Review | Aurora Rising Is The Breakfast Club In Space

Aurora Rising (Aurora Cycle #1) 

By: Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Overall Rating: ★★★★★

“They’re not the heroes we deserve. They’re just the ones we could find. Nobody panic.”

It’s the year 2380, Tyler Jones finds a derelict space craft and manages to rescue one Aurora Jie-Lin O’Malley from the wreckage. Auri is 200+ years old, has some freaky mind powers, and apparently, her only hope of survival is to hitch a ride with Ty and his crew. Ty’s crew isn’t the optimal squad. So, naturally, there’s in-fighting, tons of drama, sabotage, teen feels, and all the sarcasm one can possibly want in 400 pages.

Theme Song

TL;DR:

When it comes to modern sci-fi stories, I didn’t think I would find anything that I loved as much as The Illuminae Files, but guess what? Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman knocked my socks off with Aurora Rising, and it’s my favorite read of the year so far. It’s sassy, humorous, fast-paced, full of amazing characters, and just 100% SPACE-TASTIC. If you love any of the following, you’re sure to love Aurora: The Breakfast Club, The Guardians of the Galaxy, Dramas/Soap Operas (BUT IN SPACE). Do yourself a favor and read this book as soon as humanly possible. And then recommend it to everyone you know!

The Good

Squad 312 – The Delinquents You Didn’t Know You Needed

THIS BAND OF MISFITS IS LITERALLY EVERYTHING YOU NEED IN LIFE. Okay, enough of the caps, but I needed to get my point across. Squad 312 is a mix of the Breakfast Club gang, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and every Star Trek crew out there. Which means one thing: they are the most sarcastic, lovable weirdos to fly across the galaxy. There is a character for everyone to root for (and mine are Tyler and Finian just so we’re clear.)

Was I Actually Watching A Space Soap Opera?

This book starts off with a bang – literally – and does not slow down. It’s so action packed, I felt like I was watching a space drama. There are space battles, human vs. alien fist fights, squad drama, heists, and some glitzy intergalactic paaartaaayys. It had me on the edge of my seat from page one and I fell off said metaphorical chair multiple times.  Then I died at the end and was revived by thinking of book 2. If you’re looking for something to keep you reading into the early hours of the morning – you’ve got it!

The Intergalactic World

The Milky Way is a big place and Kaufman & Kristoff make it their own. There’s a new first contact, new alien species (hallelujah for hot space Legolas), crazy space languages, and a fresh take on Warp Speed and space travel! To my fellow space nerds, be sure to keep an eye open for other Easter eggs I’m sure I missed.

The Ending

Jay is notorious for not believing in happy endings and some of that shines through at the end of book 1 (Amie must be the ray of sunshine in this duo). The bittersweet cliffhanger gave me a heart attack and who knew it was possible to have ALL THE FEELS  in less than two pages.

The Bad

Angsty Teen Romance

*Le sigh*. Am I getting too old for the angst?! I found myself not digging the romance elements of this story. I’m going to blame this one on me, though because everything else is just SO. GOOD. But, still. This would have been a 5-star read even without the bizarre love stuff.

The Ugly Truth

I have one thing to say: READ AURORA RISING. It’s an amazing beginning to a sci-fi series and I need book 2 like yesterday!

Talk To Me

Have you read this book? If so, what did you think of it? If not, will you be adding it to your TBR?