Hand me a book set in space and the chances are I’ll devour it within days. There’s something about the mystery of space travel and science-fiction that completely captivates me, and I’ve yet to pick up a YA set on a spacecraft or distant planet that I haven’t enjoyed.
I’m always on the lookout for more books that’ll set me soaring through the universe, but here I’ve collected those I’ve already discovered. If you know of any more you think I’ll like, let me know in the comments below.
Across The Universe Trilogy by Beth Revis
I read Across The Universe trilogy back in 2013, and it’s really the book that made me fall in love with this subgenre in the first place. It was Beth Revis’s debut novel that sees seventeen-year-old Amy wake from a frozen slumber fifty years before she’s supposed to.
There’s
The second and third books in the trilogy introduce twists and turns that you’ll never see coming. They’re brilliant. I think it won’t be long before I give this trilogy a re-read.
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The Ventura Saga by Kate Ling
Better yet is Kate Ling’s Ventura Saga, which starts with The Loneliness of Distant Beings.
If you’ve visited my blog before, you’ll know that I am obsessed with this trilogy. All three books have been featured in my end of year top tens for the past three years.
In fact, The first and last books in the series were both my number one reads of their respective years (2016 and 2018) and the second book was fourth with some seriously fierce competition from Patrick Ness, Laini Taylor, Tom Ellen and Lucy Ivison (what a great reading year 2017 was).
I could gush about these books all day long, but instead I’ll point you in the direction of my reviews and an interview I did with Kate Ling herself!
The Loneliness of Distant Beings review
The Glow of Fallen Stars review
The Truth of Different Skies review
Interview: Kate Ling talks
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The Illuminae Files by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
There are some glorious covers in this post, aren’t there! These three are among my favourites, they are stunning.
The beauty of these books goes beyond the cover, though. The story is told through emails, files, instant messages, interviews and more – it’s an absolute masterpiece.
I’ve read
I’m keen to listen to the audio books too, I’ve heard that they are fantastic.
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The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet Becky Chambers
I’m not sure if The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet is actually YA, but I know that a lot of YA bloggers I follow have really enjoyed it, so I’m including hit here anyway.
I adored this novel. The unusual thing about it is that the title literally tells you the entire plot. Nothing much really happens in this book, and normally that would drive me mad, but somehow I didn’t even notice.
Instead, I was completely captivated by the eclectic characters and their relationships with one another. Many people have described it as a ‘Space Opera,’ which sums it up perfectly.
There are now three books in this series, each with equally great ratings on Goodreads, so I look forward to diving into those in the near future.
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The Loneliest Girl In The Universe by Lauren James
The Loneliest Girl In The Universe is a quick read about Romy Silvers, the only surviving crew member of a spaceship travelling to a new planet.
When Romy discovers that a second ship has launched, with a single passenger called J on board, she finally has someone to talk to via email, even if her messages take months to transmit.
It’s a surprisingly action-packed book with some brilliantly scary twists and turns that you’ll enjoy. I felt that there was a little something missing from this book compared with the others in this round-up, but it was one of my top 10 books of 2017 so it definitely deserves a place here
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