first review :) *minor spoilers but isn't that important*
Story:
- Though the introduction & plot of the story seems kind of boring and almost generic, as you read further into the manga you won't even consider it boring. It starts out with a weak princess, Yona, and while others won't even bother touching a manga with this type of female protagonist, surrounded by many other men of her own harem, Yona actually puts up a name for herself. Yona gets stronger overtime because of her own determination and will to, which I really give respects to her for. As the story progresses, the story introduces
...
 Alternative TitlesSynonyms: Yona: The Girl Standing in the Blush of Dawn Japanese: 暁のヨナ More titlesInformationType: Manga
Volumes: 48
Chapters: 292
Status: Finished
Published: Aug 5, 2009 to Dec 19, 2025
Demographic:
Shoujo
Serialization:
Hana to Yume Authors:
Kusanagi, Mizuho (Story & Art) Statistics Ranked: #342 2 based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded. Popularity: #87
Members: 151,369
Favorites: 15,178 Available AtResources | Reviews
Filtered Results: 63 / 68
Sort
Your Feelings Categories 
May 31, 2015
I've never been so devoted to a manga as this one. I'm even reading tumblr spoilers because i cant wait for next chapter T.T
Not only is the story amazing, I love the way you see the characters develop during the manga. Also the side stories are so touching and they always keep me in their gasp to the very last words. The way the manga mixes history, mystics and comedy is truly making this a masterpiece. And than that touch of romance now and than LOVE IT. The Heroine in the story is probably the best female character I've ever seen. She isn't the common everyday heroine ... 
Aug 31, 2013
Here is my review of Akatsuki No Yona by Kusanagi Mizuho.
Story 9/10: The story is very good. The first chapter is very gripping, and Kusanagi always leaves her chapters off on a cliff-hanger or a suspense scene. It's very well-written, there's some humor scenes, some tension, some romance and that's what made me like this manga. I still feel that the story could use a bit more movement in the love scenes... I mean, the main character's guardian, Hak, loves the main character but he's always reluctant to make movement for his own good... Art 10/10: Brillant. Beautiful. Detailed. I loved it and the art's a big 'yes' ... 
Dec 17, 2014
You have seen 55 episodes of Akatsuki no Yona
Your Review: Akatsuki no Yona is one of my all time favorite mangas so far even though when I first picked it up my immediate thought was “this is sooo shoujo.” At first sight it basically looks like the typical manga full of lovey dovey scenes, bishounens and pretty and spoiled princesses who need constant protection from the bad guys, but I am SO pleased I was wrong. Story 9/10 The idea is not that new to be honest, when I picked this up I had already read similar stories from Watase Yuu- sensei (Fuushigi Yuugi and Fuushigi Yuugi: Genbu ... 
Mar 23, 2023
Yona of the Dawn is one of those rare series that blends action, political intrigue, and romance without dropping the ball on any of them. It starts with what feels like a classic fairytale setup, a sheltered princess in love, a loyal bodyguard by her side, and a kingdom at peace, before shattering it all in one night. That betrayal forces Yona out of her palace and into the real world where she begins an incredible journey of growth.
What I love most is how the story takes its time. Yona does not instantly turn into a warrior or a leader. She struggles, she learns, she ... 
Mar 20, 2024
Did I really just binge-read 255 chapters in two days?? Yes, yes I did.
Wow. This compelling story has made me laugh, squeal with excitement, and sob uncontrollably. I don't even care for reading manga- but I had to continue the story after watching the anime! The character development is so smooth and natural- it follows a realistic pace. The plot threw most my predictions out the window. There is little/no fan service, and the romance depicted is a healthy, heartwarming relationship. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys a good fantasy story with an equal balance of lighthearted and dark aspects. This manga is truly ...
Mar 22, 2013
Is there seriously no review for this manga yet? Really? Oh well, this'll be the first one then
Story 8/10 Ok, in my honest opinion, I wasn't expecting very much from the plot. It is about a young princess, Yona, who has the a near-perfect, care-free life like any old princess would have. She has a loving emperor father, a hot cousin crush and everything she could ever ask for. But when incidents occur (basically Soo won, her cousin crush murdering her father to gain access to her throne) she is forced to leave her easy life to start a new one on the run, with only ... 
Dec 18, 2025
I can't describe it in words. I'm so deeply attached to this manga and anime. The incredible story and characters are portrayed in such a way that it feels like I'm watching an ancient story come to life. How brave Yona trained her mind and how her dragon brothers and hak held onto their own purpose to support her .Every chapter felt new, the Wind Tribe's soldiers were amazing .
All the characters I have found in this manga have their own personality which is very unique. They have done an immense job on everything, action, drama, which is why it has achieved so much success. ...
Mar 19, 2024
So overall, I really enjoy this manga. It has a lot of themes and tropes that work for me: (slightly immature and predictable) humour, adventure, found family and brotherhood, romance that’s cute but not the main focus, handsome men, self sacrifice etc etc. However as a fan of high fantasy, I can see some loose threads and holes in the world building.
The mangaka is pretty good at developing and portraying social/ political and interpersonal dynamics which are already established. However to get to this point of establishment, she uses some fairly contrived or not well fleshed out hand-wavy explanations just to so we can ... 
Dec 26, 2025
I waited more than 10 years to read Akatsuki no Yona, because I didn`t want to wait for new chapters. I always read only finished mangas because of that. And after so many years of waiting, to read it all in only 5 days.....it is heartbreaking. Also this is my first time writing a review, but I think that this manga deserves all praise. Story is well written, growing of characters expertly done, art beautiful. I made so many pauses while reading, just because I didn`t want the story to end. It is really special when good manga or book do that to you. I
...
Apr 10, 2015
This is my first review so first of all, I AM IN LOVE WITH YONA (hence why my profile pic is Yona) but it's outstanding from all the changes from her sheltered life princess Yona to fearless, beautiful yona. MINOR SPOILERS WILL BE SHOWN!!!!
Story 10/10 Akatsuki No Yona is about a sheltered princess who doesn't experience much from the outside world but one day, her peaceful life is shattered. In the beginning, it is a bit slow, trying to find the dragons' descendants, but wants it hits the 3rd dragon's arc, it is outstanding! The action-packed arcs that starts to happen after and in this arc, ...
Jan 6, 2022
Everyone is like, “for a shoujo, what did you expect”? But why does a manga have to be wasted potential just because it's a shoujo?
World-building and mythology (6/10) Reminiscent of Avatar: the last Airbender, but half-assed. It makes readers like me really angry since I know those secrets will only be revealed in another 200 chapters. Cheap. Don't waste your time, at least till this manga ends. Plot (6/10) Similar to many Korean historical dramas. While the politics takes a front seat, the way the author executes it, especially chapter 180 and onwards (the castle arc) is quite nonsensical and controversial. More research was ... 
Jul 8, 2013
For people who like a good story with a strong female protagonist, who doesn't start crying every time something bad happens, is this a perfect manga. It's a historical and romantic manga with comedy, action and fantasy... the ideal story!
Yona is a cute, young princess, who wants to take revenge on her nephew for killing her father and taking the throne. So she runs away with her bodyguard to look for help, no need to look far for the romance ^_^ The manga is still on-going and the reason why I open my eyes each morning is to check if there is a ... 
Apr 11, 2015
This is my first review, and I gotta say first of all, this manga is absolutely OUTSTANDING. It's one of my all time favorites, and for good reasons. This review may contain some small spoilers.
Story 9/10: At first glance, this manga may seem like your typical shoujo manga, where the female heroine is just a spoiled princess who has all these hot guys protecting her. However, this is definitely not the case. This story is about Yona, a sheltered princess who had everything she wanted - a loving father, food, expensive jewelry - until she gets chased out of the castle with her bodyguard, Hak. She ...
Jan 4, 2025
This is my first time writing a review on MAL, I don't usually do this but something about this series really compelled me to do so.
I've read yona of the dawn in 2022 i remember having a good impression on it, good but not enough to make me really remember it much after 2 or actually 3 years now. i actually first watched this anime for hak, i found him literally the hottest guy in all of anime (even nowww) and then as i watched it i remember liking it a lot and then went straight to continuing the rest in manga. this time ... 
Nov 11, 2014
Teen heart-throb. Mediocre love triangle. Princess chased away. Childhood friend betrayal. Does it sound like typical yet? Because it can get like that. This manga is almost borderline shoujo and shonen. The most you'll see that would be shocking is a little bit of blood and killing, and some playful intimacy between the main characters. In addition, there's few shoujo moments you see. However, I personally really like Akatsuki no Yona, and here's why.
Story 8/10: So far there's really no surprise in the story line. It's all kind of expected, and when you read through it, your expression would be "I knew it!". -2 for ...
May 3, 2021
This is a review from a male reader point of view that enjoy drama and romance story.
and also this is the first time i write a long ass review, akatsuki no yona made me do this and really deserved this, to be appreciated and to be read by more people. Story: - The story center around a weak and spoiled princess that eventually become stronger as the story goes on. Every arc has a great pacing and cool minor details. The relationship of every character is very cute and wholesome. The romance at the start is kinda slow but as the story goes on the romance become ...
Apr 11, 2020
The story start is kind of fast, so it's easy to get hooked. From the beginning there are things happening. Story in general has lot of potential but in my opinion has a lot of flaws. One of them are politics. Author's handling of politics is mediocre at best. Lot of things about politics of whole manga doesn't make sense. This is hard to explain without spoilers so I can't dwell on it too much, but let's say that pretty much everything from succession, laws, government type, political structure, general audience (people, officials etc) reaction to political affairs etc are done fairly poor. I do
...
Oct 21, 2018
This manga was promising at the beginning, and actually has quite an interesting plot. But to someone like me who is a big fan of romance, it wasn't my type.
I needed more romance and cute moments so I kept persevering through the chapters but by around chapter 25-30 and onwards I ended up skimming through the pages so quickly, some points I didn't even read the chapter just scrolled all the way through it to the next chapter. The story is good. Nothing bad to say about it, although I did end up getting a little confused as to where it was going after they ... 
Dec 28, 2025
If I could only recommend one manga for the rest of my life, it would be this one.
The story of Akatsuki no Yona is one that touches the hearts of anyone who has read it, especially once you've read it to the end. At first glance it may seem like a cool historical romance, but it is so much more than that. It centers around our protagonist, her growth, and her and her companions' journey. It tackles issues such as class divide, poverty, drugs, slavery, human trafficking, and war. It has everything for all readers, be it adventure, action, strategy, romance, fantasy, drama, and friendship. It ... |