7 Billion Needles

So today covers the last of my Christmas presents!! Starting next week I'll be looking through your recommendations and also I'll try keep you up to date with some of this seasons anime and stuff!! Look forward to it!!

Hikaru is a reclusive teenager. She doesn't talk to any of her class mates and they don't want to talk to her because she always has her headphones on. But her life is turned upside down when she becomes involved in an intergalactic games of cat and mouse: the 'cat' being the entity known as Horizon and the 'mouse' is the intergalactic murderer Maelstrom. The plot successfully combines sci-fi battles with an emotional teenagers story which is especially good for me because sci-fi isn't a genre I really get excited about. The book starts with the lead character dying. That's right, on the 5th page Hikaru is being blasted to pieces by a meteor! Next thing you know Hikaru is having psychic conversations with Horizon who is currently living in her blood stream. This transition could have been dealt with a lot smoother, nevertheless, there is a certain flair with which this is written.

Maelstrom has the intent of devouring all of man kind. Personally I'd like to hear a lot more from him because he gives off the impression of a mad person on a killing spree, but  he is aware of a certain amount of tact. He clearly harbors a hatred to Horizon, but why exactly he wants to kill all of human kind is not clear. I much prefer stories with more in depth villains  But at least he looks impressive! Whilst he is mostly seen inhabiting the body of a school boy by the end of the first book we do get to see his true form. A giant dinosaur looking creature: rather unique and definitely terrifying! We also see a grotesque form of Maelstrom after he absorbs to many humans. A much larger form with disproportionate limbs and covered in fat and protruding veins. But what's really horrible is that limbs of the humans are sticking out of is body: hands arms and legs. Not exactly 'nice' art, but superb none the less!
Like I side, alongside this sci-fi battle with limbs splayed every where is Hikaru's coming of age story. It's not clearly stated but I believe Hikaru has lost both her parents and that's why she blocks every one out. It would appear that she is afraid that if she connects to any one they'll be taken away. She abhors talking to other people and refuses to rely on others, preferring to stay within her own bubble so you can imagine her frustration when Horizon reveal to her that because she got hit by the meteor, she can't live without him sustaining her existence. But when it's discovered that Maelstrom is hiding in her school Horizon implores her to talk to all the students at her school to find him so we slowly see her breaking this shell of hers and becoming a much better person because of it. The best part of all of this is that none of this explicitly stated, so it's totally up to interpretation. You can delve as deep or shallow as you like making it quite a versatile and exciting book. Almost interactive!
I think this book combines to genres to make a book suitable for a wide range of readers. The horrific scenes of death and destruction which are artfully drawn and the alien features can keep the horror and sci-fi fans happy but some one like me who is more excited by character driven books can enjoy an intense coming of age plot. While there are still 4 more books to go, I would easily recommend this one to any one who reads manga. It's certainly a book I'd love to hear other peoples opinions on!!

(Doesn't look like there's any colour art though!)

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