This is the story of a journey to find a cure for Olivia's father, who is dying of cancer.

Or rather, that is what it appears to be about.

The book is every heavy handed, making sure that you understand that friendship and working together are very important.

I only managed to finish reading this book because I wanted to see what would finally happen in the end.

Olivia and Galax or supposed to be racing to find this cure, they stop, along the way to jump around on the moon. (Galax is an alien who meet Olivia and needs her to help him find this cure).

I almost felt like shouting at them to hurry up.

Since it is self-published, I think that perhaps a good editor could have helped tighten it up.

The concept is good. It is just the execution that falls flat. And Galax saying the same thing over and over, and not disclosing information, and stuff that is important, and might have made the story flow better.

<em>Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.</em>

This is a sweet story, but readers will need to possess a magnificent suspension of disbelief regarding any sense of reality or scientific fact throughout. Why does she float on the moon? Things are even stated as fact (like swans dramatically committing suicide when their mate dies) that are simply not true on a general scale. There is a wonderful sense of love conquering all and some other good themes, but every crisis is easily solved and there's more "magic" than anything based in reality going on. Lots of plot holes. Any child who is studying astronomy and loves space would probably be furious at the unrealistic portrayal of all of it. I at least appreciated that the text was nearly error-free and well-formatted, and the cover is fantastic.

Thanks to the author and NetGalley for providing a review copy.

When six-year-old Olivia finds a glowing treasure map that only she can see, she has no idea what it means. But seven years later, when a spaceship lands in the wheatfields behind the farmhouse where she lives with her dad, she discovers she has an important destiny to fulfill. According to Galax, the boy in the ship, she is the Princess of Blue Earth. Only she can lead the pair to the Black Ruby, which has the power to heal anything—including her father’s cancer. The pair set out into space where they explore magical and ethereal beauty. But on their quest, they face threats from six Black Priests who could take everything away. Only friendship has the power to transcend time and space.
I really enjoyed reading this short book! Of course, it's sci-fi, and the concept is far-fetched. But it prompted me to dream. I found myself imagining what it would be like to travel to those far-away places with Olivia and Galax.
In places, the book feels a little preachy. And I noticed a few plot holes where a destination was mentioned once and then skipped over. However, I really enjoyed the message of this book. The themes of friendship, hope, teamwork, courage, self-worth, and love touched my emotions. I would definitely read more novels by the author.
Some of my favorite quotes:
“We all start out knowing magic. We are born with whirlwinds, forest fires, and comets inside us. We are born able to sing to birds and read the clouds and see our destiny in grains of sand. But then we get the magic educated right out of our souls. We get it churched out, spanked out, washed out, and combed out. We get put on the straight and narrow and told to be responsible. Told to act our age. Told to grow up, for God’s sake. And you know why we were told that? Because the people doing the telling were afraid of our wildness and youth, and because the magic we knew made them ashamed and sad of what they’d allowed to whither in themselves”— Robert McCammon
I suppose that’s why children grow up— to discover new things and to teach adults new ways.
It’s a home because there’s love in it.
“I am famous.”“But how?” I asked. “I’m famous to me.”
“But what if your life isn’t a good story?” He thought for a moment. “Well, then—” he began. “It is why it’s important to not only tell good stories, but to lead a life worth telling stories about.”
There’s no point in doubting yourself. You are what you’ll become. You’ll be what you always were: a majestic princess.

An enchanting and well written novel. Great characters and good storytelling.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

A cute fun scifi/fantasy for young readers. It's about adventure, friendship, and not being afraid to do things. Although the flow was a bit lacking for older readers, it was still fun.
I received an ARC copy from NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Thank you NetGalley for sending the digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

"Olivia and the Gentleman from Outer Space," follows a young 13-year old girl named Olivia who lives in Kansas with her dying father. One fateful evening, a spaceship lands in the wheat field behind Olivia's house and she meets a time traveler named Galex. Through Galex and her father, Olivia learns that she is not a random girl from Kansas but the Princess of Blue Earth. Olivia also learns that it is her destiny to find the Black Ruby and save her father, however, she will have to face terrifying foes known as the Black Priests, who also want to use the Black Ruby not to heal but to corrupt.

There are some positive themes in this story. It is ultimately a story of courage, friendship, and love. Olivia has to face some scary moments: time travel, space exploration, evil priests. She also has to face these foes with the knowledge that if she fails, her father will die of cancer. It takes a lot of courage to face such high stakes with no guarantees.

I have some mixed feelings about this story. I have two children in the target audience for this work and neither of them cared for the story. It was too on the nose. Death in children's stories have some nuance as a rule, but in this story it is jarring. This is a high stakes story but the moment a problem occurs, the next sentence is the solution. There is no buildup, no feeling that all hope is lost. Even the bad guys closing in moment where Black Priest surrounded them from all sides fell flat.

"Olivia and the Gentleman from Outer Space," is too long to be a picture book, but the characters and plot are not developed enough to be a compelling middle grade.

If one chooses to believe in it, magic can be one of the most powerful forces in the universe. Almost thirteen-year-old Olivia Fierce lives on a Kansas farm with her dad and her dog, and though she hates to admit it, Olivia sometimes struggles to sleep at night because of a plethora of fears that keep her awake. One such night, Olivia observes an object falling out of the sky and landing near her home—an object that turns out to be a spaceship—and the pilot who emerges from it is different from what she initially expects. When she discovers that the pilot, Galax, has skills that could preserve her father's life and that Olivia alone possesses the ability to find the magical Black Ruby Galax needs in order to do so, Olivia and Galax must team up to travel the universe in search of it. This relatively brief middle grade story resonates with creativity and magic and unfolds much like a version of The Alchemist written for younger readers. Because of its brevity, the story lacks depth in many ways, but it is nonetheless an enjoyable adventure. Told in the first person from Olivia's perspective, this narrative connects easily with readers, and they will appreciate the truth and honesty inherent to Olivia's character. The narrative is poetic in style, and readers familiar with A Wrinkle in Time will recognize similar themes in this book, as well. Occasional action sequences pepper the narrative, but the book is primarily focused on themes of discovery and the power of goodness. Religion makes a brief appearance as well, though it is not an overwhelming component of the story. Sweet and imaginative, this is an accessible novel that will speak to middle grade readers who are in awe of the majesty of the grand universe.

This intergalactic adventure is about a compassionate, strong-willed girl, called Olivia, who stumbles upon a being, from outer space. Unbeknownst to her, her father, who is terminally ill, had had an encounter with him the year before, where Olivia's hidden powers were revealed and a plan for her future penned. Olivia is made aware of the plans and it takes her on a treacherous, thrilling adventure through the stars and beyond.
Navigating through the story, I felt like I was constantly being reminded to slow down and live for the moment, but more importantly that we have the power inside us to make the world a better place and by working together things can be more easily achieved - ideas that I wholeheartedly advocate and that I think are invaluable to share with children through literature.
The cosmic adventure that the narrative involves would certainly engage the younger end of the target audience (8 - 12 years), however I feel that the highly emotive ideas weaved throughout would be beyond comprehension of some readers. On the whole, I enjoyed Moses' unique style of writing and the alluring narrative he shares. I will certainly be looking to share it with my space loving pupils.

Olivia meets Galax an alien that has healing powers and takes her on an adventure to find the source of his power to help save him and her father. I liked the premise of the book but the relationship between the two main characters made me feel uncomfortable, hinted more towards romance than friendship and it's not clear how old Galax is, sometimes he feels like an adult, sometimes like a not very clever child. Even if they are the same age it felt to me somehow more sexualised than it should be, even if nothing explicit happens. In fairness to the author I noted that I'm the first reviewer to have this problem, so it might be a problem with my perception of the relationship. It's obvious that the author is a fan of The Little Prince, but not everyone can be Saint-Exupéry and it just feels full of forced quotable moments.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC

What worked:
The most obvious aspect of this book is its wholesomeness. As the title states, a gentleman alien named Galax arrives on Earth to take Olivia on an adventure among the stars. Their sole mission is to retrieve the Black Ruby that can heal and repair anything but their motivation is to save Olivia’s father from dying of cancer. Galax calls Olivia the Princess of Blue Earth and refers to her with respectful terms when not using her name. His favorite number is a million billion trillion as he uses it to describe time and distance across the universe, although his spaceship and knowledge of wormholes allow him to travel more quickly than imaginable. Olivia and Galax stop to recuperate on a planet inhabited by women from Earth who do all they can to make the pair comfortable.
The author creates an inventive story based on science fiction and imagination. Galax’s spaceship is able to generate impossible speeds and is almost indestructible. Galax is able to repair and heal almost anything although the effort it takes has its limits. He’s nearing the end of his life-energy so the success of the quest is the only thing that will save him from dying. Galax has a residence on the moon and he shares a story about his meeting with the Apollo 11 astronauts. Olivia is concerned that a trip across the universe will take too long so they’ll never make it back in time to save her father. However, Galax informs her that time works differently in space as time on one planet they visit doesn’t move at all.
What didn’t work as well:
The showdown with the Black Priests in the climax lacks the suspense and uncertainty that readers might expect. The priests are a menace across the universe but the non-violent nature of the story takes the bite out of their threat.
The Final Verdict:
This book shares an entertaining journey into space that’s void of violence, profanity, and suggestive material that’s found in many middle-grade novels. The plot moves quickly resulting in a quick read that will appeal to young readers.

2.5 ⭐

My general thoughts:

The book is very cute and has a nice moral. It is supposed to teach children about the importance of friendship and make them curious about our Galaxy. I think a younger audience (7-11 years old) would be interested in reading this book alone or maybe together with their parents.

I also really liked the friendship between Olivia and Galax. Definitely a good example for all children as their friendship was full of mutual respect and warm feelings.

Personally, I expected it to be a novel for older children (12-14 years old) and because of that I was disappointed with the number of descriptions and lack of plot development. It all felt just a bit too quick.

Olivia & the Gentleman from Outer Space
by Moses Yuriyvich Mikheyev is such an adventurous book.
The writing style is quite simple but enchanting at the same time
My nephews loved this book at bedtime !

I love the storyline between the aileen and rhe human ot shows how far away your away from home. You will always have a friend. This book was approved for me to read and review by netgalley and the publisher.

Olivia & the Gentleman from Outer Space
by Moses Yuriyvich Mikheyev is such an adventurous book. The writing style is quiet simple but enchanted