Manga Review – Black Butler Vol 18 by Yana Toboso (4/5 stars)

Reading Level: Older Teen
Genre: Manga/Paranormal
Length: 176 pages
Publisher: Yen Press
Release Date: October 28, 2014
ISBN-13: 978-0316336222
Stand Alone or Series: 18th volume in the Black Butler series
Source: Bought
Rating: 4/5 stars

“Their elaborate schoolroom deception at an end, Earl Ciel Phantomhive and his peerless manservant, Sebastian, finally hit upon the truth behind the incident of the vanished students at Weston College. Just what tragic steps did the elites of the school, spurred on by their overwhelming sense of justice, take to stamp out the bullying with which the halls of their institution had run rife?! What began as a seemingly simple case of missing persons goes round and round, spinning out of control into a great menace, one capable of perplexing even a devil of a butler…”

I wasn’t a huge fan of the boarding school storyline that’s been taking place the last few books and this volume finally finishes that storyline up, which was awesome. It starts up a much more interesting storyline involving some haunted woods and a seemingly deadly plague. I am enjoying this new storyline a lot more and curious to see where it goes.

The illustration remains top notch and in this volume we get to go back to the Phantomhive Manor and see the wonderful staff. Between the two storylines there is a funny bit where the whole crew goes shopping which was very humorous.

Overall a great addition to the Black Butler series. I am still really enjoying this series a lot. I would recommend to those who enjoy historical paranormal manga. I look forward to seeing where this new storyline goes.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– Graphic Novel Reading Challenge
– You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge
– Flights of Fantasy Reading Challenge