Aurora Burning

So freaking good!! But that cliffhanger has me!! I need the next book in the trilogy and I need it now! I might almost like this series better than the Illuminae Series by the same authors - but I'm not sure yet. They are both REALLY good! Aurora Burning follows the same squad fresh off the loss of their pilot in book one, Aurora Rising. They now know who the enemy is and that they are the only ones who can stop them and in the process save the galaxy. Not at all a daunting prospect for these young adults. Funny, inventive, and so unique - readers can't help but to fall in love with this quirky cast of oddballs. I won't give more of a summary than that - if you haven't read the first book in the series - DO NOT read this one. Now give me the third book already! 

Aurora Rising

YES! There was a hole in my life after reading the Illuminae Files and this definitely helped patch it up! This teen science fiction story is amazing. First off - the characters are amazing. You could hate science fiction and still love novels by this writing duo because their characters are so compelling - they are witty, unique, and the chemistry is palpable. Secondly - the action never stops. It  is almost impossible to set this book down while you're reading it. It's too addictive and one more chapter turns into an hours long binge. Finally - the worldbuilding and the story are complex and intricately plotted. But don't let that scare you - the story flows so well that it never seems complicated or cluttered. When Tyler flew out into the fold to burn off some steam he certainly never expected to find anything or anyone out there. He catches a distress signal - from one of the most infamous lost vessels of all times - the Haddenfield. The ship disappeared nearly three centuries ago but the distress signal is still coming in strong. When Tyler boards all the humans in the cryo chambers have shriveled and died over the centuries - all except one. What happens next is like a series of dominos falling onto one another and starting a chain reaction. When Tyler and Aurora go back to the space station together they have no idea how much their lives have just changed. SO FREAKING GOOD!

Illuminae

This book was money in the bank! The formatting and dialogue was soo unique! It started off a little overwhelming but quickly made sense. I would LOVE to see this on the big screen. It's non-stop action, teenage heartache, sarcasm, and trippy sci-fi. What more could you want? Even though this young adult book is massive (599 pages!) it reads quickly thanks to the unique format of the pages; the text of the book alternates between personnel files, online chats, memos, diary entries, code, and more. Kady Grant and Ezra Mason have just broken up and the timing couldn't be worse. They're at school when the sirens go off. Their small mining planet is under attack. They're able to make it off-world with a small contingent of other survivors on three ships, but the trouble is just getting started. Those responsible for the attack on their planet don't want their to be any survivors so they are in pursuit. Now to top it off, the AI system on one of the ships is acting wonky and some of the survivors are having weird side effects from the weapons used on their planet. Ezra and Kady aren't on the same ship but soon discover that their breakup is the least of their worries, if they don't get to the bottom of what's going on they're toast. Hilarious, unique, and breathtaking. I can't wait to read the sequel!!!