The Isles of the Gods by Amie Kaufman

Guess who one of the narrators is. That's right. It's Steve West. The love of my life.
I KNEW IT. IMMEDIATELY. Like. obvs it was him.
It has the atmospheric feel of Greek myths, but it's got the YA vibes.
It's fantasy, but also there's like...technology soooooo.
I'm totally not stressed for the next book.
464 Pages

Aurora's End by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman

I missed the opportunity last book:

...Is everyone a little bi....
Ok but the Azula and Zuko vibes...and the Todoroki vibes....
Me connecting all the dots, understanding how the things happen.

Saedii is growing on me....
Also...the new ship... Fantastic. Iconic. 

I KNEW IT. I knew I was right about that future
Did I just have Miraculous Ladybug vision....yes

My feelings after finishing this book:
....just the entirety of the Grinch's emotions...that's me
512 Pages

Aurora Burning by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

I just. Love all of them. The bi-cons. They're fantastic. Finally someone who also is just like.. boys are pretty. Girls are pretty.
It's the re-read before the last book...because otherwise I would like...not know anything.
It's the Star Wars and Star Trek vibes for me. 
I love Kal. So. Much. Is it because he's voiced by Steve West...maaaaaaaybe.
512 Pages

Their Fractured Light by Meagan Spooner and Amie Kaufman

I ain't going to no secondary location
Gideon is sassy, and I love him. Cute lil nerd
Hey look, it's a crossover, except it's not because they're in the same series.
....Yeah can't say I didn't see that coming....
Also, when the climax happens at the middle of the book, and you stressed. 
These cuties. I love these cuties.
432 Pages

This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

Hey look my babies are back!
I can't hear you over all of my feelings.

Do I have a thing for chemistry or do I have a thing for chemistry. 
I kept thinking her name was Juliet, not Jubilee (IT WAS AN AUDIOBOOK ON TRIPLE SPEED, DON'T JUDGE ME)
It's been a weekend, so I can't remember stuff. But like... I do love me a ship. 
416 Pages

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

I'm just waiting for someone to yell "Nerfhearder".... Also Spaceballs vibes...
Tarver's cool. I love guys who know things and can like....not die. 
WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT

NONONONONONONONONONNONO....Um no That didn't happen. 

I love people who are protective... I'm fine. 
Someone gon need therapy... (not including me)
I can't hear you I'm feeling things.
We stan Lilac in this house. 
416 Pages

Aurora Burning by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

....Release the Dragon....like....Release the Kraken....
.....Return of the Jedi scene with Jabba the Hut....
Look at all the bi-cons
So many Star Wars references and vibes. and Star Trek vibes
Also Aurora says "son of a biscuit" .... I love her.
Tyler is so sassy... I love his strategy brain and the snark.
Kal and Auri

.....Lion King 2 Simba's Pride......

CLIFFHANGERS SUCK Y'ALL

512 Pages

Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

 ...When you have two ships for each person and you don't know who to root for....

Hey look at all those Star Trek vibes....
aaaaand Voltron vibes.

Oh my gosh Kal and Tyler.....

Ok so I have a ship now....
But yeah....getting attached to characters...

496 Pages

Obsidio by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

The Great and Powerful Woz.

....Anyone else want to reference Top Gun.... Wingman stuff.. 
I just hear Will and Elizabeth's theme from Pirates of the Caribean a lot of the time....
and Ezra give me Peggy and Captain America vibes for a very specific scene.
"...guns and ships...and so the balance shifts...." "rag tag volunteer army" .... y'all how many Hamilton references....
aaaand there's a Les Mis reference....
I'm really glad it wasn't THAT Top Gun reference...
...I just love Ezra...
640 Pages

Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

DUUUUUDE. Science.
What is with these plot twists.. Science plot twists.
I love this series.
I love Nic. I think I have a type.....
672 Pages

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

I love this in audiobook format!

....Dude there's a virus and quarantine...haha

....Dude we're only halfway through the book.... crud

DEAD POET'S SOCIETY SFJKDASFJKLDJKLSFD

istg if this turns into Shakespeare

.....sfjkleasjkldsfdjklsfjkld

Nope nope nope nope I'm done. I quit.

This is like the Mars episode of Doctor Who. I quit.

Insert that first scene from the Star Trek reboot movie with Jim's dad.

608 Pages

Obsidio (Illuminae #3) by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

The final installment of the wonderful and terrible Illuminae Files series! 

Illuminae is one of the most interesting books I've ever read, and it definitely had a huge impact on me. Because of this strong impact, I was less than impressed by Obsidio. I think my expectations were too high, but nothing truly unique happens in Obsidio. I found myself bored...which is an unusual feeling for this series. However, I still very much enjoyed the characters and format of the story!

I would highly recommend the entire series to anyone and everyone! 

“Live a life worth dying for.” 

613 pages

Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Summary: "On board the Jump Station Heimdall, Hanna is the captain's pampered daughter; Nik a member of a notorious crime family. When an elite BeiTech strike team invades the station, Hanna and Nik are thrown together. 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. The fate of the Hypatia-- and possibly the known universe-- is in their hands."

I want Amie Kaufman to write anything and everything. I would read a grocery list if it was written by her.

The creativity and story-telling in the Illuminae series is unmatched. I don't know how I'm going to find another book to read after this. 

659 pages

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Summary: "The planet Kerenza is attacked, and Kady and Ezra find themselves on a space fleet fleeing the enemy, while their ship's artificial intelligence system and a deadly plague may be the end of them all."

I need therapy after finally finishing this book. It was incredibly creative yet horrifying and agonizing.

Illuminae is zombie horror disguised as sci-fi, and while it was intriguing, it was depressing as well. 

Amie Kaufman is a beautiful writer, but she has a sick way of twisting your insides out in ways you've never experienced with a book before. 

Proceed with caution. 

599 pages

Gemina by Amie Kaufman

Gemina by Amie Kaufman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is book 2 in a unique and exciting YA Sci-Fi Series, and I absolutely adore the audiobook!

I confess that I don't love book 2 quite as intensely as I did book one, but it's still a captivating, fast-paced story with several surprises. The new characters are unexpected and enjoyable, with strong voices, and the bit of romance burns slower than it did in book one (for better or worse).

I spread out the reading over a long period of time, due to personal chaos, which may have impacted the overall flow when I read it. I'll probably read or listen to this book again at some point, so I'll update my star rating at that time, if a second read changes my perspective.

I want more of this world and format, so I hope this series goes on for a long time or branches out into something new. Either way, but I don't want it to end.

Pages: 608

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These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner

Summary: "Catastrophe strikes the massive luxury spaceliner Icarus, and sends it plummeting into the nearest planet. Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen seem to be the only survivors. Lilac is the daughter of the richest man in the universe; Tarver comes from nothing, a young war hero who learned long ago that girls like Lilac are more trouble than they're worth. But with only each other to rely on, Lilac and Tarver must work together, making a tortuous journey across the eerie, deserted terrain to seek help."

I requested These Broken Stars as soon as I finished reading Becky's review! And I'm so glad I did! It reminded me of Titanic in all the best ways. Loved it! Looking forward to reading the next one (and hopefully getting some answers!)


374 pages

The Starbound Trilogy by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have wanted to read this series for a while now, but I bumped it up the priority list after reading and loving the Illuminae files.

This book definitely delivers on the premise it promises when a luxury spaceline plummets from hyperdrive and crashes onto an unknown planet. There are only two known survivors, Tarver a poor military recruit who worked his way up the ladder to Major faster than expected, and Lilac, the daughter of one of the wealthiest and most powerful men in the universe.

This book is one part intense sci-fi, one part space fantasy, one part survival story, one part stubborn, star-crossed lovers from different worlds collide in the worst of circumstances, and one part awesome!

Pages: 416

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This Night So Dark by Amie Kaufman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the story of Tarver’s rise to military fame, when he helps to stop mercenaries from completely destroying a research center and its scientists. If you love Lilac and Tarver and want the back story that is referenced several times throughout this trilogy, then read this novella.

Pages: 109

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This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Book 2 explores the many sides and viewpoints of a volatile situation among the local rebels, the military sent to enforce peace on a developing planet, and the corporation that has caused most of the headaches in the first place. Initially, each sides sees the issue in black and white, only focusing on their concerns and complaints, but it is the gray areas that become the most fascinating in this story.

It’s book two in the trilogy, but it’s a brand new story about two new and fascinating characters, Flynn, who is with the rebel terrorists, and Jubilee, who is an officer with the militia sent to keep the peace. Somehow, they know they have to find a middle ground between their people, or risk the destruction of an entire planet.

The story takes place in the same vast universe but on a brand new planet, and some of the issues, themes, and villains of book one play a role in this story as well. Tarver and Lilac make a brief appearance in this story, and Tarver actually plays a crucial role in the plot for a few chapters. It was fun to see them both again, but by the time they showed up in the story, I was so caught up in Flynn and Lee, and their desperate situation, that I barely had the emotional energy to be excited about a reappearance of my old favorites.

Pages: 416

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Their Fractured Light by Amie Kaufman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Gideon, a hacker, and Sofia, a con artist, are the new and interesting characters you’ll be rooting for in book 3.

One of my favorite parts is when the story brings back Tarver and Lilac from book one and Jubilee and Flynn from book two. The six work together throughout the last half of this book, to try to attempt to stop the whispers from controlling and destroying the universe, and it’s great to see so many beloved characters together in the same story.

Pages: 432

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wow! Just. . . So. Much. Wow! A thousand stars. My mind was blown. This is the best science-fiction novel I’ve read in a long time!

The format is unique, offered as a series of collected reports, online conversations, video feeds, and research, after an extremely deadly occurrence between a small planetary civilization, a fleet of government ships, and corporate terrorists.

I listened to this on audiobook (at double speed, which added to the excitement), and I highly recommend that format, as it comes with different readers for different materials, as well as sound effects which add to the whole experience. However, I feel certain I will go back and read this in print, in the future, so I can study the style and writing concept further.

It’s YA, but I recommend this to anyone who loves Sci-Fi or space fantasy, or anyone who is genre flexible and likes to try new and interesting books.

Written by: Amie Kaufman, Jay Kristoff
Narrated by: Olivia Taylor Dudley, Lincoln Hoppe, Jonathan McClain
Length: 11 hrs and 41 mins, Unabridged Audiobook

Pages: 608