts a local bridge, and reluctantly lets the lonely specter into his home.
But every night at 23:45, Mimori is drawn back to the bridge and forced to replay
his downfall. Will Mimori be stuck in this loop forever, or can Iku find a way to save
him from an eternity of unending tragedy?

Publication Information:
Author/Illustrator: Ohana
Publisher: Kodansha (March 11, 2025)
Print length: 186 pages

Both time travel romances and ghost romances have something of a beautiful impossibility about them. Stories in those genres need to capture the fear that things won't work out for the couple while still allowing us to hold on to hope that they will. 23:45 absolutely pulls that off in its quietly lovely volume, delicately balancing hope and despair before ultimately guiding us to a cathartic ending.

The story is primarily a ghost story, or rather, a ghost love story. Iku's sudden realization that he can see ghosts – or rather, a ghost – upon moving to Tokyo is what brings him to Mimori, the ghost in question. Mimori is always standing on the same pedestrian bridge, and despite Iku's attempts to ignore him, he discovers that he can both see and touch the spirit. As their relationship develops, it becomes clear that the two young men met because they needed each other: both were stuck in a loop, with Mimori's rather more literal: the book takes its title from the fact that each night at 23:45, he returns and acts out the events that landed him in a spectral state in the first place.

But Iku is suffering from an emotional loop, one brought about by guilt over something that he really isn't to blame for. Their interactions with others trap both him and Mimori and how those tie them to their pasts. Mimori may be constantly reliving one specific moment in the physical (or maybe metaphysical) sense, but Iku's brain is a closed circuit, constantly reminding him of the one moment he feels he screwed up. It's only through getting to know each other that they're able to move on, to get past the witching hour that is 23:45. It's subtly done – we see Mimori beginning to find interest in things off the footbridge while Iku slowly begins to open up to the people around him, letting his coworkers engage with him. Both of them have to realize that they aren't inherently bad people, and the way the story conveys this without telling is one of its greatest strengths.

Emotional and endearing, 23:45 is a beautiful story. It succeeds as both a romance and a ghost story, gently engaging with what it means to be stuck and how there's always hope that moving forward is possible.

This was like a ground hog day meets boy x boy but also sad this art style was absolutely stunning and the concept was very intreasting!! love love love

An interesting premise that turned into a fairly cozy and gentle story. The art is nice and it makes for a light read despite the death angle.

This was kind of a surprise! I expected something more casual, but it turned out to be pretty emotional in a soft, subtle way. Both characters are really endearing, and I found myself caring more than I thought I would.

Sometimes I got a bit lost in the flow, but overall it was a gentle, sweet read. Nothing huge or dramatic, but definitely touching—and now I kinda want to read what happens next because the ending felt a bit off.

This was just adorable and a little heart breaking but omg so adorable. I dont want to give to much away but I enjoyed how Ohana handles this immensely, I would have been so sad if there wasn't a future for these two. The art is gorgeous and reminds me a bit of CLAMP, which is 100% what attracted me to it in the first place. It was a little faster paced than I expected, but, after reading it I'm not complaining. I would have been devastated if I hadn't found out what was actually going on until volume 2!

As always thanks to Kodansha and NetGalley for the eArc!

Who doesn’t love a good ghost story? This was so sweet and I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for the mangaka’s other works.

A interesting story about death, friendship and time, and what happens when a ghost becomes your best friend? The artwork was great and the story drew me in. Definitely a must read if you like a bit of mystery with your manga.

This was a cute and fun read that I devoured in one sitting. I really liked the concept of the plot (a ghost-human romance is always a fun one), and the personalities of Iku and Mimori were so much fun to get to know. I wish that the ending had a little bit more of a reveal, more conversation, but I find that standalone, none-serial manga could do with being a little more fleshed out. But the ending is happy, and there is a sequel that I will definitely have to pick up sooner rather than later!

If you want a soft sweet gay ghost-human romance, you definitely need to read this manga.

This is a single-volume, fast-paced BL manga with supernatural elements, and a delicate, pretty art style.

We follow Iku - a university student, part-time cashier, and otherwise full-time otaku. His life is pretty ‘same old, same old’... until one night he realises he can see ghosts. And there's one spirit in particular that just won't leave him be: Mimori, a young man whose deadly fall from a bridge repeats every night at 23:45.

Now that he's found someone who can finally see him Mimori starts haunting Iku’s apartment out of boredom and a craving for connection, and we soon start to see that Iku needs that connection just as much. Their blossoming relationship over the months they spend together is really sweet, and I found myself rooting for them (and worried we were heading for a bittersweet ending for a moment there!).

My only gripe is that I think this could have benefited from being in more than one volume, especially considering how much back/side story stuff the author decided to weave throughout. It made it a little confusing in places due to the quick pacing and the jumping from dreams or flashbacks back to the present day.

But overall this had an interesting premise and a hopeful ending that left me smiling :)

Thank you to Kodansha Comics for sending me an eARC.

This for me was a very interesting read. The twist was also a big predictable. I will definitely discuss this with my customers who come in for romantic manga. Can’t wait for volume two to see how the story expands.

23:45 is a supernatural BL manga about a boy - Iku - who realizes he has the ability to see ghosts and the ghost he meets - Mimori - who ends up following him home.
I really liked the artwork and the premise of this manga and thought it was very interesting. It explores emotions like loneliness, grief and guilt which I appreciated. The pacing felt rushed at times but I liked watching Iku and Mimori grow to care about each other.
I wish it had been a little longer but overall it was a quick, heartfelt read. I would definitely read more from this mangaka in the future!
～Thank you to Kodansha Comics and NetGalley for the ARC!

This cute, gay manga follows Iku, a nerdy student living on his own as he accidentally brings home the ghost of a hot young man with no memory of what happened or why he reverts back to the bridge he was found on each night at 23:45.

This was an enjoyable read, but a bit confusing at times due to slightly unclear formatting and some plot points felt a bit resolved.

I was very much looking forward to this read due to it's supernatural aspect however it fell flat. Parts of it were endearing, sweet and semi intriguing but everything else was just okay. I just couldn't get invested in the story or the characters enough, to care what happened next.

One of the first BL I have ever read so this was a great foray into that genre. Overall, this was a really interesting story and I really liked the ending.

The main character can see ghosts, and one day he meets a boy on a bridge who realizes he can be seen—and then follows him home. Their relationship grows from there, leading the main character to start looking into the boy’s past. What he discovers is both intriguing and heartbreaking. I absolutely loved the ending of this emotional story. The artwork is absolutely gorgeous and brings the story to life beautifully.

🕚 23:45 🕚

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨️ (3.75)
Finished: 04/19/25

I found this manga to be pretty interesting with the main character being able to see ghosts. The mystery of trying to find out how Mimori passed and their relationship that continues and how emotional it conveys with Iku hugging and trying to keep him in the moment to make Mimori stay with him.

I was happy to see the twist in the end of the manga, and them getting a HEA. Mimori was a nice boy and I'm glad they were together in the end.

23:45 follows Iku, a nerdy & introverted college freshman, who came to Tokyo for two things and two things only: college and anime memorabilia (emphasis on the latter). What he did not come to Tokyo for was to mingle with the coworkers at his part-time job or suddenly develop the ability to see ghosts-- or really, one handsome ghost in particular. After said ghost (named Seo) follows Iku home, the two work towards uncovering the mysterious circumstances around Seo's passing and, in doing so, begin to open up to one another.

This work is a lovely little BL novel that reminded me of 90's romcoms (e.g. Sleepless in Seattle, Ghost) in its character-focused narrative and poignant, yet playful tone. If anything, I wish that it was a longer work so that there could be more room for the supporting cast and so the character reveals could be meted out a little more slowly. But overall it was an enjoyable, quick romance that doesn't skimp on emotional highs & lows.