Synopsis (From Goodreads):
When Leo, an Italian championship swimmer, and Naomi, a science genius from California, are two of the twenty-four teens drafted into the International Space Training Camp, their lives are forever altered. After erratic climate change has made Earth a dangerous place to live, the fate of the population rests on the shoulders of the final six who will be scouting a new planet. Intense training, global scrutiny, and cutthroat opponents are only a few of the hurdles the contestants must endure in this competition.

For Leo, the prospect of traveling to Europa—Jupiter’s moon—to help resettle humankind is just the sense of purpose he’s been yearning for since losing his entire family in the flooding of Rome. Naomi, after learning of a similar space mission that mysteriously failed, suspects the ISTC isn’t being up front with them about what’s at risk.

As the race to the final six advances, the tests get more challenging—even deadly. With pressure mounting, Naomi finds an unexpected friend in Leo, and the two grow closer with each mind-boggling experience they encounter. But it’s only when the finalists become fewer and their destinies grow nearer that the two can fathom the full weight of everything at stake: the world, the stars, and their lives.

Plot:
A chance to save humankind. A chance to become a world hero in their teenage years. The mission to Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons, that had enough water and resources to sustain human life. Twenty-four teenagers were chosen from around the world, those in peak condition, a sharp mind, and something that made them stand out from the others. The twenty-four of them would compete for the six spots on the mission, and to become worldwide heroes. That was what Leo thought when he was chosen. An Italian champion swimmer, one of the positions of the final six was the underwater specialist, the other five being: the lieutenant commander, communications and tech specialist, medical officer, co-pilot and the science officer. After losing his family due to the flooding of Roam, there was nothing left on Earth that would make Leo want to say. Naomi had the opposite feeling, as she knew the truth of the twenty-four of them, they were not winners, but teenagers being drafted. With a mother, father and sick little brother, Naomi would do anything to not go to Europa. Yet with threats of self-sacrificing would lead her family to the fines they cannot afford, Naomi must compete for her spot of the final six. Sill, Naomi could not stop thinking how strange this mission was. With a previous failed mission, their training went from four months to a month, in order to get them into orbit and intersect the other ship to claim their unused resources. Promising her brother that she will come back to him, Naomi starts digging around to discover the truth of the Europa mission, and recruits the help of teammate Leo to do so. Becoming more than friends, the two of them work together in order to make sure both of them end up as the final six, in order to protect their peers on what Europa has in stored for them.

Thoughts:
With the Earth in shambles, many believe that we would go to Mars and colonize there. Alexandra Monir took that belief and made it a reality in her story, where instead of Mars, it is Europa, with its liquid ocean under the surface. The story itself flowed nicely as Monir took it from the points of view of both Leo and Naomi. You could clearly see why from Leo’s point of view, and many of the twenty-four, even with all the dangers, the Europa mission is the only thing left for them in this life. Coming to the opposite side of the spectrum of Naomi, who had every reason to want to stay on Earth, featuring a heartfelt relationship between her and her younger brother.  The relationship Monir built between Leo and Naomi was solid, as it is a young adult novel, of course there is going to be a romantic relationship. The ending is the only part Monir seem to falter at, as it ends on somewhat of a cliffhanger. The twist at the end can be seen coming if you did not want this book to end truly happy, which was fine and suited for the story arc. Yet then there was the last chapter, and how it ended that never explained if the mission was useful or not, and just left a bad taste for the story. Still from a military draft, a friendship turned more, to a final mission in space, twenty-four teenagers are hopeful to save the planet, and leave with the final six who become an astronaut and leave Earth’s land forever.