Riley August The Last Gifts of the Universe

'Come for the space archaeologists and adorably violent Pumpkin the cat, but stay for a science fiction novel that will repair your soul.' Nadia El-Fassi 'Wistful, loving, and indescribably beautiful. I'd call it required reading for the end of the world... a poignant masterpiece that transcends the death of stars.' Olivia Atwater 'A quietly profound story about grief, purpose, and our place in the universe - told with a touch of humor, and a dash of adventure. Come for the cat, stay for the story.' Sunyi Dean ------- A dying universe. A search for answers. An adventure at the end of a trillion lifetimes. When the home worlds finally achieved the technology to venture out into the stars, they found a graveyard of dead civilisations. What befell these worlds is unknown. All they know is that they are the last ones left - and whatever came for the others will one day come for them. Scout is an Archivist who scours the dead worlds of the cosmos for their last gifts: interesting technology, cultural rituals - anything left behind that might be useful to home and their survival. During an excavation on a lifeless planet, Scout unearths something unbelievable: a surviving message from an alien who witnessed the world-ending entity thousands of years ago. Now Scout, their brother and their sometimes-fearless, space-faring cat, Pumpkin, must race to save what matters most.