Ghost Hunt is a manga series published by Del Rey in the U.S. beginning in 2005. It's based on a novel by Fuyumi Ono, with the manga by Shiho Inada. The stories tells of a ghost hunting team called Shibuya Psychic Research led by its young president Kazuya Shibuya. The female lead of the book is Mai Taniyama. Among the cast is also a monk, an exorcist, an Shinto priestess and a psychic medium. If you like TV series like Ghost Hunters or mangas like Kindaichi Case Files then this manga is for you.

In volume one of the series, we're introduced to the cast as Mai Taniyama is a student who meets Shibuya who is invited by Mai's principal to investigate the old building adjacent to her school. The old building has been marked for demolition so that the school can expand, but due to a series of accidents, construction has stalled. Mai becomes involved in the investigation when she accidentally injures Shibuya's assistant and damages one of their pricey cameras. What I say becomes involved, I mean coerced, as the series mixes nice a bit of comedy with horror. The timing is always good as to when a lighter situation is called for. As the first story progresses you see a bit of romance too, as Mai falls for the stoic and business first Shibuya.

So is the old building haunted? I won't spoil that for you. But it's fairly interesting how they go into detail explaining things.

The second volume you get the sense the characters are now more familiar with each other and comfortable working together. Shibuya retains the others to help with exorcisms while Mai continues to work part time for him. Lin the assistant that Mai injures in volume one is back and often used as comic relief in side panels. The second case involves a poltergeist in an old house with a family that includes at the residence two sisters and their step mom. The father is away during the story. One of the sisters is seven and is the focus of the investigation. This story was much more frightening than the first one. If you're familiar with the Japanese movie Ringu (The Ring), you'll find some similarities with a lady and a well.

I think it's often hard at times to create the eerie suspense that movies and television can create because there's no soundtrack of creepy music playing or sudden noises. But I think the author here does a great job by expanding the panels making the reader wait for the action or reaction to build suspense.

The extra side story is a bit more on the lighter side if you can call suicide lighter. But a jilted girlfriend haunts a park by pouring water on couples passing by. Mai is finally of some use to the professional ghost hunters as she helps convince the ghost to move on.

Currently Del Rey has only published 11 of the 12 volumes in the U.S. with no release date for the final volume. There is an anime based on the series which I believe is complete but I have only seen a bit of the first episode which mirrors volume 1. Overall, based on the first two volumes I would recommend Ghost Hunt if you're into ghost stories or mysteries. I will try to finish reading the series in its entirety when I have a chance.