Books like 'Starbounders'
Readers who enjoyed Starbounders by Adam Jay Epstein & Andrew Jacobson also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
sc-fi action / adventure mystery space children friendship family mlm magic humor
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Network Effect by Martha Wells
Rated: 4.48 of 5 stars · 58 ratingsMurderbot returns in its highly-anticipated, first, full-length standalone novel... -
Skyward by Brandon Sanderson
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 72 ratingsDefeated, crushed, and driven almost to extinction, the remnants of the human race are trapped on a planet that is constantly attacked by mysterious alien starfighters. Spensa, a teenage girl living among them, longs to be a pilot... -
Age of Deception by T.A. White
Rated: 4.55 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsWar hero and daughter to two Houses, Kira is just beginning to learn how deep the rabbit hole goes. Agreeing to accompany her father’s people back to their homeworld, Kira Forrest prepares for the fight of her life. She’s agreed to undertake the Trial of the Broken, a rite of passage every member of her father’s House must pass... -
Spaced Out by Stuart Gibbs
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn this New York Times bestselling novel the moon base commander has gone missing and Dash Gibson is on the case. The second mind-boggling mystery of the Moon Base Alpha series from beloved author Stuart Gibbs.There’s nowhere to hide on the world’s first moon base. After all, it’s only the size of a soccer field...Categorized as:
children espionage family humor law-enforcement political-intrigue action-adventure aliens -
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Waste of Space by Stuart Gibbs, Gibson Frazier
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsTensions are running high when multibillionaire Lars Sjoburg is poisoned and demands to go home and everyone is looking to Dash Gibson to solve the case, in this third and final book in the New York Times bestselling Moon Base Alpha series.Moon Base Alpha was supposed to be an exciting place to live, but Dash didn't expect for it to be this exciting...Categorized as:
children espionage friendship humor law-enforcement political-intrigue action-adventure audiobook -
Mountain of Mars by Glynn Stewart
Rated: 4.52 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThe Mage-King of Mars is deadChaos rocks Olympus MonsA new monarch must rise – but she does not stand alone!As the celebration of the victory at Legatus cools, a shuttle accident claims the lives of the Mage-King of Mars and his heir. The Crown and the Mountain fall to the Mage-King’s daughter, seventeen-year-old Kiera Alexander... -
Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 38 ratingsForced to abandon his undercover role as leader of the Dendarii Mercenaries, Miles Vorkosigan persuades Emperor Gregor to appoint him Imperial Auditor so he can penetrate Barrayar’s intelligence and security operations (ImpSec)...Categorized as:
humor law-enforcement political-intrigue 20th-century action-adventure adult audiobook book -
Boneshaker by Joshua Dalzelle
Rated: 4.53 of 5 stars · 23 ratingsMarine First Lieutenant Jacob Brown is bored.For months he's been sitting around on an alien planet, waiting for command to recall his scout team so they could rest and be re-outfitted. The team went through hell during their previous mission, losing both their commanding officer and their ship...Categorized as:
espionage political-intrigue action-adventure adult aliens book colonization fiction -
Sword of Mars by Glynn Stewart
Rated: 4.49 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsA defector with a dangerous leadA chance to speak for the silentA perilous quest into enemy starsWhen the star system of Legatus was preparing to secede from the Protectorate of the Mage-King of Mars, it was the secret agents of the Legatan Military Intelligence Directorate that laid the groundwork and fought the covert war to make it happen...Categorized as:
espionage law-enforcement magic political-intrigue action-adventure adult aliens angst -
Alien Scourge by Michael Anderle
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsCharley and Angelina have a lot to deal with. Do they help their friend or turn him in for being an alien?In some situations, you don’t know how you will react until someone tries to kill you...And your alien friend keeps you safe.Angelina’s boyfriend believes she will come back with the right amount of coercion if he gets rid of her “friend...Categorized as:
humor law-enforcement action-adventure adult book colonization fiction galactic-empire -
The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 62 ratingsWe were in the square, in the square where I'd run, holding her, carrying her, telling her to stay alive, stay alive till we got safe, till we got to Haven so I could save her - But there weren't no safety, no safety at all, there was just him and his men...Fleeing before a relentless army, Todd has carried a desperately wounded Viola right into the hands of their worst enemy, Mayor Prentiss...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age friendship action-adventure aliens apocalyptic audiobook book -
Space Case by Stuart Gibbs
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsIt’s a murder mystery on the moon in this humorous and suspenseful space adventure from the author of Belly Up and Spy School that The New York Times Book Review called “a delightful and brilliantly constructed middle grade thriller...Categorized as:
children espionage family friendship humor law-enforcement political-intrigue action-adventure -
Diplomatic Immunity by Lois McMaster Bujold
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsA rich Komarran merchant fleet has been impounded at Graf Station, in distant Quaddiespace, after a bloody incident on the station docks involving a security officer from the convoy's Barrayaran military escort. Lord Miles Vorkosigan of Barrayar and his wife, Lady Ekaterin, have other things on their minds, such as getting home in time to attend the long-awaited births of their first children... -
Cetaganda by Lois McMaster Bujold
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsThe latest installment in the adventures of Miles Vorkosigan. Miles and Cousin Ivan travel to Cetaganda to play the part of sprigs of nobility doing their diplomatic duty. But when the Empress of Cetaganda dies naturally, and her lifelong attendant dies unnaturally, Miles and Ivan finds themselves in the thick of it...Categorized as:
espionage humor law-enforcement political-intrigue 20th-century action-adventure adult aliens -
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The Worldship Humility by R.R. Haywood
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe Worldship Humility... -
Barrayar by Lois McMaster Bujold
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsCordelia and Arol Vorkosigan's plans for a peaceful married life (after all the bloodshed and trials recounted in SHARDS OF HONOR) are soon shattered by the polital tumult on Barrayar. Resisting enormous pressure, they struggle to keep their family alive while while protecting the child Emperor from enemies who would murder him and assume absolute power over all of Barrayar...Categorized as:
family humor political-intrigue 20th-century action-adventure adult aliens audiobook -
The Vor Game by Lois McMaster Bujold
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 41 ratingsHugo Award Winner! Miles Vorkosigan graduates from the Academy, joins a mutiny, is placed under house arrest, goes on a secret mission, reconnects with his loyal Dendarii Mercenaries, rescues his Emperor, and thwarts an interstellar war. Situation normal, if you're Miles...Categorized as:
coming-of-age espionage humor political-intrigue 20th-century action-adventure audiobook book -
Mage-Provocateur by Glynn Stewart
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 21 ratingsVengeance hunts them. Rebellion seeks them. Loyalty commands them. The shadows will fear them. Captain David Rice and Mage Maria Soprano have made their choice, signing up with the Martian Interstellar Security Agency and converting Red Falcon into a covert operations ship for the Protectorate... -
The Search for Sam by Pittacus Lore
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsWhen a rogue Mogadorian meets up with a mysterious amnesiac in Santa Monica, he knows that there's more to this guy than meets the eye. In fact, he might just hold the key to everything.In I Am Number Four: The Lost Files #4, discover what has happened to one of the people with information crucial to the Garde coming together to fight to save Lorien—and Earth... -
Earth Bound by Michael Anderle
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIt’s one stranded ex-lawman against a world full of homicidal psychopaths. Psychopaths who might, or might not, be human.Intergalactic lawman Terry Victor is betrayed by fellow officers and sent to a backwater planet on the interstellar arm of the universe.In short, he was sent to the planet called Earth.Fed up, he quits in a fit of disgust and seeks a peaceful retirement among the humans...Categorized as:
humor law-enforcement action-adventure adult book colonization fiction galactic-empire -
Aurora Burning by Amie Kaufman, Jay Kristoff
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 42 ratingsOur heroes are back… kind of. From the bestselling co-authors of the Illuminae Files comes the second book in the epic series about a squad of misfits, losers, and discipline cases who just might be the galaxy’s best hope for survival.First, the bad news: an ancient evil—you know, your standard consume-all-life-in-the-galaxy deal—is about to be unleashed... -
The Fallen Legacies by Pittacus Lore
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsBefore Number Four, there were One, Two, and Three. Until now we've only known that the Mogadorians caught Number One in Malaysia. Number Two in England. And Number Three in Kenya. But all of that is about to change. . . .In I Am Number Four: The Lost Files: The Fallen Legacies, you'll learn the true story behind these ill-fated members of the Garde... -
Cloud Invasion by Connie Suttle
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsIlya The rest of us woke after a few days, when it became apparent we'd survived the drug. Even Corinne woke faster the first time. This time, three weeks had passed. I was grateful for the scans and other tests Dr. Farrell ran, indicating she was alive. Still, I was terrified for her. And for me. I spoke to her often and lately, I begged her to open her eyes... -
Komarr by Lois McMaster Bujold
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 37 ratingsKomarr could be a garden with a thousand more years' work, or an uninhabitable wasteland if the terraforming fails. Now, the solar mirror vital to the terraforming of the conquered planet has been shattered by a ship hurtling off course. The Emperor of Barrayar sends his newest imperial auditor, Lord Miles Vorkosigan, to find out why...Categorized as:
espionage humor law-enforcement political-intrigue 20th-century action-adventure adult audiobook -
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Agents of Mars by Glynn Stewart
Rated: 4.41 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsAn enemy hidden in the shadowsA crack in the armor of secrecyOne chance to find an answerCaptain David Rice and the crew of Red Falcon have spent two years infiltrating the arms smuggling underworld of the Protectorate of the Mage-King of Mars. When the co-opted rebellion on Ardennes reveals a supply chain of weapons intended to fight Mars, this makes them the perfect team to investigate... -
Kantovan Vault by Joel Shepherd
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe UFS Phoenix is on a mission to find a lost data-core that may contain the secret to defeating the alo-deepynine alliance. But the means to find the data-core is hidden deep in tavalai space, in a highest-security vault where the tavalai's manipulative State Department keep all their most treacherous secrets. To recover it, Phoenix must pull off the most daring heist the Spiral has ever seen... -
Doctor Who: Nothing O'Clock by Neil Gaiman
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThousands of years ago, Time Lords built a Prison for the Kin. They made it utterly impregnable and unreachable. As long as Time Lords existed, the Kin would be trapped forever and the universe would be safe. They had planned for everything… everything, that is, other than the Time War and the fall of Gallifrey... -
The Icarus Hunt by Timothy Zahn
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsSmuggler Jordan McKell has partner Ixil, an alien whose two "ferrets" ride his shoulders and telepathically exchange simple messages. They take a job on the odd-shaped ship Icarus. But the ragtag crew was found at taverns, the secret cargo sealed tight, the employer missing, and a saboteur is aboard...Categorized as:
espionage humor law-enforcement political-intrigue action-adventure aliens audiobook book -
Hereticus by Dan Abnett
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsIn this concluding novel of Dan Abnett's sensational trilogy, a dark figure from the past returns to exact a cruel vengeance upon Inquisitor Gregor Eisenhorn... -
Blue Gemini by Mike Jenne
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsScott Ourecky wanted to fly—he never dreamed he'd end up in a secret military space program.The year is 1968: The Cold War is far from over, nuclear annihilation is always only a heartbeat away. America is racing the Soviet Union to land men on the Moon, a war is raging, and a pivotal presidential election looms on the horizon...Categorized as:
espionage political-intrigue action-adventure audiobook book exploration fiction historical -
The Countdown Conspiracy by Katie Slivensky
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAmbassador, you are go for launch in T- minus 5…4…3…2…. Get ready to blast off with this high-action, high-stakes middle grade adventure that’s perfect for fans of Chris Grabenstein and Peter Lerangis!Miranda Regent can’t believe she was just chosen as one of six kids from around the world to train for the first ever mission to Mars...Categorized as:
children family friendship action-adventure book children-books fiction middle-grade -
Guardian of Madness by Michelle Manus
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThis time, leaving Earth was not Nyx’s choice...After her latest trip off-planet, Nyx Fortuna has every intention of keeping both feet firmly on Earth Between... -
Clan and Conviction by Tracy St. John
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe drug Delir is sweeping the Kalquorian Empire, leaving madness and death in its wake. Investigator Dramok Gelan has already lost his enforcer partner in a deadly shootout because of the case. With no clues or suspects, he despairs of putting an end to the epidemic. Then a familiar face enters the picture: new partner and former lover Nobek Wynhod... -
Earth Force Rising by Monica Tesler
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThirteen years ago, Earth Force—a space-military agency—discovered a connection between brain structure and space travel. Now they’ve brought together the first team of cadets, called Bounders, to be trained as high-level astronauts.Twelve-year-old Jasper is part of this team being sent out into space... -
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The Aleph Extraction by Dan Moren
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsAboard a notorious gangster's luxurious starliner, Simon Kovalic and his crew race to steal a mysterious artifact that could shift the balance of the war...Categorized as:
espionage law-enforcement political-intrigue action-adventure adult audiobook book cyberpunk -
Phantom Orbit: A Thriller by David Ignatius
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA subtle and masterful novel from a prescient voice on the cutting edge of spy literature.David Ignatius is known for his uncanny ability, in novel after novel, to predict the next great national security headline. In Phantom Orbit, he presents a story both searing and topical, with stakes as far-reaching as outer space... -
Dial D for Deadman by Barry J. Hutchison
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe Space Team Universe just got a whole lot darker. In an alien city torn apart by crooked cops and ruthless criminals, private detective, Dan Deadman, specializes in cases unusual and bizarre... -
Navigating the Stars by Maria V. Snyder
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratings“The answer is no, Lyra,” my mother utters her favorite—I swear—phrase. No means I have to travel with them to another planet—again. No means leaving all my friends fifty years in the past. Thanks, Einstein. Seventeen-year-old Lyra Daniels can’t truly blame Einstein or her parents for their impending move across the Milky Way Galaxy... -
Insignia by S.J. Kincaid
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsThe earth is in the middle of WWIII in Insignia, the first entry in S. J. Kincaid's fast-paced sci-fi adventure trilogy perfect for fans of Ender's Game.The planet's natural resources are almost gone, and war is being fought to control the assets of the solar system. The enemy is winning. The salvation may be Tom Raines. Tom doesn't seem like a hero. He's a short fourteen-year-old with bad skin...Categorized as:
coming-of-age friendship humor action-adventure audiobook boarding-school book cyberpunk -
Aliens Love Underpants by Claire Freedman
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThis humorous tale describes how aliens, rather than visiting Earth to take over the planet, really visit to steal your pants... -
The Worst of All Possible Worlds by Alex White
Rated: 4.26 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsThe greatest dangers hide the brightest treasures in this bold, planet-hopping science fiction adventure series.The crew of the legendary Capricious may have gone legitimate, but they're still on the run...Categorized as:
magic romantic-love action-adventure audiobook book fiction genetic-engineering heist -
Mission Inadvisable by J.S. Morin
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsPart-time heroes. Full-time outlaws. Carl Ramsey has done the unthinkable: he turned down a lucrative job. When the deed is too despicable even for outlaws like the Mobius crew, someone nasty had to be behind it. Carl and his friends decide to hunt down their potential employer and turn him over to the authorities... -
Nightmare by Steven Harper
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBefore Kendi learned to use his talent of navigating the plane of mental existence known as the Dream, he had to escape his physical existence as a slave... -
Wormhole Pirates on Orbis 3 by P.J. Haarsma
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsHang on to your transport! Wormhole pirates close in on JT and his friends in part three of the cyber-fueled sci-fi adventure.It’s not a good sign: before Johnny Turnbull and his fellow knudniks even land on Orbis 3, a band of wormhole pirates invades their shuttle and deliver a cryptic threat to JT... -
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The Eighth Continent: A Hard Science Fiction Thriller by Rhett C. Bruno, Felix R. Savage
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratings"This stellar near-future tale masterfully fuses SF thrills with an enthralling mystery." —Kirkus ReviewNick Morrison always wanted to be an astronaut. When a startup company recruits him to build a lunar launch system at the Moon’s south pole, Nick gladly leaves behind his troubled life on Earth—but Nick doesn’t know that the company is in financial and legal trouble... -
Darker Space by Lisa Henry
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsBrady Garrett is back on Earth. He’s living with his partner Cam and they’re raising his sister Lucy together. Life is better than some feral reffo from Kopa has any right to hope, and Brady knows it. He’s even grateful for it, most of the time. He loves Cam, even though he’s afraid that he’s not good enough for him, and he’s still having nightmares about the alien Faceless... -
The Lost Planet by Rachel Searles
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThis is what the boy is told:• He woke up on planet Trucon, inside a fence he shouldn't have been able to pass.• He has an annirad blaster wound to the back of his head.• He has no memory.• He is now under the protection of a mysterious benefactor.• His name is Chase Garrety.This is what Chase Garrety knows:• He has a message: "Guide the star."• Time is running out... -
The Lion of Mars by Jennifer L. Holm
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA kid raised on Mars learns that he can't be held back by the fears of the grown-ups around him.Bell has spent his whole life - all eleven years of it - on Mars. But he's still just a regular kid - he loves cats, any kind of cake, and is curious about the secrets the adults in the US colony are keeping... -
Warchild by Karin Lowachee
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe merchant ship Mukudori encompasses the whole of eight-year-old Jos's world, until a notorious pirate destroys the ship, slaughters the adults, and enslaves the children. Thus begins a desperate odyssey of terror and escape that takes Jos beyond known space to the homeworld of the strits, Earth's alien enemies. To survive, the boy must become a living weapon and a master spy...Categorized as:
coming-of-age espionage mlm political-intrigue 21st-century abuse action-adventure aliens -
From a Distant Star by Karen McQuestion
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsSeventeen-year-old Emma was the only one who hadn’t given up on her boyfriend, Lucas. Everyone else—his family, his friends, his doctors—was convinced that any moment could be his last. So when Lucas miraculously returns from the brink of death, Emma thinks her prayers have been answered.As the surprised town rejoices, Emma begins to question whether Lucas is the same boy she’s always known...
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