#Review - Ashfall Legacy by Pittacus Lore #YA #SyFy

Series: Ashfall Legacy # 1
Format: Hardcover, 432 pages
Release Date: August 17, 2021
Publisher: HarperCollins
Source: Publisher
Genre: Science Fiction / Alien Contact

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the I Am Number Four and Lorien Legacies Reborn series, a gripping new story about a half-alien teen who uncovers a deadly, ancient secret while searching the universe for his father.

Pittacus Lore finished telling the story of the Lorien Nine. Now, he’s back to recount an all-new adventure rooted in the real mysteries surrounding Roswell, New Mexico, that will enthrall fans of Jay Kristoff, Amie Kaufman, and Brandon Sanderson.

We have waited generations for you…

Syd Chambers knows that there’s life on other planets because he’s descended from it. His father was from a distant world called Denza, and has been missing—presumed dead—for years.

When Syd discovers a device his father left behind that shows not only that he’s alive, but where he is, Syd must set out on a mission of his own. But along the way, he discovers a deadly, unbearable secret that could destroy Denza, Earth, and the universe.

Ashfall Legacy is the first installment in author Pittacus Lore's Ashfall Legacy duology with the sequel releasing August, 2022. In Syd Chamber’s world, twelve humans went to Denza to help protect their citizens from a monster called the Etherazi. When humans leave Earth, they gain incredible strength and invulnerability, but if they go back to Earth they are afflicted with a disease called The Wasting and die. Syd has half-Denzan, half-human DNA and has spent his life on the run along with his mother.  

When Syd plays a game named Dungeon, he reveals his location to those who have been searching for him, and his mother who used to work for a place called The Consulate which is supposed to monitor deep space for signs of life. In real life, it's the Denzan embassy on Earth. When Tycius, his uncle on his father's side, shows up, he tells Syd that his father Marcius is alive, and that it is up to him to find him. He hopes that going to Denza and possibly finding his father will be the key to finding where he belongs. 

Syd joins the crew of the ISV Clarity, under one of the legendary 12, Captain Marie Reno who has an eclectic and diversified crew of humans and aliens. Syd’s mission to find his father, who was researching a cure for a fatal disease that any human who returned to earth contracted when he went missing, takes him to Denza, where he meets beings from alien races across the universe. The incredibly rich and imaginative new world fully draws readers in for the adventure. 

The Denzans are hiding an ancient secret about humanity that could destroy both their world and Earth. Syd has to deal with being half-alien and half-human, and on an alien planet where half the people look down at him, and the other half revere him, Syd is trying to figure out where he belongs. When Syd uncovers the truth, he must confront right and wrong head-on.

This alien allegiance is inspired by the “real-life” conspiracy theory “Project Serpo,” which is connected to the legends about Roswell, New Mexico, and speculates that in the 1950s, Earth sent 12 astronauts to an alien planet to establish a secret relationship that exists to this day. I was humbled to actually received both copies of this book and its sequel which I'll wait closer to August before reading. 

Amazon | Audible | Barnes & Noble | Kobo