Starred review from April 1, 2018
Grades 8-12 *Starred Review* Another countdown. Commercial giant BeiTech's invading forces are trapped in a seven-month orbit around the politically unstable mining colony of Kerenza IV, pushing to restore their ship's power so they can get home; meanwhile, the surviving Kerenza colonists are hanging onto their lives and families by a thread. Elsewhere, battered survivors of other BeiTech aggressions are aboard the gunship Mao, on a collision course with Kerenza that will either save or kill them all. The concluding volume in the Illuminae Files (Illuminae, 2015; Gemina, 2016) offers the same combination of unlikely heroes, star-crossed lovers, space opera tropes, and arresting illustrations that have fueled the series' stratospheric popularity. That this is something of a formula for this talented duo belies how well they do it. The mix of textual formats?emails, case reports, images of hand-written notes, and concrete prose?creates a powerful immediacy to the narrative, although the action goes on just a bit too long. Still, it is compelling, action-packed, edge-of-your-seat reading that also explores darker issues about responsibility, artificial intelligence, and the duality of right and wrong. Kaufman and Kristoff draw their trilogy to a satisfying end with an out-of-this-world finale.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)
January 1, 2019
With Jump Station Heimdall destroyed, two spaceships have to return to planet Kerenza to escape. Meanwhile, the resistance on Kerenza is getting desperate. As with the first two books, this sci-fi trilogy-ender is told via documents and transcripts. The gripping, emotional narrative balances breathless action sequences with descriptions of war's horrors and individuals grappling with moral choices.
(Copyright 2019 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)
Starred review from April 1, 2018
Insurgents among the remaining Kerenza IV colonists must sabotage and delay BeiTech to stay alive long enough for survivors from Illuminae (2015) and Gemina (2016) to return and give them a fighting chance.Rhys Lindstrom, a handsome blond techie space Marine-type, and Asha Grant, a pharmacy intern and Kady Grant's light brown-skinned cousin, are on opposite sides--spelling trouble for this star-crossed couple. Rhys works for occupying BeiTech, while Asha's in the resistance. Rhys has been working on the Magellan's (nearly complete) repairs but is reassigned to the surface to maintain the crumbling colony's infrastructure as BeiTech finishes replenishing their hermium supply so they can leave the system. Some of the (fatal) technical difficulties are the result of sabotage by colonist resisters who know that when BeiTech no longer needs them that they're likely to be liquidated just as the "nonessential" colonists were. With Rhys horrified by the planetary situation and seeking to reconnect with his ex Asha, the resistance turns to him for a Hail Mary plan. Meanwhile, the consolidated Hypatia and Heimdall crews face tight resources, tense leadership struggles (including pushback from adults not wanting to take orders from teens), and impossible choices as they race to the colony for a long-shot rescue mission. Design as tightly controlled as the plot clarifies complicated situations and provides visceral emotional gut punches.An adrenaline-pumping action story with timely themes and lasting resonance thanks to the focus on the characters' humanity. (Science fiction. 13-adult)
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