Alien in the House

The variously dark and cheerful seventh installment of Koch’s Alien series (after Alien vs. Alien) is a crowd-pleaser. Kitty Katt-Martini (a human) and her husband, Jeff Martini (a stunningly handsome Alpha Centaurian), are now Alpha Centauri’s ambassadors to the U.S., as well as the parents of one-year-old Jamie, whose accelerated development is outstripping the norms for both races. Following the catastrophic attacks that Kitty called Operation Destruction, Kitty and Jeff are hoping to settle down to a less dangerous if still hectic life. But a tragic assassination attempt and the discovery that every attack and conspiracy may have a single mastermind set in motion a chain of events that will reveal a “dead” enemy is still living and risk the A.C.s being forced into exile or war with Earth. The best hallmarks of the series—frequent banter, head-first dives into action, tangled webs, and Kitty’s snark—are in full force again. Agent: Cherry Weiner, Cherry Weiner Literary Agency. (May)