This was an action packed story. When it begins, Mayor Tillson, Maya, her dog Kenjii, Sam, Daniel, Corey, Rafe, Nicole and Hayley are on a helicopter supposedly being taken to join their parents and get away from the fires that are threatening Salmon Creek. But the helicopter pilot is going the wrong direction and Mayor Tillson collapses. The pilot is knocked out leaving the kids to pilot the helicopter with limited success. Rafe falls out of the helicopter and, even though Maya tries to save him, he falls. The helicopter ends up crashing into the water near the northern part of Vancouver Island. The pilot and Mayor Tillson are dead but the kids manage to swim back to the island.When "rescuers" come, some of the kids are suspicious but Nicole goes to them and is shot. That sends the rest of the kids running and a wild three day adventure happens as they try to elude the people sent to capture them and find a way back to civilization. Along the way Maya makes her first shift into cougar and Daniel comes to realize that the things he can do make him a supernatural creature too. The kids don't know who they can trust and don't really understand what is happening. They have a few clues about the bigger picture which includes a conflict between St. Cloud and the Nasts but none of them really know what is happening. All they know is that they want to get to their parents because they feel they can trust them. One of their pursuers claims to be Maya's biological father but nothing he does inclines Maya to trust him at all. The story was exciting. The kids learn more about their powers. But this is very much a middle book in a trilogy. The larger issues, including the kids' safety, are left unresolved. I can't wait to read the concluding volume to find out what happens next for Maya, Daniel and their friends.
