After inadvertently saving the world, 18-year-old Jessica Martinez is ready to put adventure behind her and settle back into the familiar routine of high school. But when she’s offered an opportunity to photograph the inside of an alien spaceship, Jess jumps at the chance. After all, she would be crazy to turn something like that down, right? Spending time with David on the ship has definite … advantages and the two seem to pick up right where they left off. But when Jess discovers a plot to sabotage David’s efforts to establish a new home for his people on another planet, neither David’s advanced tech nor Jess’s smarts will be able to save them.
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When we think of aliens, I think most of us conjure up visions of little green men flying around in spaceships like the one that’s taken over this post. I can assure you, however, the ones in the book I’m about to talk about aren’t little green men. They are otherworldly. Intelligent. A little self-righteous. But they have this incredible ability to turn into something us humans can understand, and that’s human.
In book one of the series, FIRE IN THE WOODS (a must read by the way before you read this one), we meet high schooler Jess, a National Geographic wannabe, and David, this kid who just crash landed an alien vessel in the woods near Jess’s house. But he’s not your typical alien. Nope. He’s hot. In fact, he’s the heart throb of every teenage girl in the world. Well, at least he looks like him enough to fool Jess. Anyway, the two end up on this wild adventure trying to escape the army that is trying to capture him, while David tries to protect Jess from the aliens that want to kill her. It’s a great story, and a fast read and I loved it, which says a lot because I normally don’t read Sci Fi.
After reading the first book, I was expecting an excellent read and boy did Ms. Eaton deliver. This book was jammed pack with action and romance and I fell in love with alien David all over again. Can the guy get anymore swoon-worthy? The chemistry between Jess and David jumps off the pages. He’s so into her and she’s so into him, but they are always thinking about the alien thing that stands between them. How could it possibly work? He’s from a planet called Erescopia and she’s from Earth. In his true form, he is truly as alien as they come, but Jess loves him. In fact, she loves him more as himself than as the human David. But he’s so sweet and loving and doesn’t want to pretend that things could be perfect between them. I think this is a theme that teens can relate to especially if they are attracted to someone of a different race or of the same gender. How will people react? Where will they go where people don’t stare and talk? How can they have a normal life with so many prejudices in the way? I found it refreshing how the author wove this theme into the book about aliens. I guess humans aren’t the only ones to wrestle with these everyday dilemmas.
The action in this book is still there and it grabs you from start to finish. The pace is fast and you will reach the end of the book before you know it and beg for the last book. You’ll kick and cry because you can’t get your hands on Book 3 for maybe another year or so. Yes. You heard me. Of course, miracles are known to happen, so you never know.
I loved the other characters in this book as well, especially Edgar. I’m not going to tell you anything about him except that he is a brilliant creation from the mind of Jennifer Eaton. He’s so … no. I’m not going to tell you. You’re going to have to read it for yourself.
Is there a downside to this book? I guess that depends on what you’re looking for. This is a YA book and it has a YA appeal. If you’re looking for something like ACROSS THE UNIVESE or THE 5TH WAVE, this isn’t for you. If you’re looking for something along the lines of ALIENATED, or Jennifer Armentrout’s LUX series, then ASHES IN THE SKY is for you.
What is your favorite alien book?