The story of a prince cursed with turning into a demon at night or when angry, seeking out the help of a sorcerer to lift the curse (who unbeknownst to the main character has sex with his demon form every night in order to calm him. and for fun, of course). This one seems to have a lot of praise. While this is far from a favorite for me, I can at least see why. While I didn't find the art particularly original or striking in a stylistic way, it is quite pretty and detailed. The story is sword and sorcery fantasy all the way, with curses, ancient temples, baddies waiting around the corner to attack, strange cuddly familiars, wizards, mystic villages and all the rest. If this were a novel, I'd roll my eyes and say, "So what?" But settings like this aren't as dime a dozen in manga as they are in novels, much less BL, so any fan of this genre or anyone hoping for a change up from the usual school/work place setting of a lot of yaoi can't help but be pleased. Top it off with a little humor and some explicit sex, and I've guess you've got yourself set up for a ride most fans will simply adore.

Unfortunately, while refreshing to see in manga, this kind of setting and plot is still damn cliche unless you've got other aspects in your story to make it come alive and into its own. Also, I don't give a crap about sex unless I give a crap about characters, and the ones in this series are pretty much as ho-hum as you can get. Likable, I suppose, but with pretty shallow representations. The cocerer is a little standoffish but still pretty nice, the prince is friendly, and the two get along well from the start save a little tension now and then when one or the other feels a little exasperated. Their interactions are, in short, somewhat bland. The author doesn't even bother to explore how exactly a guy might treat or think differently of someone who he's been secretly fucking every night. Heck, the author could have even made up some reason to say the wizard character couldn't remember the night's events any better than the prince. At least that way his completely unaffected attitude would have made SENSE. There isn't really much in the way of romantic or intimate moments besides the sex, either. Though actually, while this first disappointed me, I reminded myself this was more a fantasy story than a romance (with gratuitous sex, of course), so I shouldn't condemn that aspect of it too much.

In the end, I think the fantasy setting is the most stand-out aspect of this title. Still, it's also pretty unashamedly a CLICHE fantasy setting (and plot), and while those can still be enjoyable, they need another aspect to make it stand out. But the romance/relationship aspect is too sparse, along with the humor aspect, and the characters too under explored for any of those to hold the title up on its own.

...Of course we all know the real answer. This isn't romantic fantasy, this isn't humorous fantasy, and it isn't character driven fantasy. It's pr0n fantasy. And I guess when you look at it that way, maybe it does succeed. Still, does cliche pr0n fantasy deserve full stars? Methinks not. Nor does this being perhaps good pr0n fantasy warrant the way other reviewers seem to enjoy praising the characterization and writing when those are simply NOT the strengths of this title. ( )

This is my second yaoi graphic novel and if continue like this I will spend a lot of money to buy other.

I have read only the first on the Finder series, so I don't know how it will continue, but I have the feeling that The Crimson Spell has a more complex plot.

Bald is a cursed prince and searches the help of Havi, a magician. During the night Bald turns in a beast and Havi placates him using sex, but the morning after Bald doesn't remember nothing. They travel together first to a shrine and then to a city of magicians to find a way to break the spell.

Bald, in human form, has no idea he could love a man, but he begins to feel something for the handsome magician. Both are very young and very beautiful.

Sex is explicit and violent (means that Bald has very sting nails and is a fiery beast...) but graphically speaking I have found more explicit the FInder series. Is not a complaint, mind you... the scenes are still gorgeous and the stripes of Bald (like a tiger or tattoo tribal) are very sexy...

There is a funny element in the form of a magical rabbit who happens to be able to turn in another handsome man.

Another positive point is that all the manga is about the main story and in the end, even if is foretold a sequel, the story is complete and satisfying.

I was already a huge fan of Ayano Yamane's Finder series when I heard that this was getting an English release. I was a little skeptical that it wouldn't hold up to the quality of Finder. Thankfully, it was as good if not better! Yamane's art is exquisite, as always, but the storyline is even more developed than the first volume of Finder. Prince Bald has been cursed by his crimson sword to turn into a beast at night. He journey's to the magician Havi, renowned for breaking curses. Havi demands Bald accompany him on a journey to locate magical artifacts as payment for breaking the curse. But, Havi never counted on Bald's "beast" being so sexy and lusty! There is a lot of hot, explicit sex and the plot has a lot of action also. The rabbit "familiar" is a nice touch, and has the potential to add more humor in subsequent volumes.

I'm fortunate enough to have both volumes in Japanese (though I have to rely on scanlation), and still I can hardly wait for the next volume in English. A wonderful hard yaoi title; highy recommended! ( )