A book with a very interesting and unique cover, I hadn't heard of the author before but was interested nonetheless. I love science fiction, and especially books about space and aliens, and this seemed like it was right up my alley.

It begins by explaining how unimaginably huge the universe it. One day the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies will crash relentlessly into each other. In this world, in 2017 an alien satellite was piloted by technology far ahead of our own, and was searching for life. They found Earth. And still, I had trouble getting into this book.

Eventually one crashes down while it's scanning, and Daniel, a teenage boy, sees it and is scammed intimately by it. An ethereal being copys him and then leaves, but it seems like the world after this moment is frozen in time. People and all. But why isn't Daniel? The only thing he notices different about him, is that he is strangely drawn to the satellite.

Amber, a girl freshly out of high school, takes care of her mother and works at a diner. She's out on a walk when the second satellite almost takes her out, and the exact same situation that happened earlier to Daniel happens to her. Except Amber, a much more mischievous person, finds delight in drawing on the frozen in time people's faces.

The next thing we know, they're captured in a cell, each other's neighbours. The Aliens have taken them. And I was left feeling a little too old for this book. I was still trying my best to get into it, however. Mick, a new character, is a police officer who's working when half the town suddenly is frozen in time. Tommy is a toddler who's frozen, but eventually saved by his father. The story from this point jumps around a lot, not really helping my situation about not being able to stay into it.

Amber and Daniel then learn about how and why they were taken, a colony of humans from another galaxy far away sent for them to bring them home with their own kind. They want to study them, and they came through a black hole. Though, it's impossible to get back through. Daniel and Amber now live on the ship. They hadn't planned on them showing up, and the satellites were supposedly shut down years previously.

Overall it was an okay read, but it's not one of my new favourites. I really loved the picture at the end of the book, but I wasn't obsessed with the story how I thought I would be. I just felt so much older than the characters, even the adult man. Do with that what you will, it was a good scifi read for someone who's not me.

I really wanted to like this story.

The idea was good, but unfortunately there was too much talking and not enough action for me.

The characters lacked depth with no real interaction or emotion.

This could have been so much better.

Ebook/Science Fiction: I saw this book description on Netgalley and really thought this book was for me. It starts off as a cross between The Dome and Stranger in a Strange Land. All is well until 30% into the book. The narrative is long-winded and irrelevant. The dialogue is unrealistic with the speaker stating the person's name every other sentence.
Then we get to the switch. After finding out that the sphere randomly picked up two people from our solar system, my first question would be, "How do you know English and what are is everyone humanoid"? Even if the originals were from Earth, language would be different over decades and in its own dialect. As the book progressed, I skipped over lots of narrative.
Am I begin hard on this book? Yes. The reason why is, I can throw reality, science, and pseudo science out the window and love a book if it's written well. This one is not and I found myself nitpicking at the plot. The ending was horrible and really made no sense.

A solid scifi tale. Lots of elements of a good scifi story here, and it's nicely executed with good writing and characters. Enjoyed this.

Thanks very much for the free copy for review!!

A gripping and well-crafted science fiction novel that kept me engaged from beginning to end. The world-building is excellent, and the alternate universe in which Amber and Daniel find themselves is intriguing and unique. The characters are well-developed and relatable, and I appreciated how the book explored the theme of loyalty in the face of unexpected circumstances. The plot is full of twists and turns, and the ending left me wanting more.

A thrilling and imaginative science fiction novel that is sure to capture the reader's attention...

Amber and Daniel are unexpectedly transported to a strange world beyond a black hole when otherworldly spheres land on Earth in Canada and the UK. Trapped in an alternate universe, they are taken captive by a race of people living in the desolate Dark Space, while their families and friends on Earth remain frozen inside a twenty-mile bubble surrounding each sphere. With their captors refusing to return them home, Amber and Daniel must navigate a dangerous world on the brink of civil war and form an unlikely alliance with their captor's enemy to find a way back to Earth. A must-read for any science fiction fan looking for a unique and engaging story.