BOOK REVIEW | Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Title: Gemina
Series: Illuminae Files
Authors: Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
Publication Date: October 18, 2016
Pages: 608
Source: I got Gemina from my local library! 

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 Illuminae continues 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.

Once again told through a compelling dossier of emails, IMs, classified files, transcripts, and schematics, Gemina raises the stakes of the Illuminae Files, hurling readers into an enthralling new story that will leave them breathless.

Book Review Train! 1st Stop: The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson

Welcome aboard the review train! I'm Genni, and welcome to my blog! Today I'll be participating in the 2016 Review Train, hosted by Brittany at Space Between the Spines. Every day there will be one stop from the train reviewing a summery read. If you want to know more about the train, check out this page here! Today I will be reviewing Morgan Matson's most recent release, The Unexpected Everything.

The Unexpected Everything was amazing. 

Morgan Matson's novel is full of life and I couldn't put it down.The one thing I was worried about was that the novel wouldn't live up to my expectations. I had high ones, given that Since You've Been Gone is one of my favorite contemporary novels. Let's just say that this book didn't just meet my expectations, but exceeded them. 

If you don't know, the Unexpected Everything is a YA contemporary about Andie, the daughter of a politician recently in scandal. Her summer plans fall through, and now she is faced with uncertainty, which certainly isn't Andie's normal pace. She likes things planned and routine, and her summer is the opposite of that. 

I loved Andie's character and her group of friends. They all had distinct personalities, and I really connected to them. Matson isn't afraid to give her characters flaws, and it makes them that much more real. Every single character is complex and none are used to just move the story along. If I looked at all the characters though, the two that spoke to me the most were Andie and her father, Alexander. The development of their relationship was one of my favorite aspects of the novel. They start off as ships passing in the night with the same familiarity that strangers have. I had so much fun seeing them rebuild the bridges they burned after the death of Andie's mother five years ago. 

The Unexpected Everything had the perfect balance between fun and heavy. There were times when I was laughing out loud, and there were times that I was crying. This book put me through an emotional ringer, and I wouldn't ask anything less of it. Andie's character development is one for the books. She's initially this controlled girl who never lets his guard down and seeing her open up was great to experience. It was for sure one of my favorite parts of the novel.

To be honest, I have no qualms about this book at all. I loved every aspect of it. All of the relationships (familial, romantic, and friend-wise) were all fleshed out. They were realistic and I felt as if I went to Stanwich right now, I would see Andie and the crew hanging out.

There is a lot more that I can talk about (the book within the book, that ending, the dogs, etc.), but then this review would go on forever. To put it in short, I adored everything about this book. This has been just the second book that I have loved this year and I loved every second of it. 

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good YA contemporary. This is a chunky book (519 pages!) but it is worth every page. The novel has great character development and relationships, and they have dogs to boot! This was the perfect book to kickstart my summer.

With that, I give this book 
5 out of 5 Stars!

Be sure to check out the other participants of the train! Here they are along with the schedule: 

May 30th - Genni at Ready, Set, Read is reviewing The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson

 

May 31st - Lauren at Always Me is reviewing Future Shock by Elizabeth Briggs

 

June 1st - Laura at Blue Eye Books is reviewing The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

 

June 2nd - Sam at Tsundoku Books is reviewing Even if the Sky Falls by Mia Garcia

 

June 3rd - Czai at The Blacksheep Project is reviewing Vanishing Girls by Lauren Oliver

 

June 4th - Alicia at A Kernel of Nonsense is reviewing The Distance Between Us by Kasie West

 

June 5th - Ashley at [Insert Title Here] is reviewing Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton

 

June 6th - Sinead at Less Reality, More Books is reviewing The Square Root of Summer by Harriet Reuter Hapgood

 

June 7th - Ashley at What's She Reading? is reviewing Open Road Summer by Emery Lord

 

June 8th - Brittany at Space Between the Spines is reviewing Summer Days and Summer Nights by Stephanie Perkins et al + GIVEAWAY! =D

Once again, thanks for Brittany for letting me take part in this great experience. I'm looking forward to the other reviews!

Thanks so much for stopping by and I'll see you soon with another post!

Happy Reading!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!

Movie Review: Mockingjay Part 2

I literally have nothing bad to say about this film! I absolutely loved it!

Mockingjay Part 2 is everything I wanted in a concluding movie of one of my favorite franchises. I never knew I could be so happy with something. Right once I finished seeing the movie, I wanted to go back and see it again. 

This was such a faithful adaptation and I loved every second of it. They really stuck true to the books and I adored how they translated it into film. The acting is on point throughout the entire movie, and Josh Hutcherson's portrayal of a broken Peeta was excellent. Even though the movie is pretty long, 2 hours and 17 minutes, there was not one time I was bored. Because I knew what was going to happen since I have read the books, I was eagerly anticipating some scenes and anxious at others. I was low-key hoping they didn't kill off a certain character in the sewers, but the scene was so well done and truly paid tribute to the character. 

One thing I love about this book is that there is so much symbolism and " Easter eggs" throughout the film. For instance, at the end of the movie (no major spoiler don't worry!) Peeta is holding a dandelion. If you don't remember, at the end of Mockingjay Katniss explains how Gale is like a fire while Peeta is a dandelion. Already fire-like herself, she needs something to calm herself and Peeta is her perfect match. In another scene, when President Snow coughs up blood, it comes out in the shape of a mockingjay! Now that is just brilliant. Another scene that I felt was really cool was one of the end scenes where Peeta and Katniss are just sitting together looking outside as it rains. They are in the same exact post they are in on top of the roof in The Hunger Games movies, and it made the scene so much more powerful. You can really see their character development from then to now. 

I was also worried about the scene near the end with President Snow, President Cain, and Katniss at the trials. (I'm trying so hard to not give spoilers! Haha!) Because I knew what Katniss was about to do, Cain's speech was so powerful and ironic. Not only is she talking about Snow, an evil dictator, but herself as well as she continues on with her tyranny.  

I literally have no complaints. Not only was this movie faithful to the book, but was extremely well written, directed, and acted. If you haven't heard already, there was this scene between a couple that never happened in the book that became canon in the movies. I loved that change! I've been shipping this couple ever since I first read the books and I was fangirling and my friend and I freaked the crap out when they kissed! SO. GOOD. 

Another aspect that I wanted to talk about was the music and score throughout the trilogy of movies. I just realized this when watching this final movie, but they always use this same music phrase in key moments, and it made the scenes even more powerful! Hearing that progression actually pushed me into crying in one scene. Talking about crying, I did that. Multiple times. How could you not? The movie is so bittersweet and touching, and my heart felt like it was breaking and rejoicing at the same time. As you can tell, the movie gave me all the feels.

Does anyone else want prequels of these movies? Ever since I heard the news that The Hunger Games was adapted into film, I have been thinking of all the other movies they can make. For instance, they could do a prequel on the revolution that would start the Hunger Games and the first game to happen. I would also love to see Finnick's game and Annie's as well. To be quite honest, I want to see their love story enfold. But the one prequel I want to happen the most is Haymitch's! If you don't know, Haymitch was victor of the 50th Hunger Games, a Quarter Quell where instead of 24 participants there were 48! Haymitch used the game boundaries as a weapon, and in turn the Capitol killed his family. Talk about brutal! But also, it would give more insight and depth to Haymitch as a character. 

To just recap everything I just said up in those billions of paragraphs, I pretty much said that I loved everything about the movie. This was such a perfect adaptation and I couldn't have asked for a better movie for a better series. In ranking the movies, this was my favorite followed by Catching Fire, and Mockingay Pt. 1 and Hunger Games tied. 

I couldn't recommend this movie more! It was such a great conclusion and though it is bittersweet the series came to an end, I could not be happier. 

With that, I give this book

5 out of 5 Stars!

What's your favorite of the Hunger Games movies? The books? What did you think of the movie? I'm definitley going to watch this again - proabably during Thanksgiving break!

Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you guys soon with another post!

Happy Reading!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!