Conquest by John Connolly and Jennifer Ridyard

They are called the Illyri and after discovering how to find and use wormholes for travel, they set about colonizing planets like their own. They arrived on Earth just over sixteen years ago and have ruled the planet ever since. 

Syl Hellais holds no hate for this planet. It is her home after all; she was the first of her kind born here. But her movements are restricted. As the daughter of the governor of the islands of Britain and Ireland she is forever protected and guarded. Much of the human resistance has been quashed over the years, but militant parties still exist and Edinburgh is home to one of the most active. Still, the area near the castle Syl and her father call home is generally free of such worries. So When Syl escapes on her sixteenth birthday, intent on exploring the nearby village, she has no way of knowing that she's walking straight into a war zone. 

Paul and Steven Kerr are part of the resistance but aren't involved in the bombing that almost kills Syl and her friend. In fact, they come to the rescue saving Syl from the blast and hiding her from the search party. By the time they meet again, Paul and Steven are to be executed for a crime Syl knows they're innocent of. 

Conquest kicks off a brand new series coauthored by John Connolly and Jennifer Ridyard. This first installment in the Chronicles of the Invaders is awesome in scope and premise. Not only do we have conquering aliens, which of course means an almost certain looming all out war between humankind and the invaders, but the politics of the Illyri are in question as well. There are some pretty big revelations in Conguest, some twists I didn't quite see coming that leave much to look forward to in subsequent books. And while it's clear throughout Conquest that this is only the beginning - there's an obligatory cliffhanger-esque ending, too - it's a highly engaging first book.

Connolly and Ridyard seem to work together fairly seamlessly. The collaboration here has resulted in a smooth and well written series debut with great characters, lots of intrigue, and pretty fantastic world building. No word yet on when we can expect the second book in the series, but it's already on my must have list!

Rating: 4/5