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A Fugitive's History of the Known Universe
Hardcover with sprayed edges. In the sequel to A Rebel’s History of Mars, Azad and his fellow time-traveling historians must contend with the consequences of the dark secrets they’ve exposed…
After exposing the dark origins of his world on the distant planet of Nabatea, Azad is a fugitive, hunted across the galaxy by the fearsome Vitruvian Authorities. But to lead a passive society into revolution, Azad and his crew must enlist the unlikely help of a space pirate with an agenda all her own. Their adventures once again draw them into the past, into the early days of settlement on Nabatea, where a death continues to haunt the fledgling community and a mother must contend with her son’s monstrous vision for their new home.
After exposing the dark origins of his world on the distant planet of Nabatea, Azad is a fugitive, hunted across the galaxy by the fearsome Vitruvian Authorities. But to lead a passive society into revolution, Azad and his crew must enlist the unlikely help of a space pirate with an agenda all her own. Their adventures once again draw them into the past, into the early days of settlement on Nabatea, where a death continues to haunt the fledgling community and a mother must contend with her son’s monstrous vision for their new home.
288 pages, Hardcover
Published August 11, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 28, 2026
This is a novel set in a future where humans have spread out from Earth to develop terraformed colonies on Mars as well as another planet, Nabatea, and its moon. Some humans, having been exposed to an alien substance, have developed abilities of strength and speed and call themselves Vitruvians; they form a ruling class over those ‘orthodox’ humans who haven’t, though members of both groups challenge this order in various ways.
There are two plots in this novel, set centuries apart; one follows the timeline of earliest Vitruvians and humans settling Nabatea while the second follows a cast of characters trying to uncover the truth about the history of their world and build a more equitable & just society.
I really enjoyed this novel. I appreciate the character development in this installment of Dr. Saadia especially, and the plot is fast moving and exciting. There are some really emotional scenes in this book that were challenging to read and will stick with me (in a good way) and I feel like Afifi handles some complex themes really effectively in this series. Definitely recommend.
Note: this book is a sequel, and it picks up where the prior book left off. While I see some reviewers expressing that they enjoyed it without having read A Rebel’s History of Mars, I would very strongly suggest reading that novel first for vital context to this story.
Content warnings: murder, death, blood, forcible confinement, torture, medical content
Thank you to Flame Tree Press, NetGalley, and the author for providing me an ARC to review.
There are two plots in this novel, set centuries apart; one follows the timeline of earliest Vitruvians and humans settling Nabatea while the second follows a cast of characters trying to uncover the truth about the history of their world and build a more equitable & just society.
I really enjoyed this novel. I appreciate the character development in this installment of Dr. Saadia especially, and the plot is fast moving and exciting. There are some really emotional scenes in this book that were challenging to read and will stick with me (in a good way) and I feel like Afifi handles some complex themes really effectively in this series. Definitely recommend.
Note: this book is a sequel, and it picks up where the prior book left off. While I see some reviewers expressing that they enjoyed it without having read A Rebel’s History of Mars, I would very strongly suggest reading that novel first for vital context to this story.
Content warnings: murder, death, blood, forcible confinement, torture, medical content
Thank you to Flame Tree Press, NetGalley, and the author for providing me an ARC to review.
May 21, 2026
Thank you to #NetGalley and the author for my e-arc of this book!
If you are itching for some sci-fi content that will have you hooked from the moment you start then this is the book (or books) for you!
This book follows a unique dual narrative of Azad and Saadia through past and future and takes you through how their stories connect both tragically and victoriously.
The descriptions and detail of the scientific elements really pulls you in, as well as the space pirates and corporate destruction.
I really enjoyed following the characters and how morally grey they could both be at times - humans are complex people and it leads to revolution and heartbreak for our characters here.
For transparency, when I requested and read this book, I had no idea it was a sequel. It completely stood on its own for me as it recalled the previous book several times. I’ll now definitely check out the first one to learn more about Kezza!
4/5⭐️!
If you are itching for some sci-fi content that will have you hooked from the moment you start then this is the book (or books) for you!
This book follows a unique dual narrative of Azad and Saadia through past and future and takes you through how their stories connect both tragically and victoriously.
The descriptions and detail of the scientific elements really pulls you in, as well as the space pirates and corporate destruction.
I really enjoyed following the characters and how morally grey they could both be at times - humans are complex people and it leads to revolution and heartbreak for our characters here.
For transparency, when I requested and read this book, I had no idea it was a sequel. It completely stood on its own for me as it recalled the previous book several times. I’ll now definitely check out the first one to learn more about Kezza!
4/5⭐️!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
It took me a while to get into 'A Fugitive's History of the Known Universe'. At first, I assumed it was because this is a sequel and I hadn't read the previous book, but I don't think that was it. I had three problems that made it hard for me to be invested in the story.
Firstly, we have two timelines with two protagonists, and one of them, Azad, is just so bland. Does he have a personality? I couldn't find one. He also reads extremely young. Thankfully, the other main character, Saadia, is very compelling, and on the whole I found her timeline more interesting, too. Another issue is the writing itself, which is of the 'panting breath, thumping heart, trembling lips, shaking hands, etc' variety. Far too many bodily reactions when none are actually needed for us to understand how a character is feeling in a particular situation.
Finally, the pacing felt off to me. Scenes I wanted to see played out were just briefly summarised, while others went on longer than necessary. Although I would say, on the whole, that it is more often too fast than it is too slow. The ending, in particular, feels very rushed.
These are all issues you often see in a debut novel, and they are more forgiveable there.
Despite all that, it's an easy, fast read, the plot is interesting, and I wanted to find out how everything resolved in the end. So it makes it to 3 stars, but only just.
Firstly, we have two timelines with two protagonists, and one of them, Azad, is just so bland. Does he have a personality? I couldn't find one. He also reads extremely young. Thankfully, the other main character, Saadia, is very compelling, and on the whole I found her timeline more interesting, too. Another issue is the writing itself, which is of the 'panting breath, thumping heart, trembling lips, shaking hands, etc' variety. Far too many bodily reactions when none are actually needed for us to understand how a character is feeling in a particular situation.
Finally, the pacing felt off to me. Scenes I wanted to see played out were just briefly summarised, while others went on longer than necessary. Although I would say, on the whole, that it is more often too fast than it is too slow. The ending, in particular, feels very rushed.
These are all issues you often see in a debut novel, and they are more forgiveable there.
Despite all that, it's an easy, fast read, the plot is interesting, and I wanted to find out how everything resolved in the end. So it makes it to 3 stars, but only just.
July 21, 2026
I absolutely love this series. The way Nadia forces you to love the characters just makes it so emotional. All the characters have obvious different personalities that just brings so much diversity to the group.
The world building is immense and descriptive to the point where you can feel the heat of the planets and imagine all the time jump recordings! I love how believable all the scientific information is and how all the mechanics work.
It hits you how even a thousand years in the future people could still be obsessed with power and money and are brainwashed into segregating the “lesser” race.
I can’t wait to read the next book and more from Nadia in the future!
The world building is immense and descriptive to the point where you can feel the heat of the planets and imagine all the time jump recordings! I love how believable all the scientific information is and how all the mechanics work.
It hits you how even a thousand years in the future people could still be obsessed with power and money and are brainwashed into segregating the “lesser” race.
I can’t wait to read the next book and more from Nadia in the future!
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
This is such a perfect sequel! Nadia Afifi continues the story of Azad from the first book, now a fugitive with the rebel historian crew, while introducing us to Dr. Saadia Hamza of the original crew that colonized Nabatea and one of the few who knows the blood-soaked truth. The two dual timelines give us the perfect interplay of the reality of the past and the myth it has become. The pacing is breathless, mixing action and mystery and memory into a story that captures a whole history in all its messy truths, while still giving us a sense of hope.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
What a brilliant sequel this is to it's predessor, A Rebel's History of Mars, which I read some time ago.
The hardback sprayed edge version is just stunning and looks great on the shelf next to book one and I'd recommend reading book one before this.
The Sci-fi here is wonderfully descriptive and immersive and the characters are believable and feel real.
A big 5 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟's from me.
The hardback sprayed edge version is just stunning and looks great on the shelf next to book one and I'd recommend reading book one before this.
The Sci-fi here is wonderfully descriptive and immersive and the characters are believable and feel real.
A big 5 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟's from me.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews