Summary: In a small town in rural America, in the middle of the Cold War, Molly and Gene Myers live. They're slowly lifting themselves out of the marital crisis they've fallen into since Molly had a miscarriage, battling Mollys alcoholism and Gene's almost cheating. Then, one day, everything changes: A meteor crashes into their hometown, killing and injuring dozens. The military comes to seal the place of, everyone is on edge. And in the hospital, Molly finds the most amazing thing: A small alien boy, orphaned and in need of care...

Review: The premise sounds familiar to everyone who has even a passing interest in superheroes: A space ship crash, an orphaned little alien, loving human adoptive parents. And yet, this book manages to something new. It's a story about love and parenthood, yes, but it's also a story about people, about the ups and downs of life, about a small town and the the Cold War.

Molly Myers, our main character, is a wonderful woman. She's flawed, she's clingy, she gets overprotective, she cares deeply but never really got over her miscarriage. Her battle with alcoholism is not the main part of the book, she's mostly past it by the beginning of the story, but it's something that is very much still part of her. She latches onto Cory, named that way because it was the first sound he made, quickly, in a way that everyone around her recognizes as a remnant of her trauma about her lost baby, but that's not all it is: She's simply a very, very compassionate person when children are involved, and grows to love the boy as her son, no questions asked.

Gene is a much quieter presence than Molly, supportive and worried at all times, but a loving husband and eventually father. Reading about him growing to love little Cory is an absolute delight, and his and Molly's relationship is very well developed.

Cory himself is just such a wonderful character. He's enthusiastic about everything, he's curious and he loves playing. He has powers, too, powerful telephatic ones. And he does not look human. Cory has lilac skin and face tentacles, no one could mistake him for a human.

As if this wasn't enough story for a book, the author also mines the Cold War setting to it's fullest potential. The military is omnipresent in Amber Grove after the meteor comes down, complete with a very ambitious scientist who wants to know all there is about the aliens that came with the meteor. These people cause the most conflict, as Molly and Gene, as well as a doctor and two nurses do everything in their power to protect little Cory from being found by the military.

Especially in the second half of the book, this part of the story picks up a lot of steam, leading to a tense finale, but never losing sight of what makes the story so special: It's beating heart of love and humanity, of friendship and family and loyalty.

Are there queer people: Cory mentions that his people know three genders, male, female and inter, but we never see any of those, so I don't count it. Otherwise there's two people where if you squint you can read them as a f/f couple, but Molly never even considers it, so that doesn't count either.

Are there people of color: Diana, one of Mollys neighbors and close friends, and her children are black.

Stephen Cox

Farpoint Soundtrack by #StephenCox #Farpoint #videogame #PS4 #VR #PlayStation4 #soundtrack #gameost #game #tracklist

Original Game Soundtrack (OST) to the videogame Farpoint (2017). Music composed by Stephen Cox. Source: Farpoint Game Style: Original Soundtrack Music by Stephen Cox Label: Sony Interactive Entertainment America Release Date: May 16, 2017 (Digital) Farpoint is a 2017 adventure FPS-shooter developed by Impulse Gear, published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for PlayStation 4 (PlayStation VR).…