What do you think?
Rate this book
Emily's Cosmic Journey: The Secrets of Sparkon
Book Two in the Emily’s Cosmic Journey series
A mysterious planet. A daring girl. A secret worth fighting for.
After chasing the stars, ten-year-old Emily Starling and her robot friend Zippy land on Sparkon, a broken machine world filled with rusting towers, strange signals and secrets buried deep below the surface.
Teaming up with Nova, a fearless young engineer, they set out to unlock the truth hidden within the planet’s ancient vault.
But someone wants Zippy back, and an army of machines is ready to rise to make sure no one escapes Sparkon.
Perfect for readers aged 7 to 11 who love adventure, humour and heart, The Secrets of Sparkon is a thrilling continuation of Emily’s interstellar journey filled with robots, mysteries and courage among the stars.
A mysterious planet. A daring girl. A secret worth fighting for.
After chasing the stars, ten-year-old Emily Starling and her robot friend Zippy land on Sparkon, a broken machine world filled with rusting towers, strange signals and secrets buried deep below the surface.
Teaming up with Nova, a fearless young engineer, they set out to unlock the truth hidden within the planet’s ancient vault.
But someone wants Zippy back, and an army of machines is ready to rise to make sure no one escapes Sparkon.
Perfect for readers aged 7 to 11 who love adventure, humour and heart, The Secrets of Sparkon is a thrilling continuation of Emily’s interstellar journey filled with robots, mysteries and courage among the stars.
142 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 22, 2026
About the author
Oliver Lendon
4 books6 followersOliver Lendon is a web developer who spends his days building digital worlds and his nights inventing fantastical ones. He writes middle-grade adventures full of heart, humour, and the occasional talking goat. His favourite book growing up was Mort by Terry Pratchett, which taught him that humour and heart can share the same page. Oliver lives in the Cotswolds with his wife and daughter and drinks more tea than is probably wise.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
January 24, 2026
A mysterious planet and another thrilling adventure for Emily!
This second installment is a great space adventure for young readers. I’d hoped to share this with my son, but he’s now at that fickle age that he decides randomly that he is too old for things. But after I have expressed my joy at reading this book, he has now decided that he will read it… but on his own as he’s grown up! And I am pleased that someone else will be enjoying Emily’s journey.
This book is well written and there are some lovely moments for the parents if you decide to share this book together. The pace is good and there is some good action. The language is perhaps a bit demanding for younger readers but has some really good vocabulary for the older and more confident readers. There’s a good level of imagination throughout.
After following Oliver Lendon on Instagram, I wasn’t surprised to see that he has an affinity for Terry Pratchett. There are a few moments in this book which felt Terry Pratchett-esque.
Emily and Zippy are lovely characters, but for me Nova with her sassy moments and Mr Grindle just doing what he was doing, made this book shine. I think I’d love just a book of Mr Grindle and his amazing toaster. There’s humour and sarcasm and that for me makes a good book.
This second installment is a great space adventure for young readers. I’d hoped to share this with my son, but he’s now at that fickle age that he decides randomly that he is too old for things. But after I have expressed my joy at reading this book, he has now decided that he will read it… but on his own as he’s grown up! And I am pleased that someone else will be enjoying Emily’s journey.
This book is well written and there are some lovely moments for the parents if you decide to share this book together. The pace is good and there is some good action. The language is perhaps a bit demanding for younger readers but has some really good vocabulary for the older and more confident readers. There’s a good level of imagination throughout.
After following Oliver Lendon on Instagram, I wasn’t surprised to see that he has an affinity for Terry Pratchett. There are a few moments in this book which felt Terry Pratchett-esque.
Emily and Zippy are lovely characters, but for me Nova with her sassy moments and Mr Grindle just doing what he was doing, made this book shine. I think I’d love just a book of Mr Grindle and his amazing toaster. There’s humour and sarcasm and that for me makes a good book.
January 23, 2026
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'Emily's Cosmic Journey The Secrets Of Sparkon' by Oliver Lendon
This is the second book I have read by this author. I have also read 'Emily's Cosmic Journey The Star Chaser' which I would also highly recommend.
This is another lovely children's book by Oliver that we thoroughly enjoyed reading as a family. Oliver's wonderful story takes us on a journey continuing on from where we left on in this first book in the series with ten year old Emily in space with her robot friend Zippy. They have landed on the planet Sparkon. It is on this planet that they meet Nora who is a young engineer. Emily, Zippy and Nora set out to try and find out the truth about Sparkon and it's hidden vault but they are not alone on the planet. Captain Vorrek and his team of robots are also on Sparkon and Vorrek is determined to get Zippy back where he believed he belongs. Will he succeed or will Emily and Nora escape with Zippy? Grab your copy of this brilliant boo to find out more for yourselves! Although this book is primarily aimed at children, unfortunately at the age of 38 I can no longer be classed as one myself buy I really enjoyed it and think that it is a great short story for adults and children alike!! Amazon gives this a recommended reading age of 7-11 years but I would say it is suitable for children aged 5-12, although as I previously said adults will also enjoy it! We all loved the colourful and eye catching cover which is fantastically illustrated and tells you what you need to know about this fun space filled book! With a storyline packed with space, a robot, fun, friendship, adventure, robots, danger, teamwork and so much more what are you waiting for?? Grab your copy and join Emily on her adventure today! Oliver's brilliant descriptions really do ensure the readers feel like they are right next to Emily on her space adventures from beginning to end. The chapters are the perfect length to enable one more chapter before bed time but we ended up reading it in one sitting of an hour. The type of font that Oliver has used is also brilliantly chosen making it easy to read. I have come across several children's books where the author has used some lovely fonts which do look fancy but are also difficult to read which can spoil the story. I love the fact that in this storyline it is a girl interested in Space as in many I have seen it is typically boys so this makes a great change. Emily is a very smart girl who is also kind, caring and I love that she has teamed up with Nova who is another very clever girl!! We love Zippy too and thought he was cute, funny and sweet. Not only is this a great and fun story but it also teaches children about perseverance, team work, challenging yourself, friendship and most of all to follow your dreams!! I love books that contain important messages for children, an adults alike, while weaving them into a fun storyline that children will enjoy while learning more. It gives parents plenty to talk about and discuss with their children!! I read this along with my 13 year old son Malaki to his brothers Hunter and Ryder who are 8 years old and we all really enjoyed the storyline and meeting Emily, Zippy and the rest of the characters. There should be at least one copy of this book kept in every doctor's surgery, nursery, playgroup, school, hospital, library and just, well everywhere!! This book should be read by every child, adult and to every child by an adult!! The only thing that I would have loved to see included in this book and which would make it more attractive to younger children would be some more illustrations inside, especially considering how gorgeous the front cover is!! The book is filled with amazing adventures and characters and it would be amazing to see some of them illustrated!! We are also very pleased that this book is just the second book in a series and we cannot wait to get our hands on the next book which we really hope Oliver is writing as I type. An absolutely fantastic book from this brilliant author. Keep it up Oliver!!
A great book from this fantastic author who has created a fun filled and imaginative adventures!! I am looking forward to reading more books by this great author!
Overall a fantastic fun filled space adventure with Emily, Nova and Zippy the robot!
#EmilysCosmicJourneyTheSecretsOfSparkon #EmilysCosmicJourney #OliverLendon #OliverLendonWrites #LoveBooksTours #LBTCrew #KellyALacey #Ad #LBTCrew #Bookstagram #FreeReview #FreeBookReview
@OliverLendon @OliverLendonWrites @LoveBooksTours @LBTCrew @KellyALacey
https://m.facebook.com/Bookwork86/?__...
https://www.instagram.com/bookwormwhi...
https://www.facebook.com/GoldenOldies...
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3...
https://mobile.twitter.com/kcmw86
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/profile/a...
Review for 'Emily's Cosmic Journey The Secrets Of Sparkon' by Oliver Lendon
This is the second book I have read by this author. I have also read 'Emily's Cosmic Journey The Star Chaser' which I would also highly recommend.
This is another lovely children's book by Oliver that we thoroughly enjoyed reading as a family. Oliver's wonderful story takes us on a journey continuing on from where we left on in this first book in the series with ten year old Emily in space with her robot friend Zippy. They have landed on the planet Sparkon. It is on this planet that they meet Nora who is a young engineer. Emily, Zippy and Nora set out to try and find out the truth about Sparkon and it's hidden vault but they are not alone on the planet. Captain Vorrek and his team of robots are also on Sparkon and Vorrek is determined to get Zippy back where he believed he belongs. Will he succeed or will Emily and Nora escape with Zippy? Grab your copy of this brilliant boo to find out more for yourselves! Although this book is primarily aimed at children, unfortunately at the age of 38 I can no longer be classed as one myself buy I really enjoyed it and think that it is a great short story for adults and children alike!! Amazon gives this a recommended reading age of 7-11 years but I would say it is suitable for children aged 5-12, although as I previously said adults will also enjoy it! We all loved the colourful and eye catching cover which is fantastically illustrated and tells you what you need to know about this fun space filled book! With a storyline packed with space, a robot, fun, friendship, adventure, robots, danger, teamwork and so much more what are you waiting for?? Grab your copy and join Emily on her adventure today! Oliver's brilliant descriptions really do ensure the readers feel like they are right next to Emily on her space adventures from beginning to end. The chapters are the perfect length to enable one more chapter before bed time but we ended up reading it in one sitting of an hour. The type of font that Oliver has used is also brilliantly chosen making it easy to read. I have come across several children's books where the author has used some lovely fonts which do look fancy but are also difficult to read which can spoil the story. I love the fact that in this storyline it is a girl interested in Space as in many I have seen it is typically boys so this makes a great change. Emily is a very smart girl who is also kind, caring and I love that she has teamed up with Nova who is another very clever girl!! We love Zippy too and thought he was cute, funny and sweet. Not only is this a great and fun story but it also teaches children about perseverance, team work, challenging yourself, friendship and most of all to follow your dreams!! I love books that contain important messages for children, an adults alike, while weaving them into a fun storyline that children will enjoy while learning more. It gives parents plenty to talk about and discuss with their children!! I read this along with my 13 year old son Malaki to his brothers Hunter and Ryder who are 8 years old and we all really enjoyed the storyline and meeting Emily, Zippy and the rest of the characters. There should be at least one copy of this book kept in every doctor's surgery, nursery, playgroup, school, hospital, library and just, well everywhere!! This book should be read by every child, adult and to every child by an adult!! The only thing that I would have loved to see included in this book and which would make it more attractive to younger children would be some more illustrations inside, especially considering how gorgeous the front cover is!! The book is filled with amazing adventures and characters and it would be amazing to see some of them illustrated!! We are also very pleased that this book is just the second book in a series and we cannot wait to get our hands on the next book which we really hope Oliver is writing as I type. An absolutely fantastic book from this brilliant author. Keep it up Oliver!!
A great book from this fantastic author who has created a fun filled and imaginative adventures!! I am looking forward to reading more books by this great author!
Overall a fantastic fun filled space adventure with Emily, Nova and Zippy the robot!
#EmilysCosmicJourneyTheSecretsOfSparkon #EmilysCosmicJourney #OliverLendon #OliverLendonWrites #LoveBooksTours #LBTCrew #KellyALacey #Ad #LBTCrew #Bookstagram #FreeReview #FreeBookReview
@OliverLendon @OliverLendonWrites @LoveBooksTours @LBTCrew @KellyALacey
https://m.facebook.com/Bookwork86/?__...
https://www.instagram.com/bookwormwhi...
https://www.facebook.com/GoldenOldies...
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3...
https://mobile.twitter.com/kcmw86
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/profile/a...
January 22, 2026
What an absolute whirlwind adventure this is.
Action from page one, right until the last page, where you will be left desperately wanting to read the next instalment.
It may be a children’s book but I was also hooked from start to finish.
The cover is a great representation of the characters and I love the colouring of it.
As much as this carries on from the first book, it is also a completely different adventure, which keeps you engaged throughout. Zippy is an absolute favourite here, but Emily, Nova and definitely Mr Grindle are also brilliant characters.
My son loved that there was always something happening, there was lots of action but also humour weaved through too. He was constantly wondering what would happen next and how the characters would get through the various challenges they faced.
This book is well written with a super plot and great characters. It is certainly one that children will enjoy at bedtime, be it reading themselves or with an adult.
Action from page one, right until the last page, where you will be left desperately wanting to read the next instalment.
It may be a children’s book but I was also hooked from start to finish.
The cover is a great representation of the characters and I love the colouring of it.
As much as this carries on from the first book, it is also a completely different adventure, which keeps you engaged throughout. Zippy is an absolute favourite here, but Emily, Nova and definitely Mr Grindle are also brilliant characters.
My son loved that there was always something happening, there was lots of action but also humour weaved through too. He was constantly wondering what would happen next and how the characters would get through the various challenges they faced.
This book is well written with a super plot and great characters. It is certainly one that children will enjoy at bedtime, be it reading themselves or with an adult.
Read
December 31, 2025Natalia's (8 year old) review:
I loved this book because it's awesome and so are the characters. They are smart and also kind.
Love how the characters look on the cover and also their names!
I want to know how the story finishes because it was really surprising at the end!
Note from Ana (her mom):
The level was perfect for her. Enough to be challenging yet easy to read. Lots of funny moments, adventure and amazing friendships.
It's the perfect length and has great values. It was a pleasure to watch her read this story and I can't wait for more from Oliver Lendon!
I loved this book because it's awesome and so are the characters. They are smart and also kind.
Love how the characters look on the cover and also their names!
I want to know how the story finishes because it was really surprising at the end!
Note from Ana (her mom):
The level was perfect for her. Enough to be challenging yet easy to read. Lots of funny moments, adventure and amazing friendships.
It's the perfect length and has great values. It was a pleasure to watch her read this story and I can't wait for more from Oliver Lendon!
January 24, 2026
First of all, let's talk about the cover. It's just so cute with little Emily in her fun space soon, and the wonderful Zippy the robot in the foreground, and their rocket and a great space scene in the background. I love the colours used too, bright and exciting, while remaining soft and kind to the eye.
Now onto the story. We follow the intrepid Emily Starling ( great name by the way for a space themed book ), and the quirky Zippy, a lonely, forgotten robot who's lost his memory. Following their star chasing in the previous book, this time, the pair embark on a wondrous space adventure, landing on the planet Sparkonin this marvellous escapade that blends courage, friendship and curiosity, with lots of heart and derring-do.
The text used throughout is a good size, the font clear and easy to read.
I read this with our 9 year old Daughter, Amelie-Rose, and we both really enjoyed it.
A big 5 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 's from us.
Now onto the story. We follow the intrepid Emily Starling ( great name by the way for a space themed book ), and the quirky Zippy, a lonely, forgotten robot who's lost his memory. Following their star chasing in the previous book, this time, the pair embark on a wondrous space adventure, landing on the planet Sparkonin this marvellous escapade that blends courage, friendship and curiosity, with lots of heart and derring-do.
The text used throughout is a good size, the font clear and easy to read.
I read this with our 9 year old Daughter, Amelie-Rose, and we both really enjoyed it.
A big 5 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 's from us.
December 8, 2025
Once again starting off with the topic of the cover art, the illustrator has done a mega job again! It perfectly depicts the storyline in one single image, Emily, Mr. Grindle, Nova, Zippy, Captain Vorrek and his spaceship - no major character is left out! The kind of cover that attracts the attention of children and makes them go, “Mom/Dad, can I please have that book?" when walking through a library or a book store.
But the plot line overall, flip the themes of Book 1 and you get the themes of Book 2 (in a good way), and that in itself is a great way to continue a series! Love, friendships and family in book 1 suddenly turns into battles, hatred and struggle to survive in book 2, the kind of themes that keeps you on the edge of your seat when you're reading this wonderful piece of writing! Another example is the setting itself: Earth - a warm, friendly and familiar place and Sparkon - a cold, terrifying, unknown place filled with dangers in every step! Even the ground on the planet does not spare you if you make the wrong move …
Now let me talk about a character who was introduced at the perfect moment and elevated to the level of a supporting main character in no time - Nova! I won't reveal anything about her in this review to not spoil anything for the young readers out there but yeah, a very intriguing and suspenseful entry of the character with a backstory that sort of, serves as the motive for most of her actions throughout the book!
And once you read this, you absolutely CANNOT forget Mr. Grindle’s perfectly timed entry (again, nothing more about it in this review to not spoil it). Yeah, if a grown and experienced reader reads this book, you can see his entry coming from multiple scenes away but as I said in the previous review, let's switch off that part of our brain once, enjoy this as a children's book, take in the nostalgia and appreciate the time and effort the author has put into creating this!
So yeah, overall, an amazing praise-worthy book, one of its kind that manages to get the suspense, light hearted moments and the pacing - all of it just right and tuned to perfection, despite the stakes within the plot being much higher (and better) than book 1! In my eyes, anything less than 4 stars is just out of the discussion but as for myself, I'm giving this a solid five stars!!
But the plot line overall, flip the themes of Book 1 and you get the themes of Book 2 (in a good way), and that in itself is a great way to continue a series! Love, friendships and family in book 1 suddenly turns into battles, hatred and struggle to survive in book 2, the kind of themes that keeps you on the edge of your seat when you're reading this wonderful piece of writing! Another example is the setting itself: Earth - a warm, friendly and familiar place and Sparkon - a cold, terrifying, unknown place filled with dangers in every step! Even the ground on the planet does not spare you if you make the wrong move …
Now let me talk about a character who was introduced at the perfect moment and elevated to the level of a supporting main character in no time - Nova! I won't reveal anything about her in this review to not spoil anything for the young readers out there but yeah, a very intriguing and suspenseful entry of the character with a backstory that sort of, serves as the motive for most of her actions throughout the book!
And once you read this, you absolutely CANNOT forget Mr. Grindle’s perfectly timed entry (again, nothing more about it in this review to not spoil it). Yeah, if a grown and experienced reader reads this book, you can see his entry coming from multiple scenes away but as I said in the previous review, let's switch off that part of our brain once, enjoy this as a children's book, take in the nostalgia and appreciate the time and effort the author has put into creating this!
So yeah, overall, an amazing praise-worthy book, one of its kind that manages to get the suspense, light hearted moments and the pacing - all of it just right and tuned to perfection, despite the stakes within the plot being much higher (and better) than book 1! In my eyes, anything less than 4 stars is just out of the discussion but as for myself, I'm giving this a solid five stars!!
Review of advance copy received from Author
This is book two in the series and even though I hadn’t read the first one, we were all straight into it (and I’ll definitely be going back to read the first).
It feels really well aimed at the 7-11 year olds. The language is just right for them, the font size is great for independent readers, and the shorter chapters make it easy to read in chunks. Even our 5 year old was totally into it!
The characters are funny and witty, and I really loved the found family feel between Emily, Zippy, and their new friends. It does a great job to show the importance of friendship. It does such a good job of bringing sci-fi and adventure into a kids story without it feeling too scary. I also absolutely loved the tea-serving robot and found myself genuinely laughing at Mr Grindle (that “worst picnic” line got me). There’s a real sense of adventure running through the whole book, and it clearly sets things up for the final one. My kids aren’t finished yet but are already desperate to know what happens to Emily next!
Thank you for the ARC, this review reflects my genuine thoughts.
It feels really well aimed at the 7-11 year olds. The language is just right for them, the font size is great for independent readers, and the shorter chapters make it easy to read in chunks. Even our 5 year old was totally into it!
The characters are funny and witty, and I really loved the found family feel between Emily, Zippy, and their new friends. It does a great job to show the importance of friendship. It does such a good job of bringing sci-fi and adventure into a kids story without it feeling too scary. I also absolutely loved the tea-serving robot and found myself genuinely laughing at Mr Grindle (that “worst picnic” line got me). There’s a real sense of adventure running through the whole book, and it clearly sets things up for the final one. My kids aren’t finished yet but are already desperate to know what happens to Emily next!
Thank you for the ARC, this review reflects my genuine thoughts.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews