Gr 9 Up— After fighting kaiju during the formative years of his life, Tetsuo's only friend is Yukio, the robot he pilots. He's determined to change that after their next battle that will wipe out a large kaiju force and give them some much needed downtime. When everything goes horribly wrong, Tetsuo finds himself jettisoned in an escape pod and frozen on Earth's surface for eight years. When he finally awakens, he finds Earth not how he left it, and his only friend is gone! Readers will fly through this engrossing title that mixes an emotional journey of self-development in a mecha, or survival manga. Tsujitsugu's illustrations are reminiscent of Akira Okubo's "Samurai 8" and Tsutomu Nihei's "Knights of Sidonia," with enemies that are horrifying, battle sequences full of mechanical details, and elaborate robotic movements that seem to defy the laws of physics. VERDICT This sci-fi adventure with heart will appeal to teen readers who have been looking for their next battle mecha story.— Sara Smith