Honestly, when I read this book and didn't immediately fall in love with it, I thought it was me. I figured I'd missed something, and that's why I just felt the book was so superficial. I was honestly ashamed to admit that I didn't really enjoy a book by the authors that brought us Illuminae. So I chatted about it with some people. The more I talked with them, the more I realized that it wasn't just me though.

Let's start with the characters. Honestly, I didn't really feel the connection with them in this book, and the dramatic scene at the end of the book involving one of the main characters in what should have been a super dramatic scene just fell flat for me. Aurora, especially, was so inconsistently portrayed that I spent most of the book wishing I could skip her viewpoints.

I also feel like this book engaged in some queer-baiting. I was promised gay, and other than one kiss, the book was annoyingly straight. All of the main characters in the squad pair up in straight pairings. Unless there is more development on this front in future books, don't really expect much gay other than the fact that all of the characters appreciate how beautiful each other is regardless of gender.

The last complaint, which again, I'm mentioning after discussion with other readers, is the amount of content that is HIGHLY influenced by other works. I feel like this book goes beyond a homage, and straight up rips off the plot of (view spoiler). This gets a little dicier when you start taking into the space elves, which just seem to be a rip-off of SJM.

It's just...not at all what I expected of Jay and Amie. I went into this book assuming this would be a solid 5 stars, and I'd be raving about it for ages. Instead, I canceled my pre-order.

It's been a solid three days since I finished Aurora Rising and I still don't have words. Well, I have words. Just just aren't professional enough for the blog. Because currently my brain is: ASDFGHJKL and basically my emotions are all over the damn place. To say that Aurora Rising exceeded all of my expectations is the understatement of the year. Whether you are new to Jay and Amie's writing or you are already familiar with the writing duo from the Illuminae Files, their newest novel does not disappoint.

After rescuing Aurora O'Malley from the Fold and her impending death Tyler Jones misses out on recruiting the squad of his dreams. Instead he is stuck with the recruits that nobody wants. Aurora Rising is told from the POVs of each of the squad mates: Tyler, Scarlett, Cat, Aurora, Kal, Zila and Finian. Each character has their own unique voice and their own internal battle as they race across the galaxy to stop an impending war and seek answers to the lost Octavia Colony and keep Aurora out of the hands of the authorities who are bent on killing her.

Tyler: I really really loved Tyler's character growth from the beginning to the end of the novel. We see him and his anger towards having to have the bottom of the barrel recruits. But through out the book we see how his views of each of his squad mates change and how he learns that each has their own individual asset that they bring to the squad.

Aurora: The girl who started it all. After being in cryo-freeze for 200+ years Aurora was expecting to wake up on the Octavia Colony and not in a cell on an intergalactic space academy. But soon things are turned upside down when the authorities want her, and we learn that Aurora plays a bigger role in the sake of the universe then just being 216 years old.

Scarlett: Scalett is Tyler's older sister and complete sarcastic wise ass and I loved every moment of reading from her POV. A lot of times we see characters go from weak to strong, but not Scarlett. She was strong from the moment you meet her. I loved the fact that everyone just embraces the fact that Scarlett has dated A LOT of guys. No one shames her for her and she doesn't shame herself. I absolutely love that! Also, do I smell a crush brewing?

Kaliis "Kal": Kal is one of the alien species that we get to meet in this book. After his home planet is destroyed he joins Aurora Academy to make a difference for himself and his species. Kal was one of those characters that grew on me, the more you got to know him the more you understood why he behaves the way he does. I am really excited to see where Jay and Amie are going to take Kal in the next book.

Finian:I found Finian to basically be the male version of Scarlett. In short: Finian is a brilliant wise ass. He is the other alien species that we are introduced to in Aurora Rising. After over coming a virus when he was a child Finian has to wear a mechanical exoskeleton to function in his day to day life. I found to crack up at a lot of the things he said. I enjoyed seeing Finian grow throughout the novel and overcome some of his limitations.

Cat: I didn't realize how much I loved Cat's character until the final chapters of Aurora Rising. Cat is hard core and isn't going to take shit from anyone. We see through her chapters how she is in love with Tyler but how they could never be together because he is her superior officer. I am intrigued to see where Cat's character is going in the next book considering the end of Aurora Rising.

Zila: I LOVED Zila's character. I related to her on a deeper level on how she doesn't have a group to fall back on. I also really loved the fondness she had for shooting her squad mates at the most inconvenient times. But Zila gets shit done and I am so ready to see her in book two. I just wish there were more chapters in her POV.

There is so much I want to talk about but I can't because of spoilers. *sobs*

I really loved how the story is seamless. Amie and Jay said that they each wrote specific characters but you can't tell who wrote who. A lot of times in books that are co-written they don't flow seamlessly and you can tell the difference in writing styles. In Aurora Rising you can't tell the difference and I loved that.

Each chapter held unexpected surprises that moved the story forward in cool and unbelievably cool ways. Though the ending ripped my heart out, it was interesting the see the alien plants and how they have a a hive mind and are a singular entity. Overall I really loved Aurora Rising and I can't wait to see what this writing duo has in store for Squad 312!

Oh my gosh where to start with this masterpiece?! Firstly I’ll start with thanking Netgalley for providing me a copy of this ARC for a chance to read and review it!

Aurora Rising starts with a literal bang and the crazy adventure just keeps going the whole book. I wasn’t sure how they were going to follow up Illuminae Files and I’m so happy to see them keep to the Sci-Fi genre because you can always tell how much research they put into their books. I also loved the immense diversity put into this book, it all flowed and made sense. Every character has a complete different personality just like in real life and Kal is serious goals now for my future book boyfriends=p The world building is so interesting and I can not wait to see new planets. Plus the nod to the collector, yesss!! By the end, I was literally a speechless mess of a puddle. I can not wait to see what happens next to our squad! I know it’s not going to be a smooth ride, but we must have faith! #squad312forever

My star rating: All the stars, but seriously 5 stars out of 5.

I was provided with an eARC of this in exchange for a fair review.

Holy balls, Batman. Amie and Jay have done it again with this amazing piece of sci-fi magic!!! Why should you read this book? Two words: Space Elves. No, seriously. SPACE ELVES! I literally died every time Auri made an LOTR reference at Kal, and I spent the whole book envisioning him as a cross between Legolas and a teenaged Rowan from ToG. The cast was unique and diverse and brought so much to the table, plus we got crazy heists and chase scenes and murderous alien species of all types. I cried near the end (seriously Jay & Amie, HOW COULD YOU!) and now am utterly destroyed. I need book 2 like yesterday, and this one hasn’t even come out yet! There aren’t enough heart-eyed emojis in the ‘Way to describe my feelings at this point. Well done. Well. Done.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I was able to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
***
Aurora Rising is the first in a new series by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman.

Set in the future where people are settled among the stars and have met alien life forms our story begins with Tyler, a hot shot future leader, who in a dashing and heroic attempt to save someone ruins the future he’d been working towards all this time. Due to his actions he missed the chance to make the dream team he’d been wanting and gets a group of misfits and outcasts instead, but Tyler is a stand up guy and he’s going to make this work. (Whether the others want it to or not.)

Aurora went to space decades ago, ready to join her father in a period when space travel was still fairly new. She wakes up, after being discovered in the Fold by Tyler, to find that the ship she’d been on had gone missing for decades and she’s the only survivor. Also, she has dreams that show her the future and her life is in danger. You know, as these things happen.

What follows is a fairly fast paced action book.

The story is full of charm, wit, interesting powers, and lots of sarcasm. It’s also about finding yourself and finding family among people you meet. The team may not have been the one Tyler wanted but it’s the one that everyone on the team seems to need. There were a lot of things that happened, and I’m interested to see the consequences and follow up to some of them. There were also a lot of backstory and bigger things were glossed over and hinted at and I really need some of that in the next book(s). One word, Zila.

This book blew me away. Let me start off by saying I'm usually completely against space/sci-fi. Don't ask me why I have no good reason. I grew up with Cape Canaveral/NASA in my backyard and watched shuttle launches all the time so you'd think I'd be a super fan - BUT maybe I was that annoying teenager (and then adult) who wanted to rebel and act like it wasn't the coolest fucking thing. ANYWAY, so I wasn't entirely sure how I'd feel about this. However, I wanted to give this a go because of how much I enjoy the authors.

Well, damn. I'm so glad I did. If I could give this book more stars I absolutely would. It sucked me in right from the beginning and I wanted to speed read it in one sitting (though I knew better, cause I'd regret it). Things I loved:

- The characters. While they are all different they do a great job of complimenting each other in terms of skills and personality.
- The banter. Some of the characters had known each other for a long time and had a great rapport.
- The plot. There seem to be two distinct things going on and right now I don't see a connection (though I'm sure there is). I love that there's enough mystery left for the later books.
- The world. While I wouldn't describe this as highly-detailed world-building, it was enough to suck me in and make me want to know more while giving me enough to be able to picture it clearly.
- The heart-stopping moments. While I'll keep this spoiler-free just know there are several times where I'm pretty sure my heart stopped for a while. Some good, some bad.

Basically, I just want to be part of Squad 312. Even if space isn't your thing - put your petty ass opinions aside (like I did) and read this book ASAP. I can't imagine you'll regret it.

UM WHAT. HOLY CAKE. Six of Crows meets Guardians of the Galaxy in this epicly rendered sci-fi story.

Jay and Amie have brought us yet another beautifully constructed universe that's jam packed with glorious tech, mind blowing scenery, and characters that will steal your heart.

The story is told in first person from each of the main characters, 7 in all, and each POV was so good. Usually when reading books with different POVs I always have a least favourite one, but this wasn’t the case with Aurora Rising. Each characters POV was unique and intriguing. I found myself constantly wanting to know more about each of them, their dynamic pasts, and their opinions about who and what was around them. With every turn of a page I fell more and more in love with Squad 312.

The first instalment of this series was filled with world building that made my heart so happy. There were so many other smaller events in the book that will no doubt have some consequences in the future. And I, for one, can’t wait to find out about them in the next book(s).

(The consequences will break my heart but I’m so excited???)

Anywayyyy, this is a MUST READ. If you haven’t read The Illuminae Files, DO IT and after that do yourself a favour and read Aurora Rising too because these stories are so amazing like asdfghjkl.

Make sure you preorder Aurora Rising!

HOLY CRAP!!!! Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff never seize to amaze me. Definitely on my fav's list. I can't wait to receive my hardcopy! Auri is a badass, this book had me feeling all sorts of feelings. I love the non stop action and the gasp moments! I seriously cannot wait for the next book! Thank you so much for the arc! it was EPIC!

Kristoff and Kaufman's latest series follows a crew of misfits, in over their heads as usual, fighting an ancient evil. Told from multiple perspectives, the story begins with Tyler Jones, star pupil of the Aurora Academy (a kind of intergalactic peace corps), rescuing Aurora, a young colonist who has been in cryo-sleep for over 200 years on her way to the Octavia settlement. Because of the timing of the rescue, Tyler misses his opportunity to form a crew of his own making, and he's instead stuck on his first mission with the supposed dregs of Academy pupils. When they're sent on a simply supply run, it becomes clear that there's a much bigger danger threatening humanity, and the key to defeating an ancient evil lies within Aurora and the secrets from her doomed Octavia mission.

Kaufman and Kristoff are such a good writing pair, and they excel at writing rollicking space adventures with a cast of characters that readers will want to just hang out with. There's aliens, romance, space parties, and some really scary plants. The humor is snarky and laugh out loud funny, per usual. I'd recommend this for fans of Beth Revis, Marissa Meyer, and Megan Spooner.

A really fun space adventure with a twisty plot, sassy characters, and cool powers.

I loved the banter. It was light and fun and had lots of eyerollingly crude jokes that were funny in context. This got me out of a small reading slump.

Cons: too many main characters that were hard to keep track of at first (but not for long), and as much as they each had a good individual backstory and identity, at the end of the page, they all had the same attitude and felt too similar. They were all sassy, brilliant, save-the-day heroes, who forgive and forget and are loyal to the end. On the one hand, it's fun to read as opposed to all the dark betrayals often stuffed into books. But I would've liked seeing more dissent without them unrealistically bouncing back into cheerful loyal heroes two seconds later.

Aside from that, I really enjoyed this book. The banter and narrow escapes and suspenseful moments were plentiful and thrilling to read. The plot is interesting and refreshing. And there are pretty and scary elven aliens and heists and space chases... You don't want to miss it.

I received a copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A huge, giant, mega THANK YOU to the publishers and Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely amazing! Amy and Jay are masters in their craft and I will sell my soul for anything they will ever write in life.

This is definitely a Sci-Fi Breakfast Club as @misterkristoff put it. And I'm living for every sassy, witty, loving interaction. (Especially Kal!) At first I kept getting Scar and Cat mixed up but that was resolved in my mind quickly. I CAN NOT wait till book 2! So glad I ordered a special edition of this months ago.

This book was received as an ARC from Random House Children's-Knopf Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

What a spellbinding joyride to read with action and adventure packed in every page. Aurora Rising tells the story of Tyler Jones attending Aurora Academy in the year 2380 and his band of misfit friends doing whatever it takes to stand out among the rest. Then they are put in a situation that forces them to rescue Aurora Jie-Lin O'Malley in inter dimensional space and she is in a cryogenic sleep and will not wake up until the next century. This puts the academy, Tyler, and his friends in great danger and they will do whatever it takes to survive. When I finished this book, it came across sounding a lot like Ready Player One and Interstellar and that made it even more entertaining to read.

We will consider adding this title to our YFantasy collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

In the future, we've reached the stars by exploring the Fold, an area of space where there's no color, and distances mean nothing. You can travel to the other side of the galaxy in a few days, but stay too long and it might make you literally go insane. Tyler Jones has set out on his first mission as the leader of a squad from the Aurora Academy, guiding a group of misfits and one tag-a-long, a girl who got trapped in the Fold for 200 years.

This is your basic space opera - battles, spaceships, a snarky talking computer, aliens bars that reminded me of that scene from Star Wars, and a sentient kudzu that's threatening the very existence of life in the galaxy. Kristoff and Kaufman go more mainstream with the text format then in their Illuminae series, but do mix it up a little by having the narration switch points of view chapter to chapter. For the most part they do a great job - the different alien species *feel* different, and while I could see the romance sub-plot coming, the main story had some nice twists and turns. A fun read.

Ahhhhhh I this book isn't even out yet and I already need book 2!!!! I absolutely loved it! I fell in love with each of the characters. I always have a favorite in a book but I genuinely couldn't choose just one! I love the relationship between all of them! I love that they are all misfits! I just love this book it's a must read for sure!! The ending though!!😓😓😓🤐🤐🤐

Is it even considered ya if there isn’t a masquerade ball?

“Aurora Rising” follows a misfit squad as they try to navigate the stars and each other following a series of events that left them as wanted criminals and with a stowaway who is from what was believed to be a lost expedition 200 years in the past. With little help, the crew must work together to uncover the mystery surrounding that doomed trip before it threatens to spill over and destroy the universe as they know it.

My biggest issue with this book is the POV. We shuffle between each of the main players as we go which is fine but it’s all in first person and there were so many times I had to flip back to see whose headspace I was in before things got even more co fusing than they already were.

A lot of exposition happens in this book in a very short amount of time and at one point I had to put it down because it was too much. I kind of expect this from a sci fi story of this nature where it has to cover different planets, species and political components in order to expand the world but there needed to be some sort of abridged version or a break here and there other than the search bar pages to avoid weighing the story down.

The characters themselves were also a bit off as it took a hot minute for them to break out of their stereotypical roles to become something to root for with only a few managing to make it that far by books end.

This was kind of disappointing if I’m being honest, I don’t m ow if I went into it expecting too much because of how well I enjoyed Illuminae or what but this was not at all what I thought it would be.

**special thanks to the publishers and netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for a fair and honest review**

Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff have done it again!! All the stars to this brilliant book!

If you enjoyed The Illuminae Files, you are going to love the Aurora Cycle series. This was kind of a Firefly meets Six of Crows with Legolas from Lord of the Rings thrown in and it was phenomenal! As with the Illuminae Files, I became so dang attached to this group of misfits who are thrown together under the command of Mr. Perfect, Tyler.

Cat is the Mohawk haired, tatooed smart-ass pilot (the Ace). Scar is Tyler's beautiful smart-ass twin sister in charge of diplomacy (the Face). Zila, the odd quiet genius and medic (the Brain). Finian, the smart-ass alien Betraskan mechanic (the Gearhead), and Kal, the Legolas-looking elf-looking alien Syldrathi warrior (the Tank). Together, the six form Squad 312.

Enter Aurora, or Auri, who was rescued by Tyler from a dead colonist ship where she had been in a cryogenic tank for over 200 years. The squad ends up with Auri and from there, the craziness just keeps on keeping on. The pace, the twists, the turns, the action... Never. Stops!

This book could easily be one of my top favs of 2019, and how the heck am I going to be able to wait for book 2??

I've already preordered my hard copy!!

*Thank you so much to NetGalley and Random Books/Knopf Books for the advanced copy!!*

OMG. This book was EVERYTHING!

I loved it from the beginning and I cannot wait to get my hands on the sequel. Seriously, this was one of my favorite books of the year and I'm so excited for you guys to read this. I was one of the lucky readers who was able to read an ARC of Aurora Rising and I'm still having all the feels this morning after finishing this book last night.

In this book you follow a bunch of characters that at first glance, wouldn't be in the same squad but they get paired up together and they have to work as a team. I ended up loving all of these characters (well except Cat but by the end, she grew on me). I don't know if I have a favorite character but Kal and Auri made the top of my list. I'm shipping them and I can't wait to have more moments just between the two of them.

However, this book doesn't have only amazing characters, it also has a great world-building and plot. Every part of the book was fast-paced and interesting.

Also, when I learned there was going to be a heist, I was a little worried to be honest because the few heists I've read about in YA books never did it for me. I was always left disappointed or with a bad taste in my mouth but not here. This one was really cool, enjoyable to read and so entertaining.

As for the ending, well... I may have cried a little. But I'm also excited to find out more. The sequel can't be published soon enough, imo. <3


(Thank you to the publisher for letting me read and review an ARC via Netgalley)

This is a refreshingly straightforward sci-fi adventure with broad appeal. Kaufman and Kristoff know what they're doing, and they've provided us once again with a surprisingly dark, deftly built future and likeable cast of characters. I have two issues with this book, though: romance and tone. There are several romantic plot lines that seem either unnecessary or distracting throughout the book, and I think they detract from the story overall. Also, while the humor and stylistic flourishes I've come to love from this duo are there, the book seems designed for a younger audience than Illuminae--it's much less complex and dense--while maintaining enough darkness that I'd hesitate to recommend it to just any reader. I'm left not quite knowing what kind of kid this book will appeal to.

I received this book via Penguin Random House in exchange for an honest review.

Order this book because it will destroy your life, but in the best way possible

Well, there goes Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff destroying my entire soul again with another PHENOMENAL book. Aurora Rising is a YA Sci-Fi space adventure that is action packed from the minute you start the book. They really went and outdid themselves with this one. It's a work of art, I can't describe it any better. The world-building and tale of our squad of misfits is filled with friendship, love, sarcasm, and loyalty. Now what can go wrong when you bring a group of people like this together? Oh ... a LOT.

Squad 312 is your actual squad goals. These characters are EVERYTHING. Tyler, Scarlett, Cat, Finian, Zila, and Kal plus Aurora. Each come from different backgrounds and personalities, but they work together so well. Every member brings a skill to help on their journey to discover just what in the world is going on. The banter and sarcasm that the squad says to each other had me laughing. We got an idea about who they are as people and I definitely can't wait to discover more about them in the next book.

Tyler: the leader of the pack, our alpha of Squad 312, or known as "goldenboy"

Scarlett: A strong female who does what she wants when she wants. Self confidence level 100 and she knows what she wants. We stan.

Kal: The poor boy who went to the Academy to get away from craziness and finds himself right back in it. He also is trying to find his place in the world and he does with Squad 312.

Zila: Introverted and smart as hell science girl that is the brains of the team.

Finian: Sarcastic and solid team member that is good with tech stuff and can probably get you out of deep stuff. Definite favorite character so far.

Cat: Hardcore that does NOT let anyone stand in her way. She will fight you. Knows what stands for. If I had to describe her through a quote it would be Peggy Carter when she said "I know my value, anyone else's opinion doesn't really matter." She is THAT girl. We love.

Aurora: This poor girl was frozen for over 200 years and wakes up to a new world confused, but she got right back on her feet. It took her time to adjust, but she jumped right into this big wild space adventure to find out what really happened. She is a queen and I cannot wait to see her grow and rise even more.

Kaufman and Kristoff flowed the story-line so nicely and it read really smooth. There wasn't any confusion within the plot and you could always tell what's going on. The story-world building was incredible and was done so beautifully. They throughly explained every aspect of the story and everything came together nicely in the end.

Oh the last five chapters of this book really hit you like a bomb, they were WILD. The anticipation to see how all this was going to end kept rising in each chapter. Reading this part you will not be able to put down the book. It's just that good. Discovering finally what the hell is going on went in a direction I did not think was coming. The environment and mood in these scenes came off the pages and it even made me feel like I was there with them. It's just that good.

I can't wait for Book 2. I'm already stressing .. a lot.

I loved this book! The themes of family and friends who become family are very strong throughout the whole story. The dedication is to those who have found their "squad" and those who may still be looking for one. The story is non-stop action, with a heist or two along the way. The story is told from a number of point of views, and all in the first person, which can get confusing at times. Luckily each chapter is labeled and each voice is pretty distinctive. Our characters are diverse across species, neurological and physical disability.

Amie and Jay weave a great story and I already wish I had book 2 in my hands and book 1 still has over another month before it comes out! Fans of Amie and Jay will love this book and if you haven't read Amie and Jay's Illuminae series, get started while you're waiting for this one.