4,5 stars. This was very refreshing! A story without too many cliches, in a science fiction world full of starships, universes and new technologies. I love it! The end was indeed surprising, actually in the beginning I thought I would know how it end - but I was wrong. He'll yeah, science fiction! I will definitely read more from this starbound series. And yes, this book is a standalone, the next book features different characters. Huge plus: the cover. It's art! I want a poster of it on my wall!