The 13th Footprint is Sanbe's new manga and once again, it's really interesting! Our main characters are a family. Touya is a teacher and his wife is Haru. They've known each other since they were kids and now they have a kid too, Ao. Ao is sick and has just gotten from the hospital. Considering he's bald, I'd say he has a cancer? Leukemia perhaps? They've just ended up moving to a new home and the father starts to receive postcards that predict the future and order him to take action to prevent stuff from happening. The mystery is intriguing and there's obviously secrets we don't know about. Sanbe is good with stuff like this. The family is wonderful and they all have personas. Ao is perhaps a bit too mature, but it still fits him.

The art looks nice, it works well with the story line and is recognizable. The flow is good and especially I enjoyed the fact that the family will be into this too eventually. This feels refreshing and weirdly this is a credible series. I do like mysteries and Sanbe can make those, so I have to know what happens! I also hope this isn't too dark, but more like a family adventure. That would be awesome.

This was really fun! It did a great job at introducing all the characters while also moving the plot along nicely. There's a lot of mystery and intrigue present here! I want to know more about everybody's past and I really want to know where these postcards are coming from. This was really engaging, to the point that I didn't even realize I was at the end until I couldn't turn the page anymore. I am definitely looking forward to future installments to see where the plot goes!

I was thrilled by Erased at the time, and when I saw Kei Sanbe's features, I didn't hesitate.
This first volume sows the seeds of a good series, with family dramas, whether it's Ao's illness or the house fire (whose cover is effective with this burnt photo), mysterious postcards that foretell the future or the criminal recently released from prison.
We enjoy following this family as it gradually reveals itself, but I felt that it lacked a little something, that it was slightly lacking in tension.

I enjoyed this one! I didn’t know what to expect from the premise, but it delivered. I liked the construction of the family dynamics for our central characters here and then the addition of suspense with the postcards. I’m not sure how they all link together, however, that may be the point. I’d like to keep reading to find out the mystery and see how the specific story of the characters ties into that. The art is well drawn too. Very solid first installment. It’s an attention grabber.

Kei Sanbe is a writer I usually really enjoy, Erased is absolutely amazing. His other two series I’ve read, For the Kid I Saw in My Dreams and Island in a Puddle, were both good, just not quite great. The 13th Footprint feels like his strongest work since Erased, though it doesn't quite hit that same level.

The premise is cool: a father brings home his seriously ill kid, who’s thankfully doing much better now. Then he starts getting mysterious postcards predicting events, usually ones where someone could die unless he steps in. So it’s got that savior mystery vibe going on. But who’s sending them? And why him?

They do a great job with the emotional side, especially around the kid’s illness and his relationships with friends and family. Despite the more fantastical plot, it still manages to feel grounded and believable, which I appreciated.

I’m not totally attached to any of the characters yet, but the art is strong, the pacing works, and the story has enough momentum that I could see myself getting really into it. A very solid first volume. Definitely one to watch.

It was a very original story, I found it very intriguing and quick to read.

I was so gripped by the plot that I didn't realize I'd reached the end of the story. Can't wait to know what happens next.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the arc!

Momo and his wife Haru are finally getting to bring their son Ao home from a long stay in the hospital. At first, everything is going wonderfully, and it truly is, Ao is thriving. Haru's current pregnancy is progressing beautifully, and as a teacher, Momo's professional career couldn't be more fulfilling. The postcards start. They seem to come from nowhere and predict the future, directing Momo to intervene before tragedy strikes. While these would be weird on their own Momo knows that a figure from his wife's own tragic past has emerged and he can't help but fear that these are a lead up to when he may have to protect his own family from a man who has already taken so much from them.

I love this little family so much after just one volume that they have become a "These characters need to be protected at all costs!" already. They are just such a wonderful little unit that when Haru's backstory is revealed you already are mad at a character that has been barely introduced and you know nothing about the circumstances except he *hurt* her. And yes, the strength of that particular emotion is driven home by Momo more than anyone, I don't care. I already hate this guy.

The postcards are incredibly mysterious as well. Not as to why they are going to Momo, that's obvious he's a good guy, if I were going to send postcards with future tragic events that could be stopped on them he would be the guy I picked too. But again, with the reveal of Haru's past, I can't help but to be anxious that they may seem good now, but there's not something sinister lurking behind them.

I'm definitely continuing this series. It could stay in this very slice of life path it's on, but I see it going in a different direction, and I really hope it does.

As always, thanks to NetGalley and Yen Press for the eArc!

The art style is a little goofy (reminds me of the old American comics in the Sunday paper or manga/anime/cartoons from the 80s), which I think undercuts some of the seriousness, but between the postcards and Haru’s past, I think we have a pretty solid foundation for a mystery. The goofy art style also feels very scaled-back - other than the intro pages, there’s very little complex shading or dynamic backgrounds (except on the postcards) which makes the art feel much less “polished” than I prefer. I’d be more interested in this story as a novel, I think, because the art is such a big factor in my enjoyment of a manga.

I enjoyed this eerie mystery manga, which is by the same author as the famous manga ERASED. Strange postcards that predict the next day's events start to appear in the new house where Touya, Haru, and Ao move into. The whodunit and why the postcards appear remains mysterious, and read this manga to figure out this eerie event.