Undertow

First, we feared them. Then we fought them. Now they might be our only hope. Sixteen-year-old Lyric Walker's life is forever changed when she witnesses the arrival of 30,000 Alpha, a five-nation race of ocean-dwelling warriors, on her beach in Coney Island. The world's initial wonder and awe over the Alpha quickly turns ugly and paranoid and violent, and Lyric's small town transforms into a military zone with humans on one side and Alpha on the other. When Lyric is recruited to help the crown prince, a boy named Fathom, assimilate, she begins to fall for him. But their love is a dangerous one, and there are forces on both sides working to keep them apart. Only, what if the Alpha are not actually the enemy? What if they are in fact humanity's best chance for survival? Because the real enemy is coming. And it's more terrifying than anything the world has ever seen. Action, suspense, and romance whirlpool dangerously in this cinematic saga!

“Undertow overflows with innovative, terrifying monsters — human, emotional and undersea. Landmark Coney Island becomes a dystopian state where two different species battle for dominance, and Lyric Walker is both a unique, quirky heroine and a fearless crusader. Allegorical and romantic, the book nevertheless reads like an action movie with especially awesome CGI.” — E. Lockhart, author of We Were Liars and The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks “Undertow crashes over you in waves of emotion, allowing glimpses of family and loyalty, before dragging you into the depths of human prejudice, cultural mistrust, and political corruption. Once you resurface, you'll view the world through different eyes.” —A.G. Howard, author of the critically acclaimed Splintered Series “Undertow will unexpectedly grab hold and pull you out into a world of epic romance and gritty suspense.  A must-read tale of how love can survive under the most dangerous circumstances.  It will leave you gasping for air, and for more.” —Tonya Hurley, NYT bestselling author of the ghostgirl series and The Blessed Trilogy “A gritty, turbulent novel as sweeping and deep as the ocean itself. UNDERTOW will pull you in and hold you down.” —Rebecca Serle, author of When You Were Mine, and The Edge of Falling “Lyric is a girl’s girl—as savvy as she is soulful, as sharp as she is tender. Lyric’s fierce, distinctive voice is the core magnetic force of UNDERTOW, and why we will all be stampeding for more.” —Adele Griffin, author of All You Never Wanted and The Unfinished Life of Addison Stone "Sharp political commentary and strong parallels to the treatment of minorities in the U.S. ground the world in reality, while the well-rounded and ethnically diverse supporting cast will cause readers to root for them...the breathtaking action and cliff-hanger conclusion will leave teens desperate for more." *—School Library Journal, starred review "There are some nice parallels to the civil rights movement and school integration in this novel, but the real attraction for most readers will be the romance and action, both of which are in high supply...should please readers looking supernatural romance with a bit of a twist." —VOYA "Civilization’s end is fast and furious in Michael Buckley’s Undertow. Cut your nails before reading or you will find yourself biting them off." —Campus Circle "Readers will find themselves immersed in this semi-edgy, race-against-the-clock world that's waiting to implode." *—Kirkus "Buckley packs this propulsive novel with one walloping scene after another, and there's enough action, romance, and high-stakes drama to keep a wide array of readers interested." —Booklist "Buckley draws clear parallels between the vicious anti-Alpha attitudes and existing racial and ethnic prejudices...A fascinating, engaging, and tense tale, and a strong start to the series." —Publishers Weekly "A gripping story that is convincingly told, and astute readers may spot what is almost certainly some sharp political commentary about the ways our own nation has addressed "otherness" throughout our tumultuous history." —Bulletin*

Auteur
Michael Buckley is the author of the New York Times bestselling series Sisters Grimm and NERDS. Before starting to write children’s books, he worked as a stand-up comic, television writer, advertising copywriter, and a singer in a punk rock band. He lives in Brooklyn, New York. Visit his website at www.michaelbuckleywrites.com.

Résumé

First, we feared them. Then we fought them. Now they might be our only hope.

Sixteen-year-old Lyric Walker’s life is forever changed when she witnesses the arrival of 30,000 Alpha, a five-nation race of ocean-dwelling warriors, on her beach in Coney Island. The world’s initial wonder and awe over the Alpha quickly turns ugly and paranoid and violent, and Lyric’s small town transforms into a military zone with humans on one side and Alpha on the other. When Lyric is recruited to help the crown prince, a boy named Fathom, assimilate, she begins to fall for him. But their love is a dangerous one, and there are forces on both sides working to keep them apart. Only, what if the Alpha are not actually the enemy? What if they are in fact humanity’s best chance for survival? Because the real enemy is coming. And it’s more terrifying than anything the world has ever seen.

Action, suspense, and romance whirlpool dangerously in this cinematic saga!

 

Échantillon de lecture

Chapter One

You can hear them coming from blocks away, a low thrum like the plucking of a bass string. As they grow closer it becomes a buzz in your inner ear, like hornets building a nest in your brain. By the time they reach your street, when they are right outside your window, the sound is unbearable: a rogue wave of moans and shrieks that rises higher and higher into a great crescendo of terror, the stuff of nightmares. You can’t sleep through it. There is no pillow in the world big enough to block out their howls. Just pull the blankets up over your head and wait for them to pass. They will. They always do.

I am not without fear, but my curiosity gets the best of me every time. I leap from my bed, pull up my blackout blinds, press my face against the windowpane, and squint hard before they melt back into the shadows. Like most nights, I am too late. They’re here and then they’re gone, like lightning bolts stabbing at the flesh of night. The only evidence they were here at all is the ragged wound in the peace and quiet.

But there’s still plenty to see. From not far behind comes a mob of men and boys armed with bats and booze, our neighborhood’s self-appointed guard dogs. They bark threats and give chase. And then, to close the show, here come the police with their lights and squealing squad-car tires. An amplified voice demands that everyone clear the streets, while a helicopter hovers overhead, poking into backyards and abandoned lots with its frantic spotlight. I hear a gunshot. Pop! Then more. Pop! Pop!

It’s after curfew in Coney Island.

“You should be asleep,” my mother says. She’s a silhouette in the yellow light of the hall. “Tomorrow is going to be a crazy day.”

“They’re on the run tonight,” I explain.

She nudges some space next to me at the window and gazes into the now-empty street. Her shoulders a…