Tag: Jay Kristoff

TRUEL1F3 (LIFEL1K3, #3) – Jay Kristoff [ARC Review]

Leave a comment
42871642. sy475

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Synopsis:

From the bestselling co-author of the Illuminae Files comes the thrilling finale in the LIFEL1K3 trilogy — hailed by Marie Lu as “a breathless, action-packed exploration of what humanity really means.”

Best friends have become enemies. Lovers have become strangers. And deciding whose side you’re on could be the difference between life and death. For Eve and Lemon, discovering the truth about themselves–and each other–was too much for their friendship to take. But with the country on the brink of a new world war–this time between the BioMaas swarm at CityHive and Daedalus’s army at Megopolis, loyalties will be pushed to the brink, unlikely alliances will form and with them, betrayals. But the threat doesn’t stop there, because the lifelikes are determined to access the program that will set every robot free, a task requiring both Eve and Ana, the girl she was created to replace. In the end, violent clashes and heartbreaking choices reveal the true heroes . . . and they may not be who you think they are.

Review:

Huge thank you to Knopf Books for Young Readers and Netgalley for providing me with this eARC in exchange for my honest review!

Jay Kristoff has done it again. I seriously don’t know how he does it, but Kristoff consistently puts out absolute bangers. He is one of my favorite authors. One of the things that I like best about Kristoff’s books is that he includes a quick recap of the previous books in the beginning. This is so helpful when it’s been a long time since reading the previous books. He did this again with TRUEL1F3 and I loved it!

TRUEL1F3 picks up immediately after the events of DEV1AT3. The action starts immediately and does not let up. The entire book is non-stop! And I mean literally NON! STOP! Our rag tag group of characters are constantly getting themselves into all sorts of dangerous situations. TRUEL1F3 is a super exciting, fast-paced read that is jam packed full of fun.

I was so happy to be back with this incredible cast of characters . . . Cricket, the freaks, and my girl LEMON FRESH! Spank my spankables! Lemon is one of my favorite characters ever and she was once again she is totally *brilliful*! Lemon is fierce, sassy, independent, and so much fun. Her point of view chapters are always my favorite. I’m keeping this review spoiler free, but Lemon goes through a horrible trauma in TRUEL1F3. Kristoff did a great job of showing Lemon dealing with the physical and emotional tolls of this. It made Lemon Fresh even more fierce and powerful!

Besides Lemon Fresh, my favorite part of this series is the freaks . . . Diesel and Grimm. The team of freaks grows in TRUEL1F3 and I couldn’t be happier! I would definitely want to be a part of the team.

Of course I have to mention that it’s a Kristoff book . . . so that means I was an emotional wreck multiple times.

One character that I did not like at all . . . Eve. She has been the worst since the second book. I understand she is dealing with an identity crisis and incredible emotional stress, but Eve’s decisions and actions are horrible. One of the overarching themes of TRUEL1F3 is that your actions are what defines the type of person you are. So basically Eve is awful. The ONLY reason I deducted 1/2 star from my review is Eve’s arc/ending. It was too easy and seemed way off base for her story. To keep this spoiler free, I will include what I think would have been a more appropriate ending at the end of my review.

The LIFEL1K3 trilogy is an exciting, fast-paced, and action-packed series. Jay Kristoff creates the most thrilling worlds and captivating characters. TRUEL1F3 is no exception. I flew threw this book and I could not get enough of this incredible story.

TRUEL1F3 will be released June 30th by Knopf Books for Young Readers!

SPOILERS ON PAGE 2 . . .

Pages: 1 2

Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle, #1) – Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Leave a comment
30075662

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Synopsis:

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.

They’re not the heroes we deserve. They’re just the ones we could find. NOBODY PANIC.

Review:

Our favorite sci-fi writing duo is back!!! I don’t know how they do it, but Amie and Jay have done it again!!! I was a little nervous because I didn’t know how Amie and Jay could possibly follow The Illuminae Files, but I did not need to worry at all! Aurora Rising is an epic, fast-paced, action-packed adventure!!

Aurora Rising follows Squad 312 from the Aurora Legion. Tyler, aka the Golden Boy, is the Aurora Academy’s top student. He’s meant to be the Alpha of the best squad. But that all changes when he decides to go on a solo trip into the Fold to clear his mind before the squad draft. While in the Fold, Tyler comes across an abandoned ship and discovers a girl in cryo-sleep. He successfully rescues her, but misses the draft. Tyler is now stuck leading a squad with his sister, best friend, and the rejects from the draft. Squad 312 leaves on their first mission and chaos ensues.

Aurora Rising was NON-STOP! From the very first page, the story grabbed me and did not let go! Squad 312 is a magnet for danger! Everywhere they go they get into trouble! The plot is fun and full of action and epic battle scenes. The story flows and is well paced. Amie and Jay built the world of Aurora Rising perfectly. There is never information overload or dumping. I especially loved the Illuminae Files-esc pages. It was such a cool way to provide the reader insight and more information into this world.

I absolutely LOVED this cast of characters. Jay and Amie create the most original, complex, and hilarious characters. Seven point of views could be a lot, but it was not overwhelming at all. I enjoyed every single point of view chapter. My ONLY complaint would be to have more Zila. However, I have a feeling that more is coming in the next books.

If I had to pick a favorite character it would probably be Finian with Scarlett as a very close second. I just love Fin’s sarcasm and little quips. And Scarlett is just so bad ass! She is fierce!!

Aurora Rising was absolutely incredible. Amie and Jay are GENIUSES! I seriously don’t know how they do it. It is going to be a very long wait for the next book!!

LIFEL1K3 (LIFEL1K3, #1) – Jay Kristoff

Leave a comment
29456569

Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Synopsis:

On an island junkyard beneath a sky that glows with radiation, a deadly secret lies buried in the scrap. Seventeen-year-old Eve isn’t looking for trouble–she’s too busy looking over her shoulder. The robot gladiator she spent months building has been reduced to a smoking wreck, she’s on the local gangster’s wanted list, and the only thing keeping her grandpa alive is the money she just lost to the bookies. Worst of all, she’s discovered she can somehow destroy machines with the power of her mind, and a bunch of puritanical fanatics are building a coffin her size because of it. If she’s ever had a worse day, Eve can’t remember it. The problem is, Eve has had a worse day–one that lingers in her nightmares and the cybernetic implant where her memories used to be. Her discovery of a handsome android named Ezekiel–called a “Lifelike” because they resemble humans–will bring her world crashing down and make her question whether her entire life is a lie. With her best friend Lemon Fresh and her robotic sidekick Cricket in tow, Eve will trek across deserts of glass, battle unkillable bots, and infiltrate towering megacities to save the ones she loves…and learn the truth about the bloody secrets of her past.

Review:

Well that was a rollercoaster ride! LIFEL1K3 is my second venture into reading Jay Kristoff’s books and I. AM. HOOKED. He is becoming one of my favorite authors!

LIFEL1K3 is an epic sci-fi dystopian adventure story full of action and mystery. LIFEL1K3 takes place in a post apocalyptic USA or the Grande Ol’ Yousay as our lead, Eve, refers to it. This future world is a vivid wasteland that is dreary and gritty. It is the perfect setting for this fast paced story. The world is full of robots, scientists, and technology. A large part of the story focuses on the dynamic and power struggle between between robots and humans.

Before I move on, I have to take a moment to point out how stunning Jay’s writing is. It is so incredibly descriptive and imaginative. One perfect example is the scene inside the sea monster. Jay’s writing was so descriptive and vivid that I felt like I was there. I was totally grossed out!! This truly is a testament to Jay’s genius writing.

LIFEL1K3 focuses on Eve Carpenter, a skilled mechanic living in the Dregs. Eve and her bestest, Lemon Fresh, stumble upon a the damaged remains of a Lifelike. Lifelikes are androids that were created by a giant tech company. These androids were created in the image of humans, hence the name lifelike. The story follows Eve, Lemon, their bots, Cricket and Kaiser, and the Lifelike through an action packed journey full of crazy battles, twists, and epic reveals. LIFEL1K3 was so exciting and I truly didn’t know where the story was going to go next!

My favorite part of LIFEL1K3 is the characters. Every single one of our leads is absolutely delightful. I love each of their unique personalities. I love the way Jay incorporates humor into his stories through the characters. However, my absolute favorite part is the friendship between Eve and Lemon. They are each others “bestest” and it is the most beautiful relationship. The only thing I love more than strong female protagonists is strong and supportive female friendships! Their love and support for one another is so pure and I loved every minute. This quote from Eve illustrates their relationship perfectly. . .

  • “She couldn’t help but smile. The ache eased off, just a breath. No matter how bleak it got, how dark the places in her head grew, she’d always have Lemon. She was a rock. Always ready to dole out the sass. It meant more to her than her bestest would ever know.”

LIFEL1K3 is full of twists and turns and the ending is no different. LIFEL1K3 ends with a huge reveal and major cliffhanger! I am so curious where Jay will take the story next! I can’t wait to find out in DEV1AT3!

I wanted to include a couple of beautiful quotes from LIFEL1K3 . . .

  • “Most of them already exist in our computer archives, but there’s nothing quite the same as sitting with a real book in your hands. Breathing in the ink and feeling all those wonderful lives beneath your fingertips. In between the pages, I’m an emperor. An adventurer. A warrior and wanderer. In between the pages I’m not myself — and more myself than in any other place on earth.”
  • “Maybe it was time to acknowledge who she’d been yesterday, and decide who she wanted to be tomorrow.”
  • “Your scars tell who you are. Your skin is the page, and your scars are the ink, telling the story of your life.”

I don’t know if this officially counts as a spoiler because in retrospect it was super obvious.

BUT just in case I decided to put it at the end.

SPOILER AHEAD?

It took me WAY too long to realize that the Monrova family was inspired by the Romanovs. Once I realized it I was like COME ON LISA! Ha! I still can’t believe it took me so long to put it together! 😂

Illuminae (The Illuminae Files, #1) – Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Leave a comment
23395680

Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Synopsis:

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 a speck at the edge of the universe. Now with enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to evacuate with a hostile warship in hot pursuit.
     But their problems are just getting started. A plague has broken out and is mutating with terrifying results; the fleet’s AI may actually be their enemy; and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a web of data to find the truth, it’s clear the only person who can help her is the ex-boyfriend she swore she’d never speak to again.
      Told through a fascinating dossier of hacked documents—including emails, maps, files, IMs, medical reports, interviews, and more—Illuminae is the first book in a heart-stopping trilogy about lives interrupted, the price of truth, and the courage of everyday heroes.

Review:

I am speechless. I do not know how I am going to form coherent thoughts to write this review. I am now OBSESSED with Illuminae. I don’t know why it took me so long to read it! I had heard that it was incredible and everyone loved it, but it just kept getting pushed down on my TBR list. I have been missing out!!! Illuminae (and I’m sure the other books in the series which I am currently waiting on Amazon to deliver) is one of my new FAVORITE books. It was so damn good.

I absolutely loved the way Illuminae was written. The first time I flipped through the book I was a little nervous about the “dossier of hacked documents” style of writing. I was worried it would be difficult to follow. IT WAS NOT AT ALL DIFFICULT TO FOLLOW! I don’t know how they did it, but Kaufman and Kristoff were able to pull off this incredible story-telling style. My brain literally cannot process how these two super-humans were not only able to successfully co-write an incredible story, but also format it in such an untraditional way that not only worked but elevated the story! I have no other way to describe the formatting and story telling method other than IT IS SO COOL!

As for the actual story of Illuminae . . . it was exciting, suspenseful, emotional, and action-packed. I adored our main characters, Kady and Ezra. All of the different POVs (including Kady and Ezra’s) were so well done. I felt like I was there on the Hypatia and Alexander with them. I was stressed, anxious, terrified (looking at you plague afflicted), and grief stricken along side Kady, Ezra, and the rest of the passengers. Marie Lu’s quote on the cover describes my feelings about Illuminae perfectly . . . “Brace yourself. You’re about to be immersed in a mindscape that you’ll never want to leave.” She’s 100% correct . . . I never want to leave this incredible story.

Illuminae was an emotional twisty-turny super intense rollercoaster. And I loved every minute. I am officially on the Illuminae hype train! I am so freaking excited for Gemina and Obsidio to be delivered so I can dive in to the rest of the series!