Suspended in the Stars
Suspended in the Stars (book 1)
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Suspended in the Stars (book 1)
***Winner of the 2024 Young Adult and Debut Realm Awards***
When Talie Zarna is forced to hide rogue soldier, Renner Cartha, her life isn’t the only thing threatened. Living as the famed Soaring Staress on the circus spaceship Midway masks her true identity, but Renner’s very presence threatens to draw unwanted attention. As a former royal guard, Renner holds secrets of his own. Like evidence of a political assassination he is on a mission to deliver to the Xerus Galaxy’s governing council. Renner's flirtatious confidence is at odds with the seriousness of his mission, but when his former guard captain, Jas Uli-Tai, discovers him hiding among the circus performers, Talie risks everything she's come to cherish—going so far as to leave the safety of the Phenomena circus—to do what is right. With Jas closing in at every turn, Talie and Renner come close to finding the High Council only to discover corruption at its core. Their only option for escape is a cocky smuggler who’s not quite what he seems and an underground resistance group called The Rising that’s fighting for change in the galaxy. Faced with the weight of her true identity and the cost of embracing it, Talie must decide if she is willing to give up everything for the sake of saving the Galaxy, even if that means giving up the boy she loves.
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Suspended in the Stars is the first book in the Xerus Galaxy Saga. It is a no spice romantic space opera perfect for fans of The Lunar Chronicles, The Starboard Trilogy, and The Illuminae Files.
Book Details
Suspended in the Stars comes in four formats. The ebook, paperback, and audiobook have the original cover, while the hardcover comes with an alternative dust jacket design. (see images to the side)
Publisher: Nebula of Pine Mountain Publishing
Published: 2023ISBN: 978-1-962194-00-6 (paperback) | 405 pages
ISBN: 978-1-962194-02-0 (hardcover) | 381 pages
ISBN: 978-1-962194-01-3 (ebook) | ASIN: B0CDDQ9VPD
ISBN: 978-1-962194-03-7 (audio) | ASIN: B0CXF2LV1R | 11hrs 56min
BISAC: YAF056030 | YAF056020 | YAF019060
What people are saying about Suspended in the Stars
"A planet-sized journey through the galaxy!"
—TOSCA LEE, New York Times bestselling author
"E. A. Hendryx pulls no punches (and spares no kisses!) in this galaxy-worthy sci-fi romance."
—NADINE BRANDES, award-winning author of Wishtress and Romanov
“Traveling circuses, political intrigue, dark secrets, a swoony hero with an epic romance, what's not to love?…The best space scifi I've ever read.”
—AJ SKELLY, bestselling author of the Wolves of Rock Falls series and Magik Prep Academy series
The story behind the story...
I started Suspended in the Stars on a bit of a dare. My friend and podcast co-host, Christen Krumm, challenged me to write a book on my blog in the month of August, 2020. That first chapter is still live on the blog and you can check it out here.
I planned out what I would write and was faithful to post 1 chapter every day for 30 days. At the end I was left with over 50,000 words, 30 chapters, half a story, and a whole lot of people who kept asking me for more.
Fast forward and I submitted Suspended in the Stars out to some really amazing publishers and it got great responses, but no one made the move to buy it. This is pretty typical with books in the scifi category and for debut authors. Instead, I decided to Kickstart the book.
Why Kickstarter?
I decided on Kickstarter for a few reasons, but the main one being *beautiful* hardcover books! As a cover designer I've had the chance to work with publishers putting out beautiful hardcover editions of their books and I've always wanted that for Suspended in the Stars. With Kickstarter, I was able to know up front a) if the project would fund b) how many copies of each book I'd need and c) I was able to reach a wider network of people who love to support Kickstarter projects!
I planned out what I would write and was faithful to post 1 chapter every day for 30 days. At the end I was left with over 50,000 words, 30 chapters, half a story, and a whole lot of people who kept asking me for more.
Fast forward and I submitted Suspended in the Stars out to some really amazing publishers and it got great responses, but no one made the move to buy it. This is pretty typical with books in the scifi category and for debut authors. Instead, I decided to Kickstart the book.
Why Kickstarter?
I decided on Kickstarter for a few reasons, but the main one being *beautiful* hardcover books! As a cover designer I've had the chance to work with publishers putting out beautiful hardcover editions of their books and I've always wanted that for Suspended in the Stars. With Kickstarter, I was able to know up front a) if the project would fund b) how many copies of each book I'd need and c) I was able to reach a wider network of people who love to support Kickstarter projects!
How did it go?
Honestly? better than I could have hoped for. We funded at over $10,000 for Suspended in the Stars, over $15,000 for Falling Through the Black, and over $27,000 for Rising From the Galaxy. There were hundreds of backers who helped me fund print runs for paperbacks as well as print runs for stunning hard covers as you can see below. I'm so grateful for each and every backer who helped bring these books to life!




