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A review by nuin_giliath
Aurora Rising by Jay Kristoff, Amie Kaufman
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This was SUCH a disappointment. The Illuminae Files is among my all-time favorite sci-fi series, but this was nowhere near that in terms of quality or creativity. I knew going into this that the authors didn't implement the same storytelling structure as their previous collaboration and that was perfectly fine with me. There were actually several stylistic choices - especially at the very beginning and end - that I really appreciated and enjoyed. While somewhat lacking in places, I also liked the world building aspects that were present. There were some interesting concepts introduced that I would love to see explored further.
What ended up sinking this ship in my eyes were the characters. Repeatedly, we are informed about how insanely gifted this crew is and yet their behavior never convinced me of that fact. They were shockingly inconsistent with how they fluctuated between being insufferably juvenile and wise beyond their years. One minute, they'd be acting/talking like ten-year-olds, complete with jokes about soiling their pants. The next, they're speaking as if they're army veterans who have been jaded by the experiences of a thirty-year career. That doesn't make sense. You can't have it both ways. I was also devastated by how awful most of the female characters were. They were frequently petty, whiny, and so very shallow. With having a woman co-authoring this book, they should not have been this incredibly unrelatable to me (also a woman.) What absolutely broke my heart over this is that characters are typically the best part of a book for me. Without feeling a connection to them, the whole book comes across as dull and lifeless.
The plot, while intriguing, was barely present until the last 30% or so. While those final chapters were really well done and rather exciting, I felt cheated that I had to trudge through so much inadequacy to get there. By that point, I had lost any interest in these characters - except for Zila who simply needs to BAMF! the rest of them into oblivion - which unfortunately meant that the heavy emotional beats were lost on me. And that's tragic.
Having had such high hopes for this book, it truly pains me to rate this so low. But a story where I can't connect with the characters is never going to win my heart. The potential was there, but the execution failed miserably. I'm currently uncertain if I'll continue with the series at all.
What ended up sinking this ship in my eyes were the characters. Repeatedly, we are informed about how insanely gifted this crew is and yet their behavior never convinced me of that fact. They were shockingly inconsistent with how they fluctuated between being insufferably juvenile and wise beyond their years. One minute, they'd be acting/talking like ten-year-olds, complete with jokes about soiling their pants. The next, they're speaking as if they're army veterans who have been jaded by the experiences of a thirty-year career. That doesn't make sense. You can't have it both ways. I was also devastated by how awful most of the female characters were. They were frequently petty, whiny, and so very shallow. With having a woman co-authoring this book, they should not have been this incredibly unrelatable to me (also a woman.) What absolutely broke my heart over this is that characters are typically the best part of a book for me. Without feeling a connection to them, the whole book comes across as dull and lifeless.
The plot, while intriguing, was barely present until the last 30% or so. While those final chapters were really well done and rather exciting, I felt cheated that I had to trudge through so much inadequacy to get there. By that point, I had lost any interest in these characters - except for Zila who simply needs to BAMF! the rest of them into oblivion - which unfortunately meant that the heavy emotional beats were lost on me. And that's tragic.
Having had such high hopes for this book, it truly pains me to rate this so low. But a story where I can't connect with the characters is never going to win my heart. The potential was there, but the execution failed miserably. I'm currently uncertain if I'll continue with the series at all.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Blood