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Chronicle of the Dark Star #2
The Oceans Between Stars
It is Earth year 2223, but the Earth, along with the entire solar system, is gone.
Liam and Phoebe, having barely escaped our exploding sun with their lives, are in stasis for the decade-long journey to the rogue planet Delphi, where they hope to meet up with the rest of the human refugees, find help for their injured parents, and pass along the devastating things they discovered on Mars: that someone destroyed their world intentionally, and that that someone might still be after them, trying to finish the job.
Phoebe is carrying her own dark secret. One that finds her waking up secretly at various points in their journey, changing their path through space. One that will decide the fate of the human race, and many more besides. One that, very soon, she must reveal to Liam, whether he’s ready for the truth or not.
Liam and Phoebe, having barely escaped our exploding sun with their lives, are in stasis for the decade-long journey to the rogue planet Delphi, where they hope to meet up with the rest of the human refugees, find help for their injured parents, and pass along the devastating things they discovered on Mars: that someone destroyed their world intentionally, and that that someone might still be after them, trying to finish the job.
Phoebe is carrying her own dark secret. One that finds her waking up secretly at various points in their journey, changing their path through space. One that will decide the fate of the human race, and many more besides. One that, very soon, she must reveal to Liam, whether he’s ready for the truth or not.
320 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 13, 2018
About the author
Kevin Emerson
36 books447 followersAuthor of sixteen novels for children and young adults, most recently LAST DAY ON MARS, BREAKOUT, and the ATLANTEANS series. His books have been published in ten different countries. Formerly a science teacher and a creative writing teacher, Kevin is also a singer and drummer. He has won a spelling bee, lost a beauty pageant, and once appeared in a Swedish TV commercial.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 139 reviews
October 7, 2018
"Trust is a powerful adaptation of three-dimensional beings...It’s your engine for still making a choice when you don’t have all possible information."It was so good to be back to this space adventure. It was perfect. I enjoyed it way more than I expected. In the first book, the excitement level was increasing gradually, like one or two steps at a time. But here, it went to peak point from the very beginning. I was so absorbed in this world. But yeah, it took me a good time to finish, because I got involved in 3 to 4 buddy-reads or a TV-series I'm watching these days. But that's okay. I enjoyed it and that's what matters.
CHARACTERS
Liam & Phoebe are major ones. Their friendship is so great. Like their trust on each other is incredible. I loved it.
JEFF, hah, that's my robo-panda! Soo cute.
"We’re a team. Best in the galaxy."
PLOT
After our Solar System has been wiped out from our universe, Humanity, via starliners, are going to another home planet. As Liam, Phoebe and JEFF have lost them on Mars, they are trying to catch them via their cruiser piloted by JEFF. Their parents get injured on Mars, so they are also with them in statis pods, sleeping all the way. Eventually, the team get to know that someone is exploding stars on purpose by speeding up their supernova process. That's not a very good thing for the universe.
--The book has a lot of time travel. It sometimes get little complex to get along by just reading once. They time travelled via an alien watch they found on Mars.
--Their arrival on Delphi was amazing. I loved the scenes written on that place.
--We also got to see Centauri System too. It's like our Solar System but has two stars, Centauri A and Centauri B. You know this system exist in reality too. Centauri A is the closest star from our Solar System, 4 light years away I guess.
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--Probably the only thing I didn't like is the name of series. It's the Chronicles of Dark Star. And the name Dark Star appears barely 2 to 3 times. We don't know the D of Dark Star right now and the next book is the finale. Don't know why, it feels so soon. :( Let's hope for the good.
--
To sum up, this is the best book I read this year so far. (^__^)
But give this series a go if you like space-travel, time travel, concept of multiple realities and dimensions etc..
☆☆☆5 Stars☆☆☆
6 October, 2018!
January 25, 2023
🌠 The first half of the book was terrible, but at the end, it got good. It just took me so long to get into...
🌠 The interlude was like my fav part… idk, it just seemed so cool to have a pause in the book…. probably just me, but whatever XD
🌠 It was meh, but one of those books where you HAVE to read the next book to find out what happens next.
🌠 The interlude was like my fav part… idk, it just seemed so cool to have a pause in the book…. probably just me, but whatever XD
🌠 It was meh, but one of those books where you HAVE to read the next book to find out what happens next.
August 1, 2023
honestly kinda speechless.
I had a lot of theories about where this series would go, but my expectations were surpassed. There wasn't any of the filler content that I felt dragged the first book down. Other than the truth about Aaru, I didn't see any of this coming so basically every page I reached a new level of being shook. I mean, the long time it took me to read this book does not correctly portray how much of a page-turner it was. Every minute of free time I could get, I was reading this, wanting to know what happened next.
One of the very major reasons I loved this installment was because for a middle book in a trilogy, it doesn't follow the pattern. For many series there isn't enough content for a middle book and it ends up being really boring. Or even when the middle book is good, we get a good amount of answers for the questions we had in book 1; not all of them, but enough. However, this book chooses to barely answer any questions to save for a dramatic finale (hopefully). It works very well.
Yeah I definitely recommend this series
I had a lot of theories about where this series would go, but my expectations were surpassed. There wasn't any of the filler content that I felt dragged the first book down. Other than the truth about Aaru, I didn't see any of this coming so basically every page I reached a new level of being shook. I mean, the long time it took me to read this book does not correctly portray how much of a page-turner it was. Every minute of free time I could get, I was reading this, wanting to know what happened next.
One of the very major reasons I loved this installment was because for a middle book in a trilogy, it doesn't follow the pattern. For many series there isn't enough content for a middle book and it ends up being really boring. Or even when the middle book is good, we get a good amount of answers for the questions we had in book 1; not all of them, but enough. However, this book chooses to barely answer any questions to save for a dramatic finale (hopefully). It works very well.
Yeah I definitely recommend this series
April 3, 2018
They've left Mars, but they took the drama with them. Outstanding sequel that leaves you eager for the third installment.
April 27, 2018
Originally reviewed for YA Books Central: http://www.yabookscentral.com/yaficti...
A trust and friendship-centric second installment in this middle-grade sci-fi series, The Oceans Between Stars is fast-paced follow-up to The Last Day On Mars.
Once again, the book opens with an exposition meant to explain alien things and ideas with manageable human analogies—using a touch of matter-of-fact wit and irony (vaguely Douglass Adams styled, san silliness.) Just as with the vast majority of the first book, the parents are out of the picture. Still badly injured and kept in suspended animation for the long journey to their hopeful new home. It’s up to Liam, Phoebe, and their trusty panda-shaped android, JEFF, to ensure they actually make it to their destination.
A number of information tidbits come together in this book to form some fairly big reveals, so that was rewarding to see. All these details turned out to be well-threaded ahead of time, so there isn’t the sense that any of it was forced. Those hoping for clarity on Phoebe’s origins will not be disappointed. And while some of the revelations provoke obvious philosophical quandaries, there isn’t too much time spent watching 13-year-olds attempt to soapbox over them. The primary focus is ‘run, outwit, survive,’ and while the overarching plot has grown in complexity, it never gets too far from that rooting.
On the downside, the splitting off of multiple realities, while a useful plot device in some cases, can become a bit confusing at times. Especially as Liam begins inexplicably stepping outside of his own timeline and dimensional limitations. (The first book only involved time travel… er… maybe time-voyering is the more accurate term? So, I’d expect some readers may not love the complications brought on by the addition of multiverse concepts.) Bottom line: It isn’t quite as easy to follow as the first book in the series.
On the upside, the slow and drawn-out portions of the first book (particularly toward the beginning half) don’t pull an encore in this book. While there is still some scene drag here and there, there is notably less dwelling on the mundane details of spacefaring/colony life. It also stays fairly consistent to the previously established respect for realistic tech and physics seen in book #1.
Though this book doesn’t stand alone nearly as well as its predecessor, it does answer a number of pressing questions generated by the first book. It also ends on a note sure to propel readers on to the next installment.
A trust and friendship-centric second installment in this middle-grade sci-fi series, The Oceans Between Stars is fast-paced follow-up to The Last Day On Mars.
Once again, the book opens with an exposition meant to explain alien things and ideas with manageable human analogies—using a touch of matter-of-fact wit and irony (vaguely Douglass Adams styled, san silliness.) Just as with the vast majority of the first book, the parents are out of the picture. Still badly injured and kept in suspended animation for the long journey to their hopeful new home. It’s up to Liam, Phoebe, and their trusty panda-shaped android, JEFF, to ensure they actually make it to their destination.
A number of information tidbits come together in this book to form some fairly big reveals, so that was rewarding to see. All these details turned out to be well-threaded ahead of time, so there isn’t the sense that any of it was forced. Those hoping for clarity on Phoebe’s origins will not be disappointed. And while some of the revelations provoke obvious philosophical quandaries, there isn’t too much time spent watching 13-year-olds attempt to soapbox over them. The primary focus is ‘run, outwit, survive,’ and while the overarching plot has grown in complexity, it never gets too far from that rooting.
On the downside, the splitting off of multiple realities, while a useful plot device in some cases, can become a bit confusing at times. Especially as Liam begins inexplicably stepping outside of his own timeline and dimensional limitations. (The first book only involved time travel… er… maybe time-voyering is the more accurate term? So, I’d expect some readers may not love the complications brought on by the addition of multiverse concepts.) Bottom line: It isn’t quite as easy to follow as the first book in the series.
On the upside, the slow and drawn-out portions of the first book (particularly toward the beginning half) don’t pull an encore in this book. While there is still some scene drag here and there, there is notably less dwelling on the mundane details of spacefaring/colony life. It also stays fairly consistent to the previously established respect for realistic tech and physics seen in book #1.
Though this book doesn’t stand alone nearly as well as its predecessor, it does answer a number of pressing questions generated by the first book. It also ends on a note sure to propel readers on to the next installment.
March 1, 2022
This book is certainly unafraid to embrace its weirdness. The last book was a lot more grounded. This one really expands on the time travel aspects and starts to basically change the way the universe seemed to work. The chronologists appear again in a weirdly nonsynchronous way, so we get to know a little more about the most interesting alien race in here. None of it entirely makes sense, but that’s time travel for you. The book is both wider and more constrained than the last one. Liam and Phoebe are alone for most of it and while we do see some of the fleet we spend little time there. I do have to say though, that we get a lot of answers, some of them to questions I never asked. The big “why are the suns exploding” mystery is still out there, but it seems set up to be explained clearly in the next book.
I do have to say that this book deals with some pretty dark stuff for a young adult novel. Not that YA novels can’t deal with dark material, but you just don’t expect it from the scifi premise. But here we have full on genocide, and not from villains either. The problem with dealing with such a premise in a YA novel though is that I don’t think it ever really does the topic justice. Everything is either too easy or too hard. The problem is it seems too arbitrary either way and fits into the “my parents never listen to me” trope a little too neatly. Once you’ve got locked into “adults are a frustrating and incomprehensible force” mode it starts to become hard to follow. Especially if you’re not a kid.
I do have to say that this book deals with some pretty dark stuff for a young adult novel. Not that YA novels can’t deal with dark material, but you just don’t expect it from the scifi premise. But here we have full on genocide, and not from villains either. The problem with dealing with such a premise in a YA novel though is that I don’t think it ever really does the topic justice. Everything is either too easy or too hard. The problem is it seems too arbitrary either way and fits into the “my parents never listen to me” trope a little too neatly. Once you’ve got locked into “adults are a frustrating and incomprehensible force” mode it starts to become hard to follow. Especially if you’re not a kid.
December 23, 2020
The Oceans Between Stars is the second book in the Chronicle of the Dark Star series. The first half of this book was incredibly boring. The impression I got was that this was a two book series that got dragged into a trilogy for financial reasons. The second half of the book was thrilling, and by the end I couldn't wait for the third book.
The Oceans Between Stars was very similar to the previous book. The originality of the story continued to be the strong point in this series. So much so, that I wouldn't want to provide any spoilers. The weak point continues to be the characters, who are average, relatively uninteresting kids.
I really like these books, and I think Amazon, Netflix, or HBO could turn this into an incredible TV series. I give this book four stars. The biggest negatives are for the slow pace in the first half of the book, and the bland, kid characters. Still, this is a great read. I would not call it YA. It is definitely more middle grade. I would recommend it to anyone interested in children's sci-fi.
The Oceans Between Stars was very similar to the previous book. The originality of the story continued to be the strong point in this series. So much so, that I wouldn't want to provide any spoilers. The weak point continues to be the characters, who are average, relatively uninteresting kids.
I really like these books, and I think Amazon, Netflix, or HBO could turn this into an incredible TV series. I give this book four stars. The biggest negatives are for the slow pace in the first half of the book, and the bland, kid characters. Still, this is a great read. I would not call it YA. It is definitely more middle grade. I would recommend it to anyone interested in children's sci-fi.
June 27, 2020
I read this book over a year ago, so I can't say much about the plot. I also finished reading the third book yesterday. But this isn't a review on book three. I already have one on the topic.
So, even though I can't say much about the story, I will say this: this book got me interested in the multiverse theory. I want to see parallel universes. Please give me one. Please. PLEASE.
Also, this cover is my favorite cover ever. Whoever designed the cover did a great job.
So, even though I can't say much about the story, I will say this: this book got me interested in the multiverse theory. I want to see parallel universes. Please give me one. Please. PLEASE.
Also, this cover is my favorite cover ever. Whoever designed the cover did a great job.
May 20, 2021
The Oceans Between Stars continued the story of the first book in some unexpected and entertaining ways. The time travel stuff makes it all feel a little artificial and fabricated, but not enough to ruin my enjoyment of the characters, story world, and genuinely unexpected twists. I'm fully engaged for the final book and really hoping it doesn't let me down!
September 23, 2017
Middle grade sci fi, second in a series.
This sequel is even more sciencey than the first book, with lots of complex time travel.
Fun, fast-paced, and funny, but a little hard to follow. Very well written. Positive messages about friendship and working through differences.
This sequel is even more sciencey than the first book, with lots of complex time travel.
Fun, fast-paced, and funny, but a little hard to follow. Very well written. Positive messages about friendship and working through differences.
July 8, 2019
I became enthralled with Emerson's Chronicle of the Dark Star series, last year. It's wonderful to see a science fiction series that doesn't dumb down the terminology for middle graders. Additionally, the story is intricate woven, but feels fast-paced. I'm very pleased to learn that my 13 year old son now wants to read it. YAY! Quick rehash from book number one, Last Day on Mars: The story starts in year 2213 and we learn that Earth is gone and all remaining humans fled to Mars. Liam's and Phoebe's parents are part of the scientific team who discovered a new solar system to terraform that will sustain humans long-term, so they prepare to make the lengthy journey. In the meantime, the two main characters discover proof of another intelligent being just before the sun dies. And now it appears that their sun might not have died on its own--perhaps there were other forces at work. We are left on a cliffhanger where The Oceans Between Stars picks up.
Aaaaaaand the second book did NOT disappoint! I don't want to spoil anything for those who will soon dive into this series, so... Liam is attempting to reconnect with his little sister, who left Mars before he did. He continues to experiment with a special watch he found and learns there are multiple outcomes to his future, depending on what he chooses. We learn a lot more about Phoebe's family, as well, and the theme of this book revolves a great deal around human behavior and the power of trust. These are a few of the quotes I bookmarked from book #2:
There's such depth to the relationships in this series. These books need to be in both middle grade and upper teen collections. I plan to squeeze in book #3 just as soon as possible!!
For more children's literature, middle grade literature, and YA literature reviews, feel free to visit my personal blog at The Miller Memo!
Aaaaaaand the second book did NOT disappoint! I don't want to spoil anything for those who will soon dive into this series, so... Liam is attempting to reconnect with his little sister, who left Mars before he did. He continues to experiment with a special watch he found and learns there are multiple outcomes to his future, depending on what he chooses. We learn a lot more about Phoebe's family, as well, and the theme of this book revolves a great deal around human behavior and the power of trust. These are a few of the quotes I bookmarked from book #2:
"Trust is a power adaptation of three-dimensional beings. The hope or belief in something. It's your engine for still making a choice when you don't have all possible information."
"If there's anything I learned in all those history lessons I had to sit through on Mars, it's that [the human] species doesn't have the best track record when somebody else is living on the land that [they] want."
"One of the unfortunate things about a life lived in only three dimensions is that you do not know how or when you are going to die. You'd be surprised how much easier things are, knowing how long you have and what part you play."
There's such depth to the relationships in this series. These books need to be in both middle grade and upper teen collections. I plan to squeeze in book #3 just as soon as possible!!
For more children's literature, middle grade literature, and YA literature reviews, feel free to visit my personal blog at The Miller Memo!
May 28, 2019
I think a theme for this book is that you should always take the safe route, not the fastest. Multiple times in this book the characters take the fastest route and almost die. Then they take the slow/safe route and they end up being faster than the 'fast' route.
March 7, 2018
The second book in the Dark Star series does not disappoint!! Liam and Phoebe’s adventures continue as they try to get their parents back with the rest of humanity as it travels through space toward their new home. Many of my questions got answered in this one, yet I asked so many more and am now biting my nails waiting for book three. Especially after reading THE LAST PAGE!!
March 13, 2018
This sequel begins the task of answering some of the questions that haunted readers of Last Day on Mars. It also opened up some new questions as well. My students and I agree on a few things about this series: we didn't want to stop reading it, we love the changing relationship between Phoebe and Liam, and how both are trying to figure out what the heck is going on, and what they need to do next to stay alive. I love how this series does not dumb anything down for its readers and keeps a complex plot accessible. This was on my Must Read in 2018 list, and the conclusion told me another key fact, I have a title for my Must Read in 2019 list, and it is the third book of this series.
January 24, 2018
This Sequel Is Even Better than the First Book
This is the sequel to "Last Day on Mars" and is part of the continuing series "Chronicle of the Dark Star. I don't know what's planned, but it feels like it will take at least two or three more books to wrap up the whole series. You could start the series with this book, but that would be an unnecessary challenge. If you are patient and are willing to piece things together you could probably figure out how this all starts. But, it would be a lot easier and a lot more rewarding to just start with "Last Day on Mars", which is a fine book on its own, anyway.
But, this sequel is way better. The first book, in retrospect, seems fairly standard. Earth is already burned up, everyone's holed up on Mars, and the big deal is that everyone is escaping Mars before the Sun goes nova. So, it starts as a Mars colony tale, then a humanity in space/colonization tale. Our two heroes, Liam and Phoebe, get left behind and they and the AI JEFF have to catch up with the fleeing fleet. In addition to all sorts of space acrobatics, there are lots of hints about sabotage, other dangerous alien civilizations, hidden conspiracies, and the like to keep the pot boiling.
But things really speed up and take off in this book two. I'm not a fan of time travel and not really thrilled by parallel universe stuff, but that's the heart of this book and by gosh the author makes it work. Bottom line, Liam and Phoebe are still trying to fight off or avoid bad guys, they're still trying to catch up with the Earth fleet, and they're still trying to figure out who those guys are who are randomly blowing up suns, (like our sun). (Is it something personal or just the side effect of something else?)
Anyway, MILD SPOILERS, it turns out that with the help of a gizmo Liam found on Mars Liam can travel back and forth through time and can switch from one time line to other parallel time/event lines. The secret to this being readable is - 1) there's not too much of it, 2) we don't get bogged down in paradox baloney, 3) a wry and deadpan funny chronologist keeps joining Liam to explain what is/did/was/will/will have/ has been happening. Liam asks the chronologist exactly the questions the reader would ask, and the chronologist gives straight answers that sound both plausible and scientifically sound, in a quantum space/time sort of way. Amazingly, this makes the time travel and multiverse stuff both entertaining and very effective for plotting and action purposes.
So, I admit I expected this to be mostly space action, asteroid dodging, friendship bonding, space opera, (which is fine). It turned out to be more engaging, more sophisticated, more rewarding, better crafted, more gripping, and more satisfying than I could ever have hoped for. There are even interesting twists and turns in the Liam/Phoebe story that kept that angle fresh and intriguing. So, a very nice find and one of the few sequels that outdoes its predecessor.
(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
This is the sequel to "Last Day on Mars" and is part of the continuing series "Chronicle of the Dark Star. I don't know what's planned, but it feels like it will take at least two or three more books to wrap up the whole series. You could start the series with this book, but that would be an unnecessary challenge. If you are patient and are willing to piece things together you could probably figure out how this all starts. But, it would be a lot easier and a lot more rewarding to just start with "Last Day on Mars", which is a fine book on its own, anyway.
But, this sequel is way better. The first book, in retrospect, seems fairly standard. Earth is already burned up, everyone's holed up on Mars, and the big deal is that everyone is escaping Mars before the Sun goes nova. So, it starts as a Mars colony tale, then a humanity in space/colonization tale. Our two heroes, Liam and Phoebe, get left behind and they and the AI JEFF have to catch up with the fleeing fleet. In addition to all sorts of space acrobatics, there are lots of hints about sabotage, other dangerous alien civilizations, hidden conspiracies, and the like to keep the pot boiling.
But things really speed up and take off in this book two. I'm not a fan of time travel and not really thrilled by parallel universe stuff, but that's the heart of this book and by gosh the author makes it work. Bottom line, Liam and Phoebe are still trying to fight off or avoid bad guys, they're still trying to catch up with the Earth fleet, and they're still trying to figure out who those guys are who are randomly blowing up suns, (like our sun). (Is it something personal or just the side effect of something else?)
Anyway, MILD SPOILERS, it turns out that with the help of a gizmo Liam found on Mars Liam can travel back and forth through time and can switch from one time line to other parallel time/event lines. The secret to this being readable is - 1) there's not too much of it, 2) we don't get bogged down in paradox baloney, 3) a wry and deadpan funny chronologist keeps joining Liam to explain what is/did/was/will/will have/ has been happening. Liam asks the chronologist exactly the questions the reader would ask, and the chronologist gives straight answers that sound both plausible and scientifically sound, in a quantum space/time sort of way. Amazingly, this makes the time travel and multiverse stuff both entertaining and very effective for plotting and action purposes.
So, I admit I expected this to be mostly space action, asteroid dodging, friendship bonding, space opera, (which is fine). It turned out to be more engaging, more sophisticated, more rewarding, better crafted, more gripping, and more satisfying than I could ever have hoped for. There are even interesting twists and turns in the Liam/Phoebe story that kept that angle fresh and intriguing. So, a very nice find and one of the few sequels that outdoes its predecessor.
(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
March 2, 2018
Love this space adventure!! Will be waiting impatiently for book 3!
February 28, 2021
Prereading this series for my kids. There's nothing wrong per se, but like the first one, I felt a bit meh about things, and it took several attempts to get myself into the story. Pretty much all the action takes place out in space, and it's more about reacting to attacks than getting into the fun nitty gritty of space exploration. Sci fi often likes to act as a metaphor for colonization and displacement of people on earth, and that's certainly a big part of this book.
Since the kids and I are doing ancient history this year, we're learning about how the Romans conquered the Greeks who conquered the Persians who conquered the Babylonians who conquered the Assyrians who conquered the Sumerians etc. This week, while reading about Caesar conquering Britain, one of the kids asked, "who are the good guys?" It's a complicated question, right? Since my kids are 1/4 Italian, maybe they should be rooting for Caesar, but since they're 1/3 British and Irish, maybe they should be rooting for the Celts. They speak English, which is a mesh of all the languages of the people who overran Britain at various times, so should we as Anglophiles be grateful for them or resent them for their contributions to our shared English speaking culture? Do we embrace Darwinist survival of the fittest as an excuse for bettering ourselves at the expense of the weaker, or do we hold sentient beings or specifically humanity to a different standard? Are there absolute moral standards, like that killing innocent people is always wrong, and why do we trust one belief system over another?
So good, well-conceived sci fi can get you drawing connections and tackling these kinds of big questions in a productive way. But run-of-the-mill sci fi can sort of throw out a bunch of issues and leave it at that. At this point, our protagonists have had some tough ethical decisions to make, but I don't really have a sense that there's anything foundational influencing their choices.
I'm not opposed to my kids reading this series so far, but I am finding it a bit underwhelming. I wouldn't care if it were just space adventures, but since the author is trying to be philosophical, I hold it to a different standard.
Since the kids and I are doing ancient history this year, we're learning about how the Romans conquered the Greeks who conquered the Persians who conquered the Babylonians who conquered the Assyrians who conquered the Sumerians etc. This week, while reading about Caesar conquering Britain, one of the kids asked, "who are the good guys?" It's a complicated question, right? Since my kids are 1/4 Italian, maybe they should be rooting for Caesar, but since they're 1/3 British and Irish, maybe they should be rooting for the Celts. They speak English, which is a mesh of all the languages of the people who overran Britain at various times, so should we as Anglophiles be grateful for them or resent them for their contributions to our shared English speaking culture? Do we embrace Darwinist survival of the fittest as an excuse for bettering ourselves at the expense of the weaker, or do we hold sentient beings or specifically humanity to a different standard? Are there absolute moral standards, like that killing innocent people is always wrong, and why do we trust one belief system over another?
So good, well-conceived sci fi can get you drawing connections and tackling these kinds of big questions in a productive way. But run-of-the-mill sci fi can sort of throw out a bunch of issues and leave it at that. At this point, our protagonists have had some tough ethical decisions to make, but I don't really have a sense that there's anything foundational influencing their choices.
I'm not opposed to my kids reading this series so far, but I am finding it a bit underwhelming. I wouldn't care if it were just space adventures, but since the author is trying to be philosophical, I hold it to a different standard.
July 20, 2019
This is the middle third of the single book that is the Chronicle of the Dark Star, and in a way it's more of the same and in a way it's worse.
So, first, the more of the same: the book ends on a cliffhanger and doesn't resolve anything.
The worse part: the two main characters, Liam and Phoebe, spend a remarkable amount of time being done to rather than doing things in this book. Most of the plot is run by high-level NPCs (well, powerful aliens) and powerful magic items (well, science items). It's less "high school students save the universe" than "high school students are lost in a universe they don't understand and cannot figure out, doing things at random, and at most managing not to die." It's a tough sell as a plot, though it might have worked better if this hadn't been presented as a stand-alone book.
I'm going to finish the series, assuming book three is the end, because at this point I still don't feel like I've read a novel.
So, first, the more of the same: the book ends on a cliffhanger and doesn't resolve anything.
The worse part: the two main characters, Liam and Phoebe, spend a remarkable amount of time being done to rather than doing things in this book. Most of the plot is run by high-level NPCs (well, powerful aliens) and powerful magic items (well, science items). It's less "high school students save the universe" than "high school students are lost in a universe they don't understand and cannot figure out, doing things at random, and at most managing not to die." It's a tough sell as a plot, though it might have worked better if this hadn't been presented as a stand-alone book.
I'm going to finish the series, assuming book three is the end, because at this point I still don't feel like I've read a novel.
February 4, 2018
Fantastic sequel. Questions are answered, yet many more pop up. More science explanations/discoveries in this one, but even when it got tough to completely understand, I could figure it out enough - I would tell readers who might not think science fiction is a genre they enjoy, there is so much action, adventure and suspense that makes it worth it! What a ride! Can not wait for book 3!
November 24, 2018
I was super excited to read this having really enjoyed the first book so, so much. Unfortunately, I didn't find this sequel as exciting or compelling as the first. For one thing, I felt it really became just too complicated and bizarre. And maybe that's just science fiction and I don't typically read straight up science fiction. I loved the prologue which explained events well before the events of the first book. In fact, much of this book is really about explaining why things are happening (in a word, it all comes down to just elaborate revenge plans), but then vague things like giant doorways and "the Drove" get in the way.
There were definitely a lot of things I liked about this: getting Phoebe's point of view, Phoebe and Liam trying to figure things out, descriptions of vast space. But beyond that I just found myself a bit annoyed wading through the rest.
There were definitely a lot of things I liked about this: getting Phoebe's point of view, Phoebe and Liam trying to figure things out, descriptions of vast space. But beyond that I just found myself a bit annoyed wading through the rest.
February 27, 2019
I don't read as much middle grade as I used to, but this was phenomenal. Book one really left me wanting more and this one continued the trend. Such a great series for tween and young teens!
March 20, 2019
This story keeps taking us on interesting twists and turns, showing us beings that we never knew existed but assumed were out there, links between names, times and planets etc. and each time we think that Liam and Phoebe are safe, BOOM something happens.
When we left off at the end of the first book, we were on the path to getting out of the way of the supernova, and plotting a course that would get these two to meet up with the starliner when they docked at the next waystation. Phoebe of course has her own plans and we don’t even truly know the motivation, even after we learned her secret that was teased at the cliff hanger from book 1.
The overarching trend that we see in this installment is of time jumping, making choices without knowing the outcome, trust and hope. They are faced each chapter with one of these and the outcome of each decision will have major impacts to the rest of the story.
We learn that the chronologist is truly on the side of humanity, and she shows up at key moments to save Liam and Phoebe when hope seems lost. While she lives in 4 dimensions whereas we are in three, she doesn’t have all the information and the interesting aspect is that she’s ok with that, and with the knowledge that she has and seems to have no fear. (most humans would NOT be like that)
We spend much of the story trying to determine if Phoebe is trustworthy. Once we learn that she’s not ‘human’ and that she knows the people who are chasing/attacking them and the starliners, we have to question every thought, word and action that she does to see if there’s some twisted and evil motive/motivation. JEFF, the bot that has been keeping them alive is truly skeptical, especially once he realizes that she’s the cause to their delays and that makes this story even more complex.
Add to that, we still don’t know why the Drove are infecting the stars so that they go supernova faster than ever before and what their end game is. The Drove mention the need to go back to the Dark Star, and that’s an interesting reference that we get at the end of this book – from people that we don’t expect to reference it at all!
There are little easter eggs that are dropped throughout this story. we are reminded that the first Starliner that was built (Artemis) was lost thirty years ago, yet by going through some type of time warp, Liam and Phoebe find it. We also learn that Aaru-5, the planet that the humans are going to colonize is Telos, the same planet that Phoebe is from, and the Rain of Ana was part of something bigger and far worse.
So…All in all we’ve gotten so many answers to questions that came up from the first book but then there are even more that are raised as we go into the final book of the trilogy. We still have no idea if families will be reunited, if Phoebe is on the same side as Liam or her ‘people’. If there’s even a planet to get to when this is all said and done, and when everyone will die (since it seems like the chronologist knows exactly when this will happen).
When we left off at the end of the first book, we were on the path to getting out of the way of the supernova, and plotting a course that would get these two to meet up with the starliner when they docked at the next waystation. Phoebe of course has her own plans and we don’t even truly know the motivation, even after we learned her secret that was teased at the cliff hanger from book 1.
The overarching trend that we see in this installment is of time jumping, making choices without knowing the outcome, trust and hope. They are faced each chapter with one of these and the outcome of each decision will have major impacts to the rest of the story.
We learn that the chronologist is truly on the side of humanity, and she shows up at key moments to save Liam and Phoebe when hope seems lost. While she lives in 4 dimensions whereas we are in three, she doesn’t have all the information and the interesting aspect is that she’s ok with that, and with the knowledge that she has and seems to have no fear. (most humans would NOT be like that)
We spend much of the story trying to determine if Phoebe is trustworthy. Once we learn that she’s not ‘human’ and that she knows the people who are chasing/attacking them and the starliners, we have to question every thought, word and action that she does to see if there’s some twisted and evil motive/motivation. JEFF, the bot that has been keeping them alive is truly skeptical, especially once he realizes that she’s the cause to their delays and that makes this story even more complex.
Add to that, we still don’t know why the Drove are infecting the stars so that they go supernova faster than ever before and what their end game is. The Drove mention the need to go back to the Dark Star, and that’s an interesting reference that we get at the end of this book – from people that we don’t expect to reference it at all!
There are little easter eggs that are dropped throughout this story. we are reminded that the first Starliner that was built (Artemis) was lost thirty years ago, yet by going through some type of time warp, Liam and Phoebe find it. We also learn that Aaru-5, the planet that the humans are going to colonize is Telos, the same planet that Phoebe is from, and the Rain of Ana was part of something bigger and far worse.
So…All in all we’ve gotten so many answers to questions that came up from the first book but then there are even more that are raised as we go into the final book of the trilogy. We still have no idea if families will be reunited, if Phoebe is on the same side as Liam or her ‘people’. If there’s even a planet to get to when this is all said and done, and when everyone will die (since it seems like the chronologist knows exactly when this will happen).
July 25, 2018
“One unknown at a time.”
Liam’s mom’s words echo in his head as he tries to save his parents, his friend, himself, and all of humanity. Phoebe and Liam have been traveling toward Delphi in stasis for years, hopefully arriving in time to catch the Scorpius and board with the rest of humanity, arriving safely to their new planet. What he doesn’t know is that while he’s been in stasis, Phoebe has been awake carefully manipulating their path so that they arrive late to Delphi. This starts her on a path of deception and betrayal, a path that she is not certain she wanted to be on in the first place.
“Trust is a powerful adaptation of three-dimensional beings. The hope or belief in something. It’s your engine for still making a choice when you don’t have all the possible information.”
Receiving conflicting advice from two unexpected beings, one being his bot, JEFF, Liam has to make the decision to continue to work with Phoebe on their original mission or abandon her altogether. Should he follow his visions or follow his logic? Should he save himself, his family, the attackers, all of humanity? It is all up to him and which choices he makes.
“We prefer what happens to what could have happened.”
Echoes of friendship, loyalty, trust, choices, and bravery ring out through this heart-stopping sequel in a wonderful middle-grade science fiction series. Kevin Emerson’s science (teaching!!) background plays a wonderful part in building the world for Phoebe and Liam. Several of my students “stole” this book from me when we finished Last Day on Mars, and kept me from reading it right away. They reported back with great reviews, and I agree with them - it is exciting. My favorite character, by the way, might be JEFF.
“ ‘JEFF, be careful!’
JEFF reached the deck and looked back. ‘Thank you, Captain Liam. I will follow all safety protocols.’ ”
And now, that is my new catchphrase.
Liam’s mom’s words echo in his head as he tries to save his parents, his friend, himself, and all of humanity. Phoebe and Liam have been traveling toward Delphi in stasis for years, hopefully arriving in time to catch the Scorpius and board with the rest of humanity, arriving safely to their new planet. What he doesn’t know is that while he’s been in stasis, Phoebe has been awake carefully manipulating their path so that they arrive late to Delphi. This starts her on a path of deception and betrayal, a path that she is not certain she wanted to be on in the first place.
“Trust is a powerful adaptation of three-dimensional beings. The hope or belief in something. It’s your engine for still making a choice when you don’t have all the possible information.”
Receiving conflicting advice from two unexpected beings, one being his bot, JEFF, Liam has to make the decision to continue to work with Phoebe on their original mission or abandon her altogether. Should he follow his visions or follow his logic? Should he save himself, his family, the attackers, all of humanity? It is all up to him and which choices he makes.
“We prefer what happens to what could have happened.”
Echoes of friendship, loyalty, trust, choices, and bravery ring out through this heart-stopping sequel in a wonderful middle-grade science fiction series. Kevin Emerson’s science (teaching!!) background plays a wonderful part in building the world for Phoebe and Liam. Several of my students “stole” this book from me when we finished Last Day on Mars, and kept me from reading it right away. They reported back with great reviews, and I agree with them - it is exciting. My favorite character, by the way, might be JEFF.
“ ‘JEFF, be careful!’
JEFF reached the deck and looked back. ‘Thank you, Captain Liam. I will follow all safety protocols.’ ”
And now, that is my new catchphrase.
December 18, 2018
Liam and Phoebe are on their way from Mars to Aaru-5, the new home of humans. Their injured parents are in stasis and they're chasing down the ship they were supposed to be on transporting the rest of Liam's family and both of their friends. However, one of them is harboring a secret with major ramifications, someone is out to destroy the human fleet ahead of them, and the group destroying stars on purpose is still out there. Also, the watch they've been using to see the future has started doing strange things to both of them. Can they safely reunite with the rest of humanity and are they even still sane?
The first book in this series was seriously high octane and loaded with action. This one is more psychological suspense dealing with a deep cover spy, multiple alien species on the brink of war, some weird timey-wimey stuff going on with the watch, and facing the very real prospect of being all alone in deep space. There are still some good action scenes interspersed in here. And I like the depth that the multiple plot lines explored in this book add to the overall story. I can totally see the time and space stuff in here totally frying some readers' minds. (I can also see Dr. Who showing up at any minute.) Phoebe and Liam have some very hard decisions and situations to work through in this one. It's a great read to explore deeper issues like whether or not to go to war, what is forgivable, if one death is worth saving millions, etc. in engaging ways. I'll be eager to find out how this series concludes, and I know several readers who will be too. Highly recommended to upper middle grader readers on up who enjoy scifi and timetravel adventures that deal with deep topics.
Notes on Content: No language issues. No sexual content beyond a peck on a cheek. There are some fatalities (or possible fatalities) on page, but no blood or gore described. Past or future well mass killings are related/threatened but only structural damage is described.
The first book in this series was seriously high octane and loaded with action. This one is more psychological suspense dealing with a deep cover spy, multiple alien species on the brink of war, some weird timey-wimey stuff going on with the watch, and facing the very real prospect of being all alone in deep space. There are still some good action scenes interspersed in here. And I like the depth that the multiple plot lines explored in this book add to the overall story. I can totally see the time and space stuff in here totally frying some readers' minds. (I can also see Dr. Who showing up at any minute.) Phoebe and Liam have some very hard decisions and situations to work through in this one. It's a great read to explore deeper issues like whether or not to go to war, what is forgivable, if one death is worth saving millions, etc. in engaging ways. I'll be eager to find out how this series concludes, and I know several readers who will be too. Highly recommended to upper middle grader readers on up who enjoy scifi and timetravel adventures that deal with deep topics.
Notes on Content: No language issues. No sexual content beyond a peck on a cheek. There are some fatalities (or possible fatalities) on page, but no blood or gore described. Past or future well mass killings are related/threatened but only structural damage is described.
July 7, 2023
I struggled with this book a lot more than I did the first one, and I ended up skimming a lot.
Plot-wise, the two main characters, Liam and Phoebe, were attempting to catch up with the spaceship holding most of humanity. The sun was going supernova, and so humanity was traveling to another planet. They had been left behind.
The good things about this book:
- The science part of sci-fi. The story explained some aspects of quantum physics (such as the multiverse theory) in ways that kids could understand. Big thumbs up!
- The author wasn't afraid to have large chunks of time pass (like the two kids being in stasis for 10 years and then 33 years, yet to them it felt like only a week had passed).
- Um... it was short?
Bad things:
- The two child main characters were dull as hell. Even after reading two books in a row, I can't name one single character trait about Liam, and barely more than one about Phoebe.
- The endless time travel felt like a cheat, an easy way for the characters to get out of trouble.
- Nonstop action. Which might seem like a good thing, but I'd rather have story/plot than BOOM EXPLOSION WHOOSH.
- Perhaps the biggest issue was that everything always went wrong. Every single thing the main characters did, every time they needed to do something, never once in two books did anything go right. So, in this book, when the kids were trying to accomplish what they had been after across these two books, I never for a moment thought they would succeed. The author played it up like they would succeed, then at the last minute there was a "twist" and they failed. That made the whole plot so boring.
This book ended on a cliffhanger, but since I have zero feelings for the main characters, I'm immune to it. I'm not going to finish this series.
I wish I could have liked this book more. I can appreciate what the author was doing, but I guess it just wasn't the book for me.
Plot-wise, the two main characters, Liam and Phoebe, were attempting to catch up with the spaceship holding most of humanity. The sun was going supernova, and so humanity was traveling to another planet. They had been left behind.
The good things about this book:
- The science part of sci-fi. The story explained some aspects of quantum physics (such as the multiverse theory) in ways that kids could understand. Big thumbs up!
- The author wasn't afraid to have large chunks of time pass (like the two kids being in stasis for 10 years and then 33 years, yet to them it felt like only a week had passed).
- Um... it was short?
Bad things:
- The two child main characters were dull as hell. Even after reading two books in a row, I can't name one single character trait about Liam, and barely more than one about Phoebe.
- The endless time travel felt like a cheat, an easy way for the characters to get out of trouble.
- Nonstop action. Which might seem like a good thing, but I'd rather have story/plot than BOOM EXPLOSION WHOOSH.
- Perhaps the biggest issue was that everything always went wrong. Every single thing the main characters did, every time they needed to do something, never once in two books did anything go right. So, in this book, when the kids were trying to accomplish what they had been after across these two books, I never for a moment thought they would succeed. The author played it up like they would succeed, then at the last minute there was a "twist" and they failed. That made the whole plot so boring.
This book ended on a cliffhanger, but since I have zero feelings for the main characters, I'm immune to it. I'm not going to finish this series.
I wish I could have liked this book more. I can appreciate what the author was doing, but I guess it just wasn't the book for me.
July 6, 2018
I didn't enjoy the first book in the series that much, but I was hoping the second book would be better. However, it still wasn't my thing.
Things I Enjoyed:
• More serious. One of my problems with the first one was that it wasn't serious enough, but this one had plenty of that. Liam especially seemed to grow in this book.
• Another great time limit. It had me on the edge of my seat as I was reading. (Although if book three has one it will start to feel repetitive.)
• A few more answers. All the time travel stuff made my head hurt, but I mostly understood.
Things I Didn't Like:
• I didn't always understand the characters. There was just so much hate going around, between humans and Telphons. Everyone just wanted to blow each other up. While I know that's accurate to how people are, I just don't see how they can hold onto all this hate for so long.
• Phoebe wasn't my favorite character still. I just didn't connect with her the way I connected with Liam.
So, three stars for this. I might read the next book, I might now.
Things I Enjoyed:
• More serious. One of my problems with the first one was that it wasn't serious enough, but this one had plenty of that. Liam especially seemed to grow in this book.
• Another great time limit. It had me on the edge of my seat as I was reading. (Although if book three has one it will start to feel repetitive.)
• A few more answers. All the time travel stuff made my head hurt, but I mostly understood.
Things I Didn't Like:
• I didn't always understand the characters. There was just so much hate going around, between humans and Telphons. Everyone just wanted to blow each other up. While I know that's accurate to how people are, I just don't see how they can hold onto all this hate for so long.
• Phoebe wasn't my favorite character still. I just didn't connect with her the way I connected with Liam.
So, three stars for this. I might read the next book, I might now.
July 16, 2018
After a flashback explaining Phoebe's back story, this picks up right where Last Day on Mars left off. Phoebe, Liam, and JEFF the bot, along with their injured parents in stasis are trying to catch up to main transport ship. There are so many twists and turns in this book, including trips to the past, future, and alternate realities, that any plot summary can't really do it justice without spoilers. A fantastic work of science fiction!! You must read the series in order. I am eagerly anticipating the next book! Highly recommended for grades 4 & up.
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January 1, 2024My 8-year-old randomly picked this up at her school library and raved about how much the story was drawing her in. She's done fantasy but not really sci-fi so I was intrigued to see what she found so captivating about it. I wasn't too into it, personally, but it's still a fine story overall. She jumped in with the second book in the series, so I did, too. It was fine as a stand-alone. I will say, she hasn't finished and has kind of lost interest in it (she made it more than halfway through). But she often has several books going at once and has a hard time finishing them all because I'm always bringing home new books from the library to read--oops. So I don't know if she has really lost interest in the story or is just distracted.
March 23, 2018
I love this series! I was glad I found the first book rather late as I didn't a have a long wait for book 2! But now (sniff) , have to wait for books 3! So our solar system is destroyed by the sun going super nova and humanity, having been on Mars, begins it's final escape into the universe. I did not see the beginning of this book coming at all. But what a wild ride this book begins on- so much more depth is added by it. Love the characters and root for them all to make it "home." So good. Scifi fans are going to enjoy this story as will those who like to read dystopian lit. YA and adult.
October 24, 2022
This is the second book in the Last Day on Mars Trilogy. It continues where the first left off with Liam and Phoebe escaping Mars before it is destroyed. It follows them as Liam desperately tries to reach the last ship carrying humans to their new home before Liam and Phoebe's injured parents die or before they are left stranded in space. Meanwhile, Phoebe sabotages their efforts in order to protect her and Liam's lives. The characters are well thought out as are their motivations. It is written for young adults so it is a quick read and not too complicated. It gets you thinking about space and the 4th dimension in some interesting ways. The Oceans Between Stars contains no questionable material. The adventure is fun and exciting. There is plenty of stakes to keep things moving at a quick pace. This book does end on a big cliff hanger so there isn’t any resolution at the end of the book. Recommended for 12 and older. Rated 5/5.
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