Translated by: Joseph Reeder with Alexander D. Smith
My version: Paperback
Genre: Science Fiction
Publisher: Shueisha, Haikasoru, Viz Media
First published: 2004
ISBN: 978-1-4215-2761-1
Pages: 200
Bought
From the cover:
When the alien Mimics invade, Keiji Kiriya is just one of many recruits shoved into a suit of battle armour called a Jacket and sent out to kill. Keiji dies on the battlefield, only to be reborn each morning to fight and die again and again. On his 158th iteration, he gets a message from a mysterious ally – the female soldier known as the Full Metal Bitch. Is she the key to Keiji’s escape or his final death?
A gripping science fiction novel exploring the concept of time loops and relentless combat. Which, I don’t know about you, I absolutely didn’t know needed exploring. But anyway. It’s the book that was filmed as Edge Of Tomorrow, with Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt. I’m a sucker for time-travel books and films, and whilst this isn’t what you’d call ‘classic’ time travel, it’s near enough. If you haven’t seen the film already, stop reading this and go watch it.
When aliens called The Gitai (not sure as to how ‘we’ would get to know what they call themselves, as they do not not exactly seem willing to give interviews, but anyway…that’s maybe what the Japanese have decided they need to be called), invade Earth, out in Japan, or the Japan area, Keiji Kiriya becomes one of many raw recruits thrust into battle armour and sent out to kill. Or be killed. They are all just cannon-fodder, presumably in the hope of eventually either overwhelming the aliens or accidentally discovering a weak-spot in their defences. But there’s a twist: Keiji dies on the battlefield, only to wake up each morning and relive the same day, fighting and dying again.
It takes a while to figure out what is going on, but that’s probably more to do with trying to get your head around the concept than anything else. But that works, as he hasn’t got a clue what’s going on either, so we’re in the same boat as him, discovering what is going on at the same time as he does, nicely done that. On the 158th iteration, that is to say the 158th time of finding himself alive again after being killed, Keiji notices something different—an ‘enigmatic’ female soldier known as the Full Metal Bitch. She seems to have discovered she can die and ‘wake up’ again, before he has. He now needs to figure out if she the key to his escape from this situation, or his final demise, and / or if she has figured out things in the way he has? And then, of course, if she has a solution to overcomming the aliens and freeing them from the loop.
The novel looks into themes of identity, sacrifice, and the human spirit, all set against a futuristic war backdrop. The novel and the film adaptation, Edge of Tomorrow, do share similarities but also diverge significantly. We won’t mention the Manga comic version here, which I also have, as reading from back to front, as I understand is the Japanese way of doing such things, is way too confusing for old gimmers like me. The movie focuses on character growth and heroism, while the novel takes a grittier approach, leading to a tragic ending that may perhaps feel a little out of place for some people. The film is more hopeful, anyway.
It’s an engaging premise and a unique (to me anyway) take on the time loop trope. If you enjoy science fiction with a smattering of existential mystery, the novel is worth checking out. I read it after seeing the film, and it (the film) becoming one of my favourites, and I enjoyed the book just as much. The film has to shorten things a little, which the book can go into more detail about. Worth a try anyway.
You can buy All You Need Is Kill by Hiroshi Sakurazaka from Amazon
The link here, is to the film tie-in cover version, but it’s the same book as the picture up top.
If you click on the picture of the cover at the top of the page, you’ll go to the (other) version I have, with the pictured cover. That isn’t supplied by Amazon, you have to go through ‘other sellers.’
Couldn't I Just Tell You 