Phantom Thief Jeanne Volume 1 cover image is courtesy of barnesandnoble.com.

Rated “T” for “Teen”

High school student, 16-year-old Maron Kusakabe, is also Phantom Thief Jeanne.  She sneaks into private art collections, looking to steal paintings in which demons reside.  She seals the demons before they can devour human hearts.

Phantom Thief Jeanne, Vol. 1 (Chapters 1 to 6) introduces Phantom Thief Jeanne on her latest mission to steal demon-infused paintings.  Now, she has a rival, the mysterious Phantom Thief Sinbad, and he promises to steal the paintings before she does.  At the same time, there is a new student at Maron’s school, Momokuri Academy.  He is Chiaki Nagoya, and Maron wonders if he is also Sinbad.

THE LOWDOWN:  Apparently, Phantom Thief Jeanne (originally titled Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne) was manga creator Arina Tanemura’s second manga series.  After reading the first two chapters, I found Phantom Thief Jeanne to be somewhat juvenile, which surprised me.  I have read a lot of Tanemura’s manga the last several years, and I learned that despite the pretty art, her manga can be quite dark and even edgy.

Phantom Thief Jeanne Volume 1 is neither dark nor edgy, but this is early Tanemura.  However, this series is cute, although there are a few moments with a bit of tartness.  I am somewhat interested in reading one more volumes, but I cannot say that I’ll be eagerly awaiting the next volume.

POSSIBLE AUDIENCE:  Fans of Arina Tanemura’s manga will want to try Phantom Thief Jeanne.