Undertow

4.5 Stars
A daring Sci-fi YA novel that incorporates what I would describe as a species that's a mixture of aliens and aquatic creatures and, their counterparts, humans. The book illustrates many relevant and timeless themes (fear, bullying, prejudice, tolerance, bravery, family, strength, working together, and sacrifice, just to name a few) in a fluid manner. The characters are intriguing and dynamic as is the plot. The setting's gritty, one part containment camp, and one part urban battlefield. It's sarcastically witty at times and it pulls at your heartstrings in many sections. The writing flows very well. Once I started reading the book, I could not put it down. I read quite a bit of YA and it is refreshing to see something a little show more bit different. This is apparently a start to a new series and I look forward to the next novel. Recommended for YA readers and sci-fi/supernatural fans.

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UNDERTOW is book one in a trilogy. Lyric Walker lives in Coney Island which has been invaded by Alpha who came out of the sea. Those who could afford to fled the area. Walls have been built and the Army and National Guard have been mobilized to guard the borders. Lyric's father is a police officer but he isn't why they have stayed. Lyric's mother is an Alpha who was sent secretly to learn about humans. They were abandoned and formed families with humans. Now most of those who didn't abandon their human families when the Alpha arrived have disappeared either into the Alpha world or into internment camps on the human side where they are being experimented on and tortured.

Lyric's mother won't flee until she finds out what happened to her show more family. Lyric and her father won't leave without her. Lyric has learned to keep her head down and blend in. But that isn't going to work for much longer. It has been decided that some Alpha kids are going to go to Lyric's school and Lyric has been chosen to be the buddy of Fathom who is the Alpha crown prince.

Tensions are rising both inside the school and outside it. Human protesters who are being incited by radical Governor Bachman are clashing with the Alpha and anyone who is sympathetic to them. The new principal - Doyle - has a plan to defuse the tensions and blackmails Lyric with an offer of identity papers for her mother to go along with it. Lyric and Fathom get to know each other in their forced time together. Despite major cultural differences, Lyric falls for Fathom and he seems to return the feeling. But, talk about a hopeless romance, Lyric will be leaving Coney Island as soon as she can and Fathom already has an Alpha fiance.

Only plans are all derailed when Lyric learns that the Alpha on the beach are fleeing from a more terrible enemy and that enemy is on the way. Their scheduled arrival coincides with the Army's decision to force the Alpha to surrender and relocate to camps. Lyric and Fathom are beset on two sides by enemies.

This story was filled with action and had a particularly action-filled climax. I liked this one very much and can't wait for book 2 which is coming out in February. show less

This is a great set up for this semi-new trilogy. The Alpha come to shore in Coney Island dividing this small community. There are those who don't want anything to do with the "Fish Heads" and an armed and violent group of "red shirts" forms. If you ever wondered how the US got away with interning the Japanese during WWII just read this book. The us vs. them mentality is scary.

The Alpha culture is very interesting and very well developed. The American's are either tolerant and welcoming or afraid and join the red shirts who want the Alpha to go back to the sea. However, the Alpha aren't the only "fish" in the sea.

I thought this was a fun listen, not sure how reading it would be but I definitely attribute a lot of the flow to the show more narrator Jennifer Grace whose reading really brought the story to life. I think this would make a great beach listen. Looking out across the ocean wondering if an alien race is going to come walking out of the surf at any time. show less

Lyric Walker lives with her NY policeman father and beautiful but homebound mother in Brooklyn neighborhood that has seen better days - rundown apts, crime and gangs, groups that roam at night, curfews, shuttered businesses. Story jumps off in only a few pages - the Alpha, a wave of five nations of oceandwelling creatures have recently come to her Coney Is beach; at first America is in awe, but circumstances get ugly fast and paranoid humans and Alpha begin to clash. Lyric's neighborhood is now renamed "the Zone": "two square miles of Coney Is that the military, the government, and police keep under constant surveillance...the neighborhood lost ten thousand residents..the rest are stuck without the money to move on...then there are show more [Lyric's] parents...they've got their own screwed-up reasons for staying, but hopefully, it won't be for much longer" (21-22).
Lyric, her best friend Bex and their friend, Tito Ramirez, nickname Shadow, endure the opening days of their local school, Hylan High, where the gov't is attempting to integrate some of the Alpha children with the local teens. Not only is it a media frenzy, protestors, and menacing "Niners", a gang whose growing ranks believe the Alpha must be removed, and even New York's governor surround the school - every day the students walk the gauntlet to get indoors. But the drama and violence find them inside too, and as the plot ramps up, we readers find out why Lyric is committed to just "laying low", and waiting for her parents to decide to finally leave. But then Principal Doyle asks Lyric to assist the Alpha's prince, Fathom, and between lessons of reading English, and dodging the bullies in her school and neighborhood, she realizes her family's "secret" is not secret to the authorities - and she must comply with their wishes to protect her parents.
At times a bit overheated treatment of all the characters, and yeah... unrealistic: day after day of violence even in the classrooms, eventually even a day when a teargas, weapon toting invader slams his way into the school to shoot and kill - yet Hylan High, and the beseiged administrators and teachers have to keep holding school- really? It was hard to suspend disbelief for some of the plot details - and of course the sci-fi premise: ocean creatures who can come out of the water, breathe and move like humans, and then re-enter their waterworld at will...cool idea, with cool weapons on/in their bodies - but with instant English speaking skills? I did pick up on the not so subtle oh so current political subtext: how do we Americans deal with foreigners in our midst? And Buckley knows teen slang, the depth of teen crushes and friendships, and keeps the various plot threads twisting and moving - in fact it quickly gets to cataclymsic proportions, and of course, Lyric's true nature emerges by the last couple chapters, with powers that awe even the Alpha... all in a huge battle that ends with Lyric pushing Bex on a raft through the shoreline's waters, heading south, avoiding US soldiers, determined to find her parents, taken to a camp- yep, another YA apocolyptic/sci-fi/fantasy thriller trilogy... show less

Lyric Walker and her BFF Bex Conrad, both 17, live in a run-down part of Coney Island known as ”The Zone” or “Fish City.” It is an area of two square miles bordering a massive tent city where 30,000 members of the “Alpha” live. The Alpha are a mixed race of powerful people who come from underwater. [So powerful they have to live in a slum? One of the many things that don't make sense.] But now some of them are going to come to the local high school because, isn’t that what aliens or “others” usually do in YA books?

There is of course a lot of xenophobia toward the Alpha, but Lyric contends that racial animus isn’t new to the area:

"The Chinese hated the Japanese, and the Jamaicans hated the Koreans, and the Mexicans show more hated the African Americans, and the Russians hated the Orthodox Jews, and the white people hated all of them."

[Really? The Jews are a “race” not a religion? And they aren’t white? Interesting view, not heard by me outside of Nazi or alt-right propaganda material. … just sayin]

In any event, the integration of Alpha kids into the schools is opposed of course, with a Michele Bachmann clone filling the same role George Wallace did in 1963 when he tried to keep blacks from attending the University of Alabama.

But the students manage to get inside, and a new principal, David Doyle, who clearly is not an actual educator but some sort of government enforcer, asks Lyric to be a “guide” to the Alpha prince, Fathom. Gee, I wonder if they will fall into InstaLove….

Meanwhile, a lot of rabid and violent protestors commit or attempt to commit acts of violence against the “monsters” (making the usual very obvious point about who the real monsters actually are), and tension increases.

On a micro level, tension is also escalating for both Lyric and Bex - Bex has abusive parents, and Lyric has parents with a big secret.

Can they overcome their problems peacefully, or will they have to turn into a group of N.E.R.D.S. (National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society) - i.e., kids with superpower upgrades. Oh wait, that’s Buckley’s middle grade series. This one has some hot kissing, so it can’t be the same.

Nevertheless, the ending is right out of Marvel Comics, or N.E.R.D.S. without its G rating. And like the comics and the N.E.R.D.S. books, this is only the beginning of a series.

Discussion: Despite my reservations, the story isn’t all bad - at least the part involving the “humans.” The YA characterizations and angst are well-done. The portions involving the Alpha are a bit over the top, and don’t always make sense. But readers will warm up to Lyric, her family, and her BFF, and the bonds among them. Lyric is also unusually mature for a YA protagonist - another plus.

Evaluation: If you like comic-book type action with some YA romance thrown in, this book may have appeal. Judging from the reactions on Goodreads, this book has been very well-received. show less

This review originally posted at The Children's Book and Media Review

Three years ago, an aquatic race called the Alphas came to the beach at Coney Island and set up camp, forever changing the world for the people who lived there. Many humans want to do whatever it takes to get rid of the Alphas. Lyric Walker’s mother was one of the original Alphas sent to integrate with and spy on the humans. If anyone finds out who she is, her family could lose their lives or disappear along with the other original Alphas. When a law is passed that requires Alpha students to attend human school, violence and tension escalate. Lyric tries to stay inconspicuous to keep her family’s secret, but when the principal forces her to spend time with Fathom, show more the Alpha prince, she learns more about his mysterious culture and develops feelings for him in the middle of the tumult. She discovers that both humans and the Alpha are in danger, and her unique abilities that come from being half human and half Alpha is the only way she can save the lives of everyone she cares about.

Written in first person and in present tense, the book is gripping and intense. Although a lot of the background is based on the violence surrounding their situation, the book turns to focus more on the relationship between Lyric and Fathom, possibly leaving some readers wanting more action in the intense world surrounding them instead of detail about their relationship. Undertow is dramatically different from Buckley’s previous books. While his previous books are fun and appropriate for all ages, this book needs an older audience capable of dealing with the racism, violence, domestic abuse, and mild discussion of sexual topics. The portrayal of these issues feel real, even in the fantasy setting. This book could be a powerful way to discuss race riots, gangs, and other difficult topics that teenagers face. show less

If I had read this as a teenager I know I would’ve been obsessed. I can see the draw. As an adult, I do notice some glaring plot holes and things that make zero sense. But this is only Book 1 so perhaps they’ll be explained away and I’ll be swept up in it by the end. Books 2 & 3 are en route so time will tell.