The Incredible Aunty Awesomesauce
by J.S. Frankel
Reviewed by S. S. Bazinet

Description: Sam Aushumness, sixteen, orphan and high school outcast, meets his long-lost aunt at his parents’ funeral—or the woman he thinks is his aunt. It turns out that she isn’t his aunt, isn’t from around here, and isn’t even from this galaxy.

It seems the person masquerading as his aunt is a refugee from a faraway world, and she’s being pursued by a small band of mercenaries who have been hired to bring her back dead or alive—preferably dead.

Secrets have to be kept, and only Sam and his girlfriend, Kym Kim, know who Aunty Aushumness—nickname Aunty Awesomesauce—really is.

However, the secret soon gets out, and soon the mercenaries, the police, and every branch of the government are on the hunt to find Aunty Awesomesauce, what she knows, and what secrets she carries.

Aunty A, though, isn’t one to back down from a fight, and when push comes to shove, the mercenaries find out how bad she can be.
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Review: An exciting story, with lots of heart!

Sixteen-year-old Sam, the main character, is written in a way that made me immediately care about him. When the story begins, he’s trying to navigate a very difficult period in his life. In school, he’s the kind of skinny guy no one notices except for his girlfriend, Kym Kim, and a couple of bullies. But his life is thrown into a total tail spin when his parents are killed in an accident. Suddenly, he’s on his own, and he’s facing the prospect of being put in the care of Social Services. He does his best to cope, but he’s grief-stricken and scared.

That’s when a wonderful character steps in. Aunty Aushumness is described as round, rumpled and probably in her forties. When she shows up and introduces herself to Sam, she seems like exactly what he needs, a relative who cares. Throughout the story Aunty A is very caring, but she’s not Sam’s relative. She’s an alien from a distant world who has lots of troubles of her own. Happily, Aunty A has skills, lots of them.

The story is a perfect YA/Sci-Fi tale. It moves along at a pace that keeps the reader wanting to turn pages. There’s humor, lots of adventure, suspense and action. But there’s also a wonderful story of a fearful, unsure boy who gradually learns that his future could be much brighter than he thought possible. With the help and training of Aunty A, a person I thought of as Aunty Awesome, Sam takes a chance on himself. As he’s guided along by Aunty A, he learns that he can go beyond his fears and find a degree of confidence when he’s up against some overwhelming odds. This is a well-told, exciting story, with lots of heart, and I can highly recommend it to teens and adults alike.

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Visit J. S. Frankel’s Amazon Author Page.