Book Review | Alienated by Melissa Landers

Series: Alienated, # 1

Format: ARC

Source: Traded

Publisher: Disney Hyperion

Publication Date: February 4, 2014

Goodreads

 Two years ago, the aliens made contact. Now Cara Sweeney is going to be sharing a bathroom with one of them.

Handpicked to host the first-ever L’eihr exchange student, Cara thinks her future is set. Not only does she get a free ride to her dream college, she’ll have inside information about the mysterious L’eihrs that every journalist would kill for. Cara’s blog following is about to skyrocket.

Still, Cara isn’t sure what to think when she meets Aelyx. Humans and L’eihrs have nearly identical DNA, but cold, infuriatingly brilliant Aelyx couldn’t seem more alien. She’s certain about one thing, though: no human boy is this good-looking.

But when Cara's classmates get swept up by anti-L'eihr paranoia, Midtown High School suddenly isn't safe anymore. Threatening notes appear in Cara's locker, and a police officer has to escort her and Aelyx to class.

Cara finds support in the last person she expected. She realizes that Aelyx isn’t just her only friend; she's fallen hard for him. But Aelyx has been hiding the truth about the purpose of his exchange, and its potentially deadly consequences. Soon Cara will be in for the fight of her life—not just for herself and the boy she loves, but for the future of her planet.

 My Thoughts

 

I must admit that the cover of this book is what initially caught my attention, and once I drew my eyes away from the gorgeousness that is the cover and read the summary, I immediately knew that I had to have it.  I haven't read many alien books before, but from what I've read, I found them to be extremely interesting so I had a feeling that I would enjoy this book.  And as usual, I was right.

Two years ago, aliens made there selves known to the human race and they came bearing something that humans couldn't say no to.  A cure for cancer.  After this revelation it became clear that the L'eihr was far more advanced than Earth and a negotiation began.

Part of the negotiations is to see if L'eihr people and humans can get along so 'The Way' (basically L'eihr government) sends 3 exchange students to Earth.  Cara Sweeney is chosen to host one of the students, but she doesn't someone like Aelyx.  Aelyx has his own agenda for coming to Earth but will he be able to finish out his plan once he starts getting close to Cara?  You'll have to read it to find out.

Cara was a very easy character to like.  She's smart, determined and she isn't afraid to stand up for what she believes is right, even when she has no one to back her up and did I mention that she is a blogger?  Bonus points for that!  Aelyx was really interesting, I could see how much he was changing as the story went on and as he grew closer to Cara and the Sweeney family.  I really didn't care too much for Cara's best friend, Tori and there were times when I wanted to punch her in the face.

Overall, Alienated is a great start to a new series.  While at times the story was a little slow, by the end I was invested in Cara and Aelyx's story and I'm excited to see what happens next.