Genre: Slice-of-Life Horror Comedy
Year Release in English: 2019-2022
Source: BOOK☆WALKER
In yet another adorable manga series about a cat, Flora inherits a mansion from a distant relative, and it comes with a live-in critter, Creepy Cat. With full-color, adorable art, the hijinks this cryptid kitty gets himself into are a delight to behold
Continue readingGenre: Slice-of-life comedy josei
Year Release in English: 2021
Source: BOOK☆WALKER
Nekoyama decides to go to a massage parlor and discovers that it’s actually run by a cat. His magnificent toe beans leave quite the impression, and eventually the entire neighborhood finds out, including several local offices.
There’s not much to say about this one aside from the fact that it is absolutely adorable. There’s the cat massage manager whose toe beans can be touched on the embossed hard cover. He has three itty bitty kitty trainees who exude warmth and cuteness.
The full-color art is precious, the expressions priceless, and absolutely nothing bad happens to anyone involved. Well, except for when the meowsseur needs to take a vacation due to being overwhelmed by the popularity of in-office visits.
Genre: Dark Fantasy Shonen
Year Release in English: 2018-2021
Source: Viz Media Digital Subscription
Reminder: The star rating reflects overall opinion of the series.
In this historical dark fantasy, there are rumors of an island containing the elixir of life. Every scouting team sent, however, returns as floral corpses. The Shogunate dispatches a group of their own executioners coupled with a convict sentenced to death. The one who finds and returns the elixir will be given a pardon. Gabimaru the Hollow wants nothing more than to return to his wife. A bunch of monsters both literal and human will not be able to stop him.
A series with beautiful art, compelling characters, body horror galore, and impressive escalation that raises the stakes without introducing nonsense out of left field.
Continue readingGenre: Science fiction horror comedy shonen
Year Release in English: 2021
Source: BOOK☆WALKER
Reminder: The star rating reflects overall opinion of the series.
See my review of volumes 1 and 2 here. My lord, does this series continue to be grisly fun where not everyone can be trusted as far as you can throw them.
Continue readingGenre: Horror Shonen
Year Release in English: 2021
Source: BOOK☆WALKER
Content warnings: Self-harm, gore, murder
Now that Volume 1 introduced this strange world of curse killers and curse gods, Volume 2 focuses on a specific killer to stop, while introducing a network of antagonists: Cursed Blood.
I really liked the villain here, Yami Akeno. The journey we go on with her descent into villainy really worked for me. Her motives are quite clear, her execution (both metaphorical and literal) are quite chilling. But what really keeps me invested is how Curse Breaker Saeyama keeps both his colleagues and the villain on their toes, keeping his hand close. There’s not enough established yet to have the reader figure out what’s truly at play, but it’s a fun ride and I’ll definitely keep reading.
Genre: Slice-of-Life Horror
Year Release in English: 2021
Source: BOOK☆WALKER
Reminder: The star rating reflects overall opinion of the series.
For some reason, I never rated Volume 3. Anyway, this continues to be a consistent delight. The ghosts are just getting scarier, the plot is starting to take shape, and the greater world of spiritualists unfolds.
Continue readingGenre: Science Fiction Shounen-Ai
Year Release in English: 2020
Source: BOOK☆WALKER
Reminder: The star rating reflects overall opinion of the series.
In a future Neo-Tokyo, it takes a super-powered drug user to take down super-powered drug users. Hajime is partnered with Zeroichi, a Hanger looking to reduce his sentence by apprehending other criminals. What ensues is a twisty thriller dealing with identity and the moral quandaries of the means justifying the ends. Oh, and a slow burn romance.
Continue readingGenre: Horror Shonen
Year Release in English: 2015-2019
Source: Azuki Manga Cafe
Sometimes you start reading a series and next thing you know, you’re several chapters in and deeply invested in the plight of the characters. Volumes don’t matter. What is structure anyway? So this review of an entire manga will be slightly different in that I will be talking about the series overall rather reviewing each individual volume.
In short, this vampire horror filled with emotions and the centering of childhood upended by supernatural happenings reminiscent of Let the Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist.
Continue readingGenre: Fantasy Shonen
Year Release in English: 2019-2020
Source: BOOK☆WALKER
Reminder: The star rating reflects overall opinion of the series.
The letter from the author at the end of volume one says, “I wanted to read a boy’s love fantasy manga about a middle-aged guy and an inhuman creature, but that didn’t exist, so I made my own.” It is the most accurate description of Monster and the Beast. Cavo is a gentle-hearted big scary boi while Liam is a gentlemen who fucks and has a sordid past for unrelated reasons. Perfect for the monster fuckers.
Continue readingGenre: Fantasy Slice-of-Life Seinen
Year Release in English: 2016-2917
Source: BOOK☆WALKER
Reminder: The star rating reflects overall opinion of the series.
An absolutely adorable slice-of-life series about an office worker who drunkenly and unwittingly invites a dragon girl back to her house to work as her maid. I love the balance between a greater plot happening in the background with more everyday silliness as a dragon girl learns to be a human girl.
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Jo Writes Fantasy 