The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten Volume 5 Review

At the end of Volume 4 of The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten, our main characters Amane and Mahiru finally started dating. While this can be an end point for many series, this light novel continues and we’re left wondering what’s going to happen next. With Volume 5 in hand, let’s find out what’s in store! 

As we reunite with our main characters, we find Mahiru overjoyed that Amane has finally accepted her feelings for him. The two are now happily dating and spend their days more or less the same as before, with Mahiru coming over to cook and spend time quietly with Amane. However, now the distance between them is firmly closed and they’re in the same class, they resolve not to hide their relationship at school even if that means Amane will be hated by all the boys for taking the angel for himself! 

While Amane prepares himself for the worst, he’s surprised to find that no one minds his relationship since Mahiru is so happy by his side. They are initially shocked by how intimate and flirty the two are all of a sudden, but that never amounts to any trouble. In fact, now that Amane isn’t hiding away at his desk with a withdrawn atmosphere, he’s getting on better with his classmates who want to get to know the boy who won the angel’s heart. 

Mahiru meanwhile finds herself growing jealous of all the girls wanting to know more about Amane. Of course, she’s pleased by the fact he’s starting to come out of his shell but she’s conflicted since she wants to keep him all to herself. Thankfully now that Amane has come to realise Mahiru’s feelings for him, he’s no longer the dense protagonist he once was and very quickly notices her jealousy and works to put her fears to rest. 

Volume 5 of The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten capitalises on what has made this series good so far, which is the heartfelt interactions between the main characters. While I have been annoyed about their lack of romantic progress, I will say that author Saekisan has otherwise always done a great job of having the cast sort through their feelings. Misunderstandings rarely linger and there’s plenty of honest communication between Amane and Mahiru about what they’re happy or unhappy about. This is especially important now that they’re actively dating since they have to consider which intimate acts they’re comfortable with and which they aren’t. 

So far all the two have done is hold hands and hug; anything more than that feels like a step too far for Amane. He sees Mahiru as something precious that he doesn’t want to hurt by rushing their relationship. Mahiru, meanwhile, is stuck between being happy that Amane values her so much and wanting to take things further; even just a kiss would be enough to satisfy her desires. And that’s something I was pleased to see the two actively discuss rather than letting any bad feelings build up. It’s a realistic way of handling a relationship like this and makes me more interested in seeing what the future volumes have in store for us. 

Outside of school and progress in the central relationship, this volume also sees the cast reach summer vacation. To celebrate their extended time off, they take a trip to the pool and hang out with friends Itsuki, Yuuta and Chitose. Afterwards, they go to Amane’s hometown to visit his parents (something that Amane promised to do with Mahiru earlier in the series) but now that they’re dating, Amane finds himself filled with the anxiety of having to tell his parents about their relationship. It’s not that they’ll be against it as the pair are very fond of Mahiru and have been actively encouraging Amane to date her, but he just knows they’ll make a huge fuss about it! And could it be that’s not the only problem awaiting Amane back home…? 

The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten Volume 5 comes to the West thanks to Yen Press and continues to be translated by Nicole Wilder. As usual, the translation reads well with no issues to note. Next up for release in English is Volume 5.5 later this month, which is a short story collection. After that Volume 6 is scheduled for an English release in January, so we do have quite a big gap between ‘main story’ instalments, but hopefully the .5 release will keep readers going. 

Overall, The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten Volume 5 sees Mahiru and Amane getting used to their new relationship. So much has changed between them and yet so much stays the same as is realistic of a pair going from close friends to lovers. Still, fans of the series will certainly enjoy watching over these two as they take small steps in figuring out how to navigate the new lack of boundaries between one another. 

Our review copy from Yen Press was supplied by Diamond Book Distributors UK.