ARC Review: The Lost Planet by Rachel Searles

The Lost Planet
Author: Rachel Searles
Publication: Feiwel & Friends (January 28, 2014)

Description: This is what the boy is told:

*He woke up on planet Trucon, inside of a fence line he shouldn't have been able to cross.
*He has an annirad blaster wound to the back of his head.
*He has no memory.
*He is now under the protection of a mysterious benefactor.
*His name is Chase Garrety.

This is what Chase Garrety knows:

*He has a message: "Guide the star."
*Time is running out.

My Thoughts: This was an action-packed science fiction story. A young boy wakes up with no memory on a planet he has never seen. How he arrived is a mystery. He is taken in by a slightly older boy named Parker and his android guardian Mina. A memory chip in his head says his name is Chase Garrety but is otherwise so damaged that nothing can be gleaned from it. Parker's guardian is Asa Kaplan - a shadowy figure who Parker has never met.

Shortly after Chase arrives, the planet is destroyed which leaves the boys fleeing for their lives. On the way to a nearby planet they rescue a young man from space. They learn that he is Maurus, an officer in the Fleet even though he is a Lyolian, who is being blamed for the destruction of the planet. Together and separately, they are on the run from the Fleet and other criminals who are trying to capture them.

The story is one long chase scene. Along with not knowing who he can trust, Chase has to deal with the fact the he has no memory of his past and he is developing strange new powers. It is Chase's lack of self-awareness that caused most of my problems with this book. I couldn't connect with him because I just didn't know enough about him. I didn't have much more luck connecting with Parker. Being raised by an android without much other contact, I expected him to be socially awkward. But I didn't expect him to be a liar, a thief, self-absorbed and tactless.

Fans of action and science fiction who don't feel a need to connect with the characters but can be carried along by the action will enjoy this one.

Favorite Quote:

Whether his were from a real memory or an implanted one, whether he was actually Chase Garrety or a man-made replacement, he knew there was a little girl who needed his help. A little girl who held the answers to who he was, and what had happened to him. A resolution formed in his chest, hard as a diamond. He would get off this ship, and he would rescue her.

I got this ARC from Macmillan. You can buy your copy here.