Impact by Douglas Preston

A meteor strike sends Wyman Ford on a mission of discovery while it sparks a flame of greed in Abbey.   Ford discovers that radioactive jewels are not the problem while Abbey discovers that things are not what they seem.

Ford is a mysterious figure that has ties to the CIA and seems very competent.   The Abbey character shows a lot of growth and in some ways this is a coming of age for her in this book.   A child of color in a lily white community, Abbey is frustrated and feels misunderstood.   Her personal growth in the book is just shy of being miraculous.  However just as convection oven bakes faster, if you subject a bright directionless teen to lots of stress and pressure they can collapse or grow faster.  Abbey grows faster.

Preston writes a great story and always has an intellectually challenging twist.

I recommend the book.

Web Site:  http://www.prestonchild.com/

This book may have been received free of charge from a publisher or a publicist. That will NEVER have a bearing on my recommendations.