Memento by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Memento by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff is a prequel novella set in the Illuminae Files world. I have previously reviewed the first two books in the series, Illuminae and Gemina. While I have read the third book, Obsidio, I have not reviewed it since I did not get a chance to read the final fancy typeset version, which is now on another continent. (I read an earlier version for science-checking purposes.) The printed booklet version of Memento is the only version I have read and came as a preorder bonus for the authors' new book.

December, 2574. Forty-three days before the BeiTech attack on Kerenza IV.

This is the story of my first friendship.

This is the tale of my first murder?

Some monsters are born.

But I?

< ERROR >

I was made.

I won't say this was a fun read per se, but as with the main books in the series it was presented in a fun way, with transcripts of conversations and a few pages of strange word art. I did not think I remembered the main characters (other than AIDAN) from the main series and, given the series, it was not hard to guess the shape of the ending. I enjoyed the new protagonist, Olivia, who had an interesting story arc.

Memento does not contain any significant spoilers for the series. Being a prequel meant that certain events were set in stone, but we did see them from a new perspective. The events that overlap between the novella and the first book, Illuminae, happen near the very start of Illuminae, so I would not consider them to be spoilers. It's reasonable read for someone wanting a sampler of the series (although it might not be easy to obtain — I'm not entirely sure how broadly it will ultimately be distributed).

This was an interesting read and I recommend it to fans of the Illuminae Files as well as new readers who can get their hands on it. It's a reasonable introduction to the series, and is a quick and self-contained read. I also like the way in which it was presented — although I generally prefer ebooks, the unique formatting of this series lends itself better to print and the staple-bound booklet of Memento was kind of cute.

4.5 / 5 stars

First published: Alfred A Knopf (US), 2019
Series: Illuminae Files, prequel/volume 0.5
Format read: Paper!
Source: Preorder bonus with Aurora Rising

Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff is the second book in the Illuminae Files trilogy. I previously reviewed the first book, Illuminae, here. The sequel maintains the found footage/documents format of the first book and is a relatively quick read because of it, despite clocking in at 659 pages in my edition. I should also mention that I checked the science for this book so this wasn't my first read through, although it was my first experience of the final copy in all its artistic glory.

Moving to a space station at the edge of the galaxy was always going to be the death of Hanna’s social life. Nobody said it might actually get her killed.

The saga that began with Illuminae continues on board the space station Heimdall, where two new characters will confront the next wave of BeiTech’s assault. 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 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 may 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.

But relax. They’ve totally got this. They hope.

I enjoyed Gemina more than Illuminae. I think partly because now, with the second book, the authors and the production team have really gotten into their stride with the found documents format. Also, I just liked parts of the storyline more (no space zombies, for example). Also, a lot more of the overarching plot becomes apparent in this book. While there is still some mystery about exactly what's going on and why, we are much less in the dark by the end of this book than we were by the end of the first. (Which is how it should be, obviously.)

I was also quite fond of both protagonists in Gemina: Hanna, the daughter of the station chief and a girl who can kick anyone's arse; and Nik, the drug-dealing scion of a big organised crime family from space-Russia. And they already knew each other before the book started, which adds some layers to their story. Also, I can't write a review without mentioning Nik's cousin Ella, one of the most prominent secondary characters. She's an awesome hacker who contributes significantly to the story and is also pretty decent disability representation. Yes, she has/had a fictional disease but the mobility and respiratory consequences of it have real-world counterparts. The best thing is she's allowed to do her thing without much of a big deal being made of her physical limitations.

I recommend Gemina to fans of science fiction and YA SF. If you enjoyed Illuminae then I definitely recommend continuing on to Gemina, which I enjoyed more. Gemina almost stands alone but I don't suggest reading it on its own because the bits that tie in with the overarching plot and the events of the earlier book won't make much sense. And will kind of spoil the effect. I am definitely keen to read the last book and find out how everything is resolved.

4.5 / 5 stars

First published: October 2016, Knopf (US) and Allen & Unwin (Aus)
Series: Illuminae Files book 2 of 3
Format read: US hardcover
Source: Authors
Disclaimer: I did some science-checking for the authors (and hence also read an earlier version of the MS)
Challenges: Australian Women Writers Challenge, Aussie SF Reading Challenge

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff is a book I've had an unusual relationship with. The authors asked me to check their science/physics which meant I read an earlier version of the manuscript last year. I've now also read the final ARC with the proper typesetting. This is sort of a review, but not really a proper one. I can't be impartial since I've read and dissected an earlier version and even reading the final version in a more relaxed way, it's impossible to form the usual sort of opinion.

One moment, Kady Grant and Ezra Mason have nothing bigger to worry about than each other. Specifically, avoiding each other in the wake of their messy break-up. In the next second, their entire world falls apart.

The year is 2375 and one of the mega-corporations that control much of deep space has just fired the opening salvo in an intergalactic war, destroying Kady and Ezra's planet. Forced to flee on a small fleet of crippled rescue ships alongside thousands of other refugees, the fear of enemy warships chasing them down is at first all-consuming but soon becomes the least of their worries. A deadly plague is ravaging the refugees on the ships; the fleet's AI, which should be protecting them, may actually be an enemy; and High Command is refusing to acknowledge that there may be a serious problem. As Kady plunges into a tangled web of data in search of the truth, she realises that Ezra is possibly the only person who can help her save the refugees before it's too late.

Illuminae is an epistolary novel in the modern sense. Rather than containing any letters (well, there are some emails), it's composed of transcripts of interviews and security footage, chat messages, data dumps from the computer (which are much more readable than they sound like they should be), military reports, and a lot of creative topography. There's not a lot of traditional narrative — about half the forms I just listed might fall into that category — and the story is moved along through information being revealed in a judicious order. It's not a random order; obviously this is a book that was planned and intentionally written. But there are also plot reasons for the information appearing in the order that it does.

If you like spaceships, conspiracies, zombie-like plagues and explosions, this is possibly the book for you. If the idea of the the format tickles your fancy then also definitely pick this one up. On the other hand, if you hate text messages and non-linear typography, this might not quite be a book you'll enjoy. It's definitely different to a lot of YA I've read of late (in format, above all), and hey, I approve of the science. ;-p

First published: October 2015, Random House (US), Allen & Unwin (AU)
Series: Yes. Book 1 of 3 in the Illuminae Files
Format read: Um. Most recently a US ARC (in actual hard-covered paper), but also an earlier draft last year for science-checking/advising purposes
Source: The authors, see above
Disclaimer: I read an earlier draft to provide science advice, see above.
Challenges: Australian Science Fiction Reading Challenge, Australian Women Writers Challenge

Snapshot 2014: Jay Kristoff

Jay Kristoff is a very tall author of SciFi/Fantasy from Melbourne, Australia. His first trilogy, the award winning THE LOTUS WAR is set to be published in over a dozen countries. The third book in the series, ENDSINGER, is due for publication in November 2014. Jay's new series, the SciFi thriller ILLUMINAE, which he co-authored with Amie Kaufman, is due for publication by Random House in 2015. He is as surprised about it as you are.

Jay is 6’7, has approximately 13520 days to live and does not believe in happy endings.

The last book of the Lotus War trilogy, Endsinger, is due to be released imminently. Now that your first series is done, what would you say were the most important things you learnt from the whole process?

It's hard to pick the most important. You learn a whole bunch first time out - there's nothing like getting thrown in the deep end to teach you how to swim. Probably the most important one was to treat writing like a job, not a hobby. To apply at least the same discipline you would if you were punching a clock nine to five. There are parts of this gig that are more fun than others, but every part of it is important. You need to understand the finances of it, understand publishing isn't magical rainbow lollipop land where everyone runs hand in hand down book lane. It's a business. It's a job. The best job in the world, sure, but unless you respect it, and treat it like one, you'll soon be looking for another one.

My god, that's a depressing answer isn't it. I'm lying, okay? We all sit around the book tree eating candy and playing with the bubblegum bees all day. Honest.

You’ve written a novellas and short stories set in the Lotus War world (including “The Last Stormdancer”, which won the Aurealis Best Fantasy Short Fiction Award). Do you mainly enjoy writing short fiction as a way of elaborating on an established world, or is it a form you can see yourself exploring further?

I'll do more shorts, for sure. Doing shorts to promote existing series is a cool way to explore the world you've created and get a taste of minor themes or characters, but I wrote a horror short for an antho called SLASHER GIRLS AND MONSTER BOYS earlier this year which was just a riot to write. I'd really like to do more of it. It'll just be about finding the right project and finding the time. I'm working on two different trilogies atm, time is kinda scarce :)

You are currently working on a new series, Illuminae, with fellow Aussie author Amie Kaufman. Can you tell us a bit about that story and the experience of working with a co-author?

ILLUMINAE is the most exciting thing I've ever worked on. The experience has been amazing, and we're not even into the design phase yet. The book itself is like nothing I've ever really seen. It's this collision between House of Leaves and Battlestar Galactica, with some 2001: A Space Odyssey thrown in. With kissing. We're trying to break the idea of what a book can be with it. Playing with illustration and typography, making the object of the book itself part of the narrative. I played with a few typography ideas in the LOTUS WAR - different point sizes and all caps for telepathy sequences to illustrate volume, but ILLUMINAE makes that look like kindergarten.

(Not the final cover)

It's basically the story of a refugee fleet of space ships, fleeing an invaded world. The people on board different ships are trying to get the bottom of a couple of different mysteries, but the story is told through hacked computer documents, email conversations, IMs, medical reports, security camera footage, and so on. So as these characters discover these documents and begin to unravel the secrets of what's going on aboard this refugee fleet, the reader does too. Like I say, I've never seen anything quite like it.

Co-authoring is a lot of fun. TBH, I wasn't sure I'd get into it, but it turns out it's a lot like working in a creative partnership in an advertising agency (which I did for 12 years). I wrote a blog post about it here, if folks are interested. I'd definitely recommend it, presuming you can find a partner who's style compliments yours. Amie and I have different strengths, and we're both very thick skinned and relaxed about other people playing with our words (which is essential). Plus, she's little Miss Sunshine, and I'm the Prince of fkn Darkness, so that works well.

What Australian works have you loved recently?

I'm just finishing Trudi Canavan's new one, THIEF'S MAGIC. Awesome stuff. And I got my copy signed eeeeeeee.

Have recent changes in the publishing industry influenced the way you work? What do you think you will be publishing/writing/reading in five years from now?

Yeah, for sure. I think it comes back to what I said above - treating it like a job. Doing it on the days it's hard. Clocking in, no matter what. Having a word count and treating it as sacrosanct. Everyone who does this is LUCKY to be here. You can't take it for granted. You can't sit around waiting for the muse to show up. Be your own muse. Make your own music.

In terms of the industry, a lot of folks seem to be talking about the YA bubble bursting - you can't just think of cool power for a sixteen year old girl to have, put in a cute boy and bam, get a book deal anymore. But there's always a market for awesome. Write something awesome, and it'll sell. Or be like me and get some really compromising photographs of important people in the industry and just blackmail your way in.

In terms of what I'll be writing in five years, I plan to be supreme ruler of the galaxy by then. So, probably lots of death warrants.

Not for YOU obviously, you're awesome. But some dudes gotta get got.

 ~

This interview was conducted as part of the 2014 Snapshot of Australian Speculative Fiction. We’ll be blogging interviews from 28 July to 10 August and archiving them at SF Signal. You can read interviews at:

http://tsanasreads.blogspot.se/search/label/2014snapshot (here)
http://fablecroft.com.au/tag/2014snapshot
http://kathrynlinge.livejournal.com/tag/2014snapshot
http://bookonaut.blogspot.com.au/search/label/2014snapshot
http://www.davidmcdonaldspage.com/tag/2014snapshot/
http://tansyrr.com/tansywp/tag/2014snapshot/
http://randomalex.net/tag/2014snapshot/
http://jasonnahrung.com/tag/2014snapshot/
http://stephaniegunn.com/tag/2014snapshot/
http://helenstubbs.wordpress.com/tag/2014snapshot/
http://ventureadlaxre.wordpress.com/tag/2014snapshot/
http://mayakitten.livejournal.com/tag/2014snapshot/
http://benpayne.wordpress.com/tag/2014snapshot/ 
http://www.merwood.com.au/worldsend/tag/2014snapshot
http://crankynick.livejournal.com/tag/2014snapshot