Vampires are one of my favorite subjects to read about. From short stories to novels to comics, I’ll read anything that involves vampires (though oddly enough, I haven’t read the Twilight series yet). So I would like to give you my top 3 vampire mangas that made an impression on me for the genres they represent.

Model by Lee So-Young
Genre: Drama
Model starts off with Jae being stuck with a knocked out man (had one too many drinks), whom her friend dropped off at her apartment. Later that night, Jae encounters the man in her bedroom and he suddenly starts drinking her blood. The next day while the man - er, vampire was sleeping, Jae uses the beautiful creature as her model for her sketches in exchange for the blood he took the night before. When he finds out about this little deed, he offers her a very tempting deal [that doesn't involve turning her into a vampire]. Model is actually a manhwa (Korean comic) but I think it deserves a mention. I was surprised at how good Model turned out. The story is full of drama, suspense, romance and of course, blood sucking. This manhwa revolves around character development so if you’re looking for action, you should try another vampire manga. The artwork is very beautiful and detailed. You can tell the author spent a good amount of time to this work.

Hellsing by Kouta Hirano
Genre: Action
Of course Hellsing has to be on my list. It’s an action packed manga full of horror and kickass characters with a side dish of gore and body parts. The series mostly revolves around Hellsing, a secret organization dedicated to protecting people from supernatural forces. The Hellsing organization contains many diverse characters; From the ancient vampire Alucard to the deadly butler Walter and to the mysteriously sexy director Integra, the characters is what makes the series so wonderful. The art stlye is also different from what I’m used to and it was refreshing to read. Although I do recommend Hellsing, it is quite explicit and may not be for everyone. Read at your risk.

Karin (Chibi Vampire in US) by Yuna Kagesaki
Genre: Comedy
Karin is totally different from the previous mangas on this list and is more on the light side. The story revolves around Karin Maaka who is a vampire that leads a normal teenage life, just like a normal human girl. She can go out in the sun and attend school regularly which, I guess, makes her an abnormal vampire. And what makes her even more abnormal is the ability to produce blood rather than thirst for it. If she doesn’t find a “victim” in time to insert her blood, she’ll have a massive nose bleed. But it’s not too big of a deal until a new student, Kenta Usui, joins the class and, for some reason, Karin’s blood increases whenever he’s around her which leads to a few interesting mishaps. If you’re tired of the dark and gruesome vampire stories, then Karin is a nice change with a sweet and funny atmosphere.

Honorary mention: Vampire Knight by Matsuri Hino
I liked this series at first and felt that it had a lot of potential to become a classic. However the chapters started to drag for me and I stopped reading this series. Maybe I’ll read it again once the series finish so I can read it in one go rather than wait for a chapter every month. At least the art is gorgeous to look at.