Best of 2017: Favorite Manga Series

Top 10 of 2017 is "a fun-filled week where we look back at some of the best of all things books of 2017 and look ahead to what we can’t wait for in 2018." It's hosted by Rachel at Fiktshun, Jaime of Two Chicks on Books, Nancy and Christy of Tales of the Ravenous Reader, Bridget of Dark Faerie Tales, and new this year, Fallon of Seeing Double in Neverland and Take Me Away To A Great Read.

Today's topic is Best Covers and you can find some of ours in today's Instagram post. But here, we want to continue talking about our Favorite Books of the year with 

Rose Red's Top 10 Manga Series.

2017 is the year I really got back into reading manga and it has been glorious! Two-thirds of the books I've read this year has been manga which is a lot. Like 150 a lot. Let's just say that I've binged a lot of great series! It was hard to narrow things down, but here's my top ten manga series I've read this year.



My Hero Academia by Kouhei Hirokoshi
This is going to be the first of many series that the anime lead to me picking up the manga. My Hero Academia is my favorite anime and manga series of this year. It's the perfect blend of Western superheroes and Eastern culture. And the characters and villains are fantastic! I can't recommend this one enough!

Yona of the Dawn by Mizuho Kusanagi
I had never realized that reverse-harem was an actual genre until I watched Yona of the Dawn and I loved it! Yona is a princess on the run after her father is murdered. This series is all about her adventures in learning how to fight and gathering the descendants of the legendary Four Dragons to regain her throne. It's full of action, laughs, and a swoon-worthy slow burn romance! And the anime is freaking fantastic!

Horimiya by HERO and Daisuke Hagiwara
Horimiya is the contemporary manga love story that I never knew I needed! It's basically the whole "girl meets guy and falls in love with him but someone else is in love with her" trope which sounds over done but it's actually a quite delightful story! Also, the art in this manga is beautiful and practically flawless! I haven't watched the anime yet but I hear it's as delightful and the manga!

The Betrayal Knows My Name (UraBoku) by Hotaru Odagiri
UraBoku is actually a series I had started a few years ago but never had the time to continue. Plus, there was a four year delay between the newest volume and the last one. UraBoku is an interesting manga that has a starcrossed couple where the female love interest has been reincarnated as a man who has no recollection of his past lives. There's also an elite fighting force who has also been reincarnated and for the most part the characters are delightful. The manga is slow moving so some find it boring but I love it!

Akagami no Shirayuki-hime by Sorata Akizuki
This is another manga I picked up because I loved the anime, Snow White with the Red Hair. I binged all seventeen available volumes in less than week because I was so into it. Shirayuki is a young herbalist who gets into trouble when her rare red hair attracts the attention of the Prince of Tanbarun and she has to flee or become his concubine. In her flight, she meets Zen and his attendants, Kiki and Mitsuhide. Things happen and she finds out Zen is more than he appears to be. This manga has elements of the Snow White fairy tale in it without it being a verbatim retelling. I love it so much! I need one of the American manga publishers to buy the English license to this series.

The Ancient Magus' Bride by Kore Yamazaki
I'm not sure how to describe The Ancient Magus' Bride but it's whimsical and delightfully magical journey as we watch Chise find her place in the world as a mage in training! There's dragons and fairies and even a King of Cats. And the art is freaking amazing! It was finally adapted to an anime that aired this last fall and I can't recommend it enough!

The Case Study of Vanitas by Jun Mochizuki
This series was one of those serendipitous times where I picked up the first volume based on the cover and the story ended up being just as delightful! There's vampires in a steampunk Paris setting with absolutely gorgeous art! What more do you need? Well, besides an anime adaptation...

Welcome to the Ballroom by Tomo Takeuchi
Welcome to the Ballroom is the sports manga I never knew I needed! I used to dance competitively and ballroom was one of my best events. I loved it! So I was absolutely delighted to find a manga where you watch the main character get thrust into the world of competitive ballroom dancing and it's been amazing! I'm completely caught up yet but I will be by the end of the year. I'm also hoping to watch the anime adaptation of it that was made of it soon.

I Hear the Sunspot by Yuki Fumino
This story is so beautifully drawn and it instantly grabbed my attention and heart. It's a story about relationships and the perspective given on living with disabilities is beyond from what I've seen from any manga. It was kind of a very emotional read. The manga never failed to give sweet moments amidst the angst though! I wholeheartedly recommend this story to everyone.

Bungo Stray Dogs by Kafka Asagiri
Bungo Stray Dogs is kind of the supernatural manga version of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen where the league is a detective agency combating the mafia and it's amazing! The characters are quirky and delightful and I love the art style used! There's only four volumes out in English and I just need the rest of it to be released ASAP! The anime is pretty great too!

What's your favorite manga series you read in 2017?

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Favorite Movies
Favorite TV and Streaming Shows
Favorite Non-Book Things
Favorite YA Books

Did you see our Super Giveaway? Check out Wednesday's post.