A shortish, stunningly illustrated, full-colour hentai manga that easily transcends the hentai genre. Rather than use any of it's pornographic imagery for titillation, Hanafuda uses it to tell its tragic story with no holds barred. the plot feels kind of Shakespearian (if Shakespeare had been a pervert), it's complex, fast-paced and dramatic. There's identity theft, murder, kidnapping, forced prostitution, beastiality, rape, even pedophelia (presented without holding back visually, so don't even think about reading this if those things offend you). All of it takes place in a fantasy/folklore, Edo period-esque setting with absolutely incredible art (probably the best I've ever seen in manga). Morespecifically, its use of colour and pre-drawn patterns makes for some beautiful costumes and deeply immersive backgrounds that evoke both the Edo period and the well-known card game this manga is named after.

This is the only work of fiction without music that ever managed to get a tear out of me, and I highly recommend it to fellow lovers of aesthetic storytelling.

There is a digital licensed version available in English from FAKKU books, and that's the way I recommend you read it.