Adaptation

August 6, 2012
After birds begin to fall dead from the sky and cause planes to crash across North America, mayhem erupts, and rising high school senior Reese Holloway and her
debate partner, David, are forced to drive from Phoenix to San Francisco after all aircraft are grounded. Their rental car crashes near the infamous Area 51, and they wake up almost a month later in a mysterious government hospital, with no idea what happened. After being forced to sign a nondisclosure agreement, they are returned home to their worried parents. Soon, both teenagers realize they’ve changed in frightening and strange ways, landing them in the middle of a massive government cover-up. Focusing on Reese’s experience, this novel takes off like a shot, but slows a bit once Reese meets Amber, a pink-haired skateboarder who’s new to town. From there, the plot fluctuates between the romance between Reese and Amber and an action-packed SF thriller. Lo’s (Huntress) writing sparkles throughout, Reese’s efforts at self-acceptance after the accident are engaging, and the exciting ending will leave readers ready for the sequel. Ages 15–up. Agent: Laura Langlie Agency.

August 1, 2012
Crashed planes, government coverups and smart teens unexpectedly mixed up in big things: science fiction for today's cynical readers indeed. After multiple horrific plane crashes caused by bird strikes, all flights are grounded. Riots break out. Reese and David, traveling home after a disastrous debate tournament, are in a near-fatal car accident near a mysterious government facility. The tension is relentless until the teens make it safely back to San Francisco, at which point romantic entanglements (Reese falls for Amber, but maybe she likes David too) detract from the strange abilities Reese and David are developing and the conspiracies they begin to unravel (with lots of men in black after them). And then things get crazier. Lo's dialogue rings true, and smart-but-sometimes-dumb Reese, from whose perspective the action unfolds, is an appealing main character aside from her romantic dithering. Too-good-to-be-true love interest Amber satisfyingly proves to indeed be too good to be true, although stalwart David, compared at one point to Captain America, remains ridiculously heroic and together throughout. Lo manages a diverse cast (Asian-American smart stud; gay conspiracy nut; debate nerd) without ever falling into stereotypes, but unfortunately, the same is not always true of the plot. Despite the weaker second half, slot this on the shelf between Cory Doctorow's Little Brother and The X-Files. (Science fiction/thriller. 13 & up)

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September 1, 2012

Gr 8 Up-Following their loss in the national debate championship, Reese Holloway and David Li are in the Phoenix airport awaiting their flight home to San Francisco when all flights across the U.S. are canceled due to a series of plane crashes caused by flocks of birds. While they are trying to drive home, their coach, Mr. Chapman, is shot and killed and the teens flee, only to crash in the middle of the Nevada desert. They awake nearly a month later and find themselves in a secret facility. Reese and David are told that they have received experimental medical treatments and that they must sign confidentiality agreements before they can return to their families. Reese discovers that she heals incredibly quickly and that she has strange dreams and sensory experiences. Given the location of their crash, their friend from back home wonders if the two may have been treated at Area 51. Before Reese can process any of this, she meets and finds herself falling in love with Amber Gray. This lesbian relationship seems to come out of the blue for both Reese and readers, but Amber's significance is later revealed. Lo pens a near future science-fiction thriller with a romance component. Although readers may find some plot points predictable, the alien-conspiracy theory element and the fast pacing ought to draw in many readers.-Eric Norton, McMillan Memorial Library, Wisconsin Rapids, WI

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2012
Grades 8-11 The birds seem driven to attack all over the continent. Communication shut-down. Martial law is declared. And high-school debate partners Reese and David see their tournament chaperon killed as they try to get back home to San Francisco. Reese has little memory of the subsequent car accident or of recovering in a strange hospital in the Nevada desert that makes her sign a nondisclosure agreement before her release. Within days, the stitches covering her body disappear, and Reese is left with fleeting recollections of a womblike cell and powerful sensations she has never before experienced. When she meets vivacious and beautiful Amber, her world spins even faster. What does it mean that she is attracted to a girl but still yearning for David? Soon Reese and David find themselves caught in a web of conspiracies that shatter her world but would do the X-Files proud. The pace of this sci-fi thriller picks up even further as secrets of universal proportions are revealed just before a cliff-hanger ending. Sequel? Affirmative.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)