This was the first time I read a book by both of these authors together, now I can see why people were raving about their writing styles. This was a fun read and I enjoyed how everyone had their own POV chapter and how they all kept pretty much in sync with everyone else around them. Finding out who the "villain" is was a twist I didn't see coming.

This book was honestly amazing! Perfect for fans of Star Trek, Guardians of the Galaxy, and of course Illuminae. Honestly one of my favorite reads of the year so far! Witty, funny, amazing.

Absolutely loved this one, and I can't wait for the next book! I loved the unlikely heroes and the world building. If you're a science fiction fan this definitely is for you!

I almost just can’t even pull my thoughts together for this one. It made me laugh (a lot). It freaked me out. It made me cry. This book is just wonderful.

Aurora Rising was an epic ride! I was so intrigued from start to finish. Squad 312 will forever be the squad i wish i had! This is my first time reading a Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman book and it certainly won’t be my last! I loved the character develop, the characters as a whole and separately. This one really is a turn pages for all readers. I’m excited to see what happens next because, well... it tore your heart open at the end!

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for given me the chance to read this before it was released! I own a physical copy and am proud to have this part of my book collection!

When my friends from PRH invited me to be a part of this blog tour for Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman’s newest book, I felt uneasy to instantly say yes because 1) I have an irritating book slump that won’t seem to leave me alone, 2) I wasn’t entirely sure if another Sci-Fi book could help me conquer said slump, and 3) I only had less than 2 weeks to read the review copy they so generously provided. But now, I’m glad to report that as of publishing this post, my slump is finally over (DEAR LORD, PLEASE HELP ME.) thanks to this heart-pounding novel. Read on to know what my reading experience for Aurora Rising was like.

Aurora Rising follows the story of Tyler Jones, a star Alpha student of the Aurora Academy who, on the night before “the Draft” discovers a ship that houses a centuries-old survivor named Aurora Jie-Lin O’Malley. After a long, stressful night, he comes back to the academy, ending up with a crew that’s less than enthusiastic to be a part of his squad, mainly because they’re the ones who were left, after every other Alpha has made their choices. Tyler is left with Scarlett Jones, Tyler’s fraternal twin sister, as their squad’s Face, Zila Madran as their Brain, Catherine “Cat” Brannock as their Ace, Finian de Karran de Seel as their Gearhead, and Kaliis “Kal” Idraban Gilwraeth as their tank. Together, they go on an intergalactic mission to discover the mystery of Aurora O’Malley’s sudden appearance, and find out what role she plays in a war millions of years in the making.

One of the many things that instantly got me hooked is the undeniable heartwarming chemistry between our ragtag group of misfits. Even though, at first, everyone was struggling to find where they would fit best, it still felt as if they were made to be a part of Squad 312. Each and every one of them had a significant role to play, and as the story progressed, I’d like to say that they slowly gotten used to each other’s presence, allowing for them to later on complement each other’s contributions to the team. With every turn of the page, I found myself falling more and more in love with how they functioned as a single unit. And their character developments, both as individuals and as a team, were spot on. In less than 500 pages, they managed to turn themselves into crew members who were as passionate, and dauntless, as they were determined and wise. And I enjoyed every single page of their story.

Next, let’s talk about the emotions that this novel perfectly managed to pack into one book. What made me appreciate Aurora Rising all the more is the way that every now and then, there are scenes that’ll get your blood pumping, ones that’ll melt your heart, others that’ll squeeze your eyes out and make you cry, and lastly, there are whole-ass chapters that’ll have you holding on for dear life. And the way that the story transitions from one scene to the next felt flawless, and not at all forced, which I greatly appreciated. Tyler and his crew of legionnaires will take you on a roller coaster ride of emotions, and by the end of the story, you’ll have no choice but to wallow in your tears and sadness like I did. Like always, Jay and Amie managed to play with my feelings and I can’t believe I let them do it again. (Though if I’m being perfectly honest, I would definitely let them play with my heart all the time if they wanted to.)

Squad 312’s whole story is completely reminiscent of Jay and Amie’s Illuminae Files and hardcore fans for their previous series would be more than glad to know that Aurora Rising reads just like Illuminae, Gemina, and Obsidio. Even without the extra stuff like journal entries, medical statements, and other graphics, this novel still maintains the exhilarating tone and overall mood that were initially introduced in the authors’ previous books. When I first got the chance to browse through my finished copy, I was a bit disheartened to find that there were significantly less graphics compared to the Illuminae Files. But, after being able to read through it, I was a little shocked to still be amazed by the story. Just goes to show that Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman’s talents for writing transcended even the most breathtaking artworks and/or graphics. Oh, and also? The signature Kristoff-Kaufman Humor is THERE. So there’s that.

“Reading Aurora Rising is a surefire way to get yourself to come out from a book slump. It definitely coerced me out of mine, and I’m elated to have been given the chance to read this in advance. Like I’ve said, fans of the Illuminae Files would undoubtedly adore this new book / series, and I, personally, can’t wait for the next installment.”

I loved almost everything about this book and highly recommend it to readers of science fiction or fans of a good action story. The book starts out with an intense rescue scene, and keeps on moving from there. The authors do a great job of keeping the story moving but also spending time with each character to help them develop and grow throughout the story. Each chapter is written from the viewpoint of a different character, and I really enjoyed being able to spend that time seeing the situation from the different personalities. The world in Aurora Rising is riveting, and it's fun following the characters as they develop through the story. This would be a great choice for fans of Star Wars or Guardians of the Galaxy. The story leaves off with just enough closure to leave the reader satisfied but enough of a cliffhanger that they'll be ready to grab the next in the series when it comes out. I know I'll be keeping an eye out for more from these authors.

Three and a half stars: A thrilling Sc-Fi adventure that starts out strong and then falters toward the end.

Tyler Jones can’t sleep. Tomorrow he will reap the rewards as he prepares to graduate from the Aurora Academy. As the top graduating cadet, Tyler will have first pick of the new recruits. He plans on selecting the best of the best to create his dream squad. Then a misstep and a dramatic rescue cause Tyler to miss the draft. That means his dream squad is nothing more than a dream. He is stuck with the bottom of the barrel. At least his twin sister, Scarlet, and best friend, pilot ace, Cat stuck with him. The remainder of his crew turns out to be a brilliant scientist, but she has some sociopath tendencies, a smart ass tech geek who wears a special suit due to a medical condition, and an alien warrior with a propensity for violence. Somehow Tyler must turn this band of rag tag rejects into a kick ass squad. Then they get their mission orders. The gang is stuck with a humanitarian mission that is a piece of cake, waste of time, until things go terribly wrong. Tyler and his crew quickly find themselves in possession of something incredibly dangerous. The must outwit and outrace the law of the galaxy or die trying. Will they survive?

What I Liked:
*Kaufman and Kristoff are brilliant together, and I can’t get enough of their Sci-Fi adventures. I was immediately sucked into Aurora Rising. It read like a Star Trek adventure. I loved getting to know the ragtag crew as they learned to work together, became family and outwitted and outran the law. It was thrilling!
*The characters are terrific. I enjoyed the polar opposites that were thrown together. At first, the crew doesn’t like one another, nor do they really get along, but then things change. Life threatening danger forces them to work together, and somehow they become friends and then family. I loved watching this group of misfits find a rhythm. Together, the gang is brilliant. Loved it!
*The action in this one is non stop. From the opening pages, Tyler is facing a life or death situation, talk about an opener! From there, things continue to ratchet up. I loved that there was hardly a moment to catch your breath.
*Talk about twists and turns! There are so many unexpected developments in this one that caught me completely off guard! Especially the Mission Impossible theft scene. There is a huge twist in there that I didn’t see coming! Brilliant. This one kept me on my toes!
*The world building is outstanding. I honestly felt like I was plunged into a Star Trek movie. There are strange worlds, hostile aliens and a plant infested planet that it is uber creepy.
*I liked that there wasn’t really a romance in this one. Yes, there is chemistry and attraction between several of the characters, but nothing concrete. I am excited to see who matches up with whom.
*The ending is not quite a cliffhanger, but close. Things settle out for a moment as the gang reels from the climatic events, and plot a new course. I can’t wait for more.
And The Not So Much:
*I was completely invested and riveted to this book, and then somewhere around the three quarter mark, things started to slow down, and I felt like the pace dragged. I wasn’t overly thrilled with all the lead up to the heist scene. It felt a little lengthy. Then when the big twist comes, I wasn’t completely sure that it all worked. I think it was almost too far fetched. Still brilliant though.
*The final portion of the book, to me, wasn’t nearly exciting as the first half. I don’t know, maybe it was just me??? The first half was thrilling!
*I have a lot of questions still when it comes to the ancient race, the weapon and so forth. I am anxious to learn more in the next book.
*There are these small snippets of information in between the chapters, they are like small documents that provide background information and detail. My issue with these documents was that they were hard to read on the Kindle and I couldn’t blow them up or enlarge them.

Aurora Rising was a book that completely hooked me from the opening chapters. I loved the action, the characters and the chemistry between the crew. I thought there were some brilliant twists and development, and I thought the no stop action was fantastic. Unfortunately, I felt like the pace dragged around the three quarter mark, and I don’t think the final portion was a brilliant as the first part. Still it was an entertaining read, and I am eager for more from this dynamic writing duo.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for this review.
Posted@Rainy Day Ramblings.

The day is finally upon us. Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff has been out for approximately two weeks, and I’m finally reviewing it! Aurora Rising was arguably my most anticipated 2019 release. (It was quite possibly also the most hyped.) I absolutely loved Kaufman and Kristoff’s Illuminae Files, which I finished over this past Christmas holiday. The two series are not set in the same world, and Aurora Rising is told in a more traditional format. Similar to Illuminae Files, however, Aurora Rising has a fun cast of characters and an adventurous story in space. Plus, this time there’s aliens.

Aurora Rising has a large cast of characters and is told in all of their POVs at some point in the story. The main cast makes up the newly formed Squad 312 out of Aurora Academy. If you haven’t met them yet, I highly recommend reading the character bios on Get Underlined‘s website and the official book trailer. Seriously, they’re an interesting bunch. A squad is typically made up of six legionnaires all with different roles, and Squad 312 consists of the twins Tyler (Alpha) and Scarlett (Face), their best friend Cat (Ace), the smart-ass Fin (Gearhead), the hot-headed Alien warrior Kal (Tank), and a trigger happy scientist Zila (Brain). Squad 312 also has a stowaway, the mysterious girl from earth Auri. Tyler was expecting to get an elite squad in the draft as the golden boy of the academy; however, he ended up with a group of misfits, and they’re quite the squad.

Aurora Rising was a thrilling ride. I enjoyed watching all of the characters evolve and learn to work together as a team. Each character has personal struggles they’re trying to overcome in the story. The choice to have the story told from multiple POVs was interesting and worked well for Aurora Rising. Personally, I think Kaufman and Kristoff did well making each of the POVs unique. I’m excited to see each of the character’s growth as the series continues.

The plot itself was full of twists. While I could predict who the bad guys were and had gut feelings that certain decisions would go south, Kaufman and Kristoff kept me on my toes the entire time. They shocked me with their plot twists and emotionally wrecked me with the ending. Whoever said authors were not kind people were right. Kaufman and Kristoff gutted me with that ending, and I don’t know if I’ll ever forgive them. We’ll see how things continue when book 2 is ever released.

If you’re someone that enjoys science fiction or any of Kaufman and Kristoff’s prior books, I highly recommend reading Aurora Rising. I know I’m going to push this book on all of my friends. (In fact, I just gave a copy away today.) It’s a page turner from the start, with a cast of misfits I couldn’t help but fall in love with. I hope everyone gives it a chance.

Disclaimer: I received an e-arc and a physical copy from Knopf Books. Thanks! All opinions are my own.



Book Series: The Aurora Cycle #1



Rating: 5/5



Publication Date: May 7, 2019



Genre: YA Sci-Fi



Recommended Age: 15+ (slight romance scene, some language, little gore, death)



Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers



Pages: 473



Amazon Link


Synopsis: The year is 2380, and the graduating cadets of Aurora Academy are being assigned their first missions. Star pupil Tyler Jones is ready to recruit the squad of his dreams, but his own boneheaded heroism sees him stuck with the dregs nobody else in the Academy would touch…

A cocky diplomat with a black belt in sarcasm
A sociopath scientist with a fondness for shooting her bunkmates
A smart-ass techwiz with the galaxy’s biggest chip on his shoulder
An alien warrior with anger management issues
A tomboy pilot who’s totally not into him, in case you were wondering

And Ty’s squad isn’t even his biggest problem—that’d be Aurora Jie-Lin O’Malley, the girl he’s just rescued from interdimensional space. Trapped in cryo-sleep for two centuries, Auri is a girl out of time and out of her depth. But she could be the catalyst that starts a war millions of years in the making, and Tyler’s squad of losers, discipline-cases and misfits might just be the last hope for the entire galaxy.

They're not the heroes we deserve. They're just the ones we could find. Nobody panic.



Review: Holy cow! I think I have found my next sci-fi addiction post-Illuminae! I feel in love with this book! I quickly bonded with Aurora and I love how Amie and Jay wrote this book. The multiple POVs don’t feel disjointed or messy. The story is compelling and the plot is interesting. I absolutely loved this novel with all of my heart.



If I had to choose one thing to complain about is that it felt like it should have ended sooner (but I’m absolutely not complaining that it kept going lol).



Verdict: Read this nowwwww.

Kristoff and Kaufman have taken readers back to space in this new science fiction story of a girl virtually lost in space. Aurora was on a ship headed toward a new colony for people from earth when the ship encountered problems and she was stranded in cryosleep for 200 years. Tyler is at the top of his class and ready for the draft where he will be first to pick his space team. When Tyler gets diverted by the alert of Aurora’s living lifeform, he does what heroes do – he tries to save her. Now Tyler has missed the chance to assemble his dream team, but he doesn’t regret helping Aurora.

What a great start to a new space saga. While Tyler is the brilliant, charming, handsome commander, his crew is an eclectic mix of losers and loyal followers. These characters are remarkable and memorable. While the world-building starts strong, the plot gets a tad cumbersome at times. There’s nonstop action and threats galore to keep our heroic team on their toes and coming up with quick fixes. The writing is clever and again, the characters are what win the day. For lovers of the Illuminae Files series, this is one they will not want to miss.

3.5* rounded up

This was perfection. Contained the just right amounts of camraderie, drama, angst, and action to rocket it up to one of my top reads of 2019. Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff are a dream team and I cannot wait for more of this series. Full review TK for The Young Folks.

I’m kind of bummed because I thought for sure this would be a five star. I LOVED the characters, besides Tyler. He wasn’t a fav. But I adored Fin and Zila!

First off let me say this. There is a POV for every character in the squad and theirs six of them. The ONLY ONE I could tell apart was Fin. Every other time they all sounded exactly the same to me. Rare times I could tell who it was but I constantly had to go back and see who’s chapter I was reading from... it was kind of a bummer.


Second it’s quite long. Multiple times I thought I was at the end because of the way the chapter was ending and then it just started another adventure.... which is fine but I guess it was the way it did it. There was a plot here but it felt like it got muddled or like nothing was truly happening. We have some good action scenes but i just didn’t feel the excitement or tension.

Third... they all get paired up.. of course. Which I liked Fin and Scar. Couldn’t care for the others...


Finally. The ending... the last 20% was a completely different writing style. It went from good writing to that complete nonsensical writing that it’s choppy and so all over the place you’re seriously like what?! You’re inside vines and trees and the planet. Inside everyone’s head and floating in someone’s mind.... I’m not a fan of that writing and for it to just pop up out of nowhere really bothered me. This was a solid 3.5 before that happened.


Idk what happened. I was just bored..... I didn’t care for the big “bad reveal”.... it was kind of more virus than alieny or space... idk.. I really loved Fin and I wish he was the main character. Lmao.

When a girl named Aurora wakes up after hundreds of years of induced sleep, she discovers that the world she thought she was headed to is no longer. Her family and friends are gone and her prior mission and life plan is irrelevant. Or so she thinks. As Aurora becomes more aware of her settings and starts to piece together flashbacks of memories, she realizes there might be more to her and what happened to her people than her new companions are letting on. Escaping those that are after her, she stows away with a rag tag crew of space adventurers, set on saving the universe. This crew, though set aside by the rest of their academy, is actually composed of the best of the best. Don't let looks or war histories fool you! Readers will be entranced by the mysteries that unfold through this space opera. Jay and Amie prove once again that they are amazing writing partners, however I do wish that the characters were fleshed out a little more. Still, I know that we will probably get more of that in the next installment. I will be recommending this for anyone up for a little adventure.

This is a no-spoilers review. The start of another excellent series from the authors of Illuminae! I LOVED it! It's fun, creepy, sweet, and badass in turns but in a way that feels harmonious. I'm already looking forward to book 2!

I highly recommend for science-fi fans and especially fans of Firefly and The Expanse. Also books/films where very different character types have to try to work together.

I loved this book so much! Talk about amazing world building and characters that make you love them. I fell for the writing style early on and I typically don't enjoy first-person POV stories. It was easy to follow along with the multiple POVs also because each chapter was labeled which is how I think it should always be done.

If you love Sci-fi novels, characters you bond with right away, and a fantastic plot...pick this book up and fall into the world of Aurora Rising!

Just as amazing as the Illuminae books! Amie and Jay's books are seamless, hilarious, and just a wild ride from start to finish! I can't wait for more from this series.

this one took me a bit to get into, and i was doing that thing where i'd read a couple of chapters here or there in between books i was enjoying more... then all of a sudden, i didn't want to stop at two chapters and pick up another book, i wanted to keep reading this one. so eventually it got me, it got unputdownable.

the POVs got a wee bit overwhelming, and that was part of the reason it was hard to get into at first. but eventually as i got to know the characters, the switching was easier.

i loved one of the romantic subplots in this one, the other one was cute but no development really. and of course there's the other-other one that just broke my heart.

i thought this was funny, fast paced and interesting. lots of action, which can sometimes get a wee bit tedious to read (for me) but it kept my attention. it was thoroughly enjoyable and i need the next one now. hopefully i actually read the next one, rather than let it sit on my tbr for years like the illuminae series. oops. i really need to finish that..

Another possibly incoherent review coming your way!

A huge, HUGE, HUGE thank you to Knopf Books for Young Readers for providing a free digital copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

Look. I say it all the time: how I’m horrible at making predictions about what will happen at the end of the novel. And when it comes to sci-fi novels, I’m even worse. So when I finally reached the end of this book, I’m just like:

And this was definitely brought on by so many things. The more I read this book, the more I realized it had dashes of some of my favorite sci-fi series like Firefly and Doctor Who. To be honest, I had a lot of hopes for this book after the amazingness of The Illuminae Files and it certainly didn’t disappoint. The plot is intricate and gripping, truly mind-blowing. It has you believing one thing, only to be proved wrong later (at least for me, LOL). It’s also fast-paced, and I couldn’t put it down. I was happy to pick this book up and sad to put it down every time.

No complaints here! I am in awe of how realistic and three-dimensional Amie and Jay make their characters. Do I think I would be a good fit for this squad? Probably not. I have a feeling I’d be a bit like Aurora… Sort of just lost in the midst of things. I loved that despite everything, each squad member seemed to fit together as a whole in a way they didn’t think possible. One of those, “It happens for a reason” type of thing seems to fit really well here. I can’t say I have a favorite, though I’m really in love with Kal at the moment. I love the connections each character made with each other, and how even the strong are vulnerable. I really thought I would dislike Tyler, as he’s nicknamed the Goldenboy, but he would really do anything for his squad and it’s admirable (yet heartbreaking).

One of my only problems with this book pertained to the romance between two characters. I mean it was kind of out of the blue for one character, and when it was explained, I was like, “Okay… But…” But it wasn’t enough to deter me from giving this book less stars. I imagine it’ll be explored as the series progresses. The same could really be said for Zila, too. She’s a mystery, though there’s hint as to she is the way she is but it’s not explored.

I expressed some concern about Aurora being biracial (half-white, half-Chinese) and its nuances being lost of the authors. I’m glad to say that wasn’t the case, and the instances in which Aurora thought about her dad and his desire to make sure they knew about their Chinese culture was really nice.

I didn’t realize quite how much I had missed Amie and Jay writing together until I read this. I mean, I really enjoyed The Illuminae Files, and it was a great joy to meet the two authors last year. They spoke very briefly about what is now this novel, using the very specific phrase “hot space elves” which made us all LOL, but just so you know… It’s true! HAHA.

This book has everything you loved about The Illuminae Files and so much more!

Trying to work off some pre-draft jitters, star cadet Tyler Jones decides to take a little flight. Well, that little flight turns into a whole lot more when Tyler discovers a spacecraft that went missing more than 200 years ago. With signs of life aboard, Tyler can’t just turn around. He does what any good captain would do, but this also causes him to miss the draft and instead of getting to pick the five squad members of his dreams, he is stuck with the misfits.

However, they are more than just their role on the ship—Alpha, Face, Ace, Gearhead, Tank, and Brain. They have to learn to be a team, because when they leave for their first assignment one thing becomes abundantly clear: Aurora, the human female Tyler saved, is wanted by the Terran Defense Force (TDF) for reasons unknown. As Aurora begins to exhibit some strange powers, the group follows the clues across the Milky Way only to discover the far reaching conspiracy of something hundreds of years in the making.

Powerhouse writing duo Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman are back with the start to a new series. While this reader is, sadly, not up to date with the Illuminae Files, I was excited to jump into Aurora Rising.

Told from multiple points of view from various members of the team, Aurora Rising was a wonderful space romp from start to finish. While it took a little bit for the characters and plot to come together in the very beginning, once we get past the point of introductions and our group is firmly set on their path, I didn’t want to put it down.

I loved the different layers of the story as Aurora’s awakening powers lead the group on a treasure hunt, of sorts, that not only tests the tentative trust of the group, but also gives readers a wonderful view of the vastness that is space in 2380 along with all the varying lifeforms, and their relationship/history with Terrans (humans).

Tyler and Aurora are our main protagonists, but I don’t think this negates the importance of the other characters whatsoever. They were all such forces and such individual personalities that it was interesting to get a view of everyone from someone else’s perspective. It showcases each of the characters’ strengths and weaknesses, passions and vulnerabilities. They often go against their typecasting, but also not afraid to play to the characteristics that put them in the roles they inhabit. Seeing the slow familial bond build throughout the story was my favorite part. By the end, you know they’ll need that bond in order to survive what’s coming.

Aurora Rising calls to mind the Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer. They are both high-stakes stories with a seemingly ragtag group coming together fighting the good fight. I’d say the setup for what is going on is presented pretty clearly in this first book. From here, it’ll be all about how to deal with the discoveries made. Things don’t necessarily end on a decisive note in this one, and Kristoff and Kaufman are certainly not afraid to really put their characters through the ringer, but that’s okay because the adventure is just beginning.