In Kyoto, Japan, in the 1930s, the geisha was a vital cog in the structure of Japanese society. With the Yakuza's power growing and with growing violence and turmoil in the streets, a small group of geisha is recruited by the Japanese government to provide information on gang activities that is gleaned through their various "engagements" and tea ceremonies.

Anything said between a geisha and her clients is confidential, but the girls in this case are persuaded to abandon that ancient tradition for the good of their nation. And so they become unwilling spies.

But after one geisha gets caught in the crossfire and another is murdered after her duplicity is discovered, the highly trained girls are sent to learn the basics of martial arts and combat, if only to protect themselves from immediate dangers. When one proves unusually adept at the task, her assignment is expanded -- against her will, through blackmail -- to include assassination.

Dark Mists: Kuroi Kiri shows a great deal of research into the culture by writer Annika Eade. Eade, too, must be complimented for devising a fascinating plot and setting for her tale. And the art, initially by Lee Garbett and later by Yishan Li, is clean, crisp and gorgeous, using a muted palette to make color and detail leap from the page.

But the book is not without flaws. The art, for all its beauty, is stiff and cold, with little sense of motion or emotion in its lines. The girls, too, are hard to tell apart, and so the reader must sometimes guess who's who as the story unfolds.

The story itself falters a bit, in part because Eade assumes readers will have some familiarity with the geisha and Yakuza ways of life; anyone without a passing knowledge of Japanese society will miss some nuances of the tale. The text, like the art, lacks emotion, a fault that is particularly telling in scenes where a certain degree of anger, sorrow or passion is required.

Also, a major plot twist requires readers to believe that Kimi, one of the lead geishas in the story, would have failed to learn a pretty big lesson about looking before she swings into action. I don't buy it; she is presented as being far too smart to make that kind of mistake twice in so short a story.

I recommend this collection to anyone with an interest in the Japanese culture, and particularly in the art of the geisha. The creators could certainly go far with a little more seasoning, so keep an eye on their work in the future.