Horizon

Molly, Anna, Oliver, and Javi are headed to Japan for the Soccer Robots championship.  They are all excited, if a little nervous, for their first international flight.  Halfway through the flight, something goes wrong, and they crash on a jungle island in the middle of nowhere.

Yoshi was on his way home to Japan to meet an angry father and serious punishment.  The twins, who only speak Japanese and French, were on their way home from boarding school.  No one is too sure about Caleb except for the fact that he seems to think he should be in charge.

They aren't just the only survivors.  They are the only ones left on the plane when it lands.  Some kind of strange lightning seemed to examine and everyone and throw most of the passengers out of the plane.

It seems impossible because there is only the Arctic in between them and Japan.  Plus, there are strange creatures they've never seen before.  Where are they, and how did they get here?  Will they be able to survive until rescue arrives?  That's assuming someone can find them in this impossible place.

I have to admit it enjoyed this book more than I thought I would.  It reads like Lost for middle school.  The first entry is by Scott Westerfeld, but this will be one of those massive multi-author series with an online gaming platform that Scholastic loves to do these days.  I enjoyed it, but I'm just not willing to commit to all that.  The good news is plenty of kids will.  Series books are super popular in middle school, and I'm sure this one will be promoted through book fair, which will keep it prominent.