Manga recommendations on Fantasy Book Review

Manga are Japanese comics conforming to a style developed in the late 19th century. In Japan, people of all ages read manga. The medium includes works in a broad range of genres: action-adventure, romance, sports and games, historical drama, comedy, science fiction and fantasy, mystery, suspense, detective, horror, sexuality, and business/commerce, among others. The term manga is a Japanese word referring both to comics and cartooning.

1. Wandering Son: Volume 1 by Shimura Takako
Score: 95
Our rating: 9.5 | 0 positive reader reviews
The fifth grade: the threshold to puberty and the beginning of the end of childhood innocence. Shuichi Nitori and his new friend Yoshino Takatsuki have happy homes, loving families and are well-liked by their classmates. But they share a secret that further complicates a time of life that is awkw [...]

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2. Aria Volume 1 by Kozue Amano
Score: 95
Our rating: 9.5 | 0 positive reader reviews
On the planet Aqua, a world once known as Mars, Akari Mizunashi has just made her home in the town of Neo-VENEZIA, a futuristic imitation of the ancient city of Venice. The technology of "Man Home" (formerly Earth) has not entirely reached this planet, and Akari is alone, having no cont [...]

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3. The Embalmer: Volume 1 by Mitsukazu Mihara
Score: 91
Our rating: 9.1 | 0 positive reader reviews
Shinjyurou Mamiya, an embalmer in a nation where men of his profession are viewed as outcasts engaging in an unaccepted and unclean practice. For Shinjyurou, it's just a job. But in doing it, he's gained an understanding of death, and more important, what it truly means to live...  [...]

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4. The Star of Sorrow by Sunao Yoshida
Trinity Blood: Reborn on the Mars #1
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
A mysterious terrorist organization is hell-bent on orchestrating a war between the New Human Empire and the Vatican. Special Ops AX Agent Abel Nightroad teams up with a spunky young novice named Esther to try and stop Gyula, the bloodthirsty Marquis of Hungary, from unleashing the legendary Star [...]

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5. Shojo Fashion Manga Art School by Irene Flores
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
From 'dos to shoes, how you dress and style your characters says a lot about who they are, before they even utter a word. Whether your story calls for a flashy drama queen or a mousy bookworm, this guide contains everything you need to know to create fabulous shojo manga characters with perso [...]

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6. Shojo Fashion Manga Art School, Year 2: Draw Modern Looks by Irene Flores and Krisanne McSpadden
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
Shojo Fashion Manga Art School Year 2 is a great accompaniment to the first book, and one of the nice touches to it is its age progression of characters from children to puberty, teens, young adults and older age characters. Irene and Krisanne give readers the know how to be able to draw all thes [...]

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7. Mastering Manga with Mark Crilley by Mark Crilley
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
There's more to manga than big, shiny eyes and funky hair. In these action-packed pages, graphic novelist Mark Crilley shows you step-by-step how to achieve an authentic manga style—from drawing faces and figures to laying out awesome, high-drama spreads. You'll learn how a few basi [...]

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8. Wandering Son: Volume 2 by Shimura Takako
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
Taking the story further from the first novel in this series, Shuichi and Yoshino embark on a school trip that sees Shuichi being bullied while he has to try and come to terms with being an inner transgendered person. He isn't on his own in this feeling though as he has Yoshino to comfort him [...]

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9. How to Create Anthropomorphic Fantasy Creatures by Jared Hodges and Lindsay Cibos
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
In anime and manga there are many kinds of men and women drawn as half animal characters called furries. These are fun to create and draw, and people have been drawing them since the Egyptians and each character has its own separate personality to go with it. With the help of this book, readers w [...]

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10. Vassalord: Volume 1 by Nanae Chrono
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
Charley is a vampire hunter with a difference; he is one himself and struggles constantly with what he is, his usefulness to the Vatican and his wondering how God views his deeds. He works with rangy and rugged vampire Johnny Rayflow who does not understand his need for amassing crosses and being [...]

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11. Pixie: Volume 1 by Mariolle and Aurore
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
Confined within his palace, prince Ael has a secret longing to go outside the stifling walls of his home to see what it's like in the real world out there, but as one who would be ruler of the land someday he believes he might not be allowed to walk away so easily as even being a ruler has li [...]

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12. Peacemaker Kurogane: Volume 1 by Nanae Chrono
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
The Shinsengumi compound see their new page boy in the flesh for the first time and once introduced to young Ichimura Tetsunosuke, some think he is just a kid from off the streets put into a decent man's clothing. Ichimura has a hard time getting used to the place as others view him as just a [...]

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13. Death Note: Kindred Spirit by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata
Death Note #11
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
Light Yagami has taken the role of the second L after four years and continues his work as Kira in order to make the world his own, but in all this L's two protégés, Near and Mello after discovering the Death Note's existence, decide to set their sights on it and end Kira [...]

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14. EXOTIQUE 4 by Computer Graphics Society
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
In its fourth edition, EXOTIQUE 4 firmly establishes itself as the benchmark for CG character art featuring the work of artists from 45 countries (a record for the EXOTIQUE series). EXOTIQUE 4 includes more art from China, Korea, Indonesia, and Singapore showcasing a broader range of styles and c [...]

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15. EXOTIQUE 5 by Computer Graphics Society
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
Ballistic Publishing’s previous art book Exotique 4 had a nice mix of fantasy art, sci-fi and concept art thrown in, Exotique 5 however has all that and more as in this edition this character art book features art from the most awe-inspiring fantasy and RPG game art around in a more updated [...]

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16. The Amalfie Bride by Ann Major and Marito Ai
Score: 90
Our rating: 9.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
After working in a cute little shop, Regina finds the kindness of others sets her off on the right path toward the man of her dreams - or does it? She meets Nico Romano, a rich heir to an absolute fortune, and, she understands he's a gigolo with every woman he has met before. She thinks he ju [...]

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17. The Twelve Kingdoms Volume 1: Sea of Shadow by Fuyumi Ono
Score: 89
Our rating: 8.9 | 0 positive reader reviews
Yoko Nakajima wakes from a terrifying dream where she is surrounded by many ravenous beasts. She is amazed that what she experienced was not real and wonders about its meaning for a while. She is just an ordinary child in every way. She attends an all-girl school, getting average grades, but her [...]

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18. Case Closed: Volume 9 by Gosho Aoyama
Score: 88
Our rating: 8.8 | 0 positive reader reviews
Case Closed is more of an older teen’s manga where high school kid Jimmy Kudo doesn’t have an ordinary spare time activity like the other kids at his school, no, he’s a detective, and in each case he is involved with, he has to be careful who he messes with. [...]

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19. Death Note: Finis by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata
Death Note #12
Score: 88
Our rating: 8.8 | 0 positive reader reviews
Managing to deceive their bodyguards, Mello captures Kiyomi Takada, ordering her to strip naked as a tracer could be anywhere on her body and he wants no one to be alerted to where she is. Light is furious at her not answering her phone, but thinks it has been turned off, or someone has got to he [...]

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20. Luuna: Volume 1 by Didier Crisse and Nicolas Keramidas
Luuna #1
Score: 87
Our rating: 8.7 | 0 positive reader reviews
Her tribe want great things from Luuna, and if she can prove to them she is adult enough to be a true part of their tribe then she must enter into her coming of age ritual and as she has succeeded in all the previous trials she is sure to bring honour to their tribe. [...]

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21. Gakuen Alice: Volume 1 by Tachibana Higuchi
Score: 87
Our rating: 8.7 | 0 positive reader reviews
Young Mikun Sakura is amazed about her best friend Hotaru being enrolled at a Geniuses only school as all around the area where she lives people are going crazy about the news. Although she is not any form of genius, she is an "Alice," or special kind of person, but when Hotaru leaves f [...]

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22. Speed Grapher Vol: 1 by Tomozo and Yusuke Kozaki
Score: 86
Our rating: 8.6 | 0 positive reader reviews
Tatsumi Saiga is a former war photographer who carved a niche for himself while in the Middle-East watching the endless conflict. After an injury left him incapable of photographing properly, he was sent back home to Japan and never regained his former notoriety; instead he tries to make money se [...]

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23. The Heart of Thomas by Moto Hagio
Score: 85
Our rating: 8.5 | 0 positive reader reviews
The setting: a boys boarding school in Germany, sometime in the latter 20th Century. Fourteen year-old Thomas Werner falls from a lonely pedestrian overpass to his death immediately after sending a single, brief letter to a schoolmate: To Juli, one last time This is my love This is the sound of m [...]

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24. Fun to Draw Mini Mangas by T Beaudenon
Score: 85
Our rating: 8.5 | 0 positive reader reviews
T. Beaudenon takes readers through a selection of characters readers might want to have a go at drawing. The chibi character is always at the heart of humorous moments in comic manga. A character might have been told off, or made to look foolish in front of their classmates at school. This versio [...]

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25. A Drunken Dream and Other Stories by Moto Haigo
Score: 85
Our rating: 8.5 | 0 positive reader reviews
Forty years ago, the legendary manga artist Moto Hagio reinvented the shōjo (girl's comics) genre with an ongoing series of whip-smart, psychologically complex, and tenderly poetic stories. Here now, in English for the very first time, as the debut release in Fantagraphics Books' ambitio [...]

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26. Manga Martial Arts by David Okum
Score: 85
Our rating: 8.5 | 0 positive reader reviews
If you have ever watched Bruce Lee or Jackie Chan kicking their way out of tricky situations, you might have wondered how they managed to do it. Similarly, those who like manga art and getting to grips with its finer points won't be expecting this book. Manga Martial Arts explores the differe [...]

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27. Lord Calthorpe's Promise Volume 1 by Sylvia Andrew and Rin Ogata
Score: 85
Our rating: 8.5 | 0 positive reader reviews
There is devastation in the family when Katherine learns of the news of her brother's death after a stint at the Battle of Waterloo. Unfortunately, her uncle's family have inherited the estate she would have had giving her nothing at all, no money, no nothing - she can only turn to Lord C [...]

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28. The Sheik's Reluctant Bride by Teresa Southwick and Ayumu Asou
Score: 85
Our rating: 8.5 | 0 positive reader reviews
Jessica goes through life believing she has no parents to speak of, and having been an orphan from birth she feels so different from others who have the comfort and security of a good home and family, but she has a surprise in store for her - she has a mother after all. [...]

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29. Maximum Ride Volume 7 by James Patterson
Score: 85
Our rating: 8.5 | 0 positive reader reviews
Fang's blog has brought ITEX and their cruel research to the world's attention, and his readers take a stand at the facility where Max and the girls are being held, shutting the organisation down. But Max isn't through saving the world yet! When the Flock is asked to aid a group of en [...]

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30. Yu-Gi-Oh! R Volume: 1 by Kazuki Takahashi and Akira Ito
Score: 85
Our rating: 8.5 | 0 positive reader reviews
Yugi's back for another duel, but this time, it's personal A Wicked Shadow! In order to draw Yugi out, Yakou kidnaps Tea Gardner. To rescue her, Yugi and his friends will have to battle their way to the top of the Kaiba Corp. building. Will Yugi have enough strength left to defeat Yakou? [...]

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31. Fushigi Yugi: The Mysterious Play: Vol: 7 Castaway by Yuu Watase
Score: 80
Our rating: 8.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
Written way back in 1992, much of Yuu Watase's art closely resembles that of the characters from Dragonball Z, though it is this style that shaped Western interest in all things manga and anime. Here Miaka is still on her quest to win her friend Yui back and she can only do this if she perfor [...]

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32. Rebirth: Volume: 3 by Woo
Score: 80
Our rating: 8.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
Deshwitat, the vampire has lain dormant for three hundred years, is at the mercy of Kalutika who cast him away, and murdered his lover, Lilith. There's no chance of keeping a good vampire down, though so when Deshwitat is brought back by a bunch of paranormal investigators, he is fuelled by b [...]

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33. Castlevania: Curse of Darkness Volume 1 by Kou Sasakura
Score: 80
Our rating: 8.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
Many years ago, students of alchemy had experimented to turn metal into gold, but it was not long before they also dabbled in the demonic arts, creating two humanoid males in Satan's own image. The result was the red haired Isaac, and the white haired Hector. The place where the experiments t [...]

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34. Shojo Manga Colouring by Supittha Annie Bunyapen
Score: 80
Our rating: 8.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
Supittha really knows her subject matter, makes the girls cute and the guys even cuter. This is perfect for any age, from young teens as it is different from the standard colouring in books available. There are 45 different characters that are just dying to be coloured in by bright young things, [...]

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35. Crown: Volume 1 by Shinji Wada and You Higuri
Score: 80
Our rating: 8.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
Jake and Ren decide to go on their own as mercenaries, declining to renew their contract, while Jake is still in Ren's debt after a fixed poker game he will have to work doubly hard to get the cash back. Ren Rescues Mahiro from the clutches of an evil gang hell-bent on killing her, and even t [...]

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36. Nana: Volume 19 by Ai Yazawa
Score: 80
Our rating: 8.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
The tabloid feeding frenzy has finally brought Blast down, but Nana is determined to keep hope alive. She's going to take a gig as a solo artist, and even accept acting jobs she has no interest in. As long as she keeps herself in the spotlight, she knows there's a chance Blast can make a [...]

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37. StarCraft: Ghost Academy by Keith RA Decandido Fernando Heinz Furukawa
Score: 80
Our rating: 8.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
"Ghost Academy" chronicles the early years of six StarCraft characters all destined for greatness - and tragedy. Five teenaged fourth-class Terrans (Nova, Tosh, Aal, Kath, and Lio) are rough-around-the-edges Ghost cadets in training. [...]

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38. Vermonia 4: The Rukan Prophecy by YOYO
Vermonia: Book 4
Score: 76
Our rating: 7.6 | 0 positive reader reviews
The quest to save Vermonia continues! Fabulous manga artwork highlights this tale of four friends who hold the fate of three worlds in their hands. The Four pillars supporting life in the Turtle Realm fire, wind, water, and thunder are under threat from General Uro's army. Mel and her gu [...]

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39. One Missed Call 1 & 2 by Yasushi Akimoto and Mayumi Shihou
Score: 70
Our rating: 7.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
It's an epidemic of accidental death! Multiple college students receive odd voice-mails from themselves, messages from the future, and all they contain are the screams of their own deaths. A few days later, at the date and time of the message's posting, they die in mysterious accidents, a [...]

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40. Ex Machina Volume 5: Smoke, Smoke by Brian K Vaughan
Score: 50
Our rating: 5.0 | 0 positive reader reviews
Set in our modern-day real world, Ex Machina tells the story of civil engineer Mitchell Hundred, who becomes America's first living, breathing superhero after a strange accident gives him amazing powers. Eventually tiring of risking his life merely to help maintain the status quo, Mitchell re [...]

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