The Cruel Stars

Gripping... Birmingham alternates between gut punches and laugh-out-loud humor, with some gore and thought-provoking philosophy thrown in for good measure... Plenty of twists, sharp turns, and fateful encounters will keep readers guessing and turning pages. This jarring, engrossing story of a species-wide fight for survival is recommended for all science fiction readers' * Publishers Weekly (starred review) * Canters along at a good clip, dashing off insane cannibals, exploding warships, detached heads, and cartwheeling body parts, with occasional transfusions of dark comic relief. Some highlights: McLennan appears stark naked to greet a bunch of pompous bigwigs; in a riotous bar scene, Sephina and crew, Yakuza, and Sturm all blaze away at each other; Booker's dismay at being loaded into a mechanical hedge trimmer... Frenetic action viewed in a black fun-house mirror' * Kirkus * There are few works of sci-fi today that put readers on the edge of their seats as well as giving them food for thought, and Birmingham succeeds at both' * New York Journal of Books * Fantastic... A fast-paced, exciting space adventure that I definitely recommend!' * Fred Weasley Died Laughing (BookTube) * PRAISE FOR JOHN BIRMINGHAM: 'Glorious excitement and meticulous density' Sci-Fi.com, on Axis of Time. 'The action is nonstop, the characters very real – and very different from each other – and, to coin a phrase, it makes you think' -- S.M. Stirling, on Final Impact