Card, Orson Scott. Wakers. Side-Step Trilogy No. 1. Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2022.
It has been more than thirty years since Orson Scott Card published Ender’s Game, arguably the best young adult science fiction novel of the twentieth century. When Card starts a new YA trilogy, readers have reason to hope for greatness. Wakers disappoints because it is merely good. Its fantasy premise makes things too easy for his hero, Laz, a 14-year-old boy who can get out of trouble by “side-stepping” into a nearby universe where life is a bit better. The novel begins when he wakes in a suspended animation facility in an abandoned town, thousands of miles from his California home. He finds a girl about his age still in suspended animation, and he gradually learns to survive in a town with no working utilities and little unspoiled food. Laz is a smart, likable protagonist, and the sleeping girl is a good foil for him, once Laz has revived her. But the world-building never pulls one in the way Battle School did. 4 stars. ( )

Written with grabbing details and background, this is a dystopian read which more than hooks into an alternate world.

Laz can spring from one world to another to correct decisions or change them as he wants. He's used the shifts since he first understood what was happening and has warped those moments in his life he didn't like. But this time is different. He wakes up in a strange facility, lying in a type of capsule bed among rows of beds just like his. He finds he's still on Earth, but everyone has died long ago. He's alone and, somehow, must survive because while side-stepping still works to change the small things, it doesn't take him from the new reality.

To say that the author has done his research is an understatement. I think this one is even better laid out and support with real explanations than the author's other works, and that does make it a treat to read for fans of science. And it goes beyond that. Laz is caught up in a seemingly impossible situation with no real way out. He faces danger upon danger, makes unexpected discoveries, and rounds it all off with a tense and exciting end.

I did enjoy the details and was surprised at how much thought went into the world and situation. So much of the world around Laz was very well laid and slid along the harshness only reality can offer. So, a huge thumbs up on this end. While this was all more than well based, there were still holes in the general plot and characters' awareness or decisions. I'm not going into specifics (no spoilers), but from the very first 'I'm a clone' decision to several other big moments, Laz seems to decide something is fact without any solid evidence to strongly support it. These felt like forced plot-tweaks and did bother me a bit.

Laz's character is very well done, and we also get to know the others as they trickle in with time. This does take awhile, since the first half or so of the read is about Laz settling, more or less, into the world. And this part did draw out, especially for those who aren't into science and survival details. I also never warmed up to his later 'friend', but she was well fleshed-out. The last third-or-so of the read is where the real action finally begins and leads to an intriguing twist with all of the tension a read like this needs.

This is a very well done read, which will especially grab the interest of time travel, alternate reality, and physic fans. For more relaxed readers, it may or may not be the right read. I received an ARC and, of course, loved diving into this read. ( )

WAKERS by Orson Scott Card is the first book in the new Side-Step trilogy set in multiverses. As a clone in an alternative universe, Laz struggles to survive in a barren world with a pack of dogs and a sleeping companion. He must solve the mystery of his existence and figure out how to move among parallel worlds. Fans of Card will enjoy the new universe and novice readers will be quickly drawn into his intriguing world-building. Adults and teens alike will enjoy the fascinating premise, compelling characters, and deep science.

ARC courtesy of Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, Margaret K. McElderry Books. ( )