When an army of giant robot AIs threatens to devastate Earth, a virtuoso pianist becomes humanity's last hope in this bold, lightning-paced, technicolor space opera series from the author of A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe.

Jazz pianist Gus Kitko expected to spend his final moments on Earth playing piano at the greatest goodbye party of all time, and maybe kissing rockstar Ardent Violet, before the last of humanity is wiped out forever by the Vanguards--ultra-powerful robots from the dark heart of space, hell-bent on destroying humanity for reasons none can divine.

But when the Vanguards arrive, the unthinkable happens--the mecha that should be killing Gus instead saves him. Suddenly, Gus's swan song becomes humanity's encore, as he is chosen to join a small group of traitorous Vanguards and their pilots dedicated to saving humanity.

Author: Alex White
Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Orbit
Published: 07/12/2022
Series: The Starmetal Symphony #1
Pages: 464
Weight: 0.92lbs
Size: 8.14h x 5.43w x 1.27d
ISBN: 9780316430579


Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 05/16/2022
Booklist 07/01/2022 pg. 28

About the Author
Alex White was born and raised in the American South. They take photos, write music, and spend hours on YouTube watching other people blacksmith. They value challenging and subversive writing, but they'll settle for a good time.
Alex lives in the shadow of Huntsville, Alabama's rockets with their spouse, son, two dogs and a cat named Grim. Favored pastimes include Legos and racecars. They take their whiskey neat and their espresso black.