Bamboo Blade #13

Volume 13 of *Bamboo Blade* arrives in a notably graceful register, its cover featuring a long-haired young woman dressed in a flowing kimono and holding a kendo men (helmet), her elegant silhouette offset by a warm golden outline of a second figure below. The soft palette and traditional attire give this 2011 Ki-oon French edition a quietly poetic feel, a nice contrast to the competitive kendo world at the heart of Totsuka Masahiro and Igarashi Aguri's series. A lovely volume to have on the shelf for fans following the story.