がっこうぐらし! [Gakkō Gurashi!] #9

Three young women in school uniforms dominate this striking cover — a determined blonde in a green cardigan clutches her bag to her chest while a dark-haired figure looms at her side and an auburn-haired girl watches warily from the background, the muted, gritty palette giving the scene an unmistakable undercurrent of tension. School-Live! has always balanced its unsettling atmosphere against the bonds between its characters, and volume 9 captures that push-and-pull with quiet intensity. A great pick-up for fans following this gripping manga series from Houbunsha's Manga Time Kirara Forward line.