The Loneliest Girl in the Universe

by Lauren James

Nominated for the 2019 Carnegie medal

One of Barnes & Noble’s Top 15 YA Books

Shortlisted for the STEAM Children’s Book Prize

Can you fall in love with someone you've never met, never even spoken to – someone who is light years away? Romy Silvers is the only surviving crew-member of a spaceship travelling to a new planet, on a mission to establish a second home for humanity. Alone in space, she is the loneliest girl in the universe until she hears about a new ship which has launched from Earth – with a single passenger on board. A boy called J. Their only communication is via email – and due to the distance between them, their messages take months to transmit. And yet Romy finds herself falling in love, but what does she really know about J?

• ISBN10: 1406375470
• ISBN13: 9781406375473
• Publish Date: 7 September 2017
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Walker Books Ltd
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 304
• Language: English

Reviews

I picked up The Loneliest Girl in the Universe on a whim. It was sitting on my Kindle as I was browsing my books to read at the park the other weekend.

I ended up devouring this book in a matter of hours.

It was quite the addictive read. I enjoyed Romy's voice, and I love most stories set in space. I quite enjoyed the pacing of the book, and it felt like a very easy read. The only reason I haven't given it 5 stars is because it wasn't exactly page gripping nor did it fill me with many emotions. And a little because I wanted more at the ending. In fact, I really wanted a second book that carried on this story because I feel like there's a separate story that could be told with a new character.

Either way, this was a great easy read, and it was very enjoyable if you're looking for something light and quick.

[littleread1]

It was stressful AF, James did an excellent job of making you question everything about Remy because of her mental state after being alone in space for years. I am not sure if I had too many expectations, but it was just OK for me.

[Bianca]

‪2019 Popsugar Reading Challenge‬
‪40. A book set in space‬

— I found it great as a sci-fi thriller, not so much as a human story. I think this would be promising as a film though.

[dragononabook]

First of all, if you pick up this book expecting romance, that's not what you're going to get. Realistically, this book is about a girl, alone on a spaceship, never having been on Earth. It's heartbreaking and I would protect Romy with my life. Seriously. Calling her 'The Loneliest Girl in the Universe' is an understatement.

The way that this was written was really immersive. The messages and audio recordings as the only contact Romy has with the outside world make it really easy to imagine what she's going through. To be honest, I kept checking my window to see if there were astronauts outside, like Romy.

Basically, if you like science fiction, speculations about space exploration, and a story with twists in perfect amounts, read this book now.

[nightingalereads]

2.75 stars?

I had an idea of what this book would be like going in. A sci-fi, with some romance and a few thrilling twists. The first 50% or so lined up with my expectations, so I was all settled in for a fun quick read. Then I passed the halfway point and things started getting...creepy. Really creepy. The last third of The Loneliest Girl in the Universe left me slack-jawed (well, metaphorically) and I set it down slightly stunned. I'm still unsure how I feel about the story overall, but this book definitely played with my expectations.

[cornerfolds]

Read more of my reviews at Cornerfolds.com!

*Review to come!*

[Amber]

This review was originally posted on Books of Amber

I've got mixed feelings about The Loneliest Girl in the Universe because on the one hand, I read it in a single sitting and I did enjoy it. On the other, I think the book could have been improved in a few different ways. It's a real mixed bag for me.

Romy, the main character, was really smart. I loved how intelligent she was, and how she was able to run an entire space ship by herself. She was obviously suffering from some sort of PTSD or anxiety, which flared up at points. She was, however, really freaking gullible. I guess it made sense because she was basically raising herself from a young age, but still.

There were a couple of really thrilling scenes towards the end where James did a fantastic job of building tension and creeping me out. She wrote these scenes really well.

But then there are the criticisms. Firstly, the book could have been longer. It is an incredibly short book, at just over 260 pages, and I felt like it suffered for it. Of course, there was only so much that could happen when the main character was by herself on a space ship, but I think with a bit of tweaking it could have turned out longer and better. Especially as the ending is so open ended for a potential sequel, because Romy's journey definitely isn't over yet.

The romance aspect was a complete let down and it's one of the main reasons why I didn't love the book as much as I thought I would. Romy became too attached to J far too quickly. This is another thing that makes sense in context, as Romy was literally the loneliest girl in the universe before J showed up, but I still didn't like it. Especially the fan fic parts and the daydreaming. It was all a bit much.

The part about the war on Earth was so interesting, and I wish we could have learnt more about it. But we didn't, because of reasons. It was definitely the most gripping part of the story.

And the twist at the end that everyone is raving about was soooooo obvious! I was expecting a lot more in that regard after reading the reviews and tweets about the book.

Nevertheless, I enjoyed The Loneliest Girl in the Universe well enough and if there is a sequel (Lauren James said there might be in a few years) then I'll probably read it because I want to see the rest of Romy's story.

[shannonmiz]

Hi, book community. Quick question: Why are we sleeping on this book? Because guess what, it’s awesome. I mean, it didn’t quite break me out of my no-favorites slump, but it came the closest that anything has in awhile. I’ve read a lot of reviews that describe it as “unexpected”, and I agree wholly. It’s different than I assumed, but in a good way! U.S. people, it comes out here in July or some such nonsense, but you can always buy it from Book Depository like I did. Plus the cover is shiny.

[Ashley]

Well this book was completely unexpected...

I read the whole thing in one sitting; it's a SUPER fast read. Plus I absolutely adored the first 2/3rds or 3/4ths of the story, so that was awesome. But then it completely twisted in a new, totally unexpected direction. It wasn't necessarily bad, it just wasn't what I expected. I went into this book because I was in the mood for Genre A, then it just totally changed into Genre B. It wasn't what I was hoping for when I picked up the book (though maybe I would have still read it, just under different circumstances).

Click the following spoiler if you want to know what genre the book ends up being. I don't spoil the actual twist, I just reveal what genre you're probably expecting, and what genre it ends up being. You're probably expecting romance, but it doesn't end up being that at all. It's more like a thriller/suspense story.

I thought the reason for that genre change was a little weak. I didn't think J's reasoning for wanting to psychologically torture then murder a 16-year-old girl was really strong. I thought he was clutching at straws trying to blame her (or even her parents) for his parents' deaths. I also didn't think the ending was very satisfying. I really wanted an epilogue where Romy finally landed on the planet. I wanted to see what happened next!

I'm still rating the book high because I loved it for so long and I was pretty hooked. I'm just a bit bummed at how it turned out in the end.

[Sarah Says]

Wow, what a page turner. The dates across the tops of the pages really push the story along and create heavy tension. You’ll want to read this in one sitting.

Romy was born on The Infinity, a star ship despatched with the mission to create a human colony on a new planet. Romy has never ever known any other life then that onboard The Infinity and after an incident takes both her parents away from her, she is alone. Romy is further away from earth than any human has ever been, hurtling towards the unknown. The weight of a new human colony, by default, resting on her teenage shoulders. Romy has to grow up fast! to have any hope of completing her parents mission.

Poor mental health due to the toll that guilt and grief cause is a big part of three integral characters storylines and there were some beautiful scenes, like the one where Romy makes peace with her Mother (I cried). But the highlights for me were the sections of the book where Romy is fast thinking and fighting for her life. I was ripping through the pages desperate to see what happened next.

There is so much more I could talk about; Romy’s parents, ‘pen-pals’ and psychological torture, Romy’s cute-as bits of fan-fiction (kind of Rainbow Rowell Fangirl-ish – but it enhanced rather than detracted from the main story). But it’s so much more fun If you find these things out for yourself.