#bookquotes

I love the premise this quote sets up – science fiction and some definite future obstacles to overcome. Just my cup of tea for an afternoon read. What’s your favorite genre?

#bookporn

I loved the Illuninae Files, so am keen as mustard to see how this new series stack up from the dynamic duo writing team! Come to think of it: a lot of my top read recommendations are from author team ups… what is your top five favourite joint venture publications?

Mine (in no particular order) would be:

The Illuminae Files – Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

What if it’s Us – Beck Albertalli and Adam Silvera

Never Never trilogy – Colleen Hover and Taryn Fisher

Will Grayson, Will Grayson – David Levithan and John Green

You Know Me Well – Nina LaCour and David Levithan

Wrap up – The Illuminae Files by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

An epic sci-fi adventure that left me gob-smacked.

There was a lot of hype surrounding the launch of this trilogy – and rightly so. It was phenomenal. I haven’t been so captivated by a YA science fiction series in a very long time. Not only does this grab reader’s attention with its format of collated documents to form the narrative, but the pacing jumps from chapter to chapter. I am in awe of Kristoff and Kaufman in creating this collection.

If I wanted to be picky, I’d say there are a lot of character to keep track of – and some may read similar to one another. The mostly have that sarcastic sense of humor and are ballsy hero types. Also with the change in perspective in the second book (‘Gemina’), which felt a bit slower, left me high and dry after I had invested so much into Kady in ‘Illuminae.’ But not to worry, all the cast are brought together in ‘Obsidio.’ Like I said that’s if I was looking for some elements to be critical of. Because of the main cast, their personalities are distinctly different, we get diversity  and a range of special skills that each of them bring to the team. One of them is an artificial intelligence (AIDAIN) who is in front and centre just as much as his fleshy counterparts. All the characters are fallible and make mistakes along the fight for their lives against greedy corporations only trying to save their own behinds and turn a profit.

There is always more than one thing going on in the plot, it’s literally everything but the kitchen sink thrown at the main cast. This adds to the tension and pacing. And for a sci-fi it is not bogged down in world building or technical information to support the narrative. Apart from a lull in the first 100 pages of ‘Gemina,’ I did not put these books down except to eat or sleep.

I’m ecstatic to hear Brad Pitt had optioned ‘Illuminae’ for a film adaptation – after seeing how he treated World War Z, I am expecting marvelous things! You can bet I’ll be keeping my feelers out to see how this project develops.

So I won’t go into detail too much about the characters – I don’t want to spoil too much. But you can bet that this is one of my all-time favorites and comes vehemently recommended. I hope Kristoff and Kaufman team up for more similar projects in the future, because I’d add them to my shopping cart automatically.

For individual reviews click on the links below:

‘Illuminae’ – https://strokingfire.wordpress.com/2016/02/23/book-review-illuminae-by-amie-kaufman-and-jay-kristoff/

‘Gemina’ – https://strokingfire.wordpress.com/2017/04/19/book-review-gemina-by-amie-kaufman-and-jay-kristoff/

‘Obsidio’ https://strokingfire.wordpress.com/2018/10/04/book-review-obsidio-3-illuminae-by-amie-kaufman-and-jay-kristoff/

© Casey Carlisle 2018. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Book Review – ‘Obsidio’ (#3 Illuminae) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Hold on to your nickers!

Genre: Y/A, Science Fiction

No. of pages: 615

From Goodreads:

Kady, Ezra, Hanna, and Nik narrowly escaped with their lives from the attacks on Heimdall station and now find themselves crammed with 2,000 refugees on the container ship, Mao. With the jump station destroyed and their resources scarce, the only option is to return to Kerenza—but who knows what they’ll find seven months after the invasion?

Meanwhile, Kady’s cousin, Asha, survived the initial BeiTech assault and has joined Kerenza’s ragtag underground resistance. When Rhys—an old flame from Asha’s past—reappears on Kerenza, the two find themselves on opposite sides of the conflict.

With time running out, a final battle will be waged on land and in space, heroes will fall, and hearts will be broken.

This series is the coolest kid at school. It was everything I wanted an epic sci-fi novel to be. We get all of the characters back in a high stakes battle for survival. The first half is all about the build and moving the chess pieces around on the board. The second half is mind-blowing action, twist and turns. I felt like I was reading this in a wind tunnel. So much going on. I couldn’t put it down.

Though I enjoyed ‘Gemina,’ I missed Kady. But we get her back and all the crazy characters interacting with that same witty sarcasm I’ve come to love. It suited their dialogue, their age, and helped with the heavy tone of the trilogy. Because there is a lot of carnage. Not everyone survives and you never know what unexpected thing is going to happen next to take away someone you love.

Death is handled delicately. It’s balanced with humanity. Everyone is important, everyone has a back story. There are no unimportant characters. I frickin love this aspect about the Illuminae Files. And it shines brightly in ‘Obsidio,’ as the reasons for all those sacrifices takes the forefront.

I’m sad for this series to end because I absolutely loved my time reading ‘Illluminae,’ ‘Gemina,’ and ‘Obsidio.’  But I will definitely be re-reading this sometime in the near future.

Glad to hear Brad Pitt has optioned ‘Illuminae’ for development – it’s a movie I’m really excited to see come to the big screen.

The use of graphic as a part of the narrative is still something that enhances the story for me. It adds another element, like art, evoking even more emotions than you can get from words alone. The abstract formation of a mentally unstable A.I., to the handwritten notes passed secretly between characters.

I lost a little bit of my love for the series in ‘Gemina,’ new characters, a completely different setting, but ‘Obsidio’ manages to draw everything together and deliver what I was missing. And I am ecstatic about this book. It is one of my favorite sci-fi titles of all time! It has been so long since I was totally engrossed and compelled with a read in this genre. Hats off to Kaufman and Kristoff – you guys are geniuses.

The book is a brick though, my wrists ached from holding it up, and I’m uncertain if you’d get the same reading experience in ebook form because most of the graphics are a two page spread. But it would have made it much easier to read.

I’m not going to talk about individual characters because of spoilers – and this would turn into a 10 page essay. But in comparing the ones who survive to how they were at the start of the series, they have been shaped a little differently, grown up. But are still the teens we know them to be. I will say it didn’t feel like there was this massive transformation – only because it didn’t suit the narrative tone. And well, this isn’t one of those naval gazing types of books. It’s more about action and space wars, there is a hint of philosophy and inward soul gazing, and that’s all you needed for a YA series like this.

My only worry now is what to read next… and is it going to stack up to the glory of ‘Obsidio.’

Overall feeling: OHMYGODOHMYGOD!

© Casey Carlisle 2018. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Still Slaying that Series…

In February of 2016 I started a quest to complete all of the series that I had begun (slay that series,) but had yet to finish. I knew I wouldn’t get it all read in that year, so let’s check in to see where I’m at now…

Of the 18 series I listed last year, I completed 9 – so half way. Not bad. I probably would have read more, but kept getting distracted by new releases. Plus, I tend to not enjoy marathoning books so much, I like variety. Also if you read many series end to end, some details start to feel repetitive as the author usually has to re-introduce you to the world, or summarise the story so far with each instalment of the collection.

But my TBR for slaying that series has also grown. Books which I thought were standalones have turned into many more. And sometimes I could not resist picking up another novel which is a start of another collection… glutton for punishment anyone?

Now my new ‘slay that series’ tally stands at 19. How sad to feel I’ve made no progress staring at that number. But going back I have completed 11 series that weren’t included in this read-a-thon I’d set myself over the year.

So here’s where I’m at (in no particular order):

The Lunar Chronicles:

I kind of stalled with this series, I don’t mind fairytale re-tellings or science fiction, I think after a break away I’ll polish them off in quick succession.

Shadowhunter Universe:

 

It’s like when your at a candy store and there’s so many yummy choices that you end up catatonic. Must. Read. So. Good.  I really want to marathon the rest of this series, and I know there will be more to add to my collection, but I’m not letting myself buy any more Shadowhunter goodness until I read the rest of these.

Darkest Minds Trilogy (and Novellas):

Again, another crowd favourite that failed to impress me. An average sort of read, though I’ve only read the first novel, there is plenty left in the series to blow my britches – fingers crossed! Plus with a screen adaptation on it’s way I want to finish off this trilogy before viewing.

The Caster Chronicles:

I absolutely adored the debut novel, but held off after reading bad reviews for the subsequent installments, but I’m getting that itch again. Maybe I should stop looking novels up on Goodreads and just enjoy the experience as I turn the page – let the words cast their own spell on me… (see what I did there?) Plus there hasn’t been a witchy read in by reading list for years.

Unwind Dystology:

Teens for spare body parts – love it! We were just on the verge of rebellion in the first novel, so I really want to get back into this series. I don’t even remember why I stopped.

Lux Universe:

Ahh, hot glowy aliens… need I say more? A guilty pleasure with angst, heavy petting, and high school. With two more books just added to my collection I need to get on to it! There are lots of other Jennifer L. Armentrout series waiting for me to sink my teeth into next.

Translucent series:

A new series I recently got into. Easy, fast sci-fi reads. Invisibility and dark matter. Not the best written series, but a great way to spend an afternoon. I can’t wait to see what Dan Rix will do with these girls… but the final book was published in e-book form over a year ago and I’m still waiting for it to be released in paperback form to complete my collection – so frustrating! Get a move on Mr Rix!!

Deathworks Series:

A Grim Reaper. A multi-national company of Grim Reapers! And it’s set right here in Brisbane, Australia! Such a great seires by some local talent, took me ages to track down the rest of Trent Jamieson’s books, but now I have them in my hot little hands.. mwah ha ha! (that was my maniacal laugh btw.)

Under The Never Sky Trilogy:

While I haven’t been all that impressed with this trilogy, there is only one novel left – and it’s typically the best one. Looking forward to putting this series behind me.

Fetch Series:

The second of this series is yet to be released, but I had fun reading about this dystopian world. Not sure if it will remain a duology, or continue expanding, but its fun light reading. And dystopians always remind me of my highschool days for some reason

Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children Collection:

Heard lots of great things. I was so-so on the first book, but love the mythology. Really keen to see where Ransom Riggs will take as.

The Lady Janies Trilogy:

Scarcasm and hilarity in this historical fiction fancy. Can’t wait to see what they do with other Jane’s from the past. Eagerly waiting for the relese dates to complete the trilogy.

Elemental Series:

Picked up the first book on a whim and sped through it. Along the lines of Jennifer L. Armentroug’s Lux series. A guilty pleasure paranormal romance full of tropes and hot boys. Nice to break up the more heavier reading content.

Red Rising Trilogy:

Struggling with the writing style of this series, but with only one book to go am determined to finish. Then I’ll decide whether I want to attack Pierce Browns new Iron Gold trilogy in the Red Rising Universe set to start releasing in 2018.

Between the Lines Duology:

An interesting contemporary, and am curious to see where the story does in the last part of the duology. Fictional characters coming to life – yes please!

Red Queen Collection:

I’m having a love/hate relationship with this series, sometimes I am raving about it, sometimes a bit meh! But just have to wait for one more release in 2018 and we can call it quits. Plus I’d like to see what Victoria Aveyard will write after this series.

A Court of Thorns and Roses Trilogy:

Really enjoyed the first book, the second I struggled with a bit, but am expecting an explosive thrid installment in true Sarah J Mass Style. I thought it was only going to be a tirlogy, but in the end pages of A Court of Wings and Ruin we are teased with a new realease in 2018 – WTF!

No Ordinary Star Trilogy:

Wonderful premise, but this is a trilogy that I’d rather poke my eyes out than read, but my OCD won’t let me just drop it – lucky they are short novellas… let’s hope M.C. Frank can turn my opinion around.

Zeroes Trilogy:

Such a fun gritty series and incredibly well written to boot. I have the second book ready to go and the third preordered to satisfy my Zeroes lust.

Sidekick Squad:

A new series that has captued my imagination – funny, witty and just enough sass! Not sure how many novels will be released in this seires, but eagerly waiting for ‘Not Your Villain’ out in October this year.

The Illuminae Files:

Hurry up May 2018! Have been having a blast reading this series and hope it continues with its masterful tragectory. Who hopes this is more than a trilogy too?

Children of Eden:

‘Children of Eden’ was a bit of a surpise for me, and I got toatally invested in the story. Let’s see if Joey Graceffa can keep it going with the next book due for release in October this year.

Warm Bodies:

Two short stories and a trilogy from our all-around favourite zombie, R. Love Isaac Marion’s writing and eager to complete this collection and find out how the world recovers from a zombie apocalypse. Hopefully all the books will be released by the end of 2017.

Tales From Foster High:

Something about the topical writing with gay main characters struggling through high school (and much adversity) has wormed its way into my heart. I think I’m committed to see this series through to the end – another one of my guilty pleasures. It’s like finding out what happens after the fairy-tale ends…

The Girl With All The Gifts:

Upon first reading ‘The Girl With All The Gifts’ I didn’t totally love this series – but it grew on me, and am excited to see what new discoveries about the zombie-like world can be made in the sequel…

 

That leaves 66 books left to read to finish off all the series listed here – so it’s definitely going to take me longer than a year to read them all – especially given I like to sprinkle in stand-alones, new releases, and am making my way through Stephen King, Dean Koontz and Clive Cussler’s back catalogue. Plus some of the titles above have not been released yet, or not confirmed as complete, so this list will continue to evolve and change… but hey, I’m not adverse to adding more books to my TBR. It keeps me excited.

What series are you determined to finish of this year? Got any opinions on any of the books listed above? Your works might just push a book to the top of the pile…

In the meantime – happy reading 🙂

© Casey Carlisle 2017. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Book Review – ‘Gemina’ by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Teens surviving a shit-storm in space – Excellent!

Genre: Y/A, Science Fiction

No. of pages: 608

From Goodreads:

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.

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.

It has been an age since I was eagerly anticipating a book release – and it just had to be a massive space soap opera! Maybe I’m flashing back to my childhood and the Star Wars days? Anyway, I cracked the cover and started reading ‘Gemina’ as soon as I had unboxed it. I found I was missing the characters from ‘Illuminae.’ We get a few glimpses of them, but this sequel deals with a whole new cast – and there are so many new characters! It took a bit to keep track of them all and focus on what’s happening – especially with the format of collated documents.

The story feels slow to start with, and was a little difficult to capture my interest, especially after my disappointment at not reading more about Kady and Co. After I got past the first 100 pages, I settled into the new environment, got to know our protagonists Hanna and Nik, things started to get better and better. The anty just kept getting one-upped. Just like ‘Illuminae’ I was completely engrossed.

Hanna is a real balls-to-the-wall kind of girl. A cross between a pampered princess and an Amazonian. She called to all the joys I have about reading a take-no-prisoners heroine. Only because I wish I could be that kind of person, instead of passing out after one push-up.

I appreciated the humour mixed into the narrative and laughed out loud man many times. Though sometimes it felt forced and unnecessary. But I can understand the characters need to crack a funny – to release tension and teenagers are always inappropriate and the worst of times. But still…

Nik – I guessed his backstory well in advance, something about how he was written gave it away. But I still really liked him, even if he was predictable. If I had to nit-pick I’d say he was the weakest part of the novel.

Ella was cute and reminded me of Iko and Winter from the Cinder Chronicles rolled into one.

The plight of the teens under terrorist attack, a bio threat, wormhole issues, incoming destroyers… it was all enough to reduce you into a puddle of your own making. The tension builds and builds, the pace quickened expertly. For such a large novel, I flew through the last half in a matter of hours. Such an expert mix of action, adventure and science fiction. Even with the mixed format of collated documents, you still got a sense of urgency and multiple points of view which only added to the story.

That ending tough – by the time I got there, I thought anything could happen and wasn’t certain about any predictions… I like to be kept guessing, so the conclusion was simply brilliant. I’m desperately hangry for the next release ‘Obsidio’ to be dropped next year.

Overall feeling: So. Much. Stuff. Happening!

© Casey Carlisle 2017. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

#bookquotes

Kaufman and Kristoff continue to ‘Wow’ me with this science fiction series – if only I didn’t have to wait so long until the next book is released.

#bookporn

Can’t wait to start reading this!! Excitement plus!!

#book quotes

Another science fiction that has cemented itself up in my favorite reads of all time – if you can get a copy of ‘Illuminae.’ read it. I highly recommend it.

Book Review – Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

This book will blow you apart, infect you and melt you into a pool of your own making… sci-fi wizardry!

 Genre: Y/A, Science Fiction

No. of pages: 599

From Goodreads:

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.

I was excited to get this book. All the hype around its promotion and some great reviews from fellow bloggers had me all in a tizzy. But I held off until I had a decent chunk of time to really delve into ‘Illuminae’ and I’m so glad I planned it that way… and luckily I remained spoiler free, so the ride was even more delectable.

This book is a little bit different; and I’m not just talking about its formatting. With expert pacing and tension building to an explosive conclusion there is a lot to like. I was yanking up my feet as our protagonist, Kady climbed, Dodging in my chair as the love interest, Ezra fired on the enemy in his Cyclone fighter drone. I even felt comradery with my laptop at the heroic actions of the ships artificial intelligence AIDAN. It has been a while since I have enjoyed a book so thoroughly.

With a narrative consisting of a collection of documents – conversations, logs, IM’s, emails – it does not detract from the story at all. Some parts are thoroughly artistic in their expression as words placed unconventionally on the page. It was a refreshing and delightful reading experience.

Kady had me sold from the first page. She’s capable and focused without that whole rude sassy thing. Her never-give-up hacker attitude added some of the best reading I’ve experienced in while as she faced some incredible odds. This chick rocks! I think the omnipotent POV allowed the action and pacing to excel without long winded inner dialogue from our heroine, just as it lent varying emotions in more intimate and lonely moments.

Ezra blew me away. He’s not the most capable of boys, but he’s got major kahoonies. He’s the kind of book boyfriend I love to read about. Even though he and Kady are separated for nearly all of the story, there is no sense of distance in their relationship even though he’s an ex – which is a feat in itself when you consider this story is told in snippets of reports, dialogue and documentation. Kaufman and Kristoff – we are not worthy! With moments where Ezra was so terrified he was going to soil his space suit, to sending out words of encouragement, we really see Ezra dig deep to survive in this all out hailing storm of excrement.

AIDAN : What a strange binary fellow. As a character he/she/it goes through the most significant change. I finished the book feeling both creeped out, and endeared about AIDAN. And I’m still not sure if he was simply misunderstood for playing the bigger game throughout the plot, or if evolution through computer error showed us his humanity (maybe it was both?) But I think I’m most looking forward to finding out about AIDAN in the upcoming sequel.

This was also my first introduction to the writings of both Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman (and proud that they are fellow Aussie authors) and am adding there back catalogue to my collection – and if anyone can tell me if there is a way to pause time so I can indulge in my reading addiction without wasting weeks on end, hit me up.

A true masterpiece and I highly recommend you get your hands on a copy right away! This sci-fi geek girl just about spontaneously combusted.

Overall feeling: It’s like my brain was on crack

© Casey Carlisle 2016. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.