The Photonic Effect

From New York Times bestselling author Mike Chen comes a page-turning space opera in which a starship captain and her crew receive a distress signal and find themselves at odds with various factions of a galactic civil war—for fans of Alastair Reynolds and Adrian Tchaikovsky.

After ten years trapped across the expanse of space, Captain Demora Kim and the crew aboard the Horizon are finally home. Only it’s not the home they know. The Cluster, formerly a peaceful cooperative between planets, is on the verge of collapse due to a civil war. A way to end the conflict may lie in the limitless energy that trapped the Horizon crew halfway across the galaxy and the engine they crafted to bring them home. But that means going back to the pocket of space they’ve only just escaped. Demi isn’t sure she’s up for the task. She fulfilled her promise. She brought her crew home. Maybe it’s time to walk away. However, leaving everything behind won’t be as simple as she thinks. Conspiracies are afoot, loyalties will be tested, and Demi’s choices could shake the foundation of the galaxy.

© 2026 Simon & Schuster Audio (Audiobook): 9781668163573

Release date

Audiobook: 21 April 2026