It's out of this world!: THE FELLOWSHIP FOR ALIEN DETECTION by Kevin Emerson! - Review + CONTEST!

Hi guys!

Welcome back to the site that's not afraid to indulge its inner reading child nor explore the reaches of the great beyond...Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.

Today, we play host to a tour making its way through the blogosphere, perhaps even the Milky Way...and I'm not talking candy bars here...that brings little green men to light in a whole new way.  How so?  Well, they are a lot more orange than green and definitely a go on the "light" side of things, but in truth...they could be hiding in plan sight and you'd never know a thing, unless you knew what to look for or were part of the crazy-ingenious team in this book.  What book?  Goodness me!  I didn't introduce it yet, did I?  Here goes.  Let's give a warm intergalactic welcome to today's blog tour guest and book of choice...

The Fellowship for Alien Detection

by

Kevin Emerson

About the book....

Haley and Dodger don't have much in common. Haley lives in Greenhaven, Connecticut; Dodger lives in Port Salmon, Washington. Haley has a family who loves and supports her; Dodger can't seem to ever get his dad's approval. Haley is well adjusted and passionate; Dodger hears strange voices in his head. But they both want something: a new map, a path away from home—or, perhaps, a path toward it.
Of course, this was all before they heard about the missing people, the untraceable radio signals, the unexplained phenomena. Before they both became the first recipients of a summer research grant from a certain mysterious foundation. Before they discovered that their fledgling theories about extraterrestrial life were all too accurate.
Now Haley and Dodger are the only ones who can figure out what is happening in towns across America, who can give voice to the people whispering "alien abduction." At the very least, they're both going to have the most eventful summer vacations of anyone they know.

An intergalactic adventure that takes place right in our own backyards...and apparently has been happening for the last 20 years.  *-*  Wow.  Talk about oblivious!  Me thinks we humans are the wonder children of clueless-ness in this case...then again, those aliens are pretty crafty.

We start with two children that couldn't seem more different than each other both drawn to a competition that's out of this world.  It promises a chance at a life (okay, a summer) on the road, tracking down signs of intelligent life or at least proof that they exist and the experience of a lifetime.  Sounds good, right?  It is just WAY more adventure than their little flyer gives you insight into.  The winner's are chosen....Haley and Dodger...and the wheels are set into motion for adventure, except what they each seek is a bit more than that.

Haley is definitely in for the ride as she wants to experience life in the fast lane, or add "new map" to her existing path, but her aspirations for the trip go deeper as she's uncovered something SO MUCH bigger than flashing lights or little green men (though both if we shade it orange exist here).  Dodger, on the other hand, is seeking a place he fits in as he's always felt like a square peg in a round hole, even at home...and an answer to why he gets radio transmissions from some place called Juliette would be nice too; especially since they play directly into his brains. *-*  Yea, I'd be wanting answers to that too.  Their road trips begin, destinations somewhat known and then...the monkey wrench of all monkey wrenches is thrown into the works and fleeing for their lives sounds like an AWFULLY good plan.  Good thing they've got chutzpah because they're gonna need it in spades (and some help from the Alto...think Men in Black only solo and more off the grid) to see things through to the end in order to even have a chance at saving a lost town, the world...and each other.

One of the many things I enjoyed about this book was the story division.  I'm not usually one that loves to jump all around the timeline of a story or bounce from character viewpoint to character viewpoint.  Mr. Emerson solves that potential issue completely by breaking it into three parts:  one for Haley, one for Dodger and one for...adventures I won't spoil...and then seamlessly intersecting them at the appropriate meeting points.  You never felt lost in what a character was thinking or doing,  nor had those random deja vu moments when things repeat themselves...repeat themselves...repeat themselves...(though some characters do and TOTALLY own that claim for a valid reason!).

Second up on the roster of "love" are the characters.  They felt real...although I'm still not certain about "the Alto"...in both thought and action/reaction.  It's not hard imagining two curious kids searching for more out there than themselves and taking on the world for better or worse...and I'm totally for celebrating the brainy as well as the different because in the end, those unique features of ourselves that seemingly divide actually bring us together in this crazy race we call human.  Last (of those I'll make note of) but certainly not least is the author's ability to blend so many themes together without letting the ball drop on any of them.  We've got action and adventure.  We've got a search for love and acceptance that reaches across the galaxy, only to discover what they sought was here on Earth the whole time.  We've got a great story with definite sci-fi ingredients that doesn't take things too far to remove it from the "all ages" category.  You see?  Writing brilliance on display.  ^_^

One thing I wasn't so keen on was the actual ending.  Now hold on, don't get your bookmarks in a twist.  I merely mean that while the ending was good, it was much tamer than the rest of the story so my anticipation of how things would play out was thrown for a bit of a loop...BUT...perhaps we'll meet some of their shining faces (but WHOSE shining faces? dun dun dunnnn) again one day.  *ahem*  Not telling just to whom I'm referring as I don't want to spoil things for you but let's just say that there's room for further adventures here and I'm totally open to exploring them.  I'd really love to learn more about the...and why he referred to himself as...and an explanation as to why things went...and how about how they chose which..._gathers thoughts_ ...yep, lots of questions left to answer and yet the story could still be complete on its own two papery feet.  Only time will tell...(or perhaps the publisher or author, if they are reading this?  *curious*)

In conclusion, a reading adventure that will leave you looking to the stars and to the land that lays before you.  It reminds us that not all adventures take place so many odd light years from home, finding out where you came from is not as important as who you are and/or will be, and that happiness can be (and usually is) found in the most unexpected places, the unanticipated meetings and at the most random times.  That's what goes into a life...making our own adventures own choice at a time.  (Yes the Alto...you were right.)

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About the author...
Kevin Emerson has never been abducted by aliens, at least not that he remembers. He has been to Roswell, but all he found there was a cool key chain. Kevin is the author of a number of books for young readers, including the Oliver Nocturne series, Carlos Is Gonna Get It, and The Lost Code, the first book in the Atlanteans series. Kevin is also a musician. His current project is the brainiac kids’ pop band the Board of Education. He lives in Seattle with his wife and two children. You can visit him online at www.kevinemerson.net or tweet with him at @kcemerson.

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ARC for review courtesy of Kellie at Walden Pond Press, a division of HarperCollins Children's Publishing.  (THANKS!)  For more information on this title as well as their complete catalog, pay a visit to their official site, check out their blog, like them on Facebook or follow along on Twitter.  Speaking of blogs...be sure to check out the rest of the tour as it spirals its way through some fab sites.  Yesterday's stop overs included Icey Books and Jenn's Bookshelves, and tomorrow's is set for Candace's Book Blog...or if you prefer a complete agenda, stop by the publisher's blog! This book was released February 26th, 2013 and should be available now on a bookstore shelf near you.

Until next time...happy....

- - - - - STATIC - - - - - 

~&@^#(%_#$&*(#%*#^@^@&()~

WE interrupt this transmission for a very important announcement.

It has come to OUR attention that reading on your planet is in need of a serious boost.

With this in mind, WE will permit you to indulge in reading this fantastical account of Haley's and Dodger's "adventure"...this time...and even aid you in obtaining a copy.

WE have partnered with this site and the Kellie at Walden Pond Press to bring you a chance to "WIN" a copy of author Kevin Emerson's account...err, work.  

Complete the Rafflecopter form below and WE will tabulate the results to see who is our next candidate for Bliss 2....*&^^%**&^...err, I mean who will WIN a reading adventure light years in the making.

Prize:

(1) copy of The Fellowship for Alien Detection by Kevin Emerson

Enter:

Complete the form.

(Simple, no?  ^_^)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Rules:

...open to US residents, no P.O. Boxes please.  Entries accepted TODAY through March 15th, 2013.  Winner will contacted no later than Monday, March 17th, 2013 and have 48 hours to respond with their FULL NAME and MAILING ADDRESS to be passed on to the publisher for prize send out.  If no response is received, a new winner will be chosen.

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Until next time....GOOD LUCK....and happy reading!