Starred Review In her first YA novel, Cole delivers a brilliant and suspenseful sci-fi adventure revolving around two separate worlds, N'Terra and Faloiv, that exist side by side in a tenuous peace. N'Terra is home to a renowned group of scientists known as whitecoats, and Octavia yearns to become one of the elite scientists who studies the natural wonders of Faloiv. When N'Terra's labs suddenly change their long-standing policy of seclusion and open their doors to students, Octavia seizes the chance to discover Faloiv's secrets. But she soon learns that the whitecoats and N'Terra's ruling council may be hiding information about the true nature of the experiments they conduct. As Octavia discovers one shadowy secret after another, she is set on an inevitable collision course with the new, charming, and extremist leader of the council. She also finds herself at the center of a looming war, spurred on by her discovery of the truths behind the history she's been taught, the science she lives by, and the family from which she hails. This fantastical read is home to exceptional world building that is intricate and lush and vivid, with well-drawn characters. Its sci-fi elements, like skinsuits and the array of peculiar flora and fauna, plunge readers into a mysterious, futuristic world that they will be reluctant to leave. A stellar, captivating start to Cole's duology.

Cole-s slow-burning adventure, first in a planned duology, is set in a distant future in which mankind has evacuated Earth (aka the Origin Planet) and established the colony of N-Terra on the planet Faloiv after a temporary pit stop became permanent. Sixteen-year-old Octavia yearns to study the natural wonders and dangers of Faloiv, but when she develops the ability to telepathically hear the planet-s native fauna and encounters one of the reclusive, indigenous Faloii, she is inspired to investigate N-Terra-s secrets. It turns out that some of her fellow colonists are no longer interested in living in harmony with nature or playing by the Faloii-s rules, and it falls to Octavia and her friends to prevent war. Though Cole (Panther in the Hive) offers evocative descriptions of the natural landscape of Faloiv, the underlying critique of colonialism, while valuable, overshadows Octavia-s personal journey, and it takes quite some time for the story to gain momentum. It-s an intriguing series opener, but the familiarity of the setup and themes don-t give it much of a spark. Ages 13-up. Agent: Regina Brooks, Serendipity Literary. (Jan.)