The Final Six

            I’ve been on a Science Fiction kick recently. When I saw The Final Six on BookOutlet, I thought it would be a perfect sci-fi book to add to my growing TBR pile. I underestimated just how much this book would draw me into its strange science and unknown world. Also, I’ve decided that my reviews should include an overview of what the book is about before I get into my thoughts so that you don’t have to go look it up. That’s probably why you’re already here, anyway.

            The world has gone to literal shit. Natural disasters wreck piece after piece of land, with humans dying around the world without hope for change. NASA, alongside the Russian Space Program, has been working to choose the Final Six people to send to Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons. Europa has the possibility to be habitable, so the scientists at NASA will train these Six to make the moon ready for other survivors of humanity to arrive. They chose Naomi from America and Leo from Italy as two of the 24 teenagers that will compete to be in the Final Six. As they work through their rushed training, their fears rise to the surface. Leo wants to leave Earth, Naomi wants to stay, but neither of them could prepare for the true consequences of the Europa mission… or what might wait for the Final Six on Europa.

            I enjoyed this book. I would say that it was aimed at a slightly lower age group than me in my early twenties, but it didn’t affect the quality of the writing. The scientific jargon that was used was easy to understand because of the logic presented through the book and the relatability to the prominent sci-fi movies and television shows today. The writing brought the facts to light throughout the book using scientific jargon and plain speech, yet I didn’t reach the logical conclusion at the end of the novel.

            Leo and Naomi were both solid characters. Naomi is an engineer, an inventor of multiple award-winning products that were never produced. Leo is an Italian swim champion with the ability to hold his breath underwater for an astonishing number of minutes. Both have clear motivations and goals throughout the story and change their goals appropriately when presented with new situations and problems. It was enjoyable to see two main characters so clearly defined and managed through their story.

            The plot moved a little fast for me. These kids are training to survive in space, and I couldn’t believe that it prepared them after so little time. However, there was a factor introduced that may be the reason for this to be the right choice. The next book, the second half of the duology, is The Life Below and it’s in the mail–should be here this week. Both books are quite cheap and short, which usually helps in some of my decision-making for buying books. If the description above or my review of this book gave you any interest in reading The Final Six, I highly suggest you check it out! This book is in the 15–19-year age range and for sci-fi and space genre fans. I normally read fantasy, but occasionally I go on a sci-fi kick. I enjoy taking a break from the heaviness that fantasy can have and move towards something more relatable on a realism level while still reading something substantial. Perhaps The Final Six will be the same for you.

Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5