The Exo Project — Andrew DeYoung

This fast-paced, sharply written multiple-perspective YA science-fiction debut opens on a future Earth ravaged by solar radiation. Desperate for money to save his sick mother, seventeen-year-old Matthew agrees to participate in the Exo Project, a government plan to save the human race by flying across the galaxy in search of a habitable planet for resettlement. He thinks he's been given a death sentence: 100 years in cryostasis, followed by a quick death on some barren world. But then he lands on Gle'ah, discovering the strange, beautiful creatures who live there, including Kiva, the captivating teenage girl who leads her planet's matriarchal society. Kiva views Matthew as a threat and for good reason -- if he tells Earth that he's found a suitable planet, it will mean the end of her people's way of life. But then Kiva and Matthew discover an emotional connection they never expected -- and as they begin to delve into the secrets of Matthew's mission and the dark truth behind the seeming paradise of Gle'ah, the choices they make will have consequences for both of their worlds.