This Monster Wants to Eat Me

Hinako is a high school girl who has lost everything. After her family died in a tragic accident, she wanders through life with a single wish: to die. One day, she meets Shiori, a beautiful and unsettling mermaid who reveals herself as a supernatural predator that feeds on humans. Shiori offers Hinako a chilling deal: she will eat her, but only when Hinako reaches the happiest moment of her life. This twisted promise binds them together in an intimate, tense dynamic where Shiori begins inserting herself into Hinako's daily life, protecting her and guiding her toward joy, not out of kindness, but to make her meal as delicious as possible.

The series, written and illustrated by Sai Naekawa, debuted in ASCII Media Works' Dengeki Daioh magazine on February 27, 2021. Yen Press licensed the English edition, releasing the first volume on May 23, 2023. As of June 2026, ten tankōbon volumes have been published in Japan, with seven available in English. The manga has sold over 2.5 million copies worldwide, making it one of the top-selling yuri titles of the decade.

Critics have praised Naekawa's ability to blend psychological horror with tender character moments. Rebecca Silverman of Anime News Network gave the first volume a B+, noting that Naekawa's art captures the weight of Hinako's despair with haunting precision. The series won the Dengeki Comic Grand Prize for Best New Series in 2023 and received the Japan Media Arts Festival Excellence Award in 2025. It was also nominated for the Harvey Awards and the Eisner Awards. An anime adaptation by Studio Bind is scheduled for January 2027, with Yuki Kajiura composing the music.[edit]