[DeepL Translation - needs review] Volume 1 Introduction: Nanako enters Seiran Gakuen High School, a prestigious girls' high school, and is thrilled to see the gorgeous upperclassmen every day. Then she learns of the existence of "sororities," which are only open to specially selected students whom all the students admire.... Jealousy and twisted desires swirl in the social club of a prestigious girls' school... Riyoko Ikeda depicts an elegant love-hate drama in this first volume!
(Translator: DeepL)
Came here from the incredible anime, and this is like a much snappier version. The paneling and emoting is fascinating. If you're used to more recent manga, then note that black backgrounds here are usually for emphasis rather than flashbacks. I couldn't always tell what the author was trying to tell me at certain moments, and there's a scene or two that could be clearer, but overall the message gets across loud and clear.
In terms of language, it's a lot less お嬢様っぽい then I would have expected. Much simpler speech style than say マリア様がみてる. While there's furigana, there's also a lot of hiragana instead of kanji. So some vocab may take some guess work. The style does feel slightly dated, but not enough that it's hard to understand
Overall I think the anime is the superior version so far, but this is certainly worth a read - both for historical reasons, and for pure enjoyment. Looking forward to vol 2