YA Review: AURORA RISING by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Aurora Rising

by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Published by Knopf Books for Young Readers
May 7, 2019
473 pages

Plot: The year is 2380, and the graduating cadets of Aurora Academy are being assigned their first missions. Star pupil Tyler Jones is ready to recruit the squad of his dreams, but his own boneheaded heroism sees him stuck with the dregs nobody else in the Academy would touch…

A cocky diplomat with a black belt in sarcasm
A sociopath scientist with a fondness for shooting her bunkmates
A smart-ass techwiz with the galaxy’s biggest chip on his shoulder
An alien warrior with anger management issues
A tomboy pilot who’s totally not into him, in case you were wondering

And Ty’s squad isn’t even his biggest problem—that’d be Aurora Jie-Lin O’Malley, the girl he’s just rescued from interdimensional space. Trapped in cryo-sleep for two centuries, Auri is a girl out of time and out of her depth. But she could be the catalyst that starts a war millions of years in the making, and Tyler’s squad of losers, discipline-cases and misfits might just be the last hope for the entire galaxy.

Review:  Aurora Rising is like a mix between Guardians of the Galaxy and Valerian.  A group of military misfits and a girl out of time are thrown together to uncover a secret mission that went awry over 200 years ago.  As the sole survivor of a colony resettlement ship, Aurora is awoken 200 years into the future. She doesn’t understand why or how she survived or why the planet she was supposed to settle on has no records of ever being a colony.  Strange things happen to Aurora when she or her new friends are put in danger and you learn there is more to Aurora than meets the eye.  As the story progresses, you learn there is definitely a conspiracy going on in the story’s government/military.

The story is told in 6 different POVs, which makes it interesting and fun.  The dialogue is funny and you can’t help but like the characters as a team. Each character has a very distinct personality. There is some light romance between Aurora and one of the male team mates. I think it will be developed more in book 2.   If you like Science Fiction/Fantasy, Guardians of the Galaxy, Star Trek, or Valerian, then you will probably enjoy this one.

Rating:  4 Hearts!

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YA Review: OF CURSES AND KISSES by Sandhya Menon

 Of Curses and Kisses
by Sandhya Menon
Published by Simon Pulse
February 18, 2020
384 pages

Synopsis: For Princess Jaya Rao, nothing is more important than family. When the loathsome Emerson clan steps up their centuries-old feud to target Jaya’s little sister, nothing will keep Jaya from exacting her revenge. Then Jaya finds out she’ll be attending the same elite boarding school as Grey Emerson, and it feels like the opportunity of a lifetime. She knows what she must do: Make Grey fall in love with her and break his heart. But much to Jaya’s annoyance, Grey’s brooding demeanor and lupine blue eyes have drawn her in. There’s simply no way she and her sworn enemy could find their fairy-tale ending…right?

His Lordship Grey Emerson is a misanthrope. Thanks to an ancient curse by a Rao matriarch, Grey knows he’s doomed once he turns eighteen. Sequestered away in the mountains at St. Rosetta’s International Academy, he’s lived an isolated existence—until Jaya Rao bursts into his life, but he can't shake the feeling that she’s hiding something. Something that might just have to do with the rose-shaped ruby pendant around her neck…

As the stars conspire to keep them apart, Jaya and Grey grapple with questions of love, loyalty, and whether it’s possible to write your own happy ending.  (2021, Goodreads.com)

Review:  Of Curses and Kisses is a Beauty and the Beast retelling set in modern day.  It was a unique take on the much done retellings that have come out based on this fairytale.  The beast was Lord Grey Emerson, the son of a Duke, who was cursed long ago by the Rao family after their prized ruby was stolen by his ancestors.  Since he was young, Grey was convinced by his father that he would die on his 18th birthday due to the curse.  Because of that he isolates himself from having any meaningful relationships, friends or otherwise.  Princess Jaya Rao wants revenge on Grey Emerson because she believes he was behind the leaking of a scandal that involved her younger sister.  But, Jaya's plans for revenge go awry when she herself starts to fall for Grey.  The "rose petals" falling to count down the demise of the "beast" was portrayed by a ruby rose necklace Jaya wore.  The closer Grey's 18th birthday came, more and more ruby petals would fall off Jaya's necklace.  Drama ensues in this original retelling as family obligations, betrayal, and being true to yourself come to a head in Menon's new YA romance series. 

Overall, I enjoyed this as a retelling because it was unique and not what I was expecting.  However, I think Jaya and Grey's relationship needed a little more time together.  After being so adamant about not getting involved with the other, they fell for each other over a couple of weeks. Sometimes the story did drag a bit, and I found myself waiting for something more interesting to happen. The use the "F' word occurred quite a bit throughout the book and I'm not sure why but it just seemed unnecessary.  Other than that, the writing and storytelling was good and I would definitely pick up another book by this author.

  

Rating: 3.5 Hearts

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