Under Nameless Stars by Christian Schoon

Under Nameless Stars (Zenn Scarlett, #2)

by Christian Schoon

Zenn Scarlett’s novice year of exoveterinarian training on Mars isn’t quite going to plan…

After facing a plot to destroy her school and its menagerie of alien patients, could things get worse? Yes, they could: her absent father has been kidnapped.

Desperate to find him, Zenn stows away aboard the Helen of Troy, a starliner powered by one of the immense, dimension-jumping beasts known as Indra. With her is Liam Tucker, a Martian boy who is either very fond of her, very dangerous to her, or both. On the verge of learning the truth about her father, Zenn’s quest suddenly catapults her and Liam thousands of light years beyond known space, and into the dark heart of a monstrous conspiracy.

Braving a gauntlet of lethal environments and unearthly life forms, Zenn’s courage is tested as never before. With the fate of entire worlds in the balance, she is racing headlong into trouble… again.

Reviewed by Angie on

4 of 5 stars

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I received an ARC through NetGalley.

Under Nameless Stars is so much fun! Picking up right where Zenn Scarlett left off, we start with Zenn, Liam, and Katie aboard the Helen of Troy as stowaways. It isn’t long before they’re discovered, but luckily Zenn is a quick thinker and comes up with a story for herself and manages to keep Liam hidden. Zenn immediately begins searching for her father and trying to figure out why she and him were kidnapped in the first place. She meets Jules, a gambling dolphin, who offers to help her out, but their investigation becomes more dangerous than they anticipated.

The world building of Under Nameless Stars continues to be excellent and oodles of fun! We’re introduced to even more alien species, and of course, Jules the dolphin. He has a walking suit that allows him to….well, walk. He’s a huge fan of Earth’s “printed-on-paper novels,” especially the adventure and mystery ones, which he draws knowledge from as he helps Zenn. There’s also a ton more information about the Indra, which are very important in this sequel. Lots of twists and turns! Zenn’s special ability is also expanded a lot, which I really enjoyed.

The plot of Under Nameless Stars was also a lot better, and more developed than the first book. Zenn is on a mission to find her father, as well as learn why someone would want to kidnap her. There’s the added mystery of the disappearing Indra ships, and this turned out to be more directly related to Zenn’s kidnapping than she thought. This leads to some pretty awesome discoveries! I got a bit teary eyed at the end. I’m not sure why, but I had some happy tears during a conversation between Zenn and Jules. I adore him.

In the end, Under Nameless Stars was a wonderful sequel. It’s jam packed with colorful characters, humor, and action. There was a bit of budding romance, but not much. Zenn isn’t really the romantic type. There is a happy ending, and I certainly hope there’s more adventures to come for Mars’ newest hero!

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 16 March, 2014: Finished reading
  • 16 March, 2014: Reviewed