Teens Liam and Phoebe are among the last people on Mars when a mass evacuation is underway due to the accelerated supernova of our sun.  Earth was evacuated decades before and the Mars settlement was only meant to be temporary until a suitable planet could be identified.  Liam and Phoebe’s parents are scientists whose last minute work is vital to successfully terraforming the new planet in a distant galaxy.  Saboteurs trap and injure their parents just moments before their evacuation on the massive starliner.  Liam and Phoebe rescue their unconscious parents but not in time to catch the starliner with a million souls on board, including Liam’s sister.  Liam’s small craft is not designed for deep space duration flights but Liam devises a plan to catch up at the nearest refueling station.  But can they outrun the saboteurs?

The story opens with a prologue featuring an alien who has the ability to leap galaxies and observe millennia of planetary evolution in a heartbeat.  She discovers a plot to interfere with the natural life of a star causing destructive supernovas far before their time.  It appears there are two sets of bad guys in the story.  Chock full of action, unbelievable near misses and a frantic race against time, Last Day on Mars is the first in the planned, Chronicle of the Dark Star series.  It’s a thrill of a read, packed with suspense, a plethora of unanswered questions, and cliffhangers.  Highly recommend.

eGalley review                                               Publication date 2.14.17