[Review] Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Series: The Illuminae Files #2

Rating: 4.5 stars

Version: HC

Released: October 16th 2016

Goodreads Synopsis:

Moving to a space station at the edge of the galaxy was always going to be the death of Hanna’s social life. Nobody said it might actually get her killed.
The sci-fi saga that began with the breakout bestseller Illuminaecontinues on board the Jump Station Heimdall, where two new characters will confront the next wave of the BeiTech assault.
Hanna is the station captain’s pampered daughter; Nik the reluctant member of a notorious crime family. But while the pair are struggling with the realities of life aboard the galaxy’s most boring space station, little do they know that Kady Grant and the Hypatia are headed right toward Heimdall, carrying news of the Kerenza invasion.
When an elite BeiTech strike team invades the station, Hanna and Nik are thrown together to defend their home. But alien predators are picking off the station residents one by one, and a malfunction in the station’s wormhole means the space-time continuum might be ripped in two before dinner. Soon Hanna and Nik aren’t just fighting for their own survival; the fate of everyone on the Hypatia—and possibly the known universe—is in their hands.
But relax. They’ve totally got this. They hope.

Another epic space adventure by Kaufman and Kristoff. The villain wasn't as haunting as AIDAN was in Illuminae, but it was still an awesome ride.

Gemina follows Hanna, Nik, and Nik's cousin Ella as they try to save their home, the jump station Heimdall, from annihilation by BeiTech, all while dealing with an alien force that has found its way on board. It's a lot of sneaking around and spy moves here on in.


This one is more visual - with Hanna's drawings and the BeiTech infiltration team slowly getting knocked out. It's really enjoyable reading as Hanna and Nik take down each of the members, with spitting snarky commentary from Ella. We even get a small part with Kady, Ezra, and AIDAN.

For me, I really enjoyed Illuminae more because I felt like the stakes were higher, and more lives were at stake - more lives that I was drawn to reading about. Don't get me wrong, Gemina is a good book, but alien invasion vs. killer robot disease? Not really a contest. The main focus for Gemina is only on the three, and we don't really hear about the other characters (besides the villains) on board Heimdall, whereas in Illuminae, we get brief mentions of the characters on board Hypatia before they died shortly after.

Hanna, Nik, and Ella are fun characters to read about, though. Each of them develop in different ways over the course of their hostage crisis. Hanna and Nik's relationship progression is also adorable, with a side bit of angst.

I can't wait for the final book in this trilogy of spacetime adventure - Obsidio!