As someone who've read the first 2 physical volumes published by Seven Seas, I have to say that Ripples in The River is a very cozy and overall such a feel-good read. Unlike most romance/BL stories, we follow two guys who's already confessed to each other, dating for quite a while and the manga both covers their current life, and the days how they met, started to feel feelings together. Unlike the first volume, where the focus is mostly on their lovey-dovey sometimes heated love, the second volume feels much more as a complete story with more than 75% following their getting-to-know stage. What Iwill say is that it might feel weird that it's very episodic, the closest manga I can think to compare it with is When Will Ayumu Make His Move? where there were gag-chapters in between the story-centric ones. The manga overall feels like a mixed bag, sometimes following a core-story, running the reader through how they met, when they started to catch the feels, etc. and sometimes it completely avoids this and goes completely episodic, which is mostly the present timeline. If I'm being honest, the present timeline doesn't really speaks to me, as much as the mangaka tries to make it work, mostly cause with two volumes in we both figuring out both Tamba's and Utagawa's personality.

As a last note I would have to warn you that there's seem to be a rival gay "bro-complex" type of subplot, which I didn't like in the slightest, not because I feel weirded out, but because this type of story didn't need it, if anything a rival student who is female would've been better to make Utagawa question how he identifies in the grand scheme of things, so by making Utagawa's brother having a secret fetish that he WANTS his big brother with capital W is not W for Win but W for Weird and offputting.

This series is concluded with 6 volumes, and I can't wait to see how it goes, since it's overall a very good feel-good read, and both past and present timelines will make you smile and feel happy.

P.S: This isn't smut, but kind of in-between a cozy-romance and spice, so there's often off-screen sex, constant kissing (with tongue), and bunch of abs, so if you want something heated but not 18+ territory, then this BL will likely hit home to you.