Julie and Laura Ferris are sisters who have no one left but themselves.  Julie is a Realtor in Beverly Hills, working for a family-owned business that is being slowly run into the ground by Patrick, the playboy son of the owner.  Patrick has always wanted Julie, but she has refused him for eight years, unwilling to be just another one of his women.

One day, the two sisters are enjoying the beach, and the next, things are different.  Laura begins acting strange and Julie gets debilitating headaches.  Shortly thereafter, Patrick suffers a heart attack, but recovers more quickly than can be imagined.

As Patrick seems to be renouncing his old ways, Julie finds herself drawn to this new, better man.  But her sister needs her now more than ever, as she insists she was abducted by aliens that day on the beach.

I admit, I was not expecting the aliens.  But Ms. Martin wove in quite a bit of knowledge about space travel with commonly accepted alien lore (Area 51, Roswell, etc.).  But the stellar part of Season of Strangers was Patrick.  Patrick’s changes come about as a result of an alien named Val merging with the spirit of the old Patrick.  Watching Val learn about becoming human, while integrating the best parts of Patrick’s life, was fascinating and well-done.  Best of all was watching him fall in love, a concept that didn’t exist on his planet.  While the concept of alien abduction was different, the story of personal growth and love was exceptional.