Xavier Oaks doesn't particularly want to go to the cabin with his dad and his dad's pregnant new wife, Nia. But family obligations are family obligations, and it's only for a short time. So he leaves his mom, his brother, and his other friends behind for a week in the woods. Only... one morning he wakes up and the house isn’t where it was before. It's like it's been lifted and placed... somewhere else. When Xavier, his dad, and Nia go explore, they find they are inside a dome, trapped. And there's no one else around...
Until, three years later, another family arrives. Is there any escape? Is there a reason they are stuck where they are? Different people have different answers -- and those different answers inexorably lead to tension, strife, and sacrifice.My Review:
So this book surprised me, in a very very good way. I think I finished it in a little over a day and enjoyed every moment of it. I loved Xavier as a main character. He was smart, resourceful and just a good character. I appreciated that Kenneth Oppel avoided all the cliches when it came to the parents. Usually in stories where the main character is a teen dealing with a blended family, the step mom is a bitch or the dad is an ass. This family is well balanced, well written and well rounded. They genuinely care about each other. It was refreshing.
The mystery of what happened to them is intriguing. I particularly enjoyed when they were trying to figure things out in the beginning. They tried things that normal people would, plus they did so in a smart way. It put me in their shoes and had me nodding like "yeah I'd try that too." I also liked the parts where they acclimated to their new environment in a logical and well explained way.
When the new family appears, things do indeed get tense. I found myself on edge trying to figure out if everything that they did made sense or made them seem a bit shifty. The tensions between both families was realistic and made sense. (No artificial drama for plot purposes) The interactions were the best parts of the book, in my opinion. Seeing the reactions from both sides, seeing how almost polar opposite the new family viewed their situation was interesting. It made me wonder how I would react in that situation.
The ending was fun. There were parts that were expected and parts that surprised me. I recommend this book. I'm still thinking about it a few days after finishing it.
