ALA Booklist

Ever since he was little, Tristan knew he was going to Mars. Now, he's 16 and it's finally time and his parents are among the first 40 humans on a one-way trip to the Red Planet, where they'll try to establish a permanently habitable colony. First, though, he has to say good-bye to his girlfriend. Based on the real-life Mars One program, Maberry's near-future tale is crammed with a wealth of illuminating detail about the rigorous training and dangerous mission. Gifted and resourceful Tristan, for instance, is forever reassembling household appliances to hone his engineering skills, which become vitally necessary once they discover that saboteurs have infiltrated the program. While occasionally the descriptions of equipment and theory drag down Tristan's first-person narrative, and the romance seems shoehorned in, once the colonists are in space and trying to root out their adversaries, the tension skyrockets as seemingly minor problems become nail-bitingly terrifying in the cold, deadly depths of space. Sci-fi fans eager for realism will be happy to be along for this slow-burn ride. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Best-selling Maberry also has a handful of awards under his belt, and that combination will lure plenty of readers his way.

Kirkus Reviews

It ain't easy to get to Mars.It is the year 2026, and Tristan's family has been chosen for the (real-life proposed) Mars One program, a one-way mission to establish a colony on Mars. In order to raise the necessary funds, good-looking white boy Tristan Hart has become an all-American teen heartthrob as the star of the reality show Tristan and Izzy, which chronicles his impending lifelong separation from his childhood sweetheart. Having made millions from the show, Tristan donates a portion of the funds to the Mars One mission and sets some money in trust for Izzy and his best friend, both of whom will be left behind. Lurking in the backdrop of the media charade, a terrorist group known as the Neo-Luddites has launched bombing attacks to thwart the Mars mission. Tensions are further exacerbated when it is discovered that a competitor may have already launched a secret mission to Mars. Tristan capably narrates, the believable teen blending his sorrow at leaving his friends with the kind of excitement readers will expect from a space adventure. Maberry mixes sci-fi details with romance and satire of modern media, his Mars One mission hosting a diverse set of characters that will have readers wishing they could join up. Maberry wins with his on-the-spot dialogue, and his characters grace the page with ease. (Science fiction. 12-16)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Maberry (the Nightsiders series) falls short of his usual level of success in this sluggish SF novel. Sixteen-year-old Tristan Hart and his family are going on a one-way trip to Mars along with 38 other people as part of the privately funded Mars One project. The first half of the book is devoted to Tristan-s training, celebrity interviews, and appearances on the reality television shows that are financing the colonization effort, along with his interactions with his girlfriend Izzy, whom he loves deeply but has decided to leave behind. These scenes work individually but, in succession, leave the tale feeling rather flat. Things pick up once the ships leave orbit, particularly when unexplained malfunctions put the mission at risk, and Tristan realizes that the Neo-Luddites, a cult opposed to space travel, have planted agents on board. Tristan is very much in the Heinlein tradition of young heroes, levelheaded and highly competent, with genius-level engineering skills. But while Maberry handles the story-s conclusion well, some readers may lose interest before they get there. Ages 12-up. Agent: Sara Crowe, Pippin Properties. (Apr.)

School Library Journal

Gr 8 Up-he year is 2026, and the world is preparing for its first manned mission to Mars. Forty individuals have been chosen to be the first Martians, and genius 16-year-old Tristan Hart is one of them, along with his brilliant parents, despite having to leave his high school sweetheart, Izzy, behind forever. Everyone's eyes are upon Tristan and the others participating in Mars One, but there are those who don't want them to go, including a radical religious terrorist group called the Neo-Luddites, who will attempt anything to sabotage the mission. On the flight to the Red Planet, the protagonist must deal with his feelings for Izzy, the weight of advancing humankind by becoming one of the first people to set foot on Mars, and the suspicion that someone on board is the enemy, trying to send them all to their death. Maberry's latest takes a while to get going (the Mars One crews lift off halfway through the hefty volume), but once it does, it cranks through a series of misfortunes on board that dial up the tension. Tristan is a believable narrator, and readers feel his distress and excitement. A diverse group of characters add to the overall feeling of unity that shines through the story. VERDICT A popular choice for sci-fi shelves, this is a thrilling albeit slow-starting adventure that will satisfy teensif they can get through the first half before they make it to space.Tyler Hixson, School Library Journal