Outpost Books Releases Lily Starling and the River of Time, Fourth Installment in Award-Winning Science-Fiction Series

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OUTPOST BOOKS RELEASES FOURTH INSTALLMENT IN AWARD-WINNING LILY STARLING SCIENCE-FICTION SERIES
LILY STARLING AND THE RIVER OF TIME RETURNS THE ACCLAIMED SPACE-OPERA SERIES TO TIME TRAVEL IN ITS MOST PERSONAL ADVENTURE YET
PITTSBURGH, PA (October 2026) - Outpost Books announces the release of Lily Starling and the River of Time, the fourth novel in Christian Hurst's award-winning Lily Starling science-fiction series.
Released October 9, 2026, River of Time returns the series to time travel while pushing its characters into a story centered as much on identity, grief, memory, and belonging as on the mechanics of the journey itself.
The new installment follows the growing success of the Lily Starling series, which has earned recognition including an Independent Publisher Book Award gold medal, three BookFest gold awards, National Indie Excellence Award honors, Readers' Favorite recognition, and critical praise from Kirkus Reviews and other publications.
Early reception for River of Time has continued that momentum. Readers' Favorite awarded the novel five stars, with perfect scores across its review categories. Award-winning author and reviewer Jamie Michele called the book "brilliant time-travel science fiction" and "well written and totally immersive."
"For all the science-fiction machinery in this book, River of Time is really about the things we carry with us," said Hurst. "It asks what happens when memory, identity, grief, and love become tangled up with the question of whether a life belongs to us simply because we have lived it. I wanted the time travel to feel exciting, but I also wanted it to feel deeply human."
The fourth installment also expands the emotional and thematic scope of the series while continuing its focus on found family, diverse characters, and emotionally realistic space adventure.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Time itself is beginning to fracture.
As temporal distortions spread across Union space, Lily Starling is drawn into a journey that reaches beyond the boundaries of the life she knows. Pulled through the currents of time, she is forced to confront moments that were never meant to be hers, relationships altered by history, and the possibility that the future she fought so hard to build may not belong to her at all.
With the crew of the Salamander facing consequences that stretch across years and worlds, Lily must decide what can be changed, what must be protected, and what it means to hold on to a life when time itself refuses to stay still.
Blending large-scale science fiction with an intimate exploration of identity, grief, love, and memory, Lily Starling and the River of Time continues the story of Lily Starling while opening a new chapter in the mythology of the series.
BOOK DETAILS
Title: Lily Starling and the River of Time
Series: The Lily Starling Series, Book Four
Author: Christian Hurst
Publisher: Outpost Books
Publication Date: October 9, 2026
ISBN: 979-8993932798
Formats: Paperback | Ebook
Pages: 440
Paperback Price: $19.99
Ebook Price: $7.99
Lily Starling and the River of Time is available through major online booksellers and participating independent bookstores.
ABOUT CHRISTIAN HURST
Christian Hurst is an award-winning author and creative director whose work combines classic science-fiction adventure with character-driven stories centered on identity, connection, and belonging.
He is the creator of the Lily Starling series, a young adult space opera featuring diverse, inclusive characters and a contemporary take on the genre's classic roots. His work has received honors from the Independent Publisher Book Awards, The BookFest Awards, Readers' Favorite, and the National Indie Excellence Awards, along with critical recognition from Kirkus Reviews.
Hurst lives in Meadville, Pennsylvania, with his wife, son, and three dogs.

Outpost Books
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Suite 220
Bethel Park, PA 15102

MEDIA CONTACT:
Jean-Paul Aubert
Publisher, Outpost Books
publisher@outpostscifibooks.com | 814-350-8468, 202-716-9000

ABOUT OUTPOST BOOKS
Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Outpost Books is an independent publisher focused on distinctive, professionally produced fiction with an emphasis on speculative storytelling, strong characters, and imaginative worlds.

Review copies of Lily Starling and the River of Time and interview opportunities with Christian Hurst are available to members of the media through the contact listed above.

This release was published on openPR.