About:
Warning:
There will be spoilers for the manhwa series Your Secret Keeper.
Trigger Warning: There may be references to sextortion, blackmail, sexual assault, dubcon/dubious consent, bullying, ableism (use of the r-slur), and unsafe BDSM practices, as it appears in the manhwa.
Synopsis:
Sun has recently started a new job at a much better company than the one she is coming from. Having just gone through a traumatic and unfortunate scandal at her previous job, she's ready to work hard and put the past behind her… but that's hard to do when her new boss, Doyoung, is actually her first love from high school, which ended before it could even begin. He's as big of a jerk as he was in high school and seems to be intent on making Sun's life as hellish as possible until she quits.
Unwilling to be pushed out of another company, Sun spends her days drowning her sorrows in alcohol after work and doing her best to field all of Doyoung's unreasonable requests and criticisms. One evening, after some heavy drinking with her coworkers, she gets home to find a package by her door. It turns out to be for Doyoung, who lives in the building next to hers. In her drunken stupor, she resolves to bring the package to his apartment and give him a piece of her mind simultaneously.
To her surprise, after puking on him and being let into his apartment, she finds a streaming setup. He doesn't seem to be the kind of guy that would do that sort of thing, so she ends up perusing his computer while he is in the bathroom only to discover he does stream, but the subject matter is of the adult variety. With this newfound ammunition, Sun intends to use this to make life at work much more peaceful. Additionally, she finds herself attracted to Doyoung even more than she ever had in high school and establishes a sexual partnership with him in exchange for her secrecy.
As their relationship grows and she discovers more and more about the world Doyoung is part of, Sun finds herself falling deeper and deeper for him, but the sudden return of her ex-boyfriend threatens to ruin what little bit of trust she has built back up with Doyoung.
Review:
Admittedly, I am not all that into femdom. For one, I am a self-professed sub and prefer dominant men, which already puts me off the femdom genre since it doesn't align with my personal tastes or fantasies. Another reason I am not fond of femdom is that it usually doesn't include penetrative sex for the woman, which is also one of my preferences. There is usually plenty of penetration, but the woman is usually not the one being penetrated. Don't get me wrong, and I like when the man is the one being penetrated (I mean, I am a BL fan, for goodness sake, and I am all about everyone getting some), but when there is a woman involved, I like for there to be vaginal penetration just for my own satisfaction. I am happy to say this is one where we get to see some penetration for both parties, which is everything.
I also typically don't care for femdom works since they usually don't end with the woman getting into a serious and clear relationship with anyone she dominates. Don't get me wrong, I love casual relationships and independent women, but I love the romance, too, and when we have all the sexual build-up without any of the romantic payoffs, it feels a bit lacking. But, once again, this one surprised me, and we have some really lovely romance. Sun and Doyoung are super cute, and I love the dynamic of the strict and rough-around-the-edges boss being brought to his knees (literally in some cases) by his girlfriend. Doyoung crying and begging, paired with Sun's cruelty, creates a sight to behold. Then, having them cuddle and kiss afterward creates such a satisfying dichotomy that you'll drool one second, only to feel the warm fuzzies the next.
So, we already have a femdom series where more of my tastes are in line, which is great. Then, we have the artwork. The artwork is very pretty and is consistent for the most part. I have to point out, though, that the ears sometimes get super huge out of nowhere, and it looks awkward and comical. My poor Doyoung has this problem a lot, which is unfortunate, especially since he is my favorite character. I also found that sometimes the characters looked oily or dirty even when they shouldn't, like they hadn't showered or washed their hair in a while. It's still very pretty, but it was odd to see those moments, and it sometimes took away from the scenes.
Finally, I have to talk about the storyline. I don't feel like it ended very well. This is a short series with just over forty episodes and no side stories or bonuses. Doyoung just decides to tell Sun exactly how he feels and decides to quit his job, and we don't get to see much of any development on how he came to that conclusion. Also, Sun never gets closure on why Doyoung started ignoring her after high school, which really bothered me since that seemed to be something that haunted her for most of the series. Ultimately, we were given a bunch of threads that either didn't go anywhere or were cut far too short for what they warranted. I like the ending, but I wish it had been given more time and build-up so it didn't feel rushed and clipped.
Results:
I was really pleased with this one. This is probably the first femdom title I ever actually finished and found satisfying. For anyone who is really into femdom, I am not sure that this is a great one, but for anyone new to the genre, I think this might be a good starting point. It's got sexy sex scenes, a super cute sub, romance, and even a touch of BL (just a touch, like the smallest drop of BL possible), so there are lots of things to enjoy here. Is this going to be my favorite manhwa of all time? No, but it was a fun time, regardless.
Have you read Your Secret Keeper? If so, what do you think? Do you agree with my assessment? Do you not? Let me know, and comment below!