Space Runners: The Moon Platoon by Jeramey Kraatz

My name is Benny, and I was one of the kids from Earth chosen to spend two weeks at the Lunar Taj, a luxurious resort located on the moon! I was hoping for some adventure, but I wasn't expecting the mysteries we uncovered. A girl's space runner was hit by an asteroid during a race, but that may not have been the truth. The asteroid contained unknown elements and wires, not the kind of things found in our solar system. My new friend Drue is an annoying pain in the butt, but he's helped us discover surprising secrets around the Taj. I'm not sure we're alone in space. We should probably tell Elijah, the genius billionaire creator of the resort, but I suspect he already knows what's going on. I don't know why he's hiding the truth, and I fear the survival of Earth may be in danger.

This book reminds me a bit of the Bounders series, as kids are sent into space, only to find the people in power are keeping dangerous secrets from them. The author introduces creative inventions to help the characters survive on the moon. The Taj is protected by a dome, but protective bubbles appear around the characters heads if there's a breach. The electronics are controlled by a computer hologram with a real personality. I like how small decisions by the kids lead to huge problems or discoveries, although the kids are never seriously punished. In the beginning, Benny isn't respected by any of the other scholarship winners due to his background, but he becomes their leader based on his courage, humility, and survival skills. It's a little unbelievable (actually a lot unbelievable) that Elijah never consulted other adult experts, and the kids were able to solve the problem. The next book will be very interesting, since we'll already know the major conflict. I'm looking forward to the sequel.