Horror has historically been a rocky genre for me. I feel like I always go in with such lofty expectations—excitement! creepiness! immersion!—and yet, what I get is hardly ever that. I find myself, more often than not, yawning my way through it, and so here we are again.

I can't fault the premise. A ghost ship floating around for two decades with hundreds of souls on board, all of them dead, and no one could find this ship until now? For a space-loving gal like me, you might as well be waving catnip (spacenip?) in my face. But alas, the premise was pretty much the highlight of the whole thing, and it didn't really get better from there.

If I had to put my finger on the biggest issue here, it would have to be its overreliance on being inside the main character's head and using her ruminations and indecision and paranoia as a way to drive the story forward. Ah, you're thinking to yourself, but isn't that what domestic thrillers do? And you'd be right, except not only is this not supposed to be a domestic thriller, but I'm not a fan of that genre for the same reasons.

So I was forced to endure what I would've thought twice about picking up, had I known what it was going in. And the more time we spent in Claire's head as she waffled back and forth, second-guessing herself, reliving over and over the trauma of her childhood, the less appealing I found her. There's something about spending paragraphs and pages in her head that just made my eyes glaze over and my neck droop.

You add to that all the time spent with the crew arguing back and forth on what to do, the detailed descriptions of the spaceship they found, and their careful searching of every room on that ship, and you might as well have shot me with a tranquilizer dart. I frequently caught myself nodding off, only to rouse again to check how far into the book I was, convinced I'd almost reached the end, then being dumbfounded at the realization that I somehow wasn't even halfway in.

Also, call me crazy, but I'm a firm believer that not every story has to have a romantic subplot, and this book is the perfect example of that. The attraction between Claire and Kane was distracting and quite frankly baffling. Because what could he possibly see in her as she freaks out and waffles about? And so the precious few brain cycles I should've been using to think about the mystery surrounding the spaceship was instead being commandeered into puzzling over what's going on with these two nutters.

Between all the shenanigans in Claire's head and the equally silly shenanigans between Claire and Kane, by the time we finally get to the unraveling of the spaceship mystery, it somehow came across anticlimactic. Maybe I didn't buy into the explanation. Or maybe it just felt like it was quickly glossed over so that we can get back to more silliness. Either way, I was left unfulfilled.

Derelict spaceships is such a classic scifi horror trope, with so much potential and possibilities, that the fact that not much came of this was terribly disappointing. Readers more used to domestic thrillers may find the excessive ruminating to be on par for the course. But those hoping for predominantly scifi and horror elements will probably be hard pressed to find satisfaction here.

Readaroo Rating: 3 stars

DNF - You know what they say, there's a first time for everything. And so A Psalm for the Wild-Built gets the ignominious distinction of going down as the first time ever I've given up on a novella, because I honestly can't stand to go on for another page.

There's something about Becky Chambers' writing that just doesn't work for me. How to describe it? Obviously, I know she writes cozy, so I try to align my expectations accordingly, but that's not quite it. Rather, it feels like everything is filler in service of a broader message. There's so much description and so much information, yet there is no point in knowing any of it. It's like all worldbuilding and setup, but the whole story consists of nothing but that.

Put another way, stories are normally either character driven or plot driven, and I happily accept both. But here, the characters aren't fleshed out and there's no plot whatsoever. Instead, the writing feels predominantly message driven, which I have a lot of trouble with. My mind keeps blanking out because I'm not actually reading anything of substance, so I can't retain any of it, no matter how hard I try.

It honestly pains me to finally get to an author everyone else is raving about, only to find out unequivocally that they are not for me. I have now read two Becky Chambers (her two most popular ones) and both were DNFs for me. That is about the worst I have ever done, but it is what it is. At least now I know for certain and no longer have to wonder if I'm missing out on anything.

Readaroo Rating: 2 stars

DNF - I think I started with the wrong Becky Chambers, because what in the galaxy is going on here? Or rather, not going on?

I knew before I started that this was a cozy, but I didn't realize cozies could be so low stakes as to be no stakes. So far, we've met every single resident on the spaceship, each overly friendly and sweet in their own way. We've also engaged in thinly veiled lessons on not making assumptions about other cultures and how every person can be beautiful no matter what they look like, along with an in-depth discussion about AI sentience and autonomy.

That's all great, don't get me wrong. But where is the tension, the plot, the anything? So far, my jaw's been getting a good workout from excessive yawning, but that's about it.

It's totally possible that if I kept going, this would've grabbed me eventually. But in my effort not to put myself into reading slumps, I think I'm going to call it. I'm not giving up on Becky Chambers just yet though. I'm going to move on to her novellas and see if they're more my speed.

Readaroo Rating: 3 stars

When you talk about stories that pack a punch, The Language of Liars sure got me pretty good. And the fact that it's a slim 150 pages? Well, that just means the wallop was even more powerful.

I went into this not quite knowing what to expect. All this talk about language and linguistics means I can't help but compare it to another book that came out not too long ago. (If you know it, you know it.) That book was excruciating long and dull and preferred to beat the reader over the head with its simplistic messages. Was I in for the same treatment here?

Thankfully no. Though both tales centered around the insidiousness of colonialism and using language for power, the execution couldn't be more different. This story felt unique, innovative, and provocative, and it's exactly the sort of memorable tale I'm always searching for.

If you know me, you know I'm a bit of nut for science fiction. It's probably my favorite genre, and when done right, it encapsulates all that makes us human—our endless need for exploration and connection and compassion. And that's exactly what we get here. Our main character Ro isn't even human, yet his quest to understand different species and languages and cultures, as well as his moral dilemmas, couldn't be more relatable. (In fact, it reminded me a lot of Star Trek: The Next Generation, an old fav of mine.)

The way this story builds up is quite masterful, all reaching towards a climax that's about as striking as you could hope for. It's been a while since a story has so thoroughly and metaphorically beaten me up, so I'm definitely going to be remembering this for quite a while.

Regarding the length, I've been loving novellas more and more recently. The shorter format means we don't have any time to waste. There's no long winded worldbuilding, no getting stuck in the weeds. The more compact style of storytelling necessitates jumping straight into the good stuff, and in return, the narrative demands our upmost attention in order to follow along.

A quick note—there is a fair bit of linguistics jargon in here, especially in the beginning, but don't let that bog you down. You don't need to grasp all the technical terms in order to understand or appreciate the tale. Just try to power through it and you'll be richly rewarded. In fact, once I got through the initial pages, I read the rest of the book in one long inhale.

If you're a science fiction nut and the sort to enjoy a story that's both stimulating and brutal, don't let this one pass you by. I bet you're going to be remembering it for a long time too.

Readaroo Rating: 4.5 stars

You are the first delivery of human pioneers to Mars. There is no going back. . . . You must continue.

Let me first pause and take a deep breath, because what the heck did I just read? I'm always looking for that perfect Mars exploration story—you know, the one where astronauts land on the red planet and strange things start to happen—and wow, did this deliver. I feel like I've been walloped, again and again, and I loved every second of it.

I was drawn to this book initially because the blurb mentioned locked-room mystery set on Mars, and of course, I tripped all over myself trying to get my grabby hands on it. But to call this a mystery is to sell the story short. It is that, but also so much more.

We slip seamlessly into the mind of Dana Gold as she comes out of deep sleep, one of three astronauts aboard the vessel that's about to deliver them onto Mars. Bots have been sent ahead to build the habitat that will be their forever home and to welcome them onto this desolate planet. But they've lost communications with the bots, and that's only the beginning of their troubles.

This tale grabbed me immediately. The science fiction component is so interesting and unique. The worldbuilding isn't centered around technology, but rather, there's a lot of humanity woven into it. The bots are made by humans and are therefore in our likeness, even if their makers didn't intend for that to happen. And so the evolution and the interaction of the bots is a fascinating and crucial focal point of the story.

But if you're not usually a reader of science fiction, don't let the setting scare you away. The backdrop of Mars is simply the starting point from which this story can take off. It isn't about Mars or space or robots. It's about humans and what we would do when pushed to the limit.

The horror element comes on slowly. We see Gold's thoughts and emotions as things start to go wrong. The horror isn't in the physical, but rather the psychological. There is a lot of exploration about where horror comes from, if it is within us humans and we manifest it in ourselves and the things we build, or if it comes from outside sources, both the known and the unknown. It gave me the chills, and I found it to be absolutely fascinating.

Because this is a novella, there is an economy to the writing that makes every moment count. We don't get mired in unnecessary explanations, we don't get stuck in overly emotional ruminations. We go from scene to scene, each one so propulsive, so tautly suspended, it felt like I was holding my breath the whole time.

I honestly haven't been this excited about a sci-fi and horror blend in a long time. The only thing is, after reading this, I'm definitely giving up my dreams of becoming an astronaut and ever going to Mars.

Readaroo Rating: 5 stars!

I have to be honest, this is a case where the story on the pages just wasn't as interesting as the premise would lead you to believe.

Dorothy wakes up in 1954 on a transport bus bound for Hanover State Psychiatric Hospital. She has no memory of who she is, but the one thing she does know is that she isn’t Dorothy. She has visions of a future where she’s someone named Bix sent back to 1954 on a mission to save the world. But the longer she's held at Hanover, the more she is forced into believing she is Dorothy. So which version in her mind is real—Dorothy or Bix?

That’s a cool premise, right? There's so much potential here, so many different ways this story could've unfolded that's both brilliant and riveting. But unfortunately, none of those things happened and what we end up with is surprisingly banal.

One of the major problems here is that we spend too long in Dorothy's head as she's subjected to endless psychiatric treatments while trying to puzzle out the question of whether she’s really from the future. Now, this would've been more interesting to us readers if we shared the same puzzle, but we don't. We know she's from the future because otherwise, what kind of pointless nonstory would this be? She'd just be a mental patient making everything up, which could be a story, but not this one because this one's billed as sci-fi. So it’s clear to us what's going on right from the beginning even if it’s not clear to Dorothy, but we still have to stick around for 200 pages while she figures it out.

But that's fine. I'm not against a long setup if it means the payoff is spectacular. But here again, it was inexplicably disappointing. Instead of choosing to flesh out the sci-fi and speculative elements of this book (the whole reason I'm reading this), we choose to focus on one action scene after another—of running, crouching, hiding, dodging—interspersed with the sort of no show all tell infodump that makes me want to abandon reading as a hobby.

Tabula Rasa, Reckoner, Reclamation, The Guest, New Covenant—it all certainly sounds impressive, I'll give you that. But just because you name some simple concepts with important sounding words doesn’t make it any more compelling, and that’s never been more true than here. While the terms might sound fancy, I can’t help but feel that they’re thinly veiled disguises for just how poorly sketched out the future really is.

Then there is Dorothy, secret agent extraordinaire, except she keeps messing things up during crucial moments. She needs to slowly walk across the field to avoid attention? Oh no, she panics and breaks into a run and everyone notices. She has the key and just needs to get to the door and escape? Oh no, she accidentally screams and alerts everyone. She has to read a secret message on a piece of paper and then destroy it? Oh no, she leaves it face up across the room for all to see. Like, come on! What kind of dumb fuckery is that.

But it wasn't that bad, if you can believe it. Even with my long list of complaints, this somehow managed to remain a three-star read until almost the very end. At that point, we are hit with the most lazy non-ending I have ever come across. One of the final lines of this book is Dorothy asking herself:

Will I be able to pull it off? . . . Don't know.

And that's the end, ladies and gentlemen. Like what the heck! Where is the payoff, the resolution, the closure? I'm having a hard time believing this isn't some sort of joke, but no, it's all written there in black and white, clear as day. So yeah, I'm going to have to deduct a star for that.

It took me a bit, but towards the end, I finally figured out what was so off about this story. It's constructed like the pilot of a tv series. Each scene is there for maximum tension, all the while not actually giving you much nor moving the plot forward. It tries to stretch the thinnest of plotlines into the most number of episodes, and it even ends on a cliffhanger just to entice you back. No, thank you.

Readaroo Rating: 2 stars

There was a time back in the day when I couldn't get enough of space adventures. I remember being in college, going to the library with every intention of studying for a final, then promptly picking up a Mars exploration/first contact novel sitting right there in my line of sight. Needless to say, I got not a lick of studying done that day, but I did have a wildly entertaining time.

So picking up The Last Astronaut was a no-brainer for me. Here comes an unusual object, heading directly our way. Is it an asteroid? A comet? But no, lo and behold, it's alien technology. Our only course of action is to send up some astronauts to meet and greet this object and hopefully convince the aliens not to annihilate us.

This has all the bones of a rip-roaring space adventure. The premise is fascinating, the action nonstop, and the stakes could not be higher. David Wellington's plot-driven writing style pairs well with this sort of tale, and before long, I'm sucked into the narrative.

I loved all the developments in here, especially when it came to the aliens. Even being quite familiar with this genre going in, I still feel like there were a lot of surprises in store for me. Everything came together seamlessly and with so much satisfaction, I have to give kudos to the author for having thought it all up.

But story's pacing was quite uneven, and it almost did me in a few times. Yes, there were many exciting moments, but they were often sandwiched between many excruciatingly slow and plodding ones. Each of the "excursions," in particular, felt like thousands of pages long. There were moments when I thought I'd read a hundred pages, only for the page count to tell me it was more like ten.

I feel like this was a case where the story, in its effort to immerse the reader and convince us that everything was indeed real, spent too much time on every minutiae of detail and not enough time on the truly revelatory moments. As a result, the exciting bits passed by in the blink of an eye, while the tedious ones (of walking, climbing, crawling, running) seemed to go on and on.

With regards to the characters, I'll say this — if Earth were really under attack from aliens, I'm not sure this group of astronauts and government officials would be the ones I'd want to save us all. They were not the brightest bulbs in the shed, and a lot of the issues that arose came directly from their collective poor planning and inability to communicate.

Still, I can't deny that this story had its moments of fun and excitement. I would recommend it, but maybe only to a select audience. If you're an avid fan of first contact stories, this is well worth a spot on your TBR. If not, then you can probably safely skip this.

Readaroo Rating: 3 stars

I hate to say it, but this isn't sci-fi. It's more of a mystery/thriller and an overly sappy one at that. And I guess I just wasn't in the mood for such a thing.

The premise is certainly enticing. Four strangers travel to the past to revisit the day their lives changed forever. They were only supposed to be there for an hour, but soon find themselves trapped for days and days. And when their paths start to cross, they realize maybe they aren't the strangers they thought they were.

No complaints from me about the way this story kicked off. I found the initial chapters with the four different characters to be riveting, and I settled in, thinking I was well on my way to a unique and fascinating read. But then as the characters' lives began to intersect, I started to get the feeling that maybe this isn't the mind blowing speculative fiction I thought it was going to be.

The problem is that we start near the end of the timeline, so we already know most of what happens, if not the how. Then we jump three years into the past and slowly fill everything in. This structure makes it so that by about halfway through the book, all the pieces are in place and we have a pretty solid idea of how it will all play out. After that, there are no more surprises. From then on, the book proceeds to spell out in long form what is already obvious.

I don't have to have surprise after surprise in the books I'm reading, but to remove all elements of the unknown does mean a book would have to work extra hard to keep my attention. And unfortunately, this one didn't quite succeed.

It doesn't help that I can't seem to connect with these characters. No matter how difficult and complex their problems—and they had some gnarly ones for sure—every single one of them was resolved neatly and with much emotional fanfare. Every single character got their moment of enlightenment, and that one scene, one conversation was all it took for them to be happy and fulfilled.

Maybe I'm a cold hearted reader, but I just don't buy it. There is no way real people would behave like that. It's ludicrous to think that no matter what losses we suffer, be it our children or our limbs, that we would only need to hug it out before resuming our normal lives. And these pivotal scenes were often padded with so much saccharine mush to up the emotional ante that I had a lot of trouble keeping my focus.

What happened to finding out more about the time traveling tech or the glitch that stranded these travelers in the first place? It was such a disappointment to come to the end of this book and realize that those questions would never be answered. Clearly, the time traveling was just a way for the author to tell her story in a slightly different, nonlinear way and once that was done, the plot device could be tossed aside and forgotten.

Sometimes when a book isn't what I'm expecting, I can still adjust and end up enjoying it. But in this case, there just wasn't enough of what I wanted and too much of what I didn't want for that to happen.

Readaroo Rating: 3 stars

What the heck was this? I think I'm going to need a few more rereads to wrap my head around it all.

When it comes to speculative fiction, you just never know what you're going to get. Sometimes there's a great premise, but no follow-through. Sometimes the premise comes across a bit middling, but it turns out to be a terrific story. With this one, I feel like Nicholas Binge really went all out. The premise was super interesting to start with, and it just got crazier and crazier from there.

Whether you would enjoy this story depends on a few things. To start, you have to be able to maximumly suspend disbelief. Okay now that you've done that, you need to suspend it some more, and then some more, and then some more. And you will finally have reached the level of suspension required for this story. It was so wacky that at times, I even found myself unable to buy into it.

You have to also be able to wait for the payoff. The story starts off fairly slowly. It's a complicated plot, and many, many pieces have to be set up along the way. I'm feel like not much happens until well over a hundred pages into the book. Even then, you're getting information at a trickle, and it's not until the last few chapters that things really come together.

You have to also be able to enjoy a fairly technical level of science fiction. That isn't to say there is a lot of actual science in here (because this is more speculative than hard scifi), but there is a lot of discussions around philosophy, science, and biology. At times, it even veered into the supernatural, which was definitely a bit of a stretch for me.

And finally, you have to be okay with multiple, possibly confusing, timelines. The story is set up like a dual timeline, one in the present and one in the past. But the present one is mostly a recount of another time, so what you actually have is a third timeline embedded in there. And quite frankly, that's probably one too many for me. I did have moments when I got confused as to when/where I really am in the story.

Gosh, that all probably sounds more negative than positive. And to be honest, I did feel very conflicted while reading this. I don't think I really bought into the story until more than a third of the way in, and even then, things kept coming up that would throw me for a loop and make me rethink if I'm actually enjoying it.

And yet, when I came upon the denouement, I can't deny that I found it supremely fascinating. So many of the clues that were laid out earlier—and even some of the components I wasn't a fan of—all came together in such a satisfying way, I can't help but bow down to Nicholas Binge. Well played, sir.

I think it's safe to say this wasn't a homerun for me by any means. But it's one of those books that's so interesting, it has a way of burrowing into your mind and staying there. Even now, I'm thinking back on it, pondering over what I understood and what I missed. Even though I didn't love everything in here, I'm compelled to reward it for leaving me so thoroughly stunned.

Readaroo Rating: 4 stars

True storytelling has always been one of the few great things humanity could produce that no automation could.

Wow. It is not often I am without words, but Death of the Author has left me speechless and astounded.

I don't even know how to talk about this book because it isn't like anything else I've ever read. I'm going to try to come at it from a few different angles, so bear with me as I get my thoughts and feelings untangled here.

First, the genre. This is the perfect symbiosis of science fiction and contemporary lit. (If you're already thinking to yourself, huh? Yeah, like I said, you haven't seen anything like it before.) We alternate between the story of the writer, Zelu, and the story within the story of the robots, and each is its own riveting tale.

Zelu's narrative is instantly arresting. There is a lot going on, so I imagine every reader will bring their own experiences into it and take away something different. Racism, ableism, fame, social media, societal and familial pressure, the immigrant experience in general and the Nigerian American experience in particular were all integrated seamlessly and explored deftly within this compelling narrative.

Zelu is so richly drawn, she just leaps off the pages. You don't see many books featuring disabled main characters, so my interests were instantly peaked. Then the more I got to know her, the more dynamic and fierce she became. I wouldn't say she is particularly likable, but she's undeniably fascinating. And this narrative is her journey of formation and transformation, her coming of life, if you will.

Then we arrive at my favorite part of the book, and that is the robot story. (Come on now, you know how much I love sci-fi, so you can't possibly be surprised.) I adored every minute of this science fiction journey. It was such a creative tale through and through, embedded with social and political commentary relevant to our times. Every scene felt both captivating and profound, and it evoked such WALL E-esque feelings in me.

What does it mean to hold onto humanity when there are no humans left? And can the power of storytelling transcend those who invented it? Those are the questions Ankara the robot faces as she traverses a post-human apocalyptic world to make sense of herself and what's around her.

I know a lot of people think science fiction is inaccessible, but to me, the best of this genre always zeroes in on precisely what it means to be human. It encompasses our hopes and dreams, our emotions, our faith, and our will to survive. And so this story does too.

With her clear, precise prose, Nnedi Okorafor is able to hold a multitude of emotions within her sentences. They evoke feelings of love and conflict, logic and passion, nostalgia for the past but also hope for the future. To write a story partially from a robot's point of view and to inject so much emotion into the whole thing is nothing short of remarkable.

To experience this story and to see the two narrative strands weave back and forth, reflected in each other, as they slowly grow closer and closer, is to watch a master storyteller in action. And that ending, goodness me. I'm going to need many moments (days, weeks, months) to think on it and then think on it some more.

You know that feeling you get when you're in the midst of an extraordinary book, where every page causes goosebumps on your arms and tingles to run up and down your spine? And the moment you're done, you just want to go back to page one and start all over again? Well, that's this book right here.

More than anything, this pays homage to the power of storytelling. If you're a reader—and surely we all are—then this book comes as close as any to put into words why we read and what stories do for our hearts and our souls.

“I feel satisfied, but also not. It reminds me of myself, but it is not about me. I feel like I’ve met those I have never met. I’m thinking things I never thought before. I have many questions. Will you help me understand this?”

A singular and audacious tale deserving of all the praise. Surely one not to be missed.

Readaroo Rating: 5 stars!

Calling all fans of science fiction—if you haven't read The Illuminae Files, what the heck are you waiting for?

Here we have reached the final book in this trilogy, and what a stunning culmination and conclusion it is. You know what this reminds me of? It reminds me of being a kid and reading for the pure joy of it. There are no themes to dissect, no greater takeaways to suss out. It's just a rip-roaring good time you can sink your teeth into, and the experience is so immersive, the line between the real and the fictional starts to blur.

The first time I read this series, I was fairly new to science fiction. So of course I made the mental mistake you always make when it's your first of anything. You assume what you got was fairly common and there's plenty more like it out there, so you use that to set the bar for average. Well, imagine my consternation when, after years and years of reading sci-fi, I realized that I actually read one of the best in the genre right off the bat, and I'm never really going to find another one quite like it.

I think you guys know my love for science fiction by now. But on the off chance you don't, please allow me to wax poetic for a moment here. Science fiction will always rank high on my list of favorite genres, if not at the very top spot. And that's because of how bold and imaginative it is. When done well, it takes you to places you've never been before in ways you've never encountered. And that's exactly what this series does.

There is something so audacious about every aspect of this story. The characters are about as brave and badass as you can hope for, putting their lives on the line again and again to save those around them. But they don't just brute force it. No, they use their brains to outwit their enemies, and you guys know I can't resist that. The dialogue in here is so snarky, whip-smart, and funny, to call it banter seems like such an understatement. And the plot surprises at every turn. Just when you think you've got a grasp on what's going on, well you didn't see that coming, did you?

Its format is as interesting as it is groundbreaking. The dossier-like style matches up perfectly with the action-driven plot, and together they seamlessly weave a story that is hard to look away from. You know that feeling of having your heart in your throat? That's exactly every moment of this book and this series in a nutshell.

But it isn't just action scene after action scene. The very best science fiction is profoundly moving, asking us to think deeply about what it means to be human and what price we would be willing to pay to protect that humanity. And so this series does too, reaching deep into our conscience to ask those searing questions.

The only minor drawback to this series is that it's young adult. The heroes and heroines in here are unabashedly teenagers, with their attitudes, romances, and cheesiness all rolled into one. And while there's nothing wrong with that per se, it is several decades in the past for me now. But over the course of three books, their courage and bright-eyed idealism won me over, and so did their hip lingo. I guess what I'm trying to say is, don't let the YA part dissuade you, even if you're an old fogey like me. If you can look past it, there is as good of a sci-fi story here as any adult ones I've come across, and it just might get you in touch with your younger self.

This whole series has felt so bold and fearless, taking the reader on a sublimely imaginative ride. And this third and final book does the series justice, bringing an epic conclusion to that breathtaking journey. Along the way, it left me in awe and gave me all the feels.

I guess my only remaining question is: when are they going to turn this into a movie? Someone needs to get J.J. Abrams on the line stat because the only thing that could make this even better is copious amounts of lens flare.

Readaroo Rating: 5 stars!

Say no more. The Illuminae Files is going on my favorites list of all time for sure.

First of all, let me just take a moment to breathe after finishing Gemina. Like, wow, talk about an adrenaline rush. From the moment I cracked open that first page, the story immediately grabbed me. It was nonstop action from there, the sort that has your heart in your throat the whole time, compelling you to forsake all else just to read a few more pages. If there were a scale for unputdownableness, with 1 being a cure for insomnia, and 10 being better than crack, this would rate somewhere around 15.

Everything I loved about the first book was here—the unique format, the relentlessly fast pace, and of course, the most crazy, mindbending story.

This trilogy is first and foremost a science fiction one, and I have to applaud how well done it is. Sometimes science fiction gets a bad rap for being a genre that's difficult to understand and hard to get into. But this series totally blows that assumption away. It is science fiction at its most fun and entertaining, while retaining the epic scope that the genre is known for. And the end result is the most imaginative ride of your life.

The format that had me all agog in the first book worked even better here. In addition to the dossier-like chats, memos, and audio and video transcripts, this book also contains fabulous drawings and an ever-updating roster of the invaders, both of which added a richness and immediacy to the story.

In terms of the characters, I found Hanna to be a completely badass heroine. Her courage and fearlessness is exactly the sort I love in my female characters, and it was so much fun to cheer her on. While this book still keeps to the YA genre by sprinkling in lots of silly teenage love, it felt less cringey than in the first book, at least to me. Whether that's because there's actually less of it or I'm just getting used to the cringe, I can't say for sure.

When was the last time a series has worked its way into my thoughts and my imagination as deeply as this one has? I honestly can't remember. Every time I pick a book in this trilogy, I'm just in awe of its immense creativity and fun. If you're a fan of science fiction (or you just like a good story), you have to check this out.

Readaroo Rating: 5 stars!

Truly one of those books that breaks ground, Illuminae is a story told in a format that is as immersive as it is memorable.

First, to set expectations correctly, you have to understand that I love all things space. Space battles, space tech, space rescues—you name it, I am so there. The more dramatic, the better. And on top of that, if you sprinkle in some mysteries (medical or otherwise) and an AI gone rogue, well, let's just say I'm pretty much putty in your hands. In fact, since we're being honest, I'll confess that Power Rangers was my favorite show growing up. So before I even started on this, it was already a foregone conclusion that I was going to love it.

Gosh, how to describe what a crazy, joy-filled ride this turned out to be? I love high-octane, plot-driven stories, and that's exactly what this is. The action starts right off the bat and doesn't let up. But it isn't action for action's sake. Rather, each part is necessary and sets the scene for the next, building up until we get to the explosive and heart-stopping finale.

A large part of why this story is so thrilling is its format. It's composed like a dossier, filled entirely with transcripts of interviews, memos, video and audio material, and illustrations. It reminds me a lot of the experience of watching a movie, though on paper. It's tremendously creative, and I can't help but marvel at the ingenious design, which pulled me into the story and kept me rivetted.

This is a YA book, so do set your expectations accordingly. There is a romance in here that at times induces quite a bit of eye-rolling, and the dialogue can be both snarky (yay) and cringey (nay) in the way of teenagers. But hey, at least it feels authentic to the age of the main characters. Overall though, it wasn't too bad and I was able to look past it to the awesome space-story within, and that's saying something coming from an old fogey like me.

One thing to note is that this book came out in 2015, and while it has aged well for the most part, there is one exception. A member of the supporting cast has certain characterizations that left me feeling a bit icky, and I imagine, given the chance to do so again, the authors probably wouldn't have written him in this way. While it's just a few words here and there, it is rather unfortunate, so just be aware if you're going into it now that it may be a bit offensive to today's sentiments.

As a whole, I have to say this book left me pretty speechless. The incredibly innovative format of the story made for a truly special and immersive reading experience, one unlike any I've come across before.

If you're a space aficionado like me, I can't recommend this enough. Just be sure to pick up the physical book instead of the e- or audio versions for maximum enjoyment.

Readaroo Rating: 4 stars

I feel like this is a book best read two or even three times, because just once left me rather confused.

Looking at the title of this book, perhaps you'd immediately guess that it's about two things: a murder, and the end of the world. And you would be right. And as is usually the case when a book is about two things, one ends up being more successful than the other.

The first half of this story focuses on the end of the world, and that was my favorite part of the book. I was absolutely riveted, turning the pages as fast I could, trying to figure out what was going on. There was this rather sinister feeling throughout, as if you know something wasn't quite right, but you can't put your finger on what exactly. And the more we learn, the stronger that feeling got. I totally ate it up.

Then about halfway through, we arrive at the murder as well as some revelations about the end of the world, and that was truly a satisfying "ah ha" moment for me. It was the highlight of the book, and so much of what had been hinted at thus far slotted into place.

But soon after, it started to go off the rails a bit. I went from being absolutely glued to my seat to quickly losing interest. I think it's because we switched into murder investigation mode, and that arc just wasn't as compelling. There were so many details and people, too many to really keep track of in my head. I kept forgetting who the characters were and how they related to each other. As small revelations appeared, only to twist upon itself later, then twist upon itself again, I just could not keep it all straight.

And not being able to remember really hindered my enjoyment. There were so many moments when a character would mention a fact or a relationship, and I would have to pause, desperately searching my memory for this morsel of information I should've known, only to come up empty. These pauses really took me out of the story and prevented me from being fully immersed in the mystery.

The other thing that constantly felt a little bit off was the story's simultaneous use of the 1st person and 3rd person narrator, which I've never seen done before (maybe with good reason). I kept being vaguely confused, uncertain if we're reading about a character's true feelings or our omniscient narrator's interpretation of them. And maybe there is no real difference between the two at the end of the day, but that dissonance gnawed on me.

I'll be honest, I think the writing and editing contributed to these issues. The story isn't that far off from being easier to understand, if only some of the more convoluted plot developments were pared back and the writing polished up for clarity. It's a shame the book went out the door as is, so close to being amazing and yet falling short of that lofty goal.

It seriously pains me that I can't seem to give Stuart Turton's books more than 3 stars. His premises are always amazing, and there is so much potential embedded in the pages. And yet, the execution is just a smidge too complicated and tortuous, leaving me feeling like I've gone through several rounds of plot-gymnastics rather than just being able to sit back and enjoy the stories for what they are.

Still, that being said, it's not going to stop me from reading more of Stuart Turton's books. So there you go.

Readaroo Rating: 3 stars

You are a dream. A hope. A remembrance of what we once were.

Of course this story completely slayed me. I should've known better than to doubt. I thought I'd already found a favorite from T.J. Klune in The House in the Cerulean Sea and it would have been impossible to top that. But here comes a story that I love just as much, if not more.

On the surface, In the Lives of Puppets seems simple enough. It's a tale about a boy and his father and some robots, and they go on an adventure together. But the more I read, the more I realized it is so much more.

If ever there was a story about what it means to be human, this is it. It's an ode to our affinity for love and friendship, as well as a celebration of our flaws and quirks. And it does so with humor and heart, alternating between making me chuckle and filling me with joy. Of course humor is subjective, but the blend of innocent and naughty in here totally worked for me. It brought a spark of levity to an otherwise very sweet story.

Klune did a wonderful job with the science fiction elements, taking an interesting premise and building it into something fascinating and thought-provoking. Often with speculative fiction, either we don't get enough explanation and so the whole thing feels vague, or we get too much explanation and you get mired in the how's and why's. But Klune struck it just right, and the sci-fi elements end up feeling natural and wholly believable.

It did take me a little bit to get into the story, so don't be discouraged if you don't find it riveting right off the bat. Like any good fable, the first 100 pages or so introduces us to the cast of characters and their circumstances. It builds up slowly and easily, all the while feeling quite cozy. But then we get to the main conflict, and I was hooked.

I've been trying to put my finger on exactly why T.J. Klune's tales feel so special, and I've finally figured it out. It's because reading them makes me feel like a kid again, stepping into a magical world where you can cheer on the good guys as they triumph over the forces of evil. Along the way, you fall in love with the characters and their world, and it feels like you are really there, immersed in the wonder of it all.

As a reader, every time I pick up a book, this is the experience I'm hoping for. To have a story sink into your thoughts and wrap itself around your heart and leave you discombobulated afterwards, there's no other feeling like it in the world.

Readaroo Rating: 5 stars!

My heartfelt thanks for the copy that was provided for my honest and unbiased review.

I can always count on Liu Cixin to write a story full of elements I've never seen before and to put it together in an interesting and thought-provoking way.

In The Cretaceous Past, intelligence has been bestowed upon the dinosaurs and the ants. These two species start off on disparate paths, but when a chance encounter shows them the benefit of mutual cooperation, their paths slowly converge. This symbiotic relationship is fruitful and leads to advancements and improvements for them both. But how long can their cooperation last and what happens when it comes to an end?

This is an allegory, so don't let the fact that it's about animals throw you off. Liu is using this story to explore and comment on the social, political, religious, and environmental issues of our time. Though his original writing is in Chinese and this is a translation, the topics in here feel relevant and timely, even if we're from different cultures.

His writing always reads like a feast for the mind. They make me think of a giant thought exercise, where he takes his reader along on a journey of what-ifs. Who is to say that humans are the only intelligent beings to ever grace the earth? What if dinosaurs and ants not only roamed here, but also possessed intelligence and ingenuity? How might our history have shaken out then?

It follows that Liu's writing style very much matches his narrative content. His writing at times feels more like nonfiction than fiction. He is essentially presenting an alternative history, and that's how readers should approach it. This isn't character-driven at all. Rather, it's a historical text, just of a history that may not have come to pass.

I first came across Liu with his magnum opus, The Three-Body Problem trilogy, which is among the best science fiction I have ever read. And while this novella doesn't reach that level of brilliance, it's still a riveting read from beginning to end.

Readaroo Rating: 4 stars

I dreamed of who I used to be.

Of who, or what, I might become.

This right here. This is what I've been waiting for. With Upgrade, Blake Crouch has finally written a successor worthy of Dark Matter.

You might think that I have some sort of rigorous, scientific method for determining what makes a 5-star read for me. But honestly, it's just a feeling. I get this tingle that goes from the back of my head all the way down my spine. And when I feel it, I know that I've found something special and worth savoring. And that's what happened here.

When I think of a great science fiction story, I think of something bold and imaginative, capable of surprising me and challenging my preconceived notions, one that reaches to the root of what it means to be human, and takes us on a journey of where we've been and where we're going. And this story is all that and more.

Just like most Blake Crouch novels, this book feels accessible, even to those readers who don't normally indulge in the genre. And a large reason is because it reads like a thriller. It's relentlessly paced and utterly riveting, and I can't imagine trying to put it down once I've started. Every chapter held surprises and revelations, and even when I thought I was getting an inkling of where it might be headed, it still managed to prove me wrong.

While the science in here is interesting, I suspect most readers will connect with it for far more reasons than that. It seamlessly blends a whole bunch of interesting and timely topics, from philosophy to ethics, evolution to the environment, that elevates it from just a story that passes through one's mind to a story that's truly arresting and memorable.

I've noticed that Crouch is particularly adept at putting the reader in the shoes of the main character. We feel his pain, understand his choices, and appreciate the difficulty of his dilemmas. And it makes me wonder, what would I do when given such impossible choices? Would I have what it takes to sacrifice everything to do what needs to be done? I'd like to think so, and it's definitely an interesting thought to contemplate.

A word of caution here. I normally include a small tease of the story I'm reviewing, but you'll notice I haven't included any such information here. It's because even that little bit feels like a spoiler. In fact, I've been careful not to allude to anything that happens in the entire story, and that's on purpose.

I went into this completely blind and absolutely loved the initial pages as it set up the premise and got into the heart of the story. There were so many things that surprised me and those reveals contributed so much to the delightful experience of reading this book. After I finished, I read the blurb on the back, and it pretty much gives it all away. So my suggestion is to skip the blurb altogether and just go right into it. You'll be glad you did.

Ever since Blake Crouch came out with Dark Matter, I've been waiting patiently for another book of his that will grab me just as much. (Recursion wasn't it, unfortunately.) I wanted another that would work on so many levels: a riveting and unputdownable thriller on the surface, but also thought-provoking and scientifically intriguing, and relatable to every reader even though the premise is so outrageous. And it seems my patience has finally paid off.

Readaroo Rating: 5 stars!

My heartfelt thanks for the copy that was provided for my honest and unbiased review.

If I die, you can always make another me.

When I saw the premise for this book, I knew it was going on my TBR posthaste. It sounds so interesting and unlike anything I've come across before.

Mickey has the most unusual job: he is expected to risk life and limb to do dangerous work on the space colony. Dying is really no big deal since they can just pump out a new clone of him imprinted with his memories and personality. When a job goes sideways and the colony thinks Mickey7 is dead, they immediately create Mickey8. But the problem is that Mickey7 is still very much alive. Now the two Mickey's are in real trouble. They can't tell anyone that there are two of him running around, for to be a multiple is considered the ultimate abomination, one from which there is no coming back.

When I started this book, I had high hopes. Not only is the premise fabulous, but the writing at first glance feels fast-paced and conversational, making this an extremely easy book to get into. I was breezing through the pages, on the edge of my seat, waiting for the story to take a turn into something brilliant.

I kept waiting and waiting. And then I reached the end. Welp.

The problem is that the story never really goes much past the premise. In fact, most of the conflict comes down to the two Mickey's being hungry. The rest of the time is spent on flashbacks to Mickey's earlier reincarnations and digression on how other space colonies have done on different worlds. It's not that those aren't interesting, but they're just not what I was expecting.

The writing style also veers a bit towards the flippant side for my taste. It's lots of slang and jargon, thrown around to make the whole thing feel both casual and authentic. But it didn't quite ring true for me. I've seen comparisons of the narrator's style to Andy Weir, but this isn't The Martian. Mark Watney solves actual problems, while Mickey mostly sounds off.

Maybe my expectations were just too high. I thought this would be an insightful and thrilling story, taking me somewhere I've never been before. Instead, the whole story is pretty much the premise. It was a fast and decent read, but I can't help feel it fell short of its lofty potential.

Readaroo Rating: 3 stars

Profoundly brilliant, Death's End is the stunning conclusion to a science fiction trilogy that has held me in its thralls. It will undoubtedly rank as my favorite of all time, unlikely to ever be surpassed.

What a journey it has been. When I think back to what I expected when I first started the series, it certainly wasn't this. Or rather, what was in my head was so small in scope, so limited in thinking, it was only a tiny fraction of what this eventually turned out to be. There was no way my imagination could've ever prepared me for this.

The sheer audacity of the ideas in here and how far Liu Cixin took them throughout this series, I stand in absolute awe. Not only is he telling a story, but he also tackles some of the most fundamental questions of the universe and existence, questions that have puzzled scientists for all time, and he manages to weave a cohesive framework to examine and explain them.

Liu Cixin's style when it comes to unfolding the plot works particularly well here. He takes something fairly complex and makes it easy to grasp by the end. He would leave hints early, then come back again and again to poke at them with examples. Along the way, I would think to myself, where is this possibly going? Then when he finally gets to the explanation, it's a complete eureka moment. Every puzzle piece slots in perfectly, and the groundwork he's laid up till then makes the whole thing easy to understand.

There's a part of my brain that constantly craves novelty. When I'm reading, I just want new, new, new. And this book delivers by the boatload. Just when I've got a handle on what's going on, another development will happen that completely throws me for a loop. Then I'll have to rejigger my thoughts all over again. And this just kept happening, over and over. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.

I have to mention the fairy tales in here. Seriously, is there nothing this author can't imagine and write? Anytime there's an opportunity to have a story within a story, I'm a huge fan. And the fairy tales in here are so creative and compelling in their own right. They completely work as standalones, but then to see how they fit within the framework of the larger story is absolutely astounding. If Liu Cixin ever gets in the business of writing fairy tales, I'll be the first in line.

At its heart, what makes this series so riveting is that it feels like it's real. It very much reads like a historical account of human history. And to achieve that effect, the science in here is true to what we understand today. There's no handwaving, no hoping that the reader will just forget about it and move on, if only the author could pull enough wool over their eyes. Instead, every clue laid out eventually fits into the big picture and is thoroughly explained, and that makes for an extremely satisfying read.

When you think about it, very few books contain truly innovative ideas. The few that do are so unique as to be transcendent. They offer entirely new, never before seen or heard or thought of concepts put together in ways as to delight and astound and transfix. This trilogy is that. Reading it has been the experience of a lifetime.

Readaroo Rating: 5 stars!

Well, that was absolutely insane. Please excuse me while I go pick my jaw off of the floor.

The Dark Forest picks up not long after the end of book 1, and I admit, I was a bit confused at first. Because you see, it starts off really slow, so slow I was left wondering how it's possible this same author could've written the fast-paced and information-dense story that was its predecessor.

For most of Part I, we just meander along, seemingly without any point or much plot advancement at all. We come across random asides and the weirdest love story I have ever read. At one point I even thought to myself, Liu Cixin has lost his mojo. He blew his entire bag of tricks on book 1 and now he has nothing left for book 2. Ha, I have never been so glad to be wrong.

Because the moment I turned the pages to Part II, then bam, Liu Cixin is back! From then on, the story intensifies relentlessly into a crescendo of revelations that is sure to stun and satisfy any science fiction lover. Liu has a really interesting style of writing, in which he invites the reader to take a journey with him. He'll lay down breadcrumbs early, then come back later to coalesce them into fully-formed thoughts and ideas. As a reader, it makes for an extremely satisfying experience.

And the last 100 pages was the best 100 pages of anything I have ever read. I still have goosebumps just thinking about it. Liu Cixin, sir, well played!

But if the rest of the book was so amazing, what was going on with Part I? Well, I was talking to my husband about it, and he mentioned that it could be a common trope in Chinese literature. I think the Western equivalent is "zero to hero" but the Chinese version puts more emphasis on the zero part. The character is shown to be lazy and dithering for quite a while, until something finally comes along to force him to live up to his potential.

I have to touch upon the book's treatment of female characters. They come across as distinctly there to bolster the male characters' pride and reflect their glory. However, this is also the case with the younger characters in the book being there to bolster the older characters. I suspect it's because Chinese culture has always prized being male over female and being older over younger. It doesn't make it right (and in fact, I have rebelled against this my entire life), but I try not to be too harsh against an author who is accurately portraying the culture.

Regarding the translation, this book is translated by a different writer than book 1, and I personally preferred book 1's. I found this book's translation to be awkward at times, sometimes translating too literally and obscuring the meaning, while other times being too Western with the translation, so losing the cadence and style of Chinese that made book 1 such an effortless joy to read.

Even with the flaws, I've been loving this series so much and I think a big part is due to how fully it embodies the spirit of science fiction. Science fiction, more than any other genre, explores the social and technological aspects of humanity and ponders their consequences. It is a literature of ideas, if you will. But where Liu Cixin excels is not just in using these ideas, but also in fleshing them out to a degree never before seen and building them up into a grand epic tale. It truly is a feat to experience.

Readaroo Rating; 4 stars