Wonders of The Cosmos 2 is a shocking release by Sebastian Szarek because it’s the first time I can recall that a sequel book just had ‘2’ put on it. There’s no ambiguity, this is the second book in the WOTC setting. Typically, authors will expand their setting by telling an entirely new story, but The Evacuation picks up where the first one ended.

The Evacuation is 120 chapters long and features the same generally cheerful but occasionally somber tone as the last. There’s only a few fight scenes and ship battles.

The Merchant Vessel Pioneer arrives in a frontier sector of the Peldak Protectorate for a delivery contract. But the Protectorate navy broadcasts to all worlds across the sector that a massive fleet of charr are on their way and the garrison won’t be able to defeat them. The crew don’t know what the charr are, but they spring into action with thousands of other vessels to evacuate the sector.

Unlike other novels in this new wave of ‘wholesome and fun’ young elf fiction, Wonders of the Cosmos doesn’t ignore the unfortunate realities of life. The people of this sector have their entire lives uprooted; there’s an armada coming that will kill them all. There are no graphic depictions of someone’s head getting blown off, but some families had to choose to leave behind precious family heirlooms, young adults put their plans on hold, and the novel goes into detail about how this is a life ruining event, even if they live.

When I was young our family home was destroyed in the first sacking of Pelda. We lived and eventually rebuilt it. To elves, this evacuation would be an inconvenience. To aliens, they have only one chance at youth and the evacuation robs them of their future.