Invaded (An Alienated Novel)
by Melissa LandersGenres: Fantasy & Magic, Young Adult
Published on February 3rd 2015
Pages: 368
Format: Hardcover Source: Library
Cara always knew life on planet L'eihr would be an adjustment. With Aelyx, her L'eihr boyfriend, back on Earth, working to mend the broken alliance between their two planets, Cara is left to fend for herself at a new school, surrounded by hostile alien clones. Even the weird dorm pet hates her. Things look up when Cara is appointed as human representative to a panel preparing for a human colony on L'eihr. A society melding their two cultures is a place where Cara and Aelyx could one day make a life together. But with L'eihr leaders balking at granting even the most basic freedoms, Cara begins to wonder if she could ever be happy on this planet, even with Aelyx by her side. Meanwhile, on Earth, Aelyx, finds himself thrown into a full-scale PR campaign to improve human-L'eihr relations. Humans don't know that their very survival depends on this alliance: only Aelyx's people have the technology to fix the deadly contamination in the global water supply that human governments are hiding. Yet despite their upper hand, the leaders of his world suddenly seem desperate to get humans on their side, and hardly bat an eye at extremists' multiple attempts on Aelyx's life. The Way clearly needs humans' help but with what? And what will they ask for in return?
If you think too much about the premise of this series it is a bit disturbing. An alien race needs an influx of genetic material so they come to Earth. They want to establish a colony of people from both planets and let them breed. Of course, this is a YA novel so all the breeding stock colonists are teenagers. I hardly think teenagers are the best people to make this kind of life and species altering decisions, but it is what it is, so moving on.
Cara, the human chosen to represent Earth on L’eihr, is put into the equivalent of high school where she is much less advanced than the rest of the students. Someone is setting her up to take the fall for some crimes so she has to figure out the bad guys. Meanwhile, Aelyx, the L’eihr representative on Earth has multiple attempts on his life.
This book is a fun, light read. It reminds me of Dawn by Octavia Butler. They both are about setting up a new civilization combining humans and aliens. Dawn looks much more deeply at the issues involved and is much less optimistic about the ability of humans to adapt and survive in this environment.
Are there any other books that you know of that explore these themes?
