Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
Book Stats:
Reading level: Young Adult
Genre: Science Fiction
Hardcover: 672 pages
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Release date: October 18, 2016
Series: Illuminae Files #2
Source: ARC, Purchased
Reviewed by: Kara
Order: Amazon | Book Depository
Moving to a space station at the edge of the galaxy was always going to be the death of Hanna’s social life. Nobody said it might actually get her killed.
The sci-fi saga that began with the breakout bestseller Illuminae continues on board the Jump Station Heimdall, where two new characters will confront the next wave of the BeiTech assault.
Hanna is the station captain’s pampered daughter; Nik the reluctant member of a notorious crime family. But while the pair are struggling with the realities of life aboard the galaxy's most boring space station, little do they know that Kady Grant and the Hypatia are headed right toward Heimdall, carrying news of the Kerenza invasion.
When an elite BeiTech strike team invades the station, Hanna and Nik are thrown together to defend their home. 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 before dinner. Soon Hanna and Nik aren’t just fighting for their own survival; the fate of everyone on the Hypatia—and possibly the known universe—is in their hands.
But relax. They've totally got this. They hope.
Once again told through a compelling dossier of emails, IMs, classified files, transcripts, and schematics, Gemina raises the stakes of the Illuminae Files, hurling readers into an enthralling new story that will leave them breathless.
[I covered this book on my blog earlier, and since it was missing from the archive, added a quick post for you all so you aren't missing the middle title in the series.]
This second file describes the events at the Heimdall waypoint, where the Kerenza survivors are looking to reach to survive. Daughter of the station's commander, Hanna Donnelly is planning for a party with her military officer boyfriend, Jackson Merrick, and trying to score some of the local drug known as dust (think marijuana rather than anything hard). Her drug dealer is Niklas Malikov, an outrageous flirt and nephew of the local crime lord who farms lamina, terrifying fast-evolving parasites that manufacture dust. On the night Nik and Hanna are supposed to meet up, a Bei-Tech undercover operative cons Nik and his family into intercepting a secret mission allowing Bei-Tech assassins into the waypoint. Luckily, Nik skips out on the destruction to meet Hanna while the rest of the jump station dissolves into chaos and murder. As the Bei-Tech assassins continue their mission, Nik and Hanna are left as the only two free people on the station, aided by the computer skills of Nik's cousin Ella. Through Hanna's lifelong training at strategy and combat due to her father's obsession and Nik's determination, wit, and heart, they must battle or outsmart their way through Bei-Tech's 24 assassins before a second Bei-Tech fleet arrives and their hope for a future is lost for a thousand years.
Hanna is the spoiled princess turned butt-kicking warrior after she's gotten pissed her off by betrayal and her father's murder. Nik is the flirty criminal with a good heart. Basically, they're today's reincarnation of Han and Leia. Ella is sort-of Chewie and C-3PO (after he's been blown to bits in Cloud City and carried like a sack of potatoes) rolled into one.
Honestly, I am trying so hard here not to reveal epic spoilers. I loved every minute of this nail-biting series and want to experience it over and over again. My favorite bits were the IMs because so much of my teen years were spent forming relationships over IM/internet forums. The art and design elements of spaceship schematics, roster lists, visual design spirals, dossiers, IMs, etc. were unexpected but tied together the setting and feel of the story. Addictive. Terrifying. I want more.
While Illuminae was the real stand out, Gemina was not far behind as a solid sequel and may have equaled the first had my pre-pub edition contained the rest of the art intended for the final copy. (I later bought a copy when it released.)
My copies of Illuminae and Gemina are advanced reader copies (that I've been foisting on everyone I can). THANK YOU #alaac15, #alaac16, and most especially Penguin Random House for giving them out! Currently this series is tied with one other for my favorite reads of 2016!
Note: Language, violence, sexual connotations, and visceral descriptors.
I loved Gemina, it was probably my favorite of the three Illuminae books. Hanna and Nik were fun, loved Ella, and the strike team vs Hanna and Nik was my favorite conflict of the series. :)
ReplyDeleteI would LOVE an ARC copy of The Illuminae files, I have only borrowed from the library but I have the audiobooks and they are amazing!!! Full cast and sound effects.
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