Review by Ian Keogh

Gil Starx is the future’s equivalent of a blue collar trucker, hauling cargo across space as a form of courier. Because he can’t always get the supervision, his nine year old son Kadyn sometimes accompanies him, which proves to be a bad idea the day his courier craft is destroyed by an unknown form of beast. At the time Kadyn is poking around among the cargo, and when the dust settles Kadyn has seen his father swallowed by the creature, but he’s alive despite a damaged space suit and in the presence of two very different aliens whose conversation he can understand. Gil’s a resourceful type, though, and just because he was swallowed doesn’t mean he’s dead. The problem is that when he emerges again, Kadyn is gone.

Sea of Stars is a science fiction quest that bucks the trend for such stories. There are dangers, and there are enemies, but for the most part writers Jason Aaron and Dennis Hallum prioritise the wonder of space, what may be there, and the possibilities of it. Artist Stephen Green brings all this home with some incredible designs for alien life and landscapes. As suggested by the title, much of the interstellar life resembles Earth’s sea creatures, so much of Green’s art in combination with Rico Renzi’s colouring could be underwater scenes. Kadyn’s arc is generally one of joy and exploration, while Gil experiences regret and frustration, and Green ensures we realise that also.

What’s gradually revealed is whatever Kadyn might have been fiddling about with when his father’s craft was annihilated has left him changed. He’s far stronger, and that’s useful. However, Aaron and Hallum are juggling two different story arcs, and at times it seems as if Kadyn’s just hanging about waiting for Gil to catch up. Gil’s plagued with a combative AI aid, hindering his travel attempts.

Halfway through a new character is introduced to Kadyn. Dalla has been exiled by her people for something she claims wasn’t her fault, and recognises something within Kadyn matching a prophecy. At that point Lost in the Wild Heavens changes into something more ordinary, as only Kadyn being a child prevents what follows being a variation on a scenario any SF reader has come across before. A cliffhanger ending leads to the conclusion in The People of the Broken Moon.