Illuminae by Amie Kaufman, Jay Kristoff Series: The Illuminae Files #1
on October 20th 2015
Also by this author: These Broken Stars, Gemina, Obsidio , Aurora Rising , Aurora Burning
(608 pages) • Goodreads • Amazon • Barnes & Noble
This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do.This afternoon, her planet was invaded.The year is 2575, and two rival megacorporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice-covered speck at the edge of the universe. Too bad nobody thought to warn the people living on it. With enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to fight their way onto an evacuating fleet, with an enemy warship in hot pursuit.But their problems are just getting started. A deadly plague has broken out and is mutating, with terrifying results; the fleet's AI, which should be protecting them, may actually be their enemy; and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a tangled web of data to find the truth, it's clear only one person can help her bring it all to light: the ex-boyfriend she swore she'd never speak to again.Told through a fascinating dossier of hacked documents—including emails, schematics, military files, IMs, medical reports, interviews, and more—Illuminae is the first book in a heart-stopping, high-octane trilogy about lives interrupted, the price of truth, and the courage of everyday heroes.
I feel weird calling myself a black sheep about a book I still gave four stars, but it seems like I definitely am. Everyone else who read this (especially the early reviews back when I read it in July) was literally blown away by how epic it was. Don’t get me wrong – it’s REALLY GOOD. Intense and interesting and crazy and unique. But for some reason it just didn’t have that same WOW factor that everyone else saw.
Kady and Ezra broke up right before the book started, when their planet was invaded and they were taken onto different space shuttles. Honestly I’m still a little unclear about what happened and why, but it was crazy and bad I guess. It’s actually impossible to explain much about the plot of this though because (a) not much really happens, if you think about it, and (b) the major plot points are super spoilery.
I REALLY LIKED THIS A LOT, I PROMISE. Like I said, there was just a bit of wow factor missing for me. I loved the drawings and the format: so many interesting things to read and look at. It made it pretty fast-paced and intriguing. You really never knew what the next page’s format was going to be. It’s totally unique and adds a lot to the story. I loved following the different chat conversations and official documents towards the beginning, and the format towards the end got fucking intense.
I can’t even really pinpoint what parts of this didn’t work for me, but it’s just a feeling I get. Sci-fi is not my thing in a general sense so maybe there was some disconnect? I also feel like the characters were awesome but I still wanted MORE. Like how did Kady get to be so skilled like that? I could have used some more about their relationship before the book started too, just for a fuller picture.
Soooo there were also a good amount of plot twists, which was insane! My jaw dropped a few times as things started happening and coming together. I predicted one major thing towards the end but otherwise it was twisty and crazy. I have to say that it kept me interested for the most part, but some parts kind of dragged. I spread out my reading time of this book for a while too, which could be part of the problem. But then again, it wasn’t super addicting for me compared to other people, because I was able to put it aside for other books without question.
This book is pretty impossible to actually review so I think I’m going to just cut myself off here! I would highly recommend reading this if you’re looking for something quick and unique and full of interesting twists!
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| Overall: | 4.2 |
I’m actually quite happy to read your thoughts on ILLUMINAE! I’ve been hesitant to read it myself, mostly because sci-fi isn’t always a genre I get along with. Still, the multi-formatted story and the twisty plot do intrigue me! I do think that, if ever I do read it, I’m going to go into it with more realistic expectations after seeing your review, so thanks for that 🙂
I know what you mean – the format is actually a lot of fun! I can see why people love it, because don’t get me wrong: I loved it too! I just didn’t feel HOLY CRAP this is the best book ever. Maybe it was too hyped up for me? Oh well! Still enjoyable, for sure.
I’ve been waiting awhile to be able to read this and it was great to be able to hear your opinion about it! I’m all in for books that are jaw dropping, unique, and twisty 😀
Hope you enjoy!
I think four stars is still a pretty solid rating for this book! Everyone does seem to be loving this one which makes me curious enough to want to try it for myself. It has such a beautiful cover and I do love a good sci-fi as well, so it seems like I won’t be wanting in those elements. It’s a bit of a shame something was lacking for you though…
I know, I wish it had that OMG FAVORITE spark for me like everyone else!
I know I have told you this a million times but I love the Friends part of our reviews. Anyway, this book just came in at the library and I am super freaking excited to read it! I’m excited to see how similar or different my feelings on this will be. It sounds really good but I also don’t usually read a lot of sci-fi. We shall see. I am glad you liked it!
Haha thank you! 😀 I hope you enjoy it!
[…] Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff /// I realize this may not make sense but honestly I never play video games. I’ve never really felt inspired to from a book either. So, in my own twist on this topic, I thought of a book that would make a cool video game and had some sci-fi elements. I don’t know, whatever man. […]