Gemina

"You might only get one shot. So shoot. You know who said that?... Hanna ████ing Donnelly. That's who."

4.75 ⭐️

WOW, they've done it again! That was absolutely amazing, I am in awe of this series. The way they're told feels like there are drugs on the pages, I have to tear myself away to get my responsibilities done and I wish I didn't have to, I would've easily sat and devoured this book in one sitting if I hadn't had to go back to work this week. There's no denying these books are incredibly YA and that there is a level of cringe you need to look past to get through these stories. I found Gemina slightly worse on this front than I did with Illuminae - but I don't think it took away from the brilliance that was the plotline. Hanna "Highness" Donnelly and Niklas "Peon" Malikov are our main characters and I really enjoyed their story through all of its trials and tribulations, I actually felt more connected to these two than I did to Kady and Ezra - I think because it was giving star crossed, and I love that so much.

Hanna is an absolute badass, I adored her. Everyone underestimates her as the spoiled "princess", daughter of the commander of Heimdall, who walks around in designer jumpsuits and dates the handsome comms engineer on her father's team. But under the surface she is a warrior, she's incredibly intelligent and well trained in hand to hand combat, and she gives the interlopers storming the waystation a real run for their money. Nik is our typical "bad boy", working for his family business, the House of Knives - an illegal underground mob dealing in contraband - he's served time in prison and got a dark past, and has tattoos and dripping with charm. They make quite the pair. The chatroom texts between these two had me rolling my eyes a bit at the start, Nik was very forward and almost toeing the line of creepy at some points but he was redeemed just enough through his actions throughout this story. The txt language used between him and his cousin, Ella, was probably the worst part about this book and often their childish banter came at the most inopportune moments but I was able to overlook this. Ella was a really great side character, and honestly, the woman power in this book was what made it all happen.

The plot of this book absolutely swept me off my feet yet again, there were multiple intertwining threads to follow, from the invading team and their dynamics, the handful of romance subplots, the ties in with the previous book and all of the bad things happening onboard the station simultaneously that had me going "oh ███" right alongside the characters. There were some aspects of it that I really had to suspend my disbelief and one or two twists that annoyed me, especially after having my heart ripped out so viciously. I do think there were some plot choices that could've been handled slightly better and would have made this a full five stars for me, but everything came together at the end in a relatively satisfying way and so it was all good really. I am probably just being nitpicky because I definitely enjoyed the first book slightly more and need to somehow express that in words, and finding the words to describe these books is hard.

Once again, I absolutely recommend this book, the format is brilliant, the storytelling is fast paced and thrilling, the prose in parts is absolutely magical, it just feels so interactive and I can't get enough of it. I can definitely see why some people might not enjoy it so much, but I think it's one of those books you have to try to find out. I can't wait to read the third book in the series and see how this story ends, I am sure it will be another basically five star read yet again and will cement this series firmly in my favourites of all time list.

SPOILER>>> There were some cool easter eggs in this book too, the page with all of the names of the deceased with Victoria Aveyard, Veronica Roth, Leigh Bardugo's names etc had me cackling out loud 😂 <<<END SPOILER

The Illuminae files nr. 1 was a long winding read that I almost gave up halfway- but I still got jolted now and then between the pages with exciting things that happened in the book. This is the (parallel) sequel of the first book, telling the story of what happened in the Heimdal jump station while Kady Grant was fighting for her life aboard Hypatia and Alexander. This book made me realise that: 1. Although sci-fi is one of my fave genre, I do not like all sci-fi books. 2. I don't like the "alternative" narration told by multiple files, emails, surveillance transcripts and by thousands of chat transcripts between two silly teenagers 3. I don't like young adult books that much. So it was wrong of me to pick this series up with confidence that I would love it. I found that I dragged myself to finish it, and I'm doing the same struggles with nr. 3

Já... Wow. Nějak nemám žádný správný slova, abych teď svoje pocity vyjádřila správně a se vším všudy. Tohle bylo - dechberoucí. Ze začátku spíše vtipný a sarkastický, ale s čím dál více otočením stran napínavější a akčnější. Rozhodně to nebyla žádná druhá výplňková kniha, to vůbec ne. Čekala jsem, že to bude dobrý, ale opět to překonalo má očekávání. Nejdřív jsem si myslela, že na postavách mi nebude záležet tolik jako na Kady a Ezrovi, ale několik stovek stran mě přesvědčilo o opaku. Tenhle díl byl jiný než Illuminae a přesto stejně skvělý a napínavý. Občas trošku složitější na pochopení, to víte, kvantová fyzika, ale panebože, pořád to nedokážu rozdýchat. Jednoduše úžasný, pokud jsem vás recenzí na Illuminae nepřesvědčila, doufám že teď už ano, protože sami vidíte, jak se neustále zamotávám do vět, protože jsem pořád myšlenkami někde v centru dění v Gemině. ✩ 5*/5* Přečtěte si to, skutečně to za to stojí.

we were just getting started. you want to know how it ends? OH MY GOOOOOD THESE BOOKS

I just love this series! It is so fun to read. I enjoyed so much this story. Can't wait for the last one.

.....have you ever read a book, fell totally in love with it, and then got to the end and said "WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED??!!" out loud? if you haven't go right ahead and get ready for that exact reaction when you read Gemina. I thought I knew shock after reading Illuminae, but then Gemina was like "hold my beer" and showed me what I was wrong. the plot twists, the plot thickening, the flipping killing....like don't even try and tell me that was wasn't Kristoffs handy work! don't even try chum, we both know it was. thank god for Amie or i think my heart would be shattered forever. if you haven't read this series stop reading reviews and READ THE BOOKS!

2021 re-read: I think this is my favorite of the series! The twists and turns are just so well-done. I'm definitely not as incredible as Hanna, but having a military dad made her so relatable. I grew up learning survival tactics and strategy just like her; it was so fun reading about her. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. God, I love this series. Such a blast! original 2018 review: HOLY SH**. This book was INSANE. I am still freaking out. I am still SHOOK. The last like, 200 pages of this book were INCREDIBLE. I mean, the whole book was amazing but the ending was just unexplainably AWESOME. I felt like I was holding onto the book for dear life, trying to read as fast as humanly possible. And then something would happen and I'd yell "NOOOOO" but then something else would happen and I'd yell even louder, "Wait, WHAAAT?!?" I honestly didn't think it'd get better after the first book. Illuminae blew me away but this one somehow surpassed the other! I don't know how they're doing it! They're just pure genius! Jesus. One of the best books I've ever read. Can't WAIT for the next one! What a way to start the year!

Gemina: 5/5 I loved book one in The Illuminae Files, the writing/mixed media component and the storyline of Kady and Ezra is so good that I was nervous that this second installment of the trilogy would not match up. Boy was I completely wrong. Gemina is better. Gemina follows new characters, Hanna and Nik as their home, the Heimdall waypoint, is under attack. All the while, Hypatia is on its way! I think I went through the five stages of grief in this book at least three times. I am truly shocked. Not ONCE could I predict what was gonna happen next. The plot twists included in this book I am pretty sure gave me a full heart attack. You can REALLY see Kristoff's style of writing shine in Gemina and since he is one of my favorite authors of all time, this was fabulous to read. I don't have anything more to say except this is one of my favorite series of books I have ever read. It is so unique, gripping, heart-wrenching, funny, etc. The way Kaufman and Kristoff can tear my heart out of my chest and stomp on it on one page, then on the next put it back together, and the next it breaks again?? HOW. IN THE SPAN OF THREE PAGES. I am SO excited to read Obsidio I think I may have to abandon my entire January TBR and just start it now. unsure if I can wait. PLEASE READ THIS TRILOGY.

4.5 stars! THE ENDING BLEW MY MIND! I have never read anything that deals with that concept- if you've read this you know what I'm talking about

4.5.

Will I ever get that f*cking Lollipop song out of my head?

My heart is sooooo happy right now! So freaking happy! Like I did with Illuminae , I will try and gather my thoughts into something that is coherent. Because lord knows, my mind is a jumbled mess of happy and eek noises. So this takes place after the events of the Kerenza invasion and all that. We have Hanna, who I didn't care for at first but she grew on me and is also the captain's daughter and Nik, who is part of a mob called the House of Knives, which deals a drug called dust on the ship. Basically, their ship, the Heimdall, is invaded by BeiTech terrorists. Written in the same way Illuminae is, with all the chat logs, video surveillance, emails and all that jazz, this is a story that I will not be forgetting for a long time. Hanna, as I mentioned above, was at first okay for me. She was kind of snotty and I didn't like how she led Nik along. I enjoyed her journal entries though and her drawings were really well done. I also thought it was really cool that she was into martial arts. Girls in martial arts don't get enough rep in books, I think. As the story progressed, she grew on me more and more. She wasn't just a snobby rich kid. She was a warrior, determined to live by any means necessary. Nik was cool. He reminded me of Ezra. I did enjoy the back and forth Nik and Hanna had. The added Russian mob story was really cool. It give Nik more character and who doesn't love a good background story. I really felt bad for him that he was in the situation that he was in due to family. Also, his cousin Ella was amazing! EVerything she said was just pure gold! I could read a whole book about her and not get bored! Okay. This next little part I am putting under spoiler tags. I don't know if it would really be considered a spoiler but I don't want to be yelled at. I am also going to reference something that might help you to understand this story. But, like I said, it's probably a spoiler. So read at your own risk. (view spoiler)[ Alright. One of the many plots really was about multiverses. I actually understood what they were talking about and I appreciate the fact that they dumbed it down for those that don't understand a lick of science. For those that didn't quite understand, I'll put it in super easy layman's terms. Basically there is this theory that there are multiple universes. For example: there is this universe, where I excel at reading and can't stand math. In another universe, there is another me, who loves math but can't stand reading. If things are still foggy for you, I would suggest watching the Family Guy episode Road to the Multiverse . That should help clear up any confusion about this plot. (hide spoiler)] I'm going to wrap this up before it gets to ridiculously long. This made my heart happy. I'm going to buy this book as soon as I can and treasure it like I do Illuminae . I'm going to eagerly await the third installment. I'm going to throw this book at everybody and demand that they read it because they don't know what they are missing. Just kidding. I would never throw a book.

Amazing. xoxo, Bebe Review Up Soon... Only problem about reading so much is that now I am behind on my book reviews. GAH!

As said in my review for Illuminae. I highly recommend going the audiobook route, it’s truly the best experience, with sound effects and each character having their own voice actor and unique voice you can’t help but feel like you’re sitting inside a movie theatre watching an amazing sci-fi movie. I love these characters so much. And the plot for these books are just chef’s kiss 💋.

THIS SERIES!!! THIS SERIES OH MY GOD! I JUST FINISHED THIS, (IVE BEEN READING ALL DAY BECAUSE THESE BOOKS ARE SO DAMN HARD TO PUT DOWN AND DEMAND TO BE READ IN ONE DAY) ITS LIKE 3AM AND I F*CKING LOVED THIS SO MUCH I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT TO SAY Holy hell was this a hell of a ride, I am absolutely in love with this book. I think I liked it better than the first book as well (and that I absolutely would die for). The characters just feel so real and it feels like it all really happened. I love Hanna and Nik so much, they’re such amazing strong characters and the plot of this book was just incredible. HOW JR TIED TOGETHER?? I CANT WAIT TO DIVE INTO THE NEXT BOOK ONCE IVE PROCESSED THIS ONE, IM JUST DEAD. God I feel like I hAve whiplash from the amount of twists and turns and all the suspense I just read. I’m so hyped right now too, just wow. I’ll never get over how amazingly effective this format is, I NEED MORE BOOKS WRITTEN AS DOSSIERS!!!!

i kind of... didn’t care... and forgot how annoying the format is

@satan: why don't you let me enjoy things? Seriously, I'm about had it with everyone raving about book and me reading them and ..... not getting it Like, I'm not tryna be edgy by saying I don't like this, I just don't like things. Or maybe things are overhyped? I don't know. But anyway. I pretty much feel exactly the same about Gemina as I did about Illuminae. That being, it's fun, it's okay, it's mostly enjoyable. But it's not great, it didn't really captivate me. It didn't really stun me I basically left both Gemina and Illuminae with a similar feeling: that was enjoyable, I didn't hate it. But I wouldn't rave about it. I don't think it is that groundbreaking. PLOT Gemina follows the events of Illuminae, but follows a whole new set of people, those being the inhabitants of the Heimdall jump station. When this station is overtaken by an enemy force that wants to destroy everyone on board - two teenagers, Hanna Donnelly and Nik Malikov, as well as Nik's cousin Ella, will use guerilla tactics to try and save the space station, as well as the incoming Hypatia ship. WHAT I LIKED The format of this book is really fun. I love the illustrations, the black pages, the swirling text. It's so interesting to read and really peruse, plus the illustrations provided by Marie Lu are stunning. The unique format, with it being all told in interviews and recordings and video footage is what really motivated me to read Gemina even though I didn't love Illuminae. Because the format is just so interesting. I also liked that Gemina was quite funny, and that the main characters weren't annoying. They got on in their circumstance fairly well, and some of the stunts they pulled made me laugh, or at least be pretty impressed. I loved the bird pecking the enter button scene, the conversations with Hanna and Falk, the toilet scene. Lots of it was quite fast paced which was good, and I definitely think I enjoyed the guerilla war situation in Gemina more then the plague situation in Illuminae. WHAT I DON'T LIKE Characters: I personally find it incredibly difficult to impossible to connect with the characters in both Illuminae and Gemina. Gemina especially, I didn't care for the characters much. I think it's due to the format, which allows little insight to a characters own thoughts, mindspace and opinions. I think this disconnect between reader and character made it really hard for me to connect with the story at all. Why should I care that the main character may die when I feel like I don't know a thing about her? I felt like my sympathies was supposed to be extended to the main character just because they were, rather then the story convincing me to back them. There is also a real lack of diversity, imo. None of the main characters have been explicitly written down as either queer or people of colour. There is one side character, Ella, who is in a wheelchair, but beside that very little diversity. SPOILER, INCLUDED FOR REPRESENTATION REASONS. I want just want people to be aware who share the ID (also, Ella is "killed" twice in this book. In both cases she's not actually dead, but the book leads you to believe she is twice, just so people are aware for rep reasons) END SPOILER And Highkey it says a lot when in the supposed imagined future, the only main heroes you can imagine are white, able bodied, neurotypical allocishets ☕ ☕ I also hated the romance. To me, the romance was EXACTLY the same as the romance in book 1? Like, I literally cannot tell one speck of difference between Kady/Ezra and Hanna/Nik. I thnk the romance was just kind of unnecessary and forced, and the 'chemistry' between Hanna and Nik wasn't convincing to me. I am honestly hoping that if there is a romance in Obsidio, it's a queer one so I can feel like there is something original going on here. Plot wise, I felt like Gemina was on a way better path then Illuminae ... until the end. The "Gemina" thing and the way that played out was .. I don't know I just couldn't get into it! Like, it's so dumb because I've suspended a lot of disbelief for this story, but that little bit to me was like NOPE. I just thought it was kinda dumb I don't know I just didn't like it. Finally, some of the pages at the end while the Gemina thing was playing out, and it'd be the same thing written slightly differently was SOOO ANNOYING. I hated reading basically the same thing twice, I literally ended up just reading Hanna's ones and skipping Nik's ones. OH AND ALSO THE REDACTED SWEARING ANNOYED ME SO MUCH I SWEAR I SPENT MOST OF THE TIME TRYING TO WORK OUT IF IT WAS FUCKING OR SHIT OR PISSING OR ASS Y'ALL OK WITH TELLING ME HOW A KIDS BRAIN EXPLODED WHEN SHE WAS SHOT BUT SAYING ASS IS NOT OK ?? Also, is it just me or is the surveillance guy super extra? Like, why are you using such extended metaphors to describe the people just tell me what the fuck happened “Patience and Silence had one beautiful daughter. And her name was Vengeance.” Hmmmm I don't know. I just don't get the hype with these ones. I just don't Do I think they're fun? Sure. Do I think they are unique? Sure But I don't think they're ... great? I think the lack of diversity in genuinely a Real Problem, and the characters fell really really flat to me. If Obsidio comes into my library I'd probably read it, but it's not a big deal to me. I don't know guys, just not my cup of tea

First Read [November 2018]: ☆☆☆☆☆ Second Read [May 2022]: ☆☆☆☆☆

SO GOOD.

I'm honestly in love so far, what an amazing book. I did like the main characters from TIF_01 a bit more, but that didn't make these characters any less enjoyable. The plot twists toward the end had me closing the book every 10 seconds to regain composure and literally jumping from excitement with the final transcript. If not for the fact that it's nearly midnight (and I'm sadly nearing the start of classes season) I'd pick up TFI_03 right now, but it will have to wait until tomorrow morning.

HOW WAS THIS EVEN BETTER THAN ILLUMINAE?!??!? I loved it soooooo much. The characters were just as badass and amazing and i'm buying myself a Nik right now. It was the best thing that could have happened to me until that ending. WHY OH WHY do you have to leave me hanging like this?'

second read: august 12, 2018 i just finished rereading this book which means it’s time for me to read obsidio, chums. 😳 the first time i read this, i was so overwhelmed, but the second time is a piece of cake. i Fully Understand everything now !! first read: january 11, 2017 “And blood and tears and screams did not matter anymore, because at least they are together.” The Illuminae Files passes in flying colors when it comes to originality of how the story is told. The best thing about this trilogy is how it's told in a very different way from the rest of the books we read. And yet it does not fail to engross the readers. To let them laugh, frustrate them, swoon them. This book does not fail to let the readers feel. We were introduced with new characters and, just like our original protagonists, these new main characters were badass, hilarious, and very fun to read about. Their dialogues and how they interacted with each other was entertaining and I love the relationship that they all have with each other. Just like our characters from the first book, I absolutely LOVE the characters that we got to meet in this book. Trust me when I say this fucked me up real good. Again. Kristoff and Kaufman, you've managed to do this to me twice already. They leave me crumpled and emotionally exhausted by the time I finish the book. There's just really something special about how they write the story. Even though the whole explanation gave me a headache because of its complexity, I can't help but be more fascinated. It was a bit overwhelming to be honest, but at the same time I found myself really impressed and astonished. The plot was just as strong as the first book. Kaufman and Kristoff connect everything and everyone in a brilliant way. I absolutely loved every page of this book. It really was creatively written and the plot excellently well done. Although, I do think Illuminae was better than this one, I still love this book so much. Honestly, Gemina is a really REALLY good read. Not as good as Illuminae, but still AMAZING, ACTION PACKED, AWW-WORTHY, CRY-WORTHY, TERRIFYINGLY THRILLING, and HILARIOUS. One of my faves this 2017? Me thinks so. 01/09/2017 FUCJED ME UP REAL GOOD. AGAIN. 03/01/2016 OHMYGOD THE COVER IS SO BEAUTIFUL!!!!!

just love it!! The audio books are just awesome.

The format of this series continues to wow me. I read it both physically and audibly and got completely engrossed in the story. The mixed media visuals and the full cast audiobook with sound effects made this the most cinematic reading experience I've ever had.

I enjoyed the pacing of this book and found the action and surprises thrilling at every turn. The clues were laid out in a way that I was usually only able to guess and figure things out just before they were revealed, leaving me satisfied at getting things right but not finding the events to be too predictable.

The characters were both really interesting and easy to root for. In Illuminae, I thought Kady really outshined Ezra but in Gemina, Hanna and Nik both had prominent places in the narrative and both feel well rounded. On the other hand, I very easily was able to get behind the romance in Illuminae where I wasn't as on board in Gemina. I didn't appreciate that Nik was trying to flirt and get with Hanna while she was still in a happy relationship. I also didn't like that when her relationship went south, it didn't take very long for her to want to kiss Nik.

I did warm to the relationship more when the reveal about what was going on with the wormhole. That very tense situation made me root for them a lot more and I was along for the ride, hoping for their reunion.

The ending was crazy and it put me though a lot of different emotions. The different story beats hit well and I was fooled when I was meant to be fooled. Everything wrapped up really well and I am thrilled to continue on with Obsidio.