Battery Life

Equal parts Z for Zachariah and Mad Max, Gilpatrick and Lang's darkly funny debut follows a girl from outer space and an aging scavenger who must learn to trust each other in order to survive.

Welcome to the Junkyard, a toxic wasteland where humans, machines, and everything in between fight for survival among the ruins of a long-forgotten war. This is where Diane Three-One-Seven finds herself after the arkship Cradle--the only home she's ever known--falls out of the sky.

When a mysterious scavenger named Virgil stumbles upon Diane's escape pod, the two strike a deal (if it can be called that). Virgil's spare mechanical battle suit, nicknamed the "Grave Walker," can help Diane survive the ruined atmosphere--but it could kill her if it runs out of power. And Diane's untainted blood, a precious resource in this radioactive hellscape, could keep Virgil alive long enough to finish one last mission--but at what cost?

The two will have to wait to work out their differences, however, as a new threat appears on the horizon: a masked man called the Messenger, who hopes to subdue the Junkyard with a mysterious new power. With the help of a ragtag team of misfits, Diane and Virgil may just have a chance to stop him--if they don't kill each other first.