For the first time, college freshman and bookworm Kaneki Ken was in love. The girl he set his sights on was absolutely lovely: her name was Rize Kamishiro. She was a bookworm as well, and they just so happened to appreciate the same author. Nerves overtook him at the thought of asking her on a date, but her agreement allowed him to relax. Little did he know that the outing would be his undoing…

Rize was secretly a ghoul and poor Ken was her next victim. She made several deadly gashes into his body with blades made of crystalized blood that protruded from her back, intent on murdering her next meal before devouring him. However, several beams from a nearby building under construction crushed Rize as soon as she was ready to feed. Unfortunately, Ken did not get away easily…Rize became Ken's organ donor as he was being treated in a hospital. Consequently, he became a human-ghoul hybrid and developed a rapidly growing hunger for flesh. Romance was the last thing on the half-ghoul's mind as he struggled to remain human in the public eye. Yet, deep down, he doubted the possibility of ever finding love again.

Would he be able to love at all?

About two weeks after his transformation, he was taken under the wing of an elderly and friendly male ghoul named Yoshimura, owner of Anteiku Coffee Shop in the 20th Ward. Touka, his new friend who was also a ghoul, played a part in helping Ken adjust as well…albeit a forceful one. During this time, the answer to Ken's question of finding love arrived in the form of another attractive female: Samantha Jess Stewart.

Samantha was a transfer student from America who enrolled in Kami University a few months after Ken started college. With flawless ivy skin, she had the body of a model: double-C bust, graceful curves and a delicate thigh gap. Her chocolate-brown hair was shoulder-length and mildly curly with eyes glittering a bright envy-green. Samantha's gentle smile shined a glossy pale pink.