Gemina (The Illuminae Files: 2)

SYNOPSIS:

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.

REVIEW:

(4 STARS)

Even though I enjoyed this book, I don't think it was as good as the first one. I really wanted to feel as passionate about Gemina as I was about Illuminae, but unfortunately, I didn't.

I think my main problem with this sequel was the fact that we follow new characters. I was so invested in Grant and Mason's romance, I wanted them to be the protagonists again. I wanted to see them back together, warding off the trouble in Heimdall. So imagine my surprise when I'm introduced to Hannah and Nikolaj. *shocked gif*/ *stab in the back gif*

It didn't feel right: I thought Malikov's voice was very similar to Mason's; the fact that Ella was a cheaper albeit cooler version of Kady annoyed me; and I was upset that Kady and Ezra only made a cameo at the end of the book.

*give me my money back gif*

The story and the plot also felt unoriginal: two star-crossed lovers, an impossible mission, the sudden realisation they're in love while they have to save a very passive crew from impending death. Ahm... I've read this already, thank you very much.

Sure, this time they weren't fighting a sociopathic AIDAN, but Falk's crew wasn't that much better.

We got three amazing plot twists that no one could've prepared me for, but everything else felt pretty much the same.

I also didn't appreciate that half the time I had no idea what was going on. In the beginning, the pace was much slower than in Illuminae. However, in the end, things went crazy. I don't think the authors took enough time to explain things properly and so I was left questioning a gazillion things.

The truth is, I'm pretty unsure how to rate this book. All in all, it felt more like a 3.5 star than a 4 star. It was exciting and it had potential, but many things didn't work.

However, the uncertainty surrounding the events of Universe B made me give it a higher rating. Because of the multiverse theory, we don't know what happens to Universe B. However, we do know that none of our main characters managed to survive: Nik, Hannah and Ella died and there's no one to tell the story of Kerenza there. Nothing made me sadder than realising this sad truth and so, in honour of the deceased, I rate Gemina with 4 stars.