A Stranger Thing (The Ever-Expanding Universe)
Gr 9 Up—In the not-too-distant future, on an Earth where alien Almiri have now revealed themselves, 16-year-old Elvie Nara has just given birth to a half-alien baby. According to everything she's been told, all mixed-race babies have a "dongle," so how could her little goober have "girl parts?" In Mothership (S & S, 2012), readers met Elvie and the baby's father, the swooningly handsome but not overly bright Cole, an Almiri. The Almiri have been on Earth for centuries, originally passing as gods and then passing as humans, advancing science and exploration for their own eventual gain. Elvie, Cole, baby Olivia, and several others are sent to Antarctica for their own protection from a militaristic alien race, the Jin'Kai. At Camp Crozier, they are taken under the wing of Titus Oates. The Jin'Kai turn up at the camp, along with Elvie's mother (who was presumed dead), and soon Elvie leaves baby Olivia behind to help retrieve important computer files from a crashed intergalactic vessel. The authors have good command of snarky teen-speak, and Elvie has plenty of colorful expression and amusing turns of phrase. The action-filled plot depends more on chase scenes than character development, though this installment will go over well with those looking for lighthearted, escapist science fiction.—Maggie Knapp, Trinity Valley School, Fort Worth, TX