Red Star Rebels by Amie Kaufman

• Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
• Publication Date: February 10, 2026
• Reviewed from Edelweiss e-galley
• ISBN: 9798217029013

Brace yourself for a wild science fiction ride in this latest from the bestselling Kaufman. Cleo is a stowaway on Mars, trying to find a way to escape legal issues on Earth and forge a new life for herself. She has made it to Pax base but has been stuck there for months. Hunter is a member of the Graves family who were the first to populate Mars. No one knows that he is on Mars since he wanted to surprise his ultra-wealthy mother and sister. When a disaster hits the Pax complex, Cleo and Hunter are the only ones left onsite after mercenaries evacuate the base. The countdown is ticking, only 8 hours to stop them and manage to survive, perhaps together. 

Kaufman has such a feel for pacing. In this novel, it is the smarts and ingenuity of the two main characters that save the day. Through clever use of the base’s infrastructure and software, the two of them manage to prank and isolate mercs as the clock winds down. The pacing is relentless, the setting wonderfully vivid, and the book reads like a movie. Add in the building connection and romance between the two characters, and you will root for them for a lot longer than the 8 hours they have.

A riotously good book on the red planet. Appropriate for ages 13+.