Heart of Iron

“The legends surrounding Anastasia Romanov get an SF makeover in this . . . exciting Firefly-style space opera” full of romance & adventure (Booklist).

A 2019 Rainbow Book List Selection by a New York Times–Bestselling Author

Seventeen-year-old Ana is a scoundrel by nurture and an outlaw by nature. Found as a child drifting through space with a sentient android called D09, Ana was saved by a fearsome space captain and the grizzled crew she now calls family. But D09—one of the last remaining illegal Metals—has been glitching, and Ana will stop at nothing to find a way to fix him.

Ana’s desperate effort to save D09 leads her on a quest to steal the coordinates to a lost ship that could offer all the answers. But at the last moment, a spoiled Ironblood boy beats Ana to her prize. He has his own reasons for taking the coordinates, and he doesn’t care what he’ll sacrifice to keep them.

And when everything goes wrong, she and the Ironblood end up as fugitives on the run. Now their entire kingdom is after them—and the coordinates—and not everyone wants them captured alive.

What they find in a lost corner of the universe will change all their lives—and unearth dangerous secrets. But when a darkness from Ana’s past returns, she must face an impossible choice: does she protect a kingdom that wants her dead or save the Metal boy she loves?

“The perfect blend of action, romance, technological futurism, sci-fi, and fantasy, this intergalactic drama demands attention and rewards its readers.” —BCCB (starred review)

“A great choice for fans of Victoria Aveyard’s “Red Queen” trilogy and for young readers looking for a hint of Game of Thrones.” —School Library Journal

“Poston delivers a delightful cast and nonstop thrills in this light-speed space adventure. The pages flew by, and I couldn’t put it down.” —Victoria Schwab, #1 New York Times–bestselling author of This Savage Song and Our Dark Duet