Book Review: The ‘Aurora Cycle’ Delivers All the Feels of Found Family
When I first started reading book one of the Aurora Cycle, Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff, I felt like I was reading a teen Freeform show with all the cheesy one-liners, and jokes. But I quickly became immersed in this story, and the ragtag team fighting to save the galaxy. If you’ve been looking to get into sci-fi or simply looking for a fast paced, completed series, and you love Guardians of the Galaxy, The Edge of Tomorrow, Interstellar or The Expanse, this is the series for you! Below are my full thoughts on book one and two, and I’ll update this post as soon as I finish book three!
Things to Know:
A completed trilogy
FTB Romance with Mates
Disabled Rep
Found Family trope
Cheesy one-liners
Distinctive Multi POVs
Cliffhanger endings for book one and two
TL;DR: watch this TikTok instead (plus, I’m now addicted to this song by Iniko):
@booksaremythirdplace I DARE you not to become addicted to this song. I swear I can’t stop listening to it!! 🤩 But ALSO, it’s literally the perfect song for this sci-fi series!!! Like…eerily perfect. 😳 Have you read the Aurora Cycle by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff?!! I honestly wasn’t expecting it to be that good, but I am LOVING it! Almost finished with book three…y’all it’s giving Guardians of the Galaxy, so if you love that, you’ll love this series. 🤩P.S. there are MATES, and one of them it 💯 Rowan Whitethorn coded. 😏 #foundfamilytrope #bookrecs #scififantasy #scifibooks #aurorarising #auroraburning #amiekaufman #scifirecs #fantasybooktok ♬ son original - ⭐ KOSMA ⭐
Book One: Aurora Rising
Like I mentioned above, there’s definitely an element of camp to this story. I think I needed to recalibrate my brain for sci-fi since I’ve been reading so much fantasy lately. I always forget how much sci-fi relies on humor. And this series is no exception. With phrases like “song of a biscuit” and “mothercustard” being thrown around pretty frequently, it took some getting used to.
I absolutely love that we have POVs for every single member of the team. They’re so distinct to each character’s personality, plus you get little humorous data entries from the AI with worldbuilding info. The book really does start off with a bang, and if found family is your favorite trope, you’re going to love these characters. They completely wormed their way into my heart. Plus, any book with LOTR mentions gets brownie points.
“The only places I fit are the places inside my head,” she continues. “It is as you said, sir. I do not understand people…but I believe of all the places I have not fit, I fit here a little better.”
What I was not expecting, was MATES. Yes, you read that right my Romantasy-loving friends. There are mates in this series, and I have to say, the romance plotlines in this series are the absolute sweetest. And for Rowan Whitethorn stans, Kal is 100% Rowan-coded.
“Do moons choose the planets they orbit? Do planets choose their stars? Who am I to deny gravity, Aurora? When you shine brighter than any constellation in the sky?”
Are you kidding me? I’m not crying, you’re crying.
Book Two: Aurora Burning
I’m going to get it out of the way first thing: this book has one of the most horrific cliffhangers I’ve ever read and I’m ever so grateful this is a completed series. I can’t believe they made readers wait! Ok, now that’s said, book two kicks off with our motley crew sans a member (minor spoiler). It’s pretty heartbreaking, but you see everyone’s relationships really grow in this installment and it flies by. I couldn’t put it down.
One thing I didn’t love was the seemingly constant mentions of undergarments and women’s body parts as comic relief. This is another thing I tend to see in sci-fi and it just gives me the ick. It wasn’t enough for me to not like the book, but it definitely detracted from the otherwise strong story.
“Know the past, or suffer the future.”
You know how so often the second book suffers from “second book syndrome”? This one does not. The pacing is actually kind of insane. The action never lets up, and the quick POV changes keep it moving at a clip. I did call a certain reveal (I mean, it was pretty obvious), and it did go to one of my least favorite tropes that’s used in YA: the dreaded miscommunication trope. It annoys me so much. But I’ll forgive it for quotes like this:
“The Pull is more than words. Love is a drop in the ocean of what I feel for her. Love is a single sun in a heaven full of stars.”
As promised, I’ll report back when I finished book three, but this is where time travel comes in and I’m so here for it. I’m honestly so worried I’m going to be sobbing by the end.
Update:
Book Three: Aurora’s End
Yes, I can confirm, this last installment made me cry. Can this entire review just be quotes? I highlighted so many while reading. This book was 100% “The Edge of Tomorrow” vibes. If you have never watched this masterpiece of a movie with Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt, do yourself a favor—it’s amazing. But if you have watched it, you’ll know, the action never lets up, and you’re dealing with a time paradox. Book two ended on a pretty horrible cliffhanger, and this book jumps right back into the action. We’re jumping back and forth in time, and most of the original crew is separated from each other, so there are multiple storylines going. And of course, there’s still lots of humor:
“What are you twelve"?”
“Out of ten?” I shrug. “Yeah, sounds about right.”
But there are also a lot of sweet moments and contemplation. For a YA series, the romances (yes, MULTIPLE) really hits hard. There are extremely high stakes throughout the series, but everything ultimately comes to a head in this one, and some of these moments really did have me crying.
“You will not lose me,” I vow. “I am yours forever. When the fire of the last sun fails, my love for you will still burn.”
And every book lover can relate to this:
“A book captures a story within its pages. Not like a specimen pinned out lifelessly for display, but vivid and alive. A whole world lies within the cover, a life waiting to be lived by each new reader.”
The only POV that got a bit confusing was Tyler’s because there are two time period POVs for him, so without spoiling anything, just try and wrap your mind around that one. LOL It was a lot. Overall, I completely fell in love with each of these characters. They truly were a beautiful found family, and if you’re looking for a fast-paced upper YA sci-fi series, I’d definitely recommend it.
“I will see you in the stars.”
BRB sobbing.
WHERE TO FIND THEM:
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