Book Review: Aurora Burning by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Our heroes are back… kind of. From the bestselling co-authors of the Illuminae Files comes the second book in the epic series about a squad of misfits, losers, and discipline cases who just might be the galaxy’s best hope for survival.

First, the bad news: an ancient evil—you know, your standard consume-all-life-in-the-galaxy deal—is about to be unleashed. The good news? Squad 312 is standing by to save the day. They’ve just got to take care of a few small distractions first.

Like the clan of gremps who’d like to rearrange their favorite faces.

And the cadre of illegit GIA agents with creepy flowers where their eyes used to be, who’ll stop at nothing to get their hands on Auri.

Then there’s Kal’s long-lost sister, who’s not exactly happy to see her baby brother, and has a Syldrathi army at her back. With half the known galaxy on their tails, Squad 312 has never felt so wanted.

When they learn the Hadfield has been found, it’s time to come out of hiding. Two centuries ago, the colony ship vanished, leaving Auri as its sole survivor. Now, its black box might be what saves them. But time is short, and if Auri can’t learn to master her powers as a Trigger, the squad and all their admirers are going to be deader than the Great Ultrasaur of Abraaxis IV.

Shocking revelations, bank heists, mysterious gifts, inappropriately tight bodysuits, and an epic firefight will determine the fate of the Aurora Legion’s most unforgettable heroes—and maybe the rest of the galaxy as well.

GOD DAMN.

THIS BOOK. THIS FUCKING BOOK.

Aurora Burning picks up pretty quickly after Aurora Rising ends. Our gang is on the run from basically everyone in the universe, and they’re running out of options.

But then they discover a mysterious helper – one that leads to so many more questions, and things slowly, slowly start going their way.

First, I LOVE Magellan’s recap of the characters at the beginning. It’s such a clever and fun way to remind the reader of the characters and what’s going on in this world.

Y’all know I love analyzing characters, so lets talk about these guys real quick:

Aurora: I freakin love Aurora. She’s from around our time so she’s the most relatable in terms of the “what the fuck is going on in outer-space” moments. I loved watching her powers grow and learn what she’s capable of.

Tyler: The leader, the handsome one, the Goldenboy. I honestly didn’t like Tyler a whole lot in Aurora Rising, he thought too highly of himself and was the typical follow the rules, don’t question anything, soldier. But as he learns more about the universe and his team, he loosens up and becomes a more likable character.

Kallis: The Slydarthi. I love Kal. I love Kal. I love Kal. He spends so much time trying to prove that he’s more than what he appears, and he’s so sweet and wonderful. Also I love that the main romance in this story is Kal and Aurora and not Tyler and Aurora.

Scarlett: Scarlett is awesome. I love her “I don’t care what you think about me” attitude and how she’s not afraid of being sexual AF.

Finian: I’m still iffy on Finian. He’s a bit of a smartass, extremely smart, and has a weird suit because he’s used to zero-gee. He’s not the most relatable character, but he does have his usefulness.

Zila – my heart breaks for Zila. We learn so much more about her and her past in this one and its terrible. Zila finally starts to come out of her shell a little, show emotions and actually care for people in this one. But of course, it’s not that easy. Plus she has the most kickass earrings.

Okay now the PLOT. So, our helper somehow gives the gang tools that will come in handy throughout the adventure, even knowing that Cat wouldn’t be joining them on this adventure. I spent half of this book pissed off and confused because I wanted to know HOW. Here’s my working theory: Somehow in Book 3, the gang will go though a black hole or something and get sucked in the past, therefore leaving the items and clues for themselves. (let’s see how accurate this ends up being later on).

We meet Kal’s sister in this one, whose hot, terrifying, badass, dangerous, and even though she’s ‘the bad guy’ I’m a little bit in love with her. We also learn more about Kal’s past as the search for the Weapon continues. Parts of Kal’s life I kind of saw coming – there’s some mysteries and secrets that came to light that I thought were kind of obvious, but it didn’t make it any less exciting to read about.

Then there’s the actual adventure. HOLY FUCKBALLS. The journey these guys go on. imprisonment, espionage, romance, near death experiences. There is so much going on with every single page. I love that there’s never a moment of “things are calm and we’re going to get through this” its nonstop “WE ARE IN MORTAL DANGER! WHAT DO WE DO NEXT?!” Its exciting and keeps you absolutely hooked through every single page.

It’s so hard to review this book without adding spoilers, so I think we’re going to call it quits now, but here’s one final thought:

Right when we FINALLY see that light at the end of the tunnel, the glimmer of hope that things will go our hero’s way, all hell breaks loose, again. The last few pages of this book are INTENSE, and ends on a massive, horrible, deadly cliffhanger. There is no sense of calm, there’s no sense of who is going to survive, if anyone is going to even survive. It’s the WORST cliffhanger Kaufman and Kristoff have ever given us, and even though I love the two of them, I hate them just a little bit right now for how they ended this.

I cannot wait for Book 3, and if its even half as exciting as Aurora Burning I know it will be worth it.

Aurora Burning is on sale TOMORROW!