Skyhunter
by Marie Lu
High School    Roaring Brook    384 pp.    g
9/20    978-1-250-22168-1    $19.99
e-book ed.  978-1-250-22169-8    $9.99

Talin is a Striker, one of an elite force defending the Mara peninsula from invasion by the Karensa Federation. When she is summoned to witness the execution of a Federation prisoner, Red, she senses something unusual about him and asks that he be spared. In retribution, Talin’s commanding officer assigns him to her to replace the combat partner whose death she is still grieving. Red is hostile at first but soon reveals why he fled the ­Federation — and why saving him might be Mara’s only hope of holding off the Federation’s invasion. Red’s mysterious abilities include a mental link that binds him to Talin, leading to the beginnings of a tantalizing romance. The high-stakes action (including graceful, deadly combat) more than once has readers fearing for the characters’ lives as the closely bonded crew of Strikers get themselves in over their heads. In addition, Lu brings in themes of disability (Talin has mutism and communicates using signs) and prejudice to a ­science-fiction tale with many of the markers of traditional fantasy. This series opener brings Talin to a devastating choice, setting up a potentially thrilling sequel.

From the January/February 2021 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.