Having overcome the threat posed by the returning Spaceborn in the earlier books in the series, Sarah, Welkin and the other members of "The Family" now face their most serious threat. Another of the colony ships from Earth's past has returned. On this ship they face a new kind of threat, for the human members of the crew have been infected with alien parasites, leaving the hosts as near zombies, controlled by a hive mind.

This time they have to overcome not only the physical threat of their enemy, but also the more insidious threat of infestation in their own ranks. They decide that their new home in New Zealand will not keep them safe from this threat for long, and that they need to return to Australia and take the fight to the Hiveborn.

Paul Collins has saved the best book of this trilogy for the third instalment. The enemy that "The Family" face has increased markedly in menace and strength, whilst "The Family" have learned from their struggles against the Spaceborn. It's handled superbly, it would have been all too easy for Collins to have turned his teenage characters into superhuman soldier types to meet this increased threat. But he didn't.

The actions of "The Family" are thoroughly believable, and no rabbits are pulled out of hats – no miraculous discovery of a secret super-weapon. I like this a great deal. The credit for the victory over the Hiveborn falls squarely on the shoulders of the characters.

This is a wonderful end to what has been a thoroughly entertaining series. Paul has managed with this series to overcome my hesitation towards reading young adult fiction. Now, he hasn't turned me into an out-an-out fan of young adult sf. I still prefer more complex themes. But after the first two books in the series, he did make me want to read book three. And then he didn't let me down, quite the opposite in fact – this was great!

The characters have matured over the course of these three books, quite understandably given their experiences in the first two, and the time that has passed, after all a year or two is a long time for kids who were only 12-14 at the start of the series.

And this new enemy is quite creepy. Okay, in many ways you could say that there is similarity between them and the Goa'auld in Stargate, or the creatures in Robert Heinlein's The Puppet Masters, or the recen US TV series Threshold. But Paul Collins has made this his own; he's added a new slant to his creatures.

Also the geographical location is somewhat refreshing. Most Earthbound sf I read or watch takes place in either the USA or Britain. The author has set the action here in his homeland Australia, a logical decision I would imagine – the author is using places he is familiar with. But definitely makes a change from my perspective.

Splendid stuff!

Synopsis
Raised an elite Skyborn, betrayed by the treacherous elders, and befriended by an Earthborn militia, Welkin Quinn returned to earth from space and discovered that his Skyborn existence was a culture of lies.

Earth-decimated 150 years ago by a nuclear holocaust-is now entering a stage of renewal. Nature provides the necessities of life, but the human factions continue to hunt one another.

Welkin and his band of outcasts (who refer to themselves simply as ""The Family"") have survived the cruel intentions of the jabbers, the machinations of the cult leader Tolk, and the ethnic cleansing campaign of the Skyborn.

Now, a new threat has descended from the stars: the Hiveborn. Driven by the unifying force of the Hivemind, this ancient power seeks to immerse and overwhelm the autonomy not only of humankind, but of all intelligent life in the universe.

When the Hiveborn breach "The Family"'s fortress in the mines of New Zealand, the defenders of humanity face an awful choice.

One hope may remain, but will "The Family" be willing to pay the cost?