Can true love break a curse that crosses lifetimes?

Aito used to think he was an ordinary kid—until the day he fell in love at first sight with a boy at school. Suddenly, memories of his previous life as the tragic little mermaid came flooding back, leaving him unable to speak or stand without agonizing pain. The terrifying ordeal made him swear off love entirely, but a fateful encounter with his charming college classmate Toru now threatens to shake his resolve—and push him into dark waters that might drown him for good.

This was a lovely, creative take on The Little Mermaid story, using reincarnation to continue the tragic tale of a mermaid who has fallen in love with a human.

Aito, currently a college student at university specializing in fashion and sewing, remembers his painful past as the mermaid princess who was turned to foam.

The memories were long buried when he was a child, but when he fell for a classmate in school, the recollections of the torturous path he took to become human, and the penalty for doing so, came flooding back to him in a disturbing way.

Aito remained sickly throughout his school years and barely made it into college. And now, a video of him on social media where he is singing has reached fellow college student Toru’s ears, and it’s love at first sight all over again.

Toru is a composer and music student working on the score to the film club’s movie, and approaches Aito to see if he can get him to sing for the film. But Aito on the spot loses the ability to speak, and in future run-ins with Toru, loses his footing and falls, fracturing his leg, and then later his feet feel like they are walking on knives, just like the Little Mermaid’s feet did when she was made into a human being.

Aito is in denial about his feelings because he remembers the most painful thing of all: turning to sea foam when the prince he loved chooses to marry someone else. He thinks that Toru, despite his eventual confession of his feelings to him, will simply move on to another person, and that it isn’t really love. He fears that he will lose himself to the darkness once more.

Lots of interesting things bring Aito and Toru closer together, but the biggest challenge is Aito not being able to verbally communicate with Toru (he talks to Tory through messaging). Also, I want to mention Aito’s trans best friend Mizuki, who is his confidante, knows his backstory of reincarnation, and does what she can to help him figure out to conquer the curse. She’s a lovely addition to the manga.

There are fantastical elements woven into this otherwise slice-of-life college story, which makes the plot intriguing, and it’s great seeing the Aito and Toru get closer despite the challenges facing them. Aito, is in fact, the greatest challenge to the relationship, as he is filled with fear from the past, and self-doubt.

Things culminate at a beach and when they are out to sea, and I’m not going to spoil anything about it, but suffice it to say, like all fairytale romances, this one has a happily ever after.

I liked this unique reinterpretation of Hans Christian Andersen’s tragic fairy tale. If you’re a fan of revisionings and creative takes on well-known stories with romance, I recommend this gentle, sweet BL. It’ll certainly stick with me.

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Voices in the Sea Foam is available both in print and digital at a variety of shops where you can purchase books, both online and in-store. It is a standalone manga.