I'm a fan of this middle grade sci-fi novel's cover art (front and back!), and although I forgot exactly what I read in the book blurb last year, I knew I'd found this story's premise intriguing.

The memory of my intrigue kept me going when my interest dipped during several chapters. A story can start to lose me the longer it takes for me to get a strong sense of "what" and "why it matters." About a third of this novel went by before any of the theme park's main attractions and their purpose became clear enough to keep my interest steady.

Then I gradually became more engaged as the story became creepier, like a bad dream. (And I mean that in a good way.) Also, I really liked the illustrations spread throughout the book when, here and there, the action turned all graphic novelly!

However, perhaps partly due to the fact that I did indeed used to have creepy childhood dreams resembling Cam's challenge here, I found it unbelievable that it took so long for him to realize what a certain major problem was. Especially given the fact that he's been around artificially intelligent creations his whole life.

And regarding the AI elements, I couldn't share Cam's emotions for a lifelike computer/robot (a creation called a "rev") friend of his. Nor did a late but key aspect of the story concerning "humanness" and AI creations vibe with me. So, while I was all in during the climax, I didn't connect with the ending.

Still, I appreciate it when stories depict young people in more than passive roles—when they're thinkers who stand up and take positive action as they're able. ( )