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My Review:Title: Aurora's End
Author: Amie Kaufman, Jay Kristoff
Series: The Aurora Cycle #3
Published by: Listening Library
Release Date: November 9, 2021
Format: Audiobook
Narrator: Kim Mai Guest, Johnathan McClain, Lincoln Hoppe, Donnabella Mortel, Jonathan Todd Ross, Erin Spencer, Steve West
Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Space Opera
Source: Kobo Audio
Reading Challenges: Lenoreo's 2021 Audiobook Challenge, Lenoreo's 2021 COYER Fall, Lenoreo's 2021 Diversity Reading Challenge
Find it: Goodreads ✩ Amazon ✩ Google ✩ Kobo ✩ IndieBound ✩ iTunes ✩ Book Depository ✩ Libro.FM
My rating:
Blurb:The squad you love is out of time. Prepare for the thrilling finale in the epic, best-selling Aurora Cycle series about a band of unlikely heroes who just might be the galaxy's last hope for survival.
Is this the end?
What happens when you ask a bunch of losers, discipline cases, and misfits to save the galaxy from an ancient evil? The ancient evil wins, of course.
Wait. . . . Not. So. Fast.
When we last saw Squad 312, they working together seamlessly (a.k.a., freaking out) as an intergalactic battle raged and an ancient superweapon threatened to obliterate Earth. Everything went horribly wrong, naturally.
But as it turns out, not all endings are endings, and the team has one last chance to rewrite theirs. Maybe two. It's complicated.
Cue Zila, Fin, and Scarlett (and Magellan!): making friends, making enemies, and making history? Sure, no problem
Cue Tyler, Kal, and Auri: uniting with two of the galaxy’s most hated villains? Um, okay. That, too.
Actually saving the galaxy, though?
Now that will take a miracle.
4 stars — Hmmm…the parts I loved, I ABSOLUTELY LOVED. But it wasn’t quite the humdinger I was hoping for I guess. Also, this review is going to be all over the place, apologies in advance (though I did try super hard not to spoil ANYTHING).
I think I expected them to come back together quicker than they did. I enjoy them as a group, so I wanted that. The parts I enjoyed the most were definitely Zila/Scar/Fin, because I got that group dynamic with them.
As the trilogy went on, I grew less and less interested in Auri, and subsequently Kal. I think that’s a bit of a shame. I know she was never going to be a favourite of mine, apparently her personality just isn’t a good fit. I honestly was completely confused about her conflict at the end. I still don’t understand her motivations at different moments of the climax. She’s also a lot more dense than I want. I don’t mind her being a bit slower, but seriously…it took her forever to figure out what was happening in the beginning of this book.
The thing with Kal is that he just became Auri’s Be’shmai. And even at that he was very background in this book, or that’s how it felt. And I wanted more for him, there was so much where he could have played a larger role. At least we got to learn a bit more about his childhood.
The ending felt a bit like a cop out. I could have seen a few other possibilities, and both would have felt a bit more poignant.
I found myself crying and crying and crying in so many parts of this book, but never about Auri and Kal. I just lost all my connection to them, or that’s how it felt.
Gosh, there were a lot of repetitive moments in this one. If I had to listen to Ty recount how Cat hit him over the head with the chair when they were 5 one more time I was going to growl.
I feel like the rest of the squad all had interesting stories. Like I said, I adored ZSF’s journey the most. I felt so much of what they were going through. It had everything — action, intensity, fear, humour, love. I ADORED it. I figured a few things out, but definitely not others — or not until much later. I was so INVESTED in their journey.
Even Ty’s was pretty interesting actually. I felt for him being on his own…well, other than Saedii. I enjoyed that tidbit, even if it was outside my zone. And he went through so much and grew so much too.
And then there was the other vignette. I feel like I got lost in a lot of what was happening, in the motivations of so many of the characters. I appreciated that some stayed very true to who they were, but I will admit that made the final motivations less clear.
All in all, I seriously do just love this series. I was a bit bummed with parts of this book, but not so much that the other parts didn’t completely make up for it.
COYER Scavenger Hunt #43: Read a book set at least 20 years in the future (or more).
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