Review: Gemina (Illuminae Files #2) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Gemina (Illuminae Files #2) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Genre: Sci-Fi / Young Adult

Publisher: Rock the Boat

My Rating: 

Synopsis: Moving to a space station at the edge of the galaxy was always going to be the death of Hanna’s social life. Nobody said it might actually get her killed.

Hanna is the station captain’s pampered daughter; Nik the reluctant member of a notorious crime family. But while the pair are struggling with the realities of life aboard the galaxy’s most boring space station, little do they know that Kady Grant and the Hypatia are headed right toward Heimdall, carrying news of the Kerenza invasion.

When an elite BeiTech strike team invades the station, Hanna and Nik are thrown together to defend their home. But alien predators are picking off the station residents one by one, and a malfunction in the station’s wormhole means the space-time continuum might be ripped in two before dinner. Soon Hanna and Nik aren’t just fighting for their own survival; the fate of everyone on the Hypatia—and possibly the known universe—is in their hands.

But relax. They’ve totally got this. They hope.

My Review

If you’re new to the Illuminae Files, then please give yourself a late Christmas present and get started on this series ASAP because wooooow is it good. You can check out my review of Illuminae here.

So how did Gemina compare to Illuminae? Well, just like Illuminae, I’ve given Gemina five stars. Once again the epistolary form really benefits the novel’s storytelling and character development. The plot jumps between the different formats and characters seamlessly, weaving a web of intrigue and questions. I was worried that a new cast might put me off a little, but actually I really enjoyed them, and Kaufman and Kristoff drop enough hints about the impending arrival of the Hypatia to keep you interested, as well as throwing a fair few spanners into the works.

This novel focuses on the main characters of Hanna Donnelly and Niklas Malikov fighting for their lives. I have to say that, whilst I really liked both of them, I think I prefer Kady and Ezra as protagonists, but only just. This is mainly because I struggled to put my finger on who Hanna exactly was – she felt a little like a watered-down version of Kady. Nik I preferred to Hanna; he was funny and crude, but once again he did share a lot of similarities with Ezra (and Ezra’s complexity was something I really loved and felt to be truly unique and captivating when it came to his character development).

That being said, I still really liked them. Maybe I was just trying to compare them to Kady and Ezra because I loved reading about them so much, but I at least thought Nik had a really interesting backstory. However, there was definitely one standout character for me in the form of Nik’s cousin Ella Malikova. She actually annoyed me ever-so-slightly at the beginning, but Nik makes a comment about Ella being full on and how it’s just her and, after that, I accepted her personality a lot more and came to enjoy any scenes involving her. She was witty, intelligent, crude like Nik, but also a realist and I liked that about her. And in addition to this (VERY MINOR SPOILER ALERT) she’s great disability rep. She doesn’t let anything stand in her way.

The rest of the cast consisted mainly of adults, same as Illuminae, which is why I think this is such an accessible series and definitely a crossover between YA and adult. There weren’t as many ‘big players’ in the adult cast as in Illuminae and I didn’t really become attached to any of them like I did with James McNulty, Winifred McCall and Byron Zhang, but it was still a large and interesting cast. Saying this, I probably didn’t become attached to any of the secondary characters as much simply because the majority of them here were the villains. But they were definitely compelling villains.

As for the plot, it was the strong point of the novel. Another complicated story with a myriad of sub-plots, I never got bored of it and couldn’t wait till everything collided for the big finale. Nevertheless, I do have a few critiques.

As you’ve already seen, I critiqued Hanna and Nik, feeling they weren’t quite as well-rounded as Kady and Ezra and how they felt too similar. Yet still I’ve given this book five stars. That’s because these critiques didn’t really effect my overall enjoyment of the novel. I still think it’s a pretty much flawless and incredibly unique series, and is 100% one of my favourites of all time. However, this is an honest review, and if I feel some things didn’t quite hit the mark, then I’m obviously going to point them out.

Anyway, after that ramble, my critique for the plotting is this: I felt that Kaufman and Kristoff tried to pull the same shock tactics as they did in Illuminae. Because of the similarities, these ‘shocks’ didn’t affect me. Something huge would happen and instead of my heart pounding or me actually sobbing for a good portion of the book (as happened with Illuminae) I actually just thought “nah, it’s fine, he/she will get out of this/hasn’t actually done that/won’t die”. And lo and behold, I was right. These big shocks that worked so well in Illuminae fell a little flat in Gemina because they were recycled. If you’ve read Gemina, you’ll probably know what I’m referring to.

And this leads to the fact that Gemina didn’t hit me quite as hard as Illuminae did. However, I think that’s down to the fact that Illuminae was just so new and different and daring. Once that’s been done, it’s hard to compete or improve upon it. Gemina did have lots of fresh ideas to contribute, I just wish there had been even more. Yet maybe if they had tried to push the boundaries even further than in Illuminae, the book might have become too unrealistic, which would have been even worse.

Overall, the new ideas that Gemina contributed (there were some big ‘uns) definitely outweighed the slight con of some recycled ideas. I wish this series won’t end and I’m going to be devastated when I’ve finished the final book. The entire thing is a whirlwind of action, humour, and emotion and, like I said in my Illuminae review, I don’t really know how Kaufman and Kristoff have pulled it all off.

I hope that my critiques haven’t deterred anyone because this is seriously one amazing series and I cannot recommend it enough; there were just a few very minor things I picked up on that I thought could have been tweaked. But all in all, Gemina was an excellent sequel; I think the wait for book 3 might just kill me.

Have you read Gemina? What did you think of it? Do you agree with my review? Are you planning on reading it? Let me know in the comments below!

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Stacking the Shelves | Sequels and ARCs

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme from Tynga’s Reviews where you showcase the books you’ve received or purchased.

This week, I’ve added three books to my TBR and I’m very excited.

First off, I retweeted a publisher’s tweet on Twitter to win an ARC of what sounds like an insanely good dystopian crime thriller and, lo and behold, I won!

Wildfire publishers sent me an ARC of Yesterday by Felicia Yap, due to be released August 2017, as well as a lovely personalised card and a chocolate! Clearly Wildfire understand that the way to my heart is through both books and chocolate. Anyway, check out the synopsis for Yesterday here:

How do you solve a murder when you can only remember yesterday?

There are two types of people in the world. Those who can only remember yesterday, and those who can also recall the day before.

You have just one lifeline to the past: your diary. Each night, you write down the things that matter. Each morning, your diary tells you where you were, who you loved and what you did.

Today, the police are at your door. They say that the body of your husband’s mistress has been found in the River Cam. They think your husband killed her two days ago.

Can you trust the police? Can you trust your husband? Can you trust yourself?

My two other books are Gemina (The Illuminae Files #2) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff, and Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein:

I am so so so excited for Gemina and it’s been staring at me since I got it. I desperately want to read it but I’ve had so many other books waiting in my TBR for ages that I just don’t know what to do! If you haven’t read Illuminae yet then what have you been doing?! Hands down one of the best books I’ve ever read. Check out my review here.

Rose Under Fire is another YA WWII novel from Elizabeth Wein. I read Code Name Verity a few years ago and I loved it, especially because Wein writes strong women traversing the horrors of the Second World War. I’ve always found WWI and WWII fiction so interesting and Wein’s books are a definite welcome addition to the genre.

Have you read Rose Under Fire? Or have you even managed to read Gemina? What did you think? Do you like the sound of Yesterday? Let me know in the comments below!

Review: Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: Harper Voyager

My Rating: 

Synopsis:

Destined to destroy empires, Mia Corvere is only ten years old when she is given her first lesson in death.

Six years later, the child raised in shadows takes her first steps towards keeping the promise she made the day that she lost everything.

But the chance to strike against such powerful enemies will be fleeting, so if she is to have her revenge, Mia must become a weapon without equal. She must prove herself against the deadliest of friends and enemies, and survive the tutelage of murderers, liars and daemons at the heart of a murder cult.

The Red Church is no ordinary school, but Mia is no ordinary student. The shadows love her. And they drink her fear.

My Review

I was so excited to start Nevernight. I’d read some really good reviews and had high hopes after the brilliance that was Illuminae. Let me just say, Amie Kaufman clearly reigns in Jay Kristoff. If you thought Illuminae was gory, then wait till you read Nevernight.

I really enjoyed this book. Truly and thoroughly enjoyed it. Great characters, intrigue, wit, gore, it had it all. One thing I especially loved was the world-building. I’ve seen in some reviews that people didn’t really like the footnotes, but I actually liked them! After studying English at uni and reading books with tons of footnotes and asterisks, I’m pretty used to them now, and they’re often full of interesting information. The footnotes here in Nevernight really added to the depth of the world Kristoff has created and they were often just funny anecdotes too. I didn’t feel like they detracted from the flow of the story at all.

I actually found a lot of comparisons with Garth Nix’s Old Kingdom series in this book. I don’t mean comparisons in the sense of Nevernight stole ideas from Sabriel etc. or just regurgitated them, but there were definite similarities. A cult living in a mountain? Yep. A labyrinthine library that is home to some things much more unsavoury than just books? Yes. A smart-arse cat? Definitely. However, there are of course differences here too. Whilst the Clayr’s Glacier in Nix’s series is home to a benevolent clan of clairvoyant women, the Red Church is home to some very deadly assassins. Whilst the Red Church library has its dangers, it’s not quite as dangerous as some of the Free Magic entities lurking within the depths of the Clayr’s library. And whilst Mister Kindly from Nevernight is sarky and made of darkness, his allegiances are much clearer than those of the Old Kingdom’s Mogget. I actually enjoyed finding these comparisons. Like I said, they’re just similarities, not blatant plagiarism, but it definitely helped my enjoyment. So, if you like Nix’s series, you may like Nevernight. 

Another thing I enjoyed here was the plot and the pacing. The story itself was, overall, original and a very fun read. I would often be reading and think “right, I’m gonna stop at the end of this chapter” and then some massive cliff-hanger would arise and I’d have to keep reading, desperate to know what happens next with all the twists and turns. Some people mentioned it lagged a little at the beginning, and I can see that, but because I enjoyed the world-building I didn’t mind, and it didn’t move slowly for very long. I’m not going to spoil too much about the world because I think it’ll be more fun to read about it yourself, but there was a definite Roman/Greek undertone to it that I loved.

So, why only 4.5/5? Well, as I mentioned in my September wrap-up, Mia annoyed me a little. I failed to fully connect with her and I’m not too sure why. I think perhaps it was because her confidence sometimes slipped over into the realm of cockiness. I did warm to her much more by the end – I think she definitely matured – but for a large portion of the book I found myself struggling to feel much for her, which was a shame. However, I did enjoy other characters, such as Tric, Mercurio, a few of the Shahiid’s and Mister Kindly. Tric certainly had his flaws (he was a sulker) and there was sometimes something a little sinister about Mister Kindly, but I did really like them.

Yet, being a Jay Kristoff book, I knew there was going to be a fair bit of death. Why oh why does Kristoff insist on killing off my favourite characters all the time?! I’m not going to mention who, of course, but don’t get too attached to anyone, I’m warning you now; Kristoff is the George R. R. Martin of the young adult world. Not that this book is young adult. It may feature teenage protagonists, but this book contains a lot of gore, swearing and sex. You won’t find this book in the YA section. However, I wouldn’t warn teenagers away from it. It’s definitely a 16+ book and, after all, Mia is only 16 and she engages in many of the aforementioned activities.

So, overall, I loved this book. Whilst my inability to fully connect with Mia meant the rating came down slightly, I still highly recommend it as an enjoyable and twisted fantasy. I’m excited to see where the story goes next.

Have you read Nevernight? What did you think? Or are you hoping to read it in the future? Let me know in the comments below!

 

Waiting On Wednesday: Gemina (The Illuminae Files #2) by Amy Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Breaking the Spine where you showcase which books you’re looking forward to being released.

I haven’t done a Waiting on Wednesday in a while so I thought I’d try and get back into it!

This week I’m waiting on Gemina (The Illuminae Files #2) by Amy Kaufman and Jay Kristoff, and I am so excited for its release:

UK Release Date: 20th October 2016

I absolutely adored Illuminae. I was hesitant about it at first because of its unique format, but I found that it only enhanced the novel and my enjoyment. The book made me laugh and cry in equal measure, and it was a mashup of so many different genres; your typical Sci-Fi set in space, Horror, Action, Thriller, Drama. It had everything you could possibly want in a book and more. I’m still in awe of it.

I could not be more excited for the release of Gemina as a result. I’m looking forward to finding out what happens next and meeting new characters. Hopefully it’s just as good as its predecessor and, if you haven’t read Illuminae yet, do it now! I can’t recommend it enough.

Synopsis for Gemina:

Moving to a space station at the edge of the galaxy was always going to be the death of Hanna’s social life. Nobody said it might actually get her killed.

The sci-fi saga that began with the breakout bestseller Illuminae continues on board the Jump Station Heimdall, where two new characters will confront the next wave of the BeiTech assault.

Hanna is the station captain’s pampered daughter; Nik the reluctant member of a notorious crime family. But while the pair are struggling with the realities of life aboard the galaxy’s most boring space station, little do they know that Kady Grant and the Hypatia are headed right toward Heimdall, carrying news of the Kerenza invasion.

When an elite BeiTech strike team invades the station, Hanna and Nik are thrown together to defend their home. But alien predators are picking off the station residents one by one, and a malfunction in the station’s wormhole means the space-time continuum might be ripped in two before dinner. Soon Hanna and Nik aren’t just fighting for their own survival; the fate of everyone on the Hypatia—and possibly the known universe—is in their hands.

But relax. They’ve totally got this. They hope.

Once again told through a compelling dossier of emails, IMs, classified files, transcripts, and schematics, Gemina raises the stakes of the Illuminae Files, hurling readers into an enthralling new story that will leave them breathless.

Have you read Illuminae? Did you enjoy it? Are you excited for Gemina? Let me know in the comments below!

 

Review: Illuminae by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Genre: Young Adult / Sci-Fi

Publisher: Rock The Boat

My Rating: 5/5

Synopsis: The year is 2575 and two mega-corporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice covered speck.

Too bad nobody thought to warn the people living on it. With enemy fire raining down on them Ezra and Kady have to make their escape on the evacuating fleet. But their troubles are just beginning. A deadly plague has broken out on one of the space ships and it is mutating with terrifying results. Their ships protection is seriously flawed. No one will say what is going on.

As Kady hacks into a tangled web of data to find the truth its clear only one person can help her. Ezra. And the only problem with that is they split up before all this trouble started and she isn’t supposed to be talking to him.

My Review

I’m really gonna struggle to put into words how much I loved Illuminae. It exceeded my expectations by far. This book made me well up with tears so much it’s almost criminal.

I had seen lots of other people raving about it in the blogosphere and had always been intrigued to try it, but the format of telling the story through documents, messages, CCTV etc put me off a little. If you have qualms about reading this book because of its formatting, push those to the side right now and buy this book. The format in no way hinders the story-telling; in fact, it makes the whole thing even better.

The format allows Kaufman and Kristoff to introduce a whole range of characters without making the story feel bogged down with character descriptions. I would say this is definitely a crossover novel in terms of genres – it’ll appeal to both young adults and adults alike – as the cast doesn’t centre around only teenagers doing slightly impossible things. Of course, our two protagonists are older teens – Kady Grant and Ezra Mason – but we also get to see this story told through the lives of adults such as Sergeant James McNulty (who I really liked), First Lieutenant Winifred McCall (who I also really liked), Byron Zhang, Syra Boll, David Torrence, the nameless transcriber of CCTV footage; the list goes on and on. It’s a big cast of characters, and some we only meet briefly, but it never feels like our encounters with them are wasted or pointless.

I don’t really know how Kaufman and Kristoff have pulled off such a likeable cast of characters using only digital formats to showcase them to the reader. I’m in awe of what they’ve managed to achieve with this novel. The two protagonists, Kady and Ezra, are so well-crafted. They’re witty, emotional, intelligent, and they have their clear flaws, but I was completely invested in them. Kady is smart and feisty and, for once, she was one of those increasingly rarer teenage girl protagonists who wasn’t whiny. Ezra I really loved too. He was a hopeless romantic and his banter with Kady via IM actually reminded me of my boyfriend, which was a little odd to read, but definitely made me attached to Ezra even more.

Another reason why I would call this a crossover novel is because it doesn’t pull punches. Death, gore, foul language (although that’s ‘censored’ but you can easily fill in the gaps yourself, which I admit was a little fun), this book really doesn’t hold back. There’s a lot of science to satisfy proper sci-fi fans, but it’s not over-complicated or trying too hard. It’s like a good Star Trek film – there’s jargon used, but the average movie-goer can still understand it and become invested in it. It’s definitely a book that people who aren’t usually a fan of sci-fi should read because it’s a great introduction to the genre; you get all the ‘science’ without feeling overloaded or that it’s detracting from the action.

And wow was there a lot of action. This book is non-stop. I struggled to put it down because there was always some big reveal or tense action scene just around the corner. This was another point in which the formatting really helped. The action scenes or reveals never got boring or formulaic because how would they be relayed to us? Classified e-mails? CCTV footage? Instant Messaging? Reports? Schematics? The possibilities were endless. The imagination in this novel was astounding.

I’m now itching to get my hands on the sequel and can’t wait to see where this goes next. The good thing is, this book could have actually been a standalone. Leave out the last few pages and you have an excellent standalone novel, and that’s how all books should be, trilogy or not. The first book in a trilogy shouldn’t be written as though it needs sequels because there are so many loose ends the author has yet to work out. The first novel should tie up as many loose ends as possible but leave a few larger threads hanging to pick up in the sequel. That’s exactly what Illuminae does. There are some pretty big threads left hanging, but I don’t feel cheated by not knowing the answers just yet.

So, overall, this book blew me away. I can’t sing its praises enough. Not a sci-fi fan? Doesn’t matter. Think the format might not be for you? Think again. An adult who isn’t usually into YA and thinks it’s too childish? You’re most definitely wrong here. Read it!

Have you read Illuminae? Did you enjoy it? Are you excited for the sequel? Let me know in the comments below!