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352p. Charlesbridge. Oct. 2017. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781580898065.
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Gr 8 Up—After Julia reveals a little too much in public, thus endangering her group, Novak (aka her Dad) does the unthinkable. He asks Julia to separate herself entirely, withdraws her from the posh private school everyone in their group attends, and enrolls her in public school. Once there, she has to dial everything back even further—from tennis prowess to near-prescient academic inclinations. Determined to lie low and earn an invitation back into the fold before Relocation, Julia knows she should have nothing to do with John Ford, the boy who observed the incident where she revealed too much and took the fall for it, and who now happens to sit right by her in English class. She knows, but finds it nearly impossible to heed her own warnings, as she becomes more deeply connected to him, learns more about herself, the group, and what choices she might be forced to make. This reads like realistic fiction with a few slight dashes of sci-fi and dystopian fantasy. Though technically a superhuman species, Julia's extended family is portrayed more like a cult, and the plot unfolds more as a brief glimpse into the psychology behind this arrangement than a well-developed alternate society. The plot zooms in closely on Julia and her struggle to reconcile her identity with that of the group and her relationship with John.
VERDICT Readers interested in a fully realized science fiction tale will likely come up short, though teens seeking an easy read about forbidden passion will find something to love.

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