Exodus: The Archimedes Engine By Peter F. Hamilton

This description is of Exodus by Peter F. Hamilton, a riveting sci-fi action-adventure novel set in a future where humanity's survival is intertwined with the fate of a sprawling, star-cluster empire. The story begins forty thousand years after humanity's exodus from a dying Earth, where arkships carried the remnants of the human race to the Centauri Cluster—a region of space rich with potentially habitable planets. The survivors established a new home and evolved into advanced beings known as Celestials.

The Centauri Cluster, now flourishing under the rule of powerful Celestial Dominions, is controlled by the influential Crown Celestials—a coalition of five dominant houses overseeing vast territories. As more arkships arrive, the tension between the new arrivals and the established Celestials intensifies, with the latter enforcing a repressive regime over the former.

Finn, born on one of the Crown Dominion worlds, has grown up under the Celestials' strict rule, with Earth’s history feeling like a distant legend. His longing for freedom and the excitement of the unknown drives him to seize a rare opportunity when an arkship from Earth—long thought lost—appears. This arrival offers Finn a chance to transcend his constrained existence and join the elite group of Travelers, heroic explorers tasked with charting the vast, uncharted territories of distant space.

Exodus combines epic world-building with action-packed adventure, as Finn embarks on a journey that could redefine humanity's place in the cosmos and his own destiny. 📚❤️