It's kind of a lucky coincidence that the first book I finished this year fits fairly well into my new 2026 theme of "Outer Space"
I did start it some time ago, but since it was an advanced reader copy in E book form, it took me... some time to read. Eyeballs.
This book is coming out in May 2026, so you may want to pre-order it if it strikes your fancy. I was attracted to this amazing cover, and I am a sucker for Space Opera. This is a book for young adults, and I think it will be most meaningful for those aged 15-18. As an old adult, I enjoyed this read.
Many Many Thanks to DAW Astra House publishing for the Advanced E copy.
Interestingly, the UK cover looks like:
Without any spoilers- Our protagonist is Artemis, or Temmi- who's a whip-smart and "world weary" young lady working as a trash collector on a poisoned planet. She's got a plan but that plan isn't exactly working. A chance encounter lands her on an intergalactic dating show where royals and other political personages from their empire find matches. This year, contestants are dating the twin Prince and Princess. Artemis is brought on as a personality, and she's not sure about this, but feels she could leverage this opportunity. She soon learns that there's a lot more going on than just sailing dates on the beach. Everyone has an angle, and she's not sure she will survive.
There's a lot to love in this Sci-Fi Fantasy thriller with murder, and mayhem, angst and yearning among contestants, and loads of reality show style drama.
As a debut for Young adults, this is a stunner. Branham captures the things that capture the imagination of the young adult reader without teetering into the "adultier" adult issues which would be less accessible or appropriate. This is a fine line to walk and she's really nailed it.
As a Sci-Fi novel the world building is a bit weak. This tends to fall more into a novel that has a space background, but doesn't quite immerse the reader in that world. As an example, at one point our main character refers to a mouse and a lion- both creatures that clearly do not exist in the setting- so it would be unlikely to be the first things popping into a spacers head. This sort of thing took me right out of the outer space world, but probably won't bother other readers.
My second observation is that the pacing was a bit... uneven. The beginning hooked me right away, but then it took me a few weeks to read the next section as it sort of dragged on and on with a myriad of details about the dating show, contestants, dates and apparel choices. There is a reader that will LOVE this section, but that reader wasn't me, I was at a point about halfway through the book where I was hoping things would just "wrap up" and suddenly when I was about at the 3/4 mark, things changed and we jumped, warp speed into a total adventure not involving beach dates, or snarky contestants and I was entranced. The ending, is a BRUTAL cliffhanger.
Will I read the next book- YES yes and YES. I am actually very excited and hopeful and can't wait to see what happens next for Temmi and her crew. Like any good reality show- I have THEORIES. Lots of theories.
SO... I'm going to need you all to read this one so we can make those predictions.
PRH notes that this book will be perfect for readers who enjoy Everina Maxwell, and as a reader who loves Maxwell's novels, I agree.
STATS
First Published :May 2026
Pages: 416
Available as an Audio Book : Hopefully!
Trigger Warnings: Environmental issues, alcohol use, drug use, murder, unintentional murder, stealing, cheating, Not a full list - please read responsibly.
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