A Complicated Love Story Set in Space

October 15, 2020
Teenagers wake up in space, with no memory of how they got there, on a ship that's out of their control and with no coordinates for charting a course home. Impossibly far away from Seattle, 16-year-old Noa North wakes up floating outside the spaceship Qriosity. According to the voice inside his helmet, that of a Florida boy called DJ Storm, the ship will explode in 17 minutes unless they repair the leaking coolant conduit and shut off the reactor. Although neither can remember how they ended up in space, they have little choice but to try to survive. Joined by Jenny, a girl from Rhode Island, the three teens navigate threats of explosion, a Quantum Fold Drive that flings them across the galaxy every 19 hours, a time loop, and a monster invasion, all while searching for answers about how they arrived in space in the first place. The plot maintains a fast pace: Every time the team finds a moment of comfort, a new danger throws them back into action. Thrilling twists keep the conflict surprising, and, as the title suggests, a romance simmers between Noa and DJ. Through their love story, Hutchinson explores topics of consent, trauma survival, and the significance of #ownvoices storytelling. While this book stands alone, the openness of the resolution leaves room for further adventures. All main characters seem to be White. A riveting ride through the stars. (Science fiction. 14-18)

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November 9, 2020
This queer sci-fi romance from Hutchinson (The State of Us) finds three teens in space with no clue how they got there. Noa North fell asleep in Seattle before abruptly awakening in a spacesuit outside the starship Qriosity. DJ Storm was showering in Florida one minute, and in the ship’s reactor room the next. And Jenny Price went from reading in Rhode Island to being trapped in Qriosity’s bathroom. After DJ and Noa save the vessel from an imminent explosion—and Jenny escapes the latrine—the trio attempts to reboot the main computer. Doing so initiates the ship’s Phone Home protocol, which uses the Quantum Fold Drive to send them randomly through space every 19 hours until they happen across Earth. Their situation devolves into a string of increasingly bizarre mysteries that stymie sleuth Jenny, and though sparks fly between DJ and Noa, inner demons and actual monsters threaten their shared future. Through Noa’s first-person narrative, Hutchinson skillfully balances high-stakes action and mind-bending plot twists with humor and profundity. The result is a wildly ambitious, wackily imaginative tale that will leave readers craving a sequel. Ages 14–up. Agent: Katie Shea Boutillier, Donald Maass Literary. (Jan.)■

December 1, 2020

Gr 9 Up-For Noa, waking up in a spacesuit floating outside of a spaceship called Qriosity is just the beginning of a strange cycle of mysteries that begin and end with a boy named DJ. Noa doesn't know why or how he got onto Qriosity, or why he's stuck there with DJ and the frenetic Jenny, but he knows a few things: The days all feel the same on board the spaceship, someone is playing some very elaborate tricks on them, and DJ's dimples are getting more irresistible each hour. Toss in some aliens, a stowaway, a dead body, and some delicious spaghetti, and it is indeed a complicated love story set in space. Noa's tumultuous past makes him wonder if he can really fall in love while trying to escape a mysterious spaceship. Strong language and descriptions of assault are included, so this may be better suited for mature readers. Main characters are white. VERDICT When events get curioser and curioser, love seems to conquer all. A great addition for those who enjoy mixed-up romance stories.-Amanda C. Buschmann, Carroll Elem. Sch., Houston

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2021
Noa wakes up to find himself, inexplicably, in a spacesuit floating outside a spaceship, with no recollection of how he got there. Neither does DJ, another boy aboard the ship, who helps bring Noa in, nor Jenny, whom they find locked inside a bathroom. The teens' immediate concerns are survival and trying to figure out what resources are available, how the ship works, and how they might get back home. Once they settle in for the long haul -- as they learn from a recurring hologram of an annoying erstwhile child star, it could be six to nine months before they are rescued -- they turn their attention toward one another, becoming friends even as a romance blossoms between Noa and DJ. An already bizarre and complicated plot adds a recurring time loop, an alien monster attack, and a visit to a mysterious high school in space before things start to make sense. In the meantime, the development of the quirky, unusual characters and their growing relationships should keep readers engaged. Hutchinson (The Apocalypse of Elena Mendoza, rev. 3/18; The Past and Other Things That Should Stay Buried, rev. 3/19) writes with witty humor and a great ear for dialogue, and he addresses some big existential questions about love, loss, and identity. Jonathan Hunt

(Copyright 2021 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

January 1, 2021
Noa wakes up to find himself, inexplicably, in a spacesuit floating outside a spaceship, with no recollection of how he got there. Neither does DJ, another boy aboard the ship, who helps bring Noa in, nor Jenny, whom they find locked inside a bathroom. The teens' immediate concerns are survival and trying to figure out what resources are available, how the ship works, and how they might get back home. Once they settle in for the long haul -- as they learn from a recurring hologram of an annoying erstwhile child star, it could be six to nine months before they are rescued -- they turn their attention toward one another, becoming friends even as a romance blossoms between Noa and DJ. An already bizarre and complicated plot adds a recurring time loop, an alien monster attack, and a visit to a mysterious high school in space before things start to make sense. In the meantime, the development of the quirky, unusual characters and their growing relationships should keep readers engaged. Hutchinson (The Apocalypse of Elena Mendoza, rev. 3/18; The Past and Other Things That Should Stay Buried, rev. 3/19) writes with witty humor and a great ear for dialogue, and he addresses some big existential questions about love, loss, and identity.

(Copyright 2021 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from November 1, 2020
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* There may be worse ways to wake than floating in space with your memories missing and the voice of a stranger piped into your helmet, but 16-year-old Noa can't think of one, especially when he learns he has to repair a coolant leak or the ship will explode. After DJ, the teen speaking through his HUD, talks him through this sudden responsibility, they explore their no-longer-about-to-explode ship for answers. Instead, they find another teen, Jenny. None of them know how they ended up on the spaceship Qriosity, which lacks a crew, a working navigation system, or any records. The reluctant trio search for a way home while navigating increasingly bananas episodic adventures, such as a murder mystery, a time loop, a monster attack, and a run-in with an ominously normal planet-wide high school, all linked together by the realistic romance brewing between Noa and DJ. To explain further would be to spoil it, so settle in for a thrilling, funny, and moving ride. Questions about death and the afterlife, identity, and the role of memories, as well as rebuilding one's self after trauma, mingle with clever meta commentary on how we consume and critique media (such as Hutchinson's cheeky nod to the "bury your gays" trope). The vulnerable, empathetic characters are full of personality and ground the high-concept premise with relatable issues.

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