by Amie Kaufman
First published 2019
Tyler Jones should have gotten first pick of Aurora Academy cadets for his squad. Instead, his rescue mission leaves him with the leftovers. His team includes a sarcastic diplomat, a trigger happy scientist, a bitter tech specialist, an aggressive alien warrior, and a pilot who wants nothing to do with him. Tyler thinks his biggest problem is managing this group of misfits. He's wrong. Aurora Jie-Lin O'Malley, the girl he saved from interdimensional space, has been frozen for two hundred years. She doesn't belong in 2380, but she might trigger an ancient war. Tyler's squad of rejects and troublemakers could be all that stands between the galaxy and destruction. They're nobody's first choice for heroes.
Genres: science-fiction, adventure, space-opera, action
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: chosen-one, fish-out-of-water, ragtag-team
Setting: Aurora, Galaxy
Period: 2380
473 pages · Hardcover · Knopf Books for Young Readers