My Hero Academia Volume 16 - Red Riot / Kohei Horikoshi (Japanese author) / 192 pages / Color in the title

This volume was my personal favorite in the series so far, and not just because it had the most action either.

The professional heroes figure out the missing girl's location is at Shie Hassaikai Compound, so they, along with the four 1A students, go on a mission to rescue her.  The problem: Overhaul, his crew, and the League of Villains have been expecting them, and they've prepared to attack and use a Quirk-removing drug the moment they arrive.

The story at this point mainly focuses on Kirishima and Tamaki's battles, as well as their backstories.  The latter was always socially awkward around his peers since grade school, and with the help of Togata, he became more confident with himself; since he had been hit with the Quirk-removing drug before, he has to work to get it back but faints after defeating three henchmen.  As for the former, I could go on a whole discussion on his backstory.

First of all, I've heard about how, out of all the 1A students, manga readers loved Kirishima's backstory the most, which says a lot since there are loads of backstories for loads of characters, major and minor.  Although it wasn't what I expected, I wasn't disappointed either; in fact, it's pretty relatable.  Kirishima got underestimated by "friends" and enemies alike in middle school due to having a "lame" Quirk, yet he was still determined to get in the top school, U.A..  It’s when there was a life-or-death situation that made him doubt himself.  When he watched an interview with a role model hero, the role model talks about how even he has been afraid and wasn’t able to save people he could’ve, but it was remembering those people and moving forward that made him become a better hero.  And Kirishima took inspiration from that.
His actions during a fight with a duo of villains were so admirable, they were willing to let him heal, so they could fight again.

My Hero Academia Volume 15 - Fighting Fate / Kohei Horikoshi (Japanese author) / 192 pages / Color in the title

Besides Midoriya getting third-year student Togata as his new mentor, three other 1A students are chosen by the other two third-years: Uraraka and Tsuyu Asui by Nejire Hado, and Eijiro Kirishima by Tamaki Amajiki.  Both groups experience fighting villains or dangerous criminals.  In the latter group, Kirishima, who was treated as useless since Vol. 5, proves himself to be extremely powerful even for a hero, let alone a new sidekick.

When Midoriya and Togata go out in the city on patrol, on the other hand, they run into a child sprinting out of an alley; Overhaul appears out of the alley behind her and claims that he is her father.  Seeing the terror in her face and the bandages covering her arms, Midoriya refuses to give the girl to him, and Togata insists Midoriya not to act so suspicious around Overhaul.  In the end, Overhaul persuades the frightened girl to come with him.

And in case that wasn't bad enough, Midoriya gets news that All Might will die between now and a year due to a mix of severe injuries and using up all his power.

Later on, the professional heroes and seven teens meet together to discuss the girl Midoriya and Togata failed to save earlier, telling them about the evidence they found that could lead to her location and thus save her.

Super Awesome, as always.

My Hero Academia Volume 14 - Overhaul / Kohei Horikoshi (Japanese author) / 205 pages / Color in the title

So much has gone on between Volumes 3 and 13 (sorry), So I'm just going to cut to the chase:

Midoriya and Bakugo fight and reveal their thoughts of each other as they do-- the former looks up to the latter for his determination, and the latter is insecure of the former for being approved by All Might more.  They're soon caught, and they both get punished and must miss class time to do "odd jobs" around the school dorms; Midoriya for three days, and Bakugo for four days (since he started the fight).  Each boy gives the other some advice on his Quirk during their punishment.

After Midoriya's punishment ends, not only does he need to catch up in school, but the class also has special guests-- three third-year students who've had personal experience in the professional hero world.  At least one of them, Mirio Togata, proves it in their first drill fight, where none of the first-years, not even Midoriya, were able to beat him-- at least, not without feeling like he or she got pummeled in the gut.  Nevertheless, Togata, originally All Might's to-be successor, becomes curious of Midoriya due to his quick analyzing of opponents as well as why he was chosen as the successor instead.     

                                                         

Meanwhile, the League of Villains invite a criminal who goes by "Overhaul" (the plague doctor guy on the cover) to join them; however, Overhaul declines, pointing out that their never having a structured plan before sending any hit man out on a mission is a major flaw in their system.  He leaves, but he also keeps an opportunity in coming back open while he goes at his own pace on wreaking havoc.

First off, I haven't been able to watch Season 3 the anime adaptation, and I hear this book was the equivalent to the season finale, so now I feel a little more ahead in the story.

Second off, YAY!  MIRIO TOGATA!  I hear so much about this guy from memes-- anyone who has a kid that plays a lot of Fallout would be reminded of its mascot when one sees him-- and he was as plucky and memorable as I thought he would be, but also a lot scarier than I expected.

My Hero Academia Volume 2 - Rage, You D**n Nerd / Kohei Horikoshi / 208 pages

After Midoriya's class, Class 1-A, goes through one or two lessons, they begin an activity not unlike "Capture the Flag", where they are split into ten teams of two at random, and two of each team has to play as "heroes" and "villains" (like, Team A-- Midoriya and his new friend Ochaco Uraraka-- is the "Hero" team, while Team D-- Midoriya's other friend Tenya Iida and rival/childhood "friend" Katsuki Bakugo—is the "Villain" team).  This is to exercise each student's ability to face off villains using their Quirks, or even stepping in the shoes of a villain to know them better for future reference.  Most of the students cooperate with each other as team members and team rivals... except for Bakugo, who only uses this activity as an opportunity to take his anger out on Midoriya by attacking him head-on (but with Midoriya’s new Quirk, that doesn’t go well for him!).

Later on, the class goes on a field trip only to be ambushed by a  gang of villains calling themselves "The League of Villains."  The kids and two teachers get separated all over the place and have to fight whichever villains are closest to them.  Only Iida escapes, and he reports to All Might (who is teaching at U.A.) and the other U.A. teachers what's happening with the class.

Sorry, I forgot to do a review on the last volume, so I'll tie it in with this one too:

Both books were really refreshing considering I have yet to re-watch the anime episodes.  I notice that they, unlike the anime, were a lot faster paced than I had remembered, but that was okay (for me, at least).  They were also both humorous and optimistic while still having plenty of action and even suspense.  The short bios and trivia Horikoshi gives of a character at the end of each chapter are interesting to read-- one would get to hear of his insights and development of them.

I'm aware that this series is not for everyone, but if I could recommend it to anyone anyway, I would.

My Hero Academia Volume 1 - Izuku Midoriya: Origin / Kohei Horikoshi / 192 pages

In this world, 80% of the population has superpowers known as "Quirks", so heroes and villains are battling everywhere!  Izuku Midoriya wants to get into the honorable U.A. High School for young heroes to become just like his role model, All Might-- the greatest superhero of all time.  The only problem with that is that Midoriya is one of the 20% born ordinary, or "Quirkless".  This, along with his determination to reach his dream, leads to a lot of doubt from authority figures and a lot of bullying from his peers.  However, when Midoriya finds himself coming in face-to-face contact with All Might, and then attempts to save a hostage from a public villain when no one else would, All Might is inspired by Midoriya's act and asks him if he would like to have his Quirk, "One for All", passed down to him.  Midoriya accepts but is given the Quirk after 10 months of muscle training with All Might first.  When he is ready for the new year, he and thousands of other kids must first take a test that determines who can be official students at U.A.: fight a giant robot and/or help your peers-- only 1 in 300 would be able to pass.  Saving another peer trapped under a broken piece of robot gives Midoriya enough points to pass; therefore, he gets to be a first-year student at U.A.

Unbroken/Laura Hillenbrand/400 pgs

This might be the only non-fiction review you see from me all year as I tend to stick to fiction. Unbroken is a biography of Louis Zamperini, an irreverent and high-spirited Italian-American who was on his way to what looked like a spectacular Olympic career as a miler when World War II broke out. Louis became a bombardier in the Pacific theater after the United States entered the war. On a mission to search for a downed plane, Zamperini's own plane crashed into the ocean. He, Russell Phillips, and a third young man named Mac were the only survivors. While Mac died at some point, Zamperini and Phillips managed to stay alive for over 40 days adrift on the vast ocean, only to be "rescued" by the Japanese and taken as POWs. Their time as starved and beaten prisoners/slaves was just as horrific as their time lost at sea. But both survived.

This is an intense story, full of graphic scenes about the horrifying experience of these young men. I appreciated that this story wasn't just about Zamperini, the more famous of the two, but included the heroics and fortitude of Phillips as well. As mentioned, this is certainly not an easy read but a worthwhile one to learn about the "unbroken" spirit of ordinary young men who went off to fight in World War II.

THE LAST STORMDANCER / Jay Kristoff / 125 Pages / Christmas Challenge: 2 Turtle Doves (flying) & 8 Maids-a-Milking (animals)

THE LAST STORMDANCER is a limited-edition, novella set 100 years before the events in Kristoff's Lotus Wars series, a dystopian, steampunk fantasy set in Japan. I was so excited to be one of the fortunate few to receive a copy!

The story is told from the point of view of Koh, an Arashitora (half eagle, half white tiger), more commonly called a thunder tiger. Koh relates the, here-to-for, unknown history of the Imperium which lead up to Yukiko, the heroine of STORMDANCER (2012) and KINSLAYER (2013).

A descriptive, atmospheric and moving introduction to the story behind the Lotus Wars.

The Snow Empress / Laura Joh Rowland / 293 pgs. / Asia

It is 1699 and in the northern-most region of Japan on the island of Ezogashima the mistress of a powerful, but crazed ruler is murdered.  In order to "persuade" famous detective Sano Ichiro to investigate the crime, Sano's son is kidnapped and held hostage.  It is a race against time as Sano, his wife Reiko, and his band of loyal detectives to uncover the murder without boiling over the tensions that are already bubbling in the region. 

This is book # 12 in Rowland's 17th Century feudal Japan mystery series featuring Samurai and detective, Sano Ichiro.  Even though I have not read any of the other titles in the series I was still able to jump right in and enjoy the story.  It is a great "who-done-it" mystery, with the added bonus that the detective work is based more on guesswork and interviewing the suspects instead of hard forensic evidence.