Review on Balky Point Adventure #1 The Universes Inside the Lighthouse

After 17 year old twins Emma and Charlie explore a lighthouse on the island they are vacationing on, their lives change forever. With help from their friend Ben, a resident of the island, they must discover the truth behind a man and a young girl who seem to never age, and what truly lies beyond a seemingly normal storage closet in the lighthouse. Emma, Charlie and Ben must travel through the universes with their new companions in search of Vik, a man who has been terrorizing the Universe. But is there more to Vik than meets the eye, and does Emma truly need to use the elevators to traverse the Universes?

I thought this book was really interesting and I loved the Sci-Fi theme of it. I loved the idea of the Hub, and felt that it was quite similar to the TARDIS from Doctor Who, as the twins gained access to it from inside a storage closet. The imagery for the Hub was fantastic and I had a clear picture in my head of what it would look like. I also loved that the Hub did not seem to have a fixed space, as the twins were able to access it from other planets.

The characters were interesting and well thought out. I particularly loved Dr Waldo who seemed like an eccentric mad scientist. I also loved Charlie as he was funny and quite sarcastic at times, and nothing ever seemed to phase him. His relationship with his sister was sweet, although I did find it strange that he was willing to leave her instead of staying around to protect her. I also felt that the alien characters were a little too familiar with Earth, and didn't stand out from the crowd. I felt that some of the adult characters such as Milo and Ed were a little one dimensional, but the teenagers were perfectly written.

I loved that the romantic sub-plot wasn't too much of a major theme, and didn't come up too often. I always feel that YA Sci-Fi and fantasy books include too much romance, but with this book it wasn't a problem, as the teenagers were more interested in exploring the Universes than dating each other, which I think made it seem more realistic to the situation.

The exploration of the planets was interesting, and I particularly loved the ghost planet. I did find myself wondering if there was more to the water and dead planets than met the eye, and would have liked to have seen the characters try to explore these more instead of leaving again right away.

One of the main themes of the book was loneliness, which I thought was interesting and relatable, as everyone feels that they are alone and no one cares about them at some point in their life. The explanation of The Void creating these feelings was a unique look on it, as sometimes we can still feel alone even if we are surrounded by friends and family.

I recommend this book to fans of Doctor Who, and anyone who loves to read Sci-Fi novels.

You can purchase The Universes Inside the Lighthouse HERE