Aurora Rising

Review originally posted at A Reading Brit

The Plot
It felt like the first few episodes of a TV show, and just when the series was really ramping up and getting amazing, it's the end of the season and you've got to wait ages to see the start of the next season. That's what this feels like. It ended on the mother of all cliff hangers, and the story doesn't feel remotely complete. There's closure about pretty much nothing come the end of this book. And that'd be great if the next book was already out. But it's not. And I'm not good at waiting.

There's not much of a chance to breathe with this story either. From the first chapter to the last, there's always something happening and the authors skillfully weave characterisation and relationship around the action.

The World
Aurora Rising is set over 300 years in the future, where humanity has encountered (and of course warred with) other species in space. The Aurora Academy is a neutral organisation, purely created to help those in need. Think something like The Red Cross in space. It's a cool idea, and one I'd like to see explored more thoroughly. As, whilst this squad is technically supposed to be helping others, they don't really get the chance before their own crisis and drama happens. Long-distance space travel is achieved through The Fold, which seems to be something similar to travelling through an alternate reality. It's an interesting concept, and again, something I wish was explored a little more. That's the thing with Aurora Rising, I love it for its characters, but I wish some more of the world was really explored. I want to know more about all of the fun sci-fi stuff that's going on in the background.

The Characters
As always, characterisation is my favourite thing in reading. And I feel like this is where Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman really shine. Aurora Rising is told from the point of view of... I want to say 7 characters. I'm not a massive fan of books that jump between characters like that, all in 1st person POV, but this was done so well. Each character had such a unique voice that I knew who it was without having to read the chapter title.

Taylor
Our Alpha, the leader of Squad 312 and a character that from his description before I started reading this, I was sure I wasn't going to like. And yet I did. Tyler just wants what's best for the squad and Aurora. I thought he was going to be an arrogant jock-Type, but besides a little moaning at the beginning, he was nothing like that.

Aurora
The main character/trouble starter. If it wasn't for Aurora, the rest of the squad wouldn't have come together and each of these character's stories would've been very different. She's an ok character, I wouldn't say she was anywhere near my favourite. And I found her ability to deal with waking up 200 years after she thought she was going to wake up quite incredible. She managed to function instead of being a blithering mess, which either shows she's the strongest character there, or maybe a little unrealistic. Who knows.

Scarlett
Scarlett is the FaceThe diplomat, trained to deal with those that may be less willing to accept help. And she does it well. She's charismatic, and uses her beauty to her advantage, more than once. It was fun to read her less serious interactions with the characters, but also good to read about her handling the emotions and feelings of the squad. Her sibling relationship with her brother was also a laugh to read, the typical sibling rivalry and jokes.

Zila
Zila is the Brain, the scientist, the logical. Is it weird if she's the character I relate to the most? She struggles with emotion and thinks of everything with logic, and as the story progresses, you see her begin to experience emotions and try and deal with that. I loved reading her progression, often from other's point of view, as her point of view was brief and to the point. Brains for the win!

Cat
The one character I had some serious difficult liking. Her pining and drama were a little frustrating at times, and I found myself wishing she'd stop moaning, especially in chapters that were from her point of view. She did redeem herself a little later on, proving her worth and loyalty, but I still wasn't a fan of her as a character, and I think I was supposed to be?

Kal
Aww, Kal, with his slightly weird Twilight-esque romantic imprinting. It was cute, but sometimes creepy. I was still cheering for him to succeed by the end of it. He wouldn't allow his violence to define him, which totally won me over.

Finian
I was laughing a lot, almost every time Fin spoke. Every good group has to have a bit of comedic relief, and Fin fills this role perfectly. He's insecure, so covers almost everything with a laugh and a joke. His character was endearing and relatable in some ways. He was awesome.

Would I read it again? I read this twice before I even thought about writing this review, so yes, I can 100% see myself reading this again. The first time was just a simple readthrough, the second I used tabs to label my favourite parts.

Will I be picking up the next in the series?That's not even a question. Of course.

Would I recommend it? If sci-fi is your thing, or even if it's not. This would be a great soft, YA intro to sci-fi for those that might not be sure if sci-fi is something they'd enjoy.

Is it going on my favourites shelf? Yes!

Sorry if none of this review made sense! It started off a little rambly and nonsensical, and this is it after a few weeks of rewrites and editing! I did love this story, and it is amongst my favourites, but no story is without one or two faults. Hopefully, my love for it came across more than my comments on the maybe 2 things I didn't like!

4.5 Stars

Initial Thoughts:I listened to the audiobook for this and like the Illuminae Files it has a full cast and is an amazing production. I loved the various characters in this book and loved that we got to meet them all in the first book rather than slowly introducing them throughout the trilogy. There was a lot of information thrown at you at first but I was able to quickly figure out each character's place in the squad and loved each character, especially Magellan!

Story was good but the characters made the book insufferable to read.
....Like what was the point of writing Cat as a character if we weren't meant to hate her?
Characters only had stereotypes, no personalities.

I love humour in books but as an author you need to know when to stop. Characters being near death or going through something serious and then a character says something “funny” every paragraph and it just ruins it. It cuts down whatever emotional feeling a reader might have when reading an emotional scene.