Working Title:

Sphere

Story Synopsis:

Esma was startled awake by an insistent tapping on her bedroom door late one night. Groggy and irritated, she threw off her covers and shuffled to the door, expecting to find her younger brother, Wyr, on the other side. Sure enough, Wyr stood there, practically vibrating with excitement as he begged her to follow him to the backyard. He claimed to have discovered a government drone that had crashed. Doubting his overly dramatic tale but curious despite herself, Esma sighed and agreed to follow.

The cool night air greeted them as they stepped outside, and Esma was about to chide Wyr for wasting her time when she saw it. Her breath caught. In the middle of the yard, smoking faintly in a massive crater, was a metallic silver sphere. Strange glyphs and alien symbols etched its surface, glowing faintly under the moonlight. This was no government drone. As Esma cautiously stepped closer, the terrible realization struck her—this was not manmade. This was something alien.

Wyr babbled excitedly, pointing at the sphere and explaining that it had been completely sealed when he first found it. Now, however, a panel had slid open along its side, revealing a dark, hollow interior. Esma’s pulse quickened as she stared into the abyss, her mind racing through every childhood fantasy she’d ever had about extraterrestrial life. Those fantasies now felt like nightmares. She couldn’t deny what was in front of her, and the truth was terrifying.

Before she could fully process the implications, the night sky erupted with light. Esma’s head snapped up, her heart sinking as fiery trails illuminated the valley beyond their home. A cascade of meteor-like objects rained down, their impacts shaking the ground. Each flaming streak marked another sphere crashing to Earth. It was no longer a question—this was an invasion.

Fear gripped her, cold and unforgiving, as Wyr whimpered beside her, clinging to her arm. Esma forced herself to push the panic aside. Her instincts screamed at her to act. She had to protect her family. Her mind raced with plans: they needed shelter, supplies, a way to escape. She tightened her hold on Wyr, her voice steady despite the chaos. “We have to get back to the house. Now.”

Esma steeled herself, adrenaline coursing through her veins as she led Wyr back toward the house. They needed to wake their parents and siblings, gather whatever they could, and find a safe place to hide—far away from here. The silver sphere behind them, still smoking and ominous, was only the beginning. As Esma glanced back at the multiplying craters dotting the valley, she realized their lives had changed forever.

Fifteen minutes ago, her biggest concerns were homework and sibling squabbles. Now, her world had become the epicenter of first contact with an alien intelligence. The weight of survival pressed down on her teenage shoulders, but Esma knew one thing for sure: she would do whatever it took to keep her family safe in this terrifying new reality.

Questions to Consider:

Would you purchase and read this novel if you saw it in a bookstore?

Would you read this novel if it were given to you as a gift?

How do you feel after having read the synopsis?

What is your overall opinion of the genre?

Have you ever read a alien invasion novel before?