It’s 2094, seventy years after the environmental crash on Earth. Sixteen-year-old Daria and her family are excited that one of the exchange students from the planet Chela will be coming to live with them. She’s completely wrapped up in her wildlife-conservation work with endangered species. Her room has literally become a menagerie supported but barely tolerated by her family. When seven-foot-tall Fen arrives, he’s different to be sure, and he gives Daria genuine reasons to worry about his ultimate goal during his stay. The novel is written from Daria and Fen’s perspectives, and occasionally those of minor characters. Gilmore’s wild premise about the future and her ability to keep readers guessing combine to provide a complex, absorbing science fiction story full of surprises. (Ages 12-15)