Review by Ian Keogh

A blood sacrifice transformed Mamoru Yamaemori into a half-human, half-tengu hybrid considered an abomination by both sides of the equation, yet giving him the abilities to be effective killer of the flesh-eating monsters known as tengu. Should he ever be seen to fail his duty as a Shrine Guardian, his brothers will have to assume the family trade.

Until relatively recently, or Volume 2 if you’re already onboard, Mamoru believed he was unique, yet not only are there others like him among different communities, some are women. It’s been a steep learning curve for Mamoru, and that continues to be the case here as Shinta Harekawa seems to have little sympathy for his main character.

This time he’s confronted with two other Shrine Guardians. One is known to be a traitor, but which of them is unknown, so will he be betrayed?

Harekawa makes no concessions for anyone who’s not read the previous volumes, or hasn’t remembered every detail, and combined with sometimes confusing art, it means Three Exorcism Siblings isn’t the easiest series to follow. The characters look similar, only differentiated by their hair style or colour, and the focus of the art during combat scenes is on the most eye-catching image rather than clearly showing what’s happening.

The series would survive the shortcomings if there was some originality about it, but there’s not. After three volumes, it’s a competent version of the man versus monster form of manga, but nothing more. Few questions raised are answered here, and there’s a cliffhanger ending leading into Volume 4, so all in all, not as satisfactory as one might want.