This was a truly chaotic start to this series, however one I enjoyed. I was hooked from the first page but there was constantly a lot going on. This first volume sets the stage for the rest of the series but had a new revealation coming to light just about every 20 or so pages which took me out of the story quite often. The pacing was a bit too fast at every stage and this takes away from the mystery aspect of the story.

I truly did love the art style. This was my first time being exposed to something of this nature and I can honeslty say I enjoyed it and look forward to seeing more like it in the future. I can't wait to see how the next volume holds up.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for this Advanced Reader Copy for my honest review.

I loved this! As the start of a series this was absolutely amazing. If you've ever read Oshi No Ko and wished it would go harder than this is for you. This is a similar concept but a lot darker and more thrilling. I definitely can't wait to see more of this series!

Looking for a Cinderella story with all the family drama and showbiz heartbreak of Oshi no Ko? Look no further than Roar: A Star in the Abyss! Kodansha releases volume 1 of the thriller next month, setting the stage for one girl’s revenge. But the first few chapters will be more than enough to get you hooked. Read on to meet Misato and find out what drives her revenge in this series from the creator of Guilty.



A Tragic Tale

Roar: A Star in the Abyss starts its story early in the life of Misato, a young rural girl with an innate talent for acting. A bit part on a TV drama turns her world upside-down—but not in the fun and exciting way. Not long after her episode airs, her family home burns down. Rather than getting to move in with her neighbors, she’s scooped up by a stranger who claims to be her real mother and whisked off to the mainland.

What follows is hell on earth for Misato, interspersed with backstory for the reader. What Misato doesn’t know is that her birth and childhood are fraught with mystery and deceit. But instead of answers, she gets abuse at the hands of her new “Family,” especially her adoptive mother and her sister Ayane. Only in the final pages of the first volume does she effect an escape.



Secrets Abound

While Roar: A Star in the Abyss doesn’t show its hand in the first volume, the stage-setting alone is compelling. This manga is utterly heartbreaking and devastatingly tragic, ranking alongside the heaviest moments of Candy Candy and Idol Densetsu Eriko. Oshi no Ko is another no-brainer comparison, though the showbusiness angle is only barely sown in this first volume.

In spite of everything, Misato keeps hope alive by clinging aggressively to what she can of her childhood. Her rural dialect remains even after ten years far from home. And she brings herself and her invalid “brother” moments of joy by reciting books from her childhood from memory. As the first volume ends, it’s one of these recitations that draws attention to her—positively for a change.



What’s Next

Roar: A Star in the Abyss launched in May 2023 and is still running. To that end, we don’t actually know where it will end. We know at least some of Misato’s tragic backstory, though elements of it are still in shadow. There’s clearly something bigger at work than even we as the readers know. And Misato knows less than us. So the sky is the limit as Misato uncovers secrets and, eventually, begins to take action.

Ai Okaue’s artwork starts cute in the early chapters, but it conveys both Misato’s heartbreak and the coldness of her tormentors vividly. Lovely and chilling both to look at and to read, this is one for the drama-lovers.

Thank you Netgalley, Kodansha Comics and Ai Okaue for this e-arc in exchange for a honest review!

This story follows Misato, a young girl who’s life is turned upside down when her parents mysteriously die/disappear and a woman swoops in to claim her as her biological daughter. At her new home, her mother’s disguises her cruelty as kindness, her new sister is flat out needlessly cruel, and her father ignores her. Her only solace is her disabled brother who the family keeps hidden away and rarely speaks to.

This was a very interesting set up and since reading I’ve learned this is a revenge thriller so I’m very excited to see how she goes about getting revenge, as well as finding out what happened to her true biological mother and adoptive parents. I will definitely be reading this series as it progresses!

3.5 stars
After the death of Misato's parents, a woman claiming to be her real mother takes her away to live with her new family. There she is tormented by her sister and mother, however, she does befriend the son of this family who is also mistreated by them. The plot was interesting but some moments felt a bit over the top which ruined the immersion. I would like to see where the story is heading and how this revenge will go. Also the art style is gorgeous

3.75 ⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for providing this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

I was expecting a glittery story about a rise to fame, and perhaps that is to come later in the story. Instead, this first volume tracks the early life of Misato, who loses everything and is forced to live in a home with no love or affection, and constant bullying and isolation.

It was surprisingly dark at times, considering for the vast majority of the narrative Misato is about six years old. The reader gets to see her life before and after the tragedy that changes her life forever, and I could not help but feel for this precocious, confident girl.

The artwork is great, the perfect style for this kind of story.

This was not the strongest opening volume of a series I've ever read, but it was intriguing enough that I will happily read on.

What a good series start. The main character is very fleshed out with strong character, personality and emotional depth. This seems to be a character driven story and i definitely fell in love with the characters. I just can’t wait to read more. The art and story are both very moving, I love how many emotions were poured into this manga.

Solid 4 star for the first volume. If you enjoy a thriller mysteries revolving the entertainment industy, deep character stories and drama this manga might be right up your alley.

From a young age Misato has the ability to hone very raw and deep emotions, which leads her on a path of acting. However with this comes some mysteries such as the identiy of her real parents and her own. The first volume lays the foundation of the story so its difficult to say where it will go from here but I think its a pretty solid story line so far.

I think if you enjoyed Oshi no Ko you might enjoy this as well, theres some similarity in terms of the intertaiment industry aspect as well as thriller mystery. As a young child Misato suffers some unfortunate events and as a result is swept away into a world where she is deeply neglected.There are some strong themes of bullying and cohersion.

The art is more simplistic, but the story is compelling I am curious to see what happens to Misato so I will def be picking up vol 2.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for the digital arc in exchange for an honest review!

Roar is a manga that has entirely too much going on. It's a dramatic revelation after dramatic revelation, and after the 4th or 5th one, you just sigh every time a new dramatic thing happens. This series is clearly meant to hold high tension throughout, and you can tell it's trying very hard at it. But the tension becomes tedious when characters become cartoonishly "evil". This first volume is almost meant to be the setup, but it's rushing so hard throughout her childhood to get to her being a star that it feels like a highlight reel. I just didn't vibe with this story at all. The art style was good, very 1990s shoujo.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

"Roar: A Star in the Abyss" by Ai Okaue is about a girl named Misato who tragically loses her parents in a deadly fire when she is young.

Misato is forced to live with a distance relative and her family after the fire. The daughter of the family is cruel to Misato, and things become dark and sorrowful in the story.

"Roar: A Start in the Abyss" is heartbreaking, dramatic, and beautifully drawn. The characters are intriguing and add depth to the story.

Thank you, Kodansha and NetGalley, for sending me an ARC of this amazing manga. I can't wait to read the rest of the series!

"Roar: A Star in the Abyss" comes out 6/3/2025.

Firstly, the cover art is beautiful! (It being what initially drew me to this manga.) The details are gorgeous and reminiscent of early 2000s Josei titles (namely Peach Girl aesthetically). Regarding the story itself, this first volume sets up the premise well and hooks the reader in. It is a bit of a slow roll, but it left me curious and wanting more as the story grew more heartbreaking and infuriating. The story's summary was accurate when it described this story as being reminiscent of popular K-dramas like "The Glory". I would recommend this to fans of asian dramas and getting revenge everywhere.

I got this ARC courtesy of Kodansha Comics, via NetGalley. My deep gratitude 🙏

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I am not a constant manga reader, so my review will not probably reflect any specificities or proper technical analyses, just some thoughts about the plot and the drawings.
The plot is quite intriguing, as it starts peacefully, in an idyllic setup, but it quickly escalates and then plunges into one mystery after another.
The characters are easy to like/ dislike, and I have to admit that I also love the drawing style. Combined with the text, it has a great impact, and helps a lot with character building.

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Looking forward to reading the next volume 😀

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ 4 stars ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

i really enjoyed this manga! i was hooked from the first page, and i could not stop reading because i needed to know what would happen next. this manga follows the tragic story of Misato and it's so sad seeing her treated this way, but i'm looking forward to any revenge that could take place in the next volumes. i can't wait for next volume because i have soo many questions.

˗ˋˏ ୨୧ thank you to NetGalley, Kodansha Comics, and Ai Okaue for the digital arc in exchange for an honest review! ୨୧ ˎˊ˗

Certain tragic events forced the main character, Misato (Mii-chan), to leave the old life on the island behind to move to the mainland Japan, to “hide in the plain sight”. The glimpses of the heroine’s childhood showed how happy and strong-willed she was, how full of life she was as a kid.

Certain tragic events forced the main character, Misato (Mii-chan), to leave the old life on the island behind to move to the mainland Japan, to “hide in the plain sight”. The glimpses of the heroine’s childhood showed how happy and strong-willed she was, how full of life she was as a kid.

Overall, I got the positive impression. There might have been too many events for one chapter, perhaps that's why it feels as if I binged a miniseries. I was a little confused by who’s who, but I’m intrigued to figure it all out. A lot of secrets and mysteries to unfold. I liked the art style, but I agree with one of the comments above that you can tell the mangaka has focused more on what’s right in front of us rather than the background details. And I can’t seem to decide if this is more a shojo or a josei manga, the art style suggests the first, but the explicit scenes and the hardships the heroine goes through suggest the latter.

Anyhow, I hope to get to know the introduced characters better in Chapter 2 and I hope to get a pick at heroine's childhood friend's, Jun-chan, life too!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I need the next volume of this manga IMMEDIATELY. WOW. Super emotional me over the top read. This story follows Misato who is orphaned after her television debut, and follows along her tragic story into her teen years. This first volume gave a very solid foundation for who Misato is and I’m very curious to see how her story plays out. The art and storytelling was amazing.

I really enjoyed this manga! It's sad that she was being treated that way and that the boy told a lie to make her live her life. It's sad that he's so sweet but has to deal with his horrible family. I honestly have so many questions.

Overall, I think this was a great, if not depressive (not that I mind) way to start a manga series. The plot was there and there were some interesting mentions of Japanese media/ literature I will definitely research.

There's a lot of potential for character growth and I want to jump right into the second, really can't wait because it got me hooked.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for early copy for review*

This was such a fantastic first volume! The intrigue and suspense had me on the edge of my seat. Not only do I want to see this girl get her revenge, but I also need to know the reason she is being treated like this. Can't wait to continue!

3.5 stars

This was a surprisingly sad start to a series, but I have little doubts in the story volume 1 is setting us up for. There were times when this was especially tough to read but the crueler scenes were quite successful, especially the more sinister revelations delivered with just a smile or glance from one of Misato’s antagonists. That is where the strength in this first volume lies I believe, in how it leaves little breadcrumbs to fuel the mystery forward while also revealing to the reader how absolutely unhinged the situation is that Misato has been forced into. Though, I do hate how much I like Ayane’s teen design considering how evil she is—she has no right to look that cool!

I look forward to the next book in this series as this one left us with so many unanswered questions.

Thank you Kodansha Comics and NetGalley for an advance copy to read and review.

Thank you Kodansha for the ARC!

Roar volume 1 gives just a taste of a unique thrilling plot that has so many moving parts that you're itching to find out more. Starting with a tragedy that forces Misato into a hostile environment we slowly start to learn more about her family past all while she is learning to adapt to the new life she has been forced into. The characters were all super interesting and complex and now I'm hoping to learn even more about side characters and how things ended up the way they are.

I will admit about 1/3 of the way through I started to get a bit confused with the introduction of the doctor and his family while jumping back and forth a bit in the timeline. Though once it got over halfway it started to click again and flow.

I'd definitely be interested to see where the story goes! Overall a solid first volume.