Arisa #8

Volume 8 of Natsumi Ando's Arisa brings the series' signature tension right to the surface, with a confident blonde girl in red dominating the foreground — her violet eyes sharp and calculating, one hand raised thoughtfully to her lips — while a smaller dark-haired girl in a floral top lingers uneasily in the background. The contrast between the two figures says everything about the layered rivalries and secrets at the heart of this shojo thriller. Fans of Ando's work on Kitchen Princess will find her expressive character designs in fine form here, published by Kodansha USA in 2012.