Book involving a boy who somehow gets on an alien ship and has star powers

Question

Looking for a book I read years ago, probably around 2014-2017.

It was a futuristic/sci-fi setting, and there were two species; humans and this other alien one. They had this weird thing where the humans thought they ate eyeballs, but they ate candy eyeballs?

In the beginning, the main character, a boy, was with his mother, but somehow gets on one of the alien ships. He has like these star powers, and the more he uses them, the closer he gets to dying? Also the aliens communicate with certain stars and stuff, like each alien has a personal friend.

I think, in the end, he became a star, and the alien girl on the crew, who was supposed to be able to do it and never did, could do it because he was her star?

Answer 1

Phoenix by S.F. Said

Lucky thinks he's an ordinary Human boy. But one night, he dreams that the stars are singing - and wakes to find an uncontrollable power rising inside him.

Now he's on the run, racing through space, searching for answers. In a galaxy at war, where Humans and Aliens are deadly enemies, the only people who can help him are an Alien starship crew - and an Alien warrior girl, with neon needles in her hair.

Together, they must find a way to save the galaxy. For Lucky is not the only one in danger. His destiny and the fate of the universe are connected in the most explosive way

Re the eyeballs, when Lucky goes to dinner with the aliens he sees:

Lucky blanched. He felt faint. He’d heard about this, of course, but he’d never seen it in real life. And yet here it was. A steaming pot of eyeballs.

Frollix was already shovelling food into his dish, and licking his lips. But Lucky couldn’t move. There were eyeballs, staring at him! He gazed back at them in helpless horror.

but:

Lucky forced himself to reach forward, and pick up an eyeball. It was deeply unpleasant to touch. Slimy wet and gelid, just as he feared. But now he’d started, he had to see it through.

"Who are you calling a Groundling?" he said defiantly, as he popped the eyeball into his mouth.

And it tasted ... amazing.

Sweet. Soft. Spangly as snow, the flavours swirled around his tongue. The only thing he’d ever had like it was ice cream. But this was even better. He laughed as the eyeball went fizzing down his throat, and he reached at once for another.

"Course, they're not actual eyeballs!" said Frollix, with a grin. "We just make 'em like that so Groundlings won’t eat 'em all! Good, huh?".