Changes

That said, this is a big step up from the previous Westerfeld book, even if nothing will match his [[Uglies by Scott Westerfeld|Uglies]] series. In the past he's had everything – empowered females, flight wish-fulfilment, and a heck of a way to bring hard sci-fi to a young audience. Here a little universality is to be had with an African immigrant heroine, but we get copious lessons about NOT wishing for super-skills of our own. That 'back off, this is serious' attitude may be welcomed as more mature by some, or thought of as less inclusive by others such as I, but it's there. More importantly, so is this book – and while I don't see nearly as many people falling in love with it as they have with his books of old (and I'm sorry to know nothing about those of his collaborators), many people will see enough merit in coming back for the rest, as the intention is for it to get published worldwide in consecutive Septembers.

[[Timebomb by Scott K Andrews]] is an example of an adult-geared novel this audience could get on with, featuring time-travelling teens in peril.