ISBN: 0-812-53892-7 Order from: Amazon.com
A simplistic juvenile with a highly implausible plot and few redeeming features.
Reviewed by David on November 26, 1998
Genre: Science Fiction (Juvenile)
Synopsis: Teenage Josh is sent to his uncle when his irresponsible mother decides to spend a few months on her own. His wicked step-aunt packs him up with his autistic cousin Dawn to a new planet, where a small group of teens experience alien wonders and human skullduggery.
Full Review: The book starts with a very selfish, if not outright criminal mother, and goes on to encounter successively more nefarious adults. The sheer implausibility of the evil plots, including sending unsupervised (and handicapped) minors to a barely explored planet, complete disregard of transportation costs, having not one but two plots going on at the new planet, and having the kids spontaneously making major new discoveries just ruptures a reader's suspension of disbelief.
As if to add insult to injury, the cover art (which is normally misleading) is in this case completely inaccurate. The illustration looks like a Martian tripod shooting a death-ray (see The War of the Worlds).
Conclusion: give this one a miss.
Overall: 3.5; Plot: 3; Characters: 4; Style: 3.5; World-building: 4; Originality: 4;
Copyright date 1997, Tom Doherty Associates (Tor), November 1998, Mass market paperback
ISBN: 0-812-53892-7 Order from: Amazon.com