{"product_id":"made-of-stars-isbn-9780593525210","title":"Made of Stars","description":"\u003cb\u003eInspired by the lawless love story of Bonnie and Clyde, Jenna Voris’s heart-stopping tale of passion and crime will have you seeing stars.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"A thrill ride of the highest caliber. \u003ci\u003eMade of Stars \u003c\/i\u003eis an explosion of space warfare with beautifully violent criminals you’ll love to accompany.\" —Chloe Gong, #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThese Violent Delights\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eShane and Ava\u003c\/b\u003e are a team. He steals the aircraft, she charms their mark, and together they take what they need. Not even their distracting chemistry could get in the way. Until Shane was caught and left to rot on a prison moon. Now, freshly escaped from confinement and simmering with anger, he has his sights set on their biggest job yet.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCyrus\u003c\/b\u003e just graduated from the flight academy with a shiny new position lined up reporting to a well-respected general. On his very first assignment, he stops the outlaws in their tracks—or he \u003ci\u003ewould \u003c\/i\u003ehave, if his annoyingly handsome copilot, Lark, hadn’t fallen for Ava’s deception.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut when Shane uncovers a top-secret plot that would leave his and Ava’s home world at the mercy of Cyrus’s military leaders, he makes it his mission to thwart them at all costs. It isn’t long before the two of them make interstellar headlines with each new heist. And thanks to a chance run-in with the rebels, Cyrus is caught between two versions of the truth. He must pick a side—and fast. Because Shane and Ava will bring the planet to its knees . . . or die trying.\u003cb\u003eRaves for \u003ci\u003eMade of Stars\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"A thrill ride of the highest caliber. \u003ci\u003eMade of Stars \u003c\/i\u003eis an explosion of space warfare with beautifully violent criminals you’ll love to accompany.\" —Chloe Gong, #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThese Violent Delights\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“With as much action and intrigue as there is heart, you’ll be swept away on this adventure through the stars.” —Alechia Dow, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Sound of Stars\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Thrilling and intimate, full of both rage and hope,\u003ci\u003e Made of Stars\u003c\/i\u003e is a stellar debut. Voris balances a complex plot, a ragtag crew of richly drawn characters, and humor alongside a thoughtful examination of economic exploitation. Come for the cool space battles, stay for the emotional devastation.” —Allison Saft, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eA Far Wilder Magic\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“An absolute supernova of a book. \u003ci\u003eMade of Stars\u003c\/i\u003e is a thrilling adventure across the galaxy driven by a big, beating heart. Voris is a spectacular new talent.” —Sasha Peyton Smith, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Witch Haven\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Sharp and cinematic, \u003ci\u003eMade of Stars\u003c\/i\u003e is stellar storytelling, with a gritty universeand rich characters just waiting to rock your world and break your heart.” —Lora Beth Johnson, author of the Goddess in the Machine duology\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"A rollercoaster ride-or-die from the explosive start to the heart-wrenching end! Queer characters, romantic angst, and killer plot twists make Voris a new voice that you will definitely want to devour.\" —Meg Long, author of \u003ci\u003eCold the Night, Fast the Wolves\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\"[A] bustling debut.\"—\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003eJenna Voris writes books about ambitious girls and galaxy traversing adventures. She was born and raised in Indiana—where she learned to love roundabouts and the art of college basketball—and now calls Washington D.C. home. When she’s not writing, she can be found perfecting her road trip playlists and desperately trying to keep her houseplants alive. \u003ci\u003eMade of Stars \u003c\/i\u003eis her debut. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFollow her online @JennaVoris and at jennamvoris.com.CHAPTER ONE\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The young ones died first.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Blood pooled between the stones and crawled across the floor with delicate phantom hands. Shane felt it sink into his bones the longer he lay in the cell. How long had it been since he tasted pure, unrecycled oxygen? Since he felt the steady weight of a weapon in his hand? His finger twitched as he imagined the shock of a rifle against his shoulder, the silent shot in the open vacuum of space.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eYou’re not going to die here.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Shane rolled over, wincing as his shoulder twisted painfully. He’d popped it back into place after the fight yesterday, but the skin was still swollen and tender. His hands ached, too. He tried not to think about why, but the memories always overcame him in the end.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e A pulse slowing under his fingers. The other man clawing at the floor, broken nails scratching down the dusty walls. Shane had always thought killing would be harder, that it would take a certain kind of person to wrap their hands around another’s throat and squeeze until there was nothing left, but it had been over by the time the warden arrived, before the droids swarmed and the prisoners rioted. Killing was the easiest thing in the world. And Shane wasn’t sorry.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He exhaled, grimacing at the sharp pain in his chest. They kept it cold in solitary. Add that to the list of things these people would pay for. He’d come for them all eventually—­every officer, every warden, every droid. Everyone who funded a place like this. \u003ci\u003eYou’re not going to die here.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Shane’s last thoughts before the dark claimed him again were of his hands, pale and trembling without something to hold, and that man’s vacant, lifeless stare.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e CHAPTER TWO\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Three months of planning and Ava had still managed to underestimate the cold.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e She shivered as she followed a masked officer through the twisting corridors of the Opian prison moon. They had made it through the first security checkpoint without so much as a whisper from the alarms, but another officer stopped her before she reached the second. He yanked her into a corner between a damp, icy wall and a security droid, and Ava had to remind herself that \u003ci\u003ethis was normal\u003c\/i\u003e as his hands closed around her waist.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e This was Chess\u003ci\u003e.\u003c\/i\u003e This level of security was expected. Still, she had to force herself not to flinch, to focus on the camera embedded in the droid’s flat, metal face and instead think about all the ways she could take this officer apart while his hands skimmed up her legs. He got as far as her left thigh before finding the protein bar tucked in her stocking. His face twisted into a mocking grin.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Not allowed.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Ava tried to snatch it back, but the officer shoved it into his own pocket before giving her a pat on the back that lingered a bit too long between her shoulder blades and pushing her through the second checkpoint.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The officer in front of her now wore a thick padded jacket and boots in addition to a mask across the bottom half of his face. Ava had to clench her jaw to keep her teeth from chattering as they walked. \u003ci\u003eWhat do the prisoners wear? How many freeze to death alone in these cells?\u003c\/i\u003e She tried not to think about what three months in a place like this might have done to Shane. The frigid climate on their home planet, Nakara, meant she wasn’t usually cold, but Ava didn’t think this chill was entirely due to temperature.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The officers tried to block her view of the cells as they walked, one after the other in a shifting wall of black fabric and polished weapons, but it wasn’t necessary. Ava had stopped looking after she saw a girl slumped against the rough stones, eyes half-­open as her fingers twitched in time to their footsteps.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Are you a friend of his?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The officer’s question was too loud. Ava tensed as he looked over his shoulder, lowering her gaze to the floor. “Yes.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e What she could see of the man’s face relaxed, and satisfaction heated her bones. This was why Shane had hired her, after all. This was why she wore pretty dresses and wove moonflowers into her long, dark hair and blushed at every question. Because she was a good actress, good enough to make it if she’d been born on any part of Nakara other than barren, wasted West Rama. Because she was \u003ci\u003eharmless\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e When the officer spoke again, his voice was almost kind. “Can I give you a piece of advice?”\u003cbr\u003e Ava nodded as they stopped in front of a thick, steel-­plated door. He could give her all the advice he wanted if he looked the other way in that room. “Of course.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The officer removed his glove and pressed one finger to the scanner laid into the wall. “That boy is nothing but trouble. Everyone on this moon is trouble.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Ava did smile then, and she was glad his back was turned. She ran a hand down the front of her dress, tracing the sharp edge of the pistol still tucked beneath the fabric, cold against her skin.\u003cbr\u003e He didn’t know the first thing about trouble.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e When the door clicked open, she used the time it took for the officer to put his glove back on to find the cameras—­one in every corner. That was fine. Jared said he’d deal with those. He should be in the system by now; she just had to buy him time. Then the officer stepped aside and Ava’s next breath caught as she locked eyes with Shane.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eThree months.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Had it really only been three months? Ava could see his ribs against the thin fabric of his prison shirt, see the way he stood with one arm pressed against his side. \u003ci\u003eToo thin.\u003c\/i\u003e They had shaved his hair too, so only a thin buzz remained across his pale scalp, but Shane still straightened when he saw her, eyes widening in surprise before his face split into a painful-­looking grin.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Hey, baby, how’s it floating?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Same voice, same confidence, same wry smile. Ava grimaced. “You look like junkmatter.”\u003cbr\u003e She reached out a hand, but the officer caught her wrist before she could touch him. “That’s close enough.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e It took every ounce of Ava’s self-­control not to snap his fingers. She pretended to shrink away, hands shaking as they fell back to her sides. He didn’t need to know it was from fury, not fear. \u003ci\u003eHarmless.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Then she heard it—­a faint \u003ci\u003eclick\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eThe cameras.\u003c\/i\u003e Jared said anyone watching from the prison’s control towers would see the room exactly as it had been seconds before, their images frozen in time. She had two minutes, but the only person Ava had to fool was the officer himself.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e And Shane, who hadn’t been expecting her, who had no idea what she was planning, who could barely stand.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Ava pushed the thought away. It didn’t matter; they would make this work. She took a tentative step forward and silently begged Shane to play along. “I’ve missed you. How are you doing?” It was a stupid question. Purple bruises masked most of Shane’s face and now that she was closer, Ava could tell he was keeping the weight off his left ankle, too. She swallowed her unease and added, “I tried to bring food, but they found it.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e She said that part loud enough for the officer to hear, to let him think the game was over.\u003cbr\u003e Shane’s confusion only lasted a second longer. His face smoothed into an easy grin, eyes flicking toward each camera as Ava took another step. “That’s fine. You were all I wanted anyway, baby.”\u003cbr\u003e Ava resisted the urge to roll her eyes. That was a bit much, even for him, but it worked for what she had to do next. Slowly, she lifted her hands to the front of her dress and unfastened one button. “Really?” she whispered. “That’s \u003ci\u003eall\u003c\/i\u003e you wanted?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Shane blinked, color deepening on his bruised cheeks as she opened another button, then a third. Ava glanced over her shoulder to find the officer suddenly very interested in a spot on the floor. She undid another button, finally revealing the barrel of the gun stashed down the front of her dress, and Shane’s expression shifted into cool understanding. This time, when he reached for her, the officer didn’t intervene.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Because she was a simple, harmless girl caught up with a boy from the wrong side of town.\u003cbr\u003e Ava slid her hands across Shane’s chest as he lowered his face into the curve of her neck. She could feel him shivering under her fingers, and her next words caught in her throat as one of his hands groped at her chest, grabbing the barrel of the gun.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “There’s a droid at the first security checkpoint,” she breathed, and Shane’s answering nod was almost invisible. He slid the weapon into the front of his pants and Ava stepped back, hurriedly buttoning her dress. Every few seconds she threw nervous, purposeful glances over her shoulder at the officer, who still had his gaze fixed on a crack in the floor, but it was Shane who spoke first.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “All that and I don’t even get a kiss?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Ava’s hands stilled on her collar, and when she glanced up, Shane looked like he was fighting the urge to laugh. \u003ci\u003eHe thinks this is funny\u003c\/i\u003e, Ava realized\u003ci\u003e.\u003c\/i\u003e Here he was, barely able to stand, and he still wanted to embarrass her.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eUnbelievable.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e So instead of blushing and turning away like she knew he expected, Ava smiled, grabbed Shane’s face with both hands, and kissed him right on the mouth. He let out a pained grunt at the sudden movement, but she ignored him, and when she pulled back, the officer seemed to decide that was the last straw. “Time’s up.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Ava patted Shane’s cheek and stepped away. “Bye, \u003ci\u003ebaby\u003c\/i\u003e.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The last thing Ava saw before the door closed was Shane’s grin, wicked and cutting as he lifted a hand to his lips.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The man behind the visitor’s desk handed Ava her bag and fake ID as she signed out, but her heart was still hammering as she stepped outside and picked her way through the docks. Their Cruiser was easy to spot, clunky and out of place among the shiny patrol vehicles. The ship wasn’t particularly fast, but the boxy model and nondescript paint job blended with the commuter traffic on almost every planet. Shane never would have stolen a Cruiser—­they weren’t flashy enough for him. But Shane hadn’t been there when they needed a new ship. And given the circumstances, Ava thought she’d done a decent job.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Jared was already sitting in the front, feet propped against the dashboard. He scrambled up when Ava hauled herself into the ship. “Did you see him?” he asked without waiting for her to sit down. “What did he look like? What’s going on?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e His fingers danced nervously over his skin screen and the sound of fingernails on glass raked down Ava’s spine. She shuddered. “Bad.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “How so? What—­?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “It was \u003ci\u003ebad\u003c\/i\u003e, Jared!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He flinched and Ava immediately regretted snapping. “Sorry,” she murmured, running a hand across her face. “I’m sorry. It was bad.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e There was a moment of frosty silence before Jared leaned forward, tucking his chin against her shoulder as they waited together. Ava had debated pushing him out the air lock half a dozen times over the last three months, but she was glad he was here now. She wouldn’t have made it this far without him. Jared was only fifteen—­two years younger than she was—­but he was the best hacker she’d ever met, and he still had the skin screen to prove it, despite ditching the Nakaran military years ago.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Ava wound the chain of her necklace around one finger until the small, rectangular charm landed in her palm, gleaming silver in the harsh light of the docks. They shouldn’t linger here, especially in a stolen ship. The flow of traffic on and off Chess was almost as strictly regulated as the prison itself, and any minute someone would notice she was still here. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e And that a prisoner was making his way toward the exit, shooting down everything in his path.\u003cbr\u003e She checked and rechecked the Cruiser’s landing gear, trying to ignore the weight of each passing second. Then, when nothing happened, she checked it a third time before pulling the mirrors forward to reapply her lipstick. It was still smudged from kissing Shane. That was going to be a lecture for sure—­he didn’t like surprises. She glanced back toward the entrance, certain she would see him dashing across the docks, but the doors were still firmly closed.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eHe’s taking too long.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e How long did she wait before calling it and leaving Shane inside? What if he never made it past the guard in the visitor’s room or the droid at the checkpoint? Ava reached down and started the Cruiser, wincing at the sharp rattle of the engine. \u003ci\u003eJust a few more seconds . . .\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “What’s the holdup?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Jared jumped, scattering wires and spare parts over the floor, as another voice echoed across the docks. He turned panicked eyes toward the approaching officer as Ava jammed a finger into his chest.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Do \u003ci\u003enot\u003c\/i\u003e speak,” she hissed. Then she turned and plastered on a smile. “Hi, Officer, is there a problem?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He didn’t smile back. “What’s the holdup?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Ava could only make out his eyes, narrowed over the top of his mask. Shane always said the people who worked on Opia’s prison moons hid their faces because they didn’t want anyone to know what they were capable of. She remembered his bruises, the girl from the cell, and it was an effort to keep her smile from slipping. “Nothing, Officer, we were just leaving. You know these old Cruisers take forever to start.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The officer ignored her and peered into the back, where Jared was running his hands through his nest of white-­blond curls. “What’s your business here?” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Ava risked a glance toward the controls. Three switches. That was all it would take to get them in the air. As long as she was through the prison checkpoint before the alarms sounded, she had nothing to worry about.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Hello!” The officer snapped his gloved fingers in front of her face, and Ava wondered how long it would take to break his hand. Could she do it before he called for backup? Before he reached for the assault rifle strapped across his chest?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “I’m sorry,” Ava gasped. Her eyes blurred with fake tears. “We were visiting a friend.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Who?” The officer’s gaze didn’t soften. He didn’t even flinch. When she didn’t answer, he reached a hand toward his ear, and Ava barely had time to open her mouth before he pressed a finger to his portable comm and said, “Air control, this is—­”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He never finished the sentence.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e One second, he was standing in front of the window and the next he had tipped forward, blood blooming across his chest as he choked on a strangled cry. Jared yelped and Ava shoved the body to the ground, already feeling for her own weapon. Her hand had barely closed around its barrel when she saw Shane limping hurriedly across the docks.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He came to a stop outside the ship, and Ava watched him glance at Jared, who still cowered in the back, before his gaze slid over to her. She opened her mouth, three months of practiced conversations blurring together the longer they looked at each other, but Shane held up a finger before she could say anything at all.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “I cannot \u003ci\u003ebelieve\u003c\/i\u003e you stole a Cruiser.”","brand":"Viking Books for Young Readers","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46299688567013,"sku":"NP9780593525210","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780593525210.jpg?v=1767732040","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/made-of-stars-isbn-9780593525210","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}