Maya Loop by Lisa Anna-Langston

This blue-haired girl never wanted to leave Baltimore and move to a farm down south in the middle of nowhere. I even planned to leave my grandfather's farm to return "home", although planned probably is the wrong word to use. I didn't have a plan, and visiting the neighbor's house changed everything. I released an Assassin Bug trapped in a jar, and it opened my eyes to a world I never knew existed. Aliens called Landions want to eliminate humans from ever existing, and all they need is the last piece of a water clock to do it. My quest took me below the ground where I was aided by moles with goggles and a Shooptee. However, they said I needed to cross the river alone, and I had to find the Orb Weaver. I had no idea how I was supposed to do either of those things, but I was the only one who could save mankind from extinction.

I received an ARC through BookSirens, and the book exceeded my expectations. The basis of the story involved time travel, although this version didn't view time as moving forward and backward. Many books about time travel can become confusing, but the characters didn't do a lot of time jumping. The Landions wanted to erase humans from ever existing. The author pointed out some negatives of mankind, including the extermination of animal species on earth. It seemed like the idea for the story grew from our habit of killing most insects we find. Maya and her grandmother had special abilities, but Maya was the last person on earth with the ability to save humanity. This made her the primary target for the Landions. She was helped by creatures that often spoke cryptically, so their messages were sometimes a challenge to understand. This actually made them more endearing, as they were willing to break the rules to help Maya. The plot moved along with a blend of adventure, humor, and creativity mixed with absurdity. The climax presented an especially strange resolution to the conflict. Overall, this book was very entertaining, and I recommend you give it a shot.