The Living Universe: How New Discoveries Are Rewriting the Origins of Life

by Brian G. Turner

[#1 New Release in Solar System on Amazon]

Written for the general lay reader, The Living Universe explores how the latest scientific discoveries are rewriting what we thought we knew about space, planets, and the origins of life.

It explains how we've found that the universe is filled with planets, not just around other stars but also traveling in the space between them, and that many may carry life with them.

Some of these wandering planets have almost certainly been captured by the Sun's gravity, changing not just the arrangement of planets in the Solar System, but also the development of life on our Earth.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science

277 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 30, 2025

About the author

I’m a freelance technology editor and writer, covering everything from cloud computing to exoplanets.

My big passions are ancient and mediaeval history, mythology and planetary science.

I live in the Highlands of Scotland where I run the world’s largest online science fiction and fantasy community at SFFchronicles.

In June 2020 I had a reaction to medication which left me with severe CFS, from which I am only very slowly recovering.

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the author for the opportunity to read and review this book

I went into this book thinking that I thought I knew everything there was to know about space. However, this book proved otherwise and showed me that I didn’t know everything and that there are things that I did not know about space.
I did find it difficult to exceed expectations considering that this is a non-fiction and I do tend to not be the biggest fan of the genre. It often does tend to fall flat for me as a reader. However, I do believe that this book will find its audience among those who love space and want to learn everything about space and our solar system. This book will be best suited for readers who are truly interested in the topic and can devour it in multiple sittings. For me, the book did struggle to hold my attention especially in the beginning, likely due to the genre and the fact that it did seem like a lot was coming at me all at once. I do enjoy learning about space and what is out there. While I do find the subject of space fascinating, there are aspects of space that do not interest me in learning about. Which is perfectly fine to have your preference when it comes to what you want to learn about space.
I believe that the pacing of this book was exactly the right pacing for the topic that the author was writing about. It felt like the author did a great job ensuring that the pacing made sense for the genre while also addressing the key points he wanted to cover within the book, from our solar system to the galaxies.
I will say that it did take me a while to get into this book because I needed to learn the author's writing style and fully let myself invest into the book that was all about space. I will say that non fiction is one of those genres that can in fact take me a while to get into because it is not a genre that I read a lot of. But I do think by Chapter 4: The Outer Solar System is really when I started to get invested into the book without it feeling like it has all this information flying at me. I did feel like the ending was satisfying in a way that made sense for the book as a whole and how it brought everything back together without overstepping its bonds in terms of a non-fiction.
I really did enjoy the author's voice and tone in this book. It felt informative while also feeling like it was having a conversation. The book did come across as well-researched as well as well-edited, showing that the author put a great deal of effort into ensuring that his sources were highlighted throughout the book. Because of the fact that it is making things seem ‘anything but average’ including the sun that ‘will expand into a red giant, engulfing many of the inner planets of the solar system, and perhaps even our earth.’
My biggest downside for this book is the fact that the sources that he does use he puts footnotes [like this] in the text so that way in the e-book version so it does take you out of the reading the book as a whole. I am not 100% sure how it looks in the paperback but I was not a fan of [this] being in the middle of a paragraph or a middle of a sentence referencing the reference in the back.
I will say that if you love learning about space then I would give this book a go. I do think that there are some interesting facts that I do think that anyone can take away from it. You can know everything that there is to know about space and still end up finding something interesting about this book.

[Boundbywords · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was beautifully written from beginning to end. The author did an amazing job of taking the reader on a journey from the inception of the universe all the way to how life begun on earth. This is coming from someone who has been infatuated with space since she was little.

Notably, the supplemental articles and media he references are specifically chosen to be free and publicly accessible, reflecting a core commitment to democratizing astronomical knowledge. I will be picking up a physical copy to keep on my shelf.

I highly recommend this book to anyone that has wondered how we got here and what lies beyond the horizon.

Big thanks to the publisher and the book sirens for handing me an advanced reader’s copy.

[Zhelana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book provided a lot of interesting information, while making the argument that the universe is full of life that is constantly affecting each other through various means. This is the first time I heard that the atmosphere of Venus may contain life. It also provided a lot of astronomical information that has come out in the last decade or so that was really interesting, that completely contradicts what I was told in school and updated information about planets outside of our solar system. I thought it was really interesting, and am glad that I read this book, however students who have taken a more recent astronomy class may find it too basic?

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who’s always been fascinated by space but never really knew much about it, this book has already taught me so much! It has given my facts that I know I'll remember and share to others: like how the Sun is white! (Crazy!). The line: “We’ve already seen that the universe is filled with all the basic ingredients for life,” has stuck with me. It’s so simple yet so true, and that’s what makes space so interesting. Definitely highly recommend to those who loves space or curious to learn more about it ⭐️

[Baylie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! I've never felt so small but yet so connected to everything. It felt more like a conversation than a lecture, with everything broken down and explained in a way that kept me turning the page. I've always loved space, but seemed to get lost when trying to dive deeper.. this gave me a lot of insight without ever feeling overwhelming. Would highly recommend checking out if you are looking to dive deeper!

[Savannah Costner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Got this as a Goodreads giveaway!

The conjecture in the book has made me understand we don't actually know all that much about space. I'm shocked considering the saying "we know more about space than our solar system" yet we know so little of how or why things are the way they are. I had SO many questions on certain theories the author brought up that I wish he went more in detail about. However, this was a great survey of the fundamentals. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good, plain language introduction and summary of the current science of the universe. With each chapter focusing on a different subject, it gives a rather comprehensive review of current science in regards to astronomy and related topics. I recommend it to anyone with a layman's interest in how the universe was created and the current results of the studies in astronomy.

[Mike H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book if your into space, history, and/or astrophysics