Tin Star
Gr 9 Up—This futuristic thriller begins as Tula Bane, 14, and her family are on their way to settle a new human colony on a far-off planet. However, when she starts asking questions during an unexpected pit stop at the Yertina Feray space station, the leader of their cultlike group beats her and leaves her for dead. What she learns when she recuperates is that the ship exploded before reaching its final destination. Earth will not accept her back, leaving her stranded there. The aliens who populate the space station express a strong dislike for humans and offer her no help. Fast forward one year, and Tula now has a thriving business trading items through an alien black market. When three new humans become stranded on Yertina Feray, Tula uncovers the traitorous plans of one of them and uses her to discover the truth behind the man who left her for dead. The space station is a fascinating backdrop for what could be an interesting story. Unfortunately, there are not enough sympathetic protagonists to make one care about the outcome. Tula seems little more than a character sketch and the aliens, described as being physically disgusting, come across simply as grumpy old men. The time lapse between Tula being utterly despised by the aliens and one year later when she has several allies and a thriving business is unrealistic and confusing. Other inconsistencies, such as a human character with no money being described as always wearing cutting-edge alien fashions, further muddle the plot. Overall, the story is disjointed, and the characters are disappointingly shallow.—Sunnie Lovelace, Wallingford Public Library, CT