Lance and his friends have been back from Crater Lake for 5 months and have settled into high school, although they seem to have all grown apart. Lance and Chets don't see as much of each other now Lance is friendly with Karim; Katja and Ade have fallen out; Big Mak is keeping himself to himself now he's got a girlfriend; and Trent ... well nobody's really seen Trent. Life carries on and Christmas is approaching; however, strange things are starting to occur in Staybridge. The town had been chosen to be the first SMARTtown in the country, but then an explosion at the university's research departments plunges everything into chaos. Nobody is allowed into the centre and everybody is forced to abide by a curfew as one of the living test subjects has escaped. Then, when Lance's mum starts behaving strangely, he becomes increasingly more concerned that his old adversaries from Crater Lake are back and he needs to find a way to rally the troops once again.
Crater Lake was such a gripping book and a huge hit with my class last year when I read it to them (and, indeed, is a big hit with many of my class this year too!) that I was thrilled to be able to read an early copy of Crater Lake Evolution thanks to NetGalley.
It was good to be back with Lance and the rest of the gang from book one. They have clearly grown since we last saw them and their experiences at the activity centre in Year 6 have effected them. They have grown apart so no longer see each other and feuds have formed between some of them. Lance and Chets are still friends but Chets is clearly jealous of Lance's new friendship with Karim (who, in my opinion, is a wonderful addition and a brilliantly funny character). It's Lance's leadership skills that come to the fore once again to reunite the group in order to try to save the town. One of the things I really like about each of the characters is their individuality and the fact that they aren't perfect; they make mistakes and there is very definitely a human side to them; readers can see this and it makes them relatable. Can I say though, that I love the fact that Trent is still Trent and doesn't seem to have changed - he makes me laugh!
This is a brilliant sequel to Crater Lake; full of laughs and adventure, and the perfect was to introduce children to sci-fi. Be ware the evolution of the species and remember: Don't. Ever. Fall. Asleep.
Crater Lake Evolution is due for release on the 20th May.
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