The Horn Book Review

In this closing book of the trilogy (starting with Last Day on Mars, rev. 7/17), teens Liam and Phoebe (an alien Telphon) discover the force behind the destruction of their planetsan artificial intelligence known as the Dark Star. The Dark Star (called Iris by Liam) appears to be suctioning the energy of supernovas to operate a universe-spawning protocol, and perhaps by way of apology, she creates an alternate universe with a new, young Earth for human refugees to inhabit. She also offers to expand Liams time-traveling abilities far beyond his experiences in The Oceans Between Stars (rev. 3/18)but can Liam trust her motives? The stakes are nothing less than the survival of the human race and possibly the fate of the universe. The initial action (which recaps some of the previous book) may be confusing to readers new to the series, but interest never lags as Liam and Phoebe seek the help of a mysterious alien chronologist to navigate the temporal possibilities and prevent the nascent war between humans and Telphons. Liams chronic anxiety will be familiar to readers who face similar challenges, and Phoebes loyalties are tested by her parents and other Telphons seeking revenge on humans for their planets destruction, but in the end deceptions are unwound, temptations resisted, and humanity saved thanks to the unbreakable friendship between these two space-traveling young people. anita l. burkam July/Aug p.127(c) Copyright 2019. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.