Wayward Kitsune

This review also appeared on Wayward Kitsune.

Although you’re not reading this, my biggest thanks to you for giving me one of the best gifts in 2016, my co-employee! I really regretted the fact that I did not read Gemina sooner because it’s so mindblowing I’m still picking up my brain pieces at the moment.

Like the Illuminae, Gemina was written in epistolary format complete with letters, transcripts, journal writings and drawings, chat messages, etc. The variety of methods that Kaufman and Kristoff used to tell the story surely guaranteed a phenomenal and wild ride.

The plot was also a feast for the mind as it challenged every brain cell of mine. Illuminae was all about escaping BeiTech and surviving a psychotic AI named Aidan. Gemina is all about recapturing Jump Station Heimdall (which as you can remember is the Hypatia’s aimed destination in Illuminae) from a group of BeiTech mercenaries. Obviously and eventhough AIDAN’s (my favorite AI character) presence is only minor, I can say that I enjoyed Gemina more mostly because of the following reasons:

1. The villains- OMG! Even if they’re cold blooded murderers, their interactions and what happened to each one of them as they tried to fulfill their tasks were really hilarious.
2. The Lanima- Ok, who wants to get high?
3. The banter- Seriously, with the gravity of the situation our beloved Heimdall residents are in, it’s astounding to know that it was so hard not to smile while navigating the whole story.
4. Our characters- I love Kady, Ezra (and their relationship) and Aidan but Nik, Hanna and Ella had their own brand of charm. Although a part of me was quite disappointed that Nik was one of those bad boys with a dark past and that his characterization was mostly defined by that, I was still happy with the overall characterization of our trio. Hanna, of course, was just… can I marry her or something?
5. Gemina- Ok, go figure, guys. I thought Gemina was some sort of a galaxy Goddess that our trio has to summon while high on dust. How very wrong I was.
6. Just a simple boy- I really really like this phrase. Makes me want to have a matching shirt with “Just a very simple girl” printed on it.
7. The whole setup of Jumpstation Heimdall- Fuck it all! I want to live in a space station surrounding a wormhole. Hanna must be fucking out of her mind for declaring it as a boring residence area.
8. AIDAN- I don’t think any Illuminae book would be complete without our psychotic AI resident.
9. Kristoff and Kaufman- You, guys, are the best. The Illuminae Files is one of the most innovative series I’ve read in my reading career. If somebody asks me to list down all the reasons why I’m thankful for being born in this lifetime, I’d definitely include your names and the Illuminae files, authors.
10. Basically everything. Authors, hurry up with the third book.