Welcome to my tour stop! Check out this new YA sci-fi and my review below...
Titan of the Stars
By E.K. Johnston
Young Adult Sci-Fi Horror
Audiobook, Hardcover & eBook, 304 Pages
May 27, 2025 by Tundra Books
Summary
Alien meets The Titanic in this tense YA science fiction horror series by #1 New York Times bestselling author E.K. Johnston.
Celeste knows every inch of this ship. She's proud of her work as apprentice engineer. And as the maiden voyage of the Titan launches, she's optimistic for the promises of this new journey from Earth to Mars — this new life.
Dominic arrives at his suite where his valet is busy unpacking his things. His chest is tight, already feeling anxious inside his dad's precious new ship. Once it launches, he's trapped, inside the ship and inside the life his father has chosen for him — a life that will leave his dreams of art school behind.
Discovered under melted ice caps, ancient aliens have been brought onto the Titan as well, and stored in display cases for the entertainment of the passengers . . . until an act of sabotage releases them into the ship, with zero discrimination for class, decks or human life . . .
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My Review
TITAN OF STARS is a steadily paced sci-fi thriller with a constant undertone of danger that majorly ramps up towards the end. The first half of the book introduces readers to the characters so that they're invested in what will occur in the second half, and fully immerses them in this futuristic world with its politics and different classes of people. The story unfolds as they travel in a spaceship to Mars from Earth. The characters are likable and all complex with their own challenges and personalities. This is the book for readers who like alien stories but not full throttle horror. There are plenty of chills but ones this reader could handle.
Read this book if you like:
- Intriguing sci-fi stories set in space
- Likable, diverse characters
- Books with aliens (the scary kind)
- Well-plotted and engrossing storylines
- Stories where romance isn't the main focus
- An ending that makes you want to read the next book
The characters in this one were all so varied. Three of the main ones were about the same age, but they all had different backgrounds, situations they're dealing with and personalities. They were all fairly well drawn, but also flawed, making it easy for readers to relate to them all in some way. And they're definitely likable. I wasn't sure exactly how invested I should be with each of them, but I hoped the author wouldn't kill them all off before the end of the book. I won't spoil it for anyone though. You'll have to read it yourself and find out who lives.
The setting was fascinating to me. There's been this rift in the earth that created a huge catastrophe and there's some unique political and power roles for the characters on this ship. There was all this maneuvering and power plays and then you add to that dead aliens in cases for observation. Aliens that were fairly well described and who may not actually be as dead as believed. The author did a great job in making me think and have questions along the way. You also can totally feel the tension building and then some additional freak-out moments with the characters. I felt like the plot was developed well. It felt realistically portrayed and logical for things to happen as they did. And. The. Ending. Yep, I'll leave it there.
I didn't have many complaints with this book. The only major one would be not always being able to tell the difference between POVs, so I would have liked the characters actual voices to be more easily differentiated so I wasn't always trying to figure out who was speaking in the first couple of paragraphs. My other complaint is that I could have done without some of the crass references and language.
In the end, was it what I wished for? This was an enjoyable book that starts of slow and steadily increases the tension until things escalate. Likable characters, an interesting setting, and a bit of chills kept me engrossed. I'm beyond curious to find out what will happen in book two!
Content: Some crass verbiage and swearing (including a handful of f-words), references to a gay relationship, violence (some of it a bit gory and disgusting).
Source: I received a complimentary copy through TBR and Beyond Tours, which did not require a positive review. All opinions are my own.
About the Author
E.K. Johnston had several jobs and one vocation before she became a published writer. If she’s learned anything, it’s that things turn out weird sometimes, and there’s not a lot you can do about it. Well, that and how to muscle through awkward fanfic because it’s about a pairing she likes.
Her books range from contemporary fantasy to fairy-tale reimaginings, from hopeful sci-fi to quiet epics, and from small town Ontario to a galaxy far, far away. She has no plans to rein anything in.
You can follow Kate online (@ekjohnston) to learn more about her Dragon Age decisions than you really need to know, or on Tumblr (ekjohnston) and Instagram (ek_johnston) if you’re just here for pretty pictures.
E.K. Johnston is represented by Adams Literary
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