Manga-ka: CLAMP
Publisher: DelRey
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: August 2010

Synopsis: “The restart of time! Cut off by time, the travelers have arrived in Fei-Wang Reed’s dimension to get Sakura back. But Fei-Wang has been waiting for them, and they’re in for the ultimate fight. The witch Yûko finally brings into play that odd cylinder she’s had in her keeping, and what’s inside gives Syaoran the shock of his life!”

It’s time for another new volume of Tsubasa, and the penultimate chapter at that. It’s exciting, it’s dramatic, it’s mostly one giant magical showdown and… it’s downright confusing. It’s tough having a story so artistically engaging and brimming with emotion when it’s also one hampered irrefutably by a story that just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense at times.

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Manga-ka: CLAMP
Publisher: Del Rey
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: April 2010

Synopsis: “Kimihiro is having some wish-granting success with his very first customer, but his first efforts are interrupted by a disturbing dream of witch Yuko vanishing forever. Even people Yuko has helped are saying they’ve never heard of her. Too bad there is no such thing as “just a dream” in Kimihiro’s universe…”

Easily being what could become one of the most memorable volumes of the series to date, the fifteenth volume of XXXHolic may not always be entirely coherent with its continued crossover calamities and abstract concepts, but like any volume of this generally artistic gem, once the ball gets rolling, prepared to be bowled over by it.

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Author: George Iida
Manga-ka: You Higuri
Publisher: Del Rey
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: November 2009

Synopsis: “The world is a lonely place for Naoto and Naoya, brothers with amazing psychic powers that set them apart from humanity. Their parents cast them out–and had them imprisoned in an exploitative research center. But after they make a daring escape from the institution, Naoya has a psychic vision of an even greater threat: a deadly plague that threatens the entire world!”

Reading like that paranormal save-the-world movie you’ve probably seen done a dozen times on VHS, Night Head Genesis is a one-dimensional race against time that pits psychics against scientists and two brothers against the world they’re trying to save. Del Rey and You Higuri ensure the visual packaging makes this book a no-brainer on the pick-up-and-flip-through scale but read at all deeper and you’ll find this modern day mystery is as transparent as the cover’s fan service.

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Manga-ka: CLAMP
Publisher: Del Rey
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: Novmeber 2009

Synopsis: “Syaoran, Fai, Kurogane and Mokona are returning to the Kingdom of Clow – and toward an ultimate showdown with the ruthless Fei-Wang Reed. But entering a world the is cut off from time endangers ther very existence of the once happy villagers, as the final story arc of the Tsubasa epic beings!”

There’s plenty to get excited about in this volume, though perhaps a little more so if it was a little more coherent. It’s not that the events are difficult to follow individually but try to mentally fit them into the woven web of CLAMP’s Tsubasa and you may find some of your enthusiasm dampened. Still, with plenty of gorgeous artwork and moments that strike déjà vu in all the right ways, there’s a still lot of good to be said for Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles as it climbs towards the finale.

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Manga-ka: Minoru Toyoda
Publisher: Del Rey
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: October 2006

Synopsis: “Hoshino’s never been afraid to tell Negishi just how he feels about her. Hoshino loves Negishi heart and soul–after all, she’s his very first love. But suddenly it’s gotten harder to share his feelings, because now he’s feeling something he’s never felt before: jealousy! The new boy at school, Wakaba, has a major crush on Negishi. And when Wakaba and Negishi become friends, Hoshino gets worried. Is Negishi pulling away from him? And will Hoshino’s silence only make things worse?”

Love Roma is basically a one-trick pony, but if you like the trick then it’s still pretty entertaining. Much of the humour in the series comes from the characters being painfully straightforward, especially the male lead Hoshino. Hoshino isn’t mean-spirited in his bluntness, in fact he’s usually just trying to tell his girlfriend Negishi how much he loves her. Sometimes she gets the message, other times she whacks him over the head for being an idiot. Rinse, wash and repeat and you have Love Roma.

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Author: Fuyumi Ono
Manga-ka: Shiho Inada
Publisher: Del Rey
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: August 2009

Synopsis: “Naru is the brilliant, eccentric and deeply mysterious leader of Shibuya Psychic Researchers – a band of intrepid Ghost Hunters. But none of his colleagues know anything about his past. Now the brave paranormal investigators venture to a haunted school – and deep into their leader’s secret history!”

While I’ve always liked the balance between supernatural education, character exploration and dangerous ghoulish encounters, here I found myself impatient to get past the slow parts and into the literal nitty-gritty of the book’s events. Thankfully readers and I are well rewarded with a dark twist that could, despite what’s happened before, be the most dangerous case the group finds themselves literally trapped within.

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