'Petra darted across the room and parted the curtains. "Enjoy it," she advised. "You would not want to live without it."' One unforgettable midsummer night, a colony of aliens beams down onto Earth, bent on discovering as much as they can about our planet before they attack. They look like humans, but they don't sound or smell like them, and the rules of their world follow an entirely different code. Regular Earthling Simon Delaney meets one of the advance Scouts - Pet-Ra Eight, and unwittingly sets out to teach her about his world, unaware that he is paving the path for an invasion. All over the world, similar scenes are being played out as the Watchers gradually worm their way into unsuspecting human lives. But the difference is, Petra is also slowly beginning to trust him. When loyalties are divided and people who once trusted each other implicitly are played off against one another in a raging mental war against humankind, will Simon choose Petra . . . or his planet? And, most importantly, which way will Petra decide? Will she choose to protect Simon, or retreat naturally into the warlike disposition of her own kind? The fate of the world hangs in the balance with a single resolution . . . Around the world, in New York, Tokyo, Moscow, similar paths are being paved out by very different characters, each bound by the ties of a decision they must make if they are to achieve their ultimate goal . . . and to prevent their faith from wavering in the Ultimate ruler, the supreme Overlord. With updates every Sunday Note: I do not own the cover