Cover Image: Aurora's End

Aurora's End

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This was such. great ending to the series. Lots of tears were shed while reading this book for a variety of reasons. Both Kaugman and Kristoff really know how to extort emotion out of their readers. There have not been many stories that involved time loops/paradoxes that really work in the story. There are usually a lot of plot holes that don't get resolved or the story just isn't satisfying enough. However with this book, the story is so good that any plot holes that may exist are hard to see or are easy enough to ignore because the reason for the time loops was vital to the story. It was so well done.

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The dynamic duo of Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff do not disappoint. They have created another series that keeps you on the edge of your seat with action packed space battles, witty banter, and lovable misfit characters that you just can’t help but root for. In Aurora’s End we return back to the lives of Squad 312 as this ragtag team is separated across the universe trying to stop the Ra’Haam. There is romance. There is heartache. And there is a plan that was put into place long before the Aurora Legion was formed — the question is — will it work?. In the book the Syldrathi don’t say goodbye. Instead they say, “I will see you in the stars.” I didn’t want this series to end and I hope there is another collaboration in the stars for Kaufman and Kristoff.

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Amie and Jay really know how to finish a story, and that's about all that I can give them. I started this series when the first book was released, and was disappointed by the lack of diversity and the kill your gays trope that followed alongside. I paused on reading the second one, and picked this one up only out of pure curiosity. I was disappointed to see that it was their same, basic way of writing a "future" that just doesn't cut it with today's world. It was well written, the characters were interesting enough, but I found myself feeling as though there was something lacking. Perhaps I just didn't get to know the characters well enough by skipping book two, but I just didn't have the emotional connection I was rooting for. But... I am a sucker for how they both write about outer space, so I have to give this book a solid 4/5.

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What a fantastic, and I mean FANTASTIC conclusion to a trilogy that is full of characters that I hold near and dear to my heart. Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff have yet again drafted a masterpiece of a trilogy that can be read time and time again. Thank you for the e-arc!

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Wow. What a way to end the series. See Fin that "stupid " pen was super important. I loved how all of our characters, even though separated, had to work together.
Make love not war.

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I was given and arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.


Fans of Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman know these authors pull no punches when it comes to their reader's emotions, and this book is no different. Aurora's End is perfection in book form! I have never been on an emotional roller coaster so intense before. It is so, SO EFFING GOOD!!!!
The authors took this story to a whole new level and it SOARED. The characters we all know and love are just as sarcastic and heart warming as in the first two books. The writing is phenomenal. The world building in this book and series is next-level. All of it was perfect. I have no complaints.

I will post a more comprehensive review after the book releases to avoid spoiling anything but for real, this book was amazing.

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4.5 stars.

This book picks up immediately after the previous one ended. But boy, does it pack some surprises. One of our groups has traveled forward in time, another backward. Throw in a disintegrating time loop and having to cooperate with pretty much the worst person in the galaxy, and you can see that there are plenty of problems to solve.

The time loop is handled well—just enough repetition to establish the problem, without beating you over the head with it.

Once again, our characters continue to evolve. Loyalties—and plans—are tested. They are pushed to their absolute limits, and some have to make life-altering decisions. No one comes out truly unscathed; some of the wounds are visible and some are not. And good people die.

One of my YA lit pet peeves is a factor here, however. Remember, our characters—except Saedii and probably Kal—are all about 17 years old. Yet every one of the surviving characters has found their life partner by the end of the book. Yes, I know I am old and that this book was not written for me. I remember being 17 and longing to find that one person to love and be loved by. However, I think the prevalence of teenaged characters finding their lifelong love is setting up unrealistic expectations. This is something I’m not going to stop talking about, even while I’m rooting for the characters.

As our mysteries are explained (Why were the strange gifts in the second book left for them? Why did their superior offices give them coded messages?), it makes sense.

Some things, though, still seemed to come a little too easy. Aurora’s ultimate solution…I don’t know. It just didn’t quite satisfy me. I don’t want to be spoiler-y, though I think you will probably expect Our Heroes to win, since that’s what happens in books, but I do think the Ra’haam went along a little too easily.

The final chapter…was okay. It was cute. Did it add much to the resolution? Not really.

I will miss these characters—their humor, their fortitude, and their relationships.

Possible objectionable content:
While Auri uses substitute swears (“holy cake” and “mothercustard”), other characters do swear, including increased use of the f-word as time passes. Sexual innuendo and sexual activity, none of it graphic. Lots of violence—we’re saving the galaxy, after all. All of Squad 312 has lost parents in one way or another.

Who might like these books:
Science fiction fans. Those who love books about people who shouldn’t fit together, yet become a team and a family despite their differences. Those who like romance to go along with kick-butt fighting.

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC in return for my unbiased opinion.

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Given that AURORA BURNING ended with the near-certain death of every member of Squad 312, it's virtually impossible to summarize AURORA'S END in any significant way without substantial spoilers. Instead, suffice it to say that Kaufman and Kristoff have delivered a soul-crushing, hilarious, nail-biting end to their latest trilogy.

Going forward to speak in the vaguest terms possible, there are a lot of threads to follow in this book and each of them are so incredibly high-stakes that almost every switch between point of view characters is a cliffhanger. Despite the amount of complexity, each thread is unique enough that there was very little confusion (other than the confusion the reader is clearly intended to feel). While previous installments of the series of have given some characters more page time than others, those who are still with the narrative in AURORA'S END get more or less equal attention. What the readers learn about each character makes them more compelling - it felt like the stakes were raised during every single chapter. Which of course, made the ending as devastating as one might expect from these two authors. The action was well-paced with few lulls, and the ultimate conclusion, while convoluted, was satisfying.

Those who have been reading The Aurora Cycle will not be disappointed by this finale to the series.

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An enormous thank you to Random House Children's publishing, NetGalley, and of course Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff for providing me with an eARC of this book. I am leaving a review voluntarily, all opinions are my own.

It's not a secret that I love this series. I've read the first book more times than I can count, and the second is only behind my a couple reads. This one will be right up there with the others, I can tell you that much.
I won't go into specifics of any plot bits or anything, because I really don't want to spoil any part for anyone else before the book is released, but this book was fantastic.

This book was an experience from beginning to end, and while I saw certain moments coming, there were others I couldn't have prepared for and boy oh boy, this book takes you on a ride. This was such an emotional roller coaster, I was so elated at times, sobbing at others, and just flat out angry in between.

If you're a fan of Amie and Jay's writing, and if you enjoyed this series so far, then this book will most certainly be one to read. This was everything I wanted from this last book and then some, I am so thoroughly pleased right now and cannot wait to have a physical copy of this baby in my hands in less than 4 months.

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#1 Finian is just an adorable cinnamon roll and we must protect him at all costs
#2 I love Magellan
#3 I FINALLY KNOW WHAT THE PEN IS FOR
#4 PERFECT ending to an amazing series

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Up until now, I wasn’t sure this saga had really earned the classification of Space Opera. But after the wild ride I was just taken on, I can happily say I was wrong.

The found family trope was cranked up to beyond what I could have hoped for. And these characters had some nerve growing on me as much as they did, because I swore reading the last book that I wouldn’t become at attached as I did. The story provides satisfying conclusions for each character, and watching the pieces fall into place as the story progresses was fun and fast-paced and suspenseful all at once.

While the first two books did a decent job of developing each Legion member’s personality and purpose, this book jumps right in knowing that readers are already attached and simply need to know what dangers our protagonists have managed to keep falling into and how they’ll manage to worm their way out. Each new chapter is packed with intense revelations and creative problem solving that will keep readers itching to turn the page. I finished this final book in a single sitting, and my only regret was not relishing in this world a little longer.

My only qualms lie in certain characterization choices that I can’t elaborate without spoiling, but I will say some choices were made that raised a few red flags and involved dubious consent, so I’d caution any readers whom that may be a trigger for.

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***Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***
An action-packed, heart-racing conclusion to the Aurora series. When we last left our favorite rag-tag squad, they were fighting to survive and save the galaxy from the clutches of an ancient evil. The book wraps everything in a tight and emotionally laden bow and makes me wish I could read more about these wonderful characters.

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*Thank you to Jay Kristoff, Amie Kauffman, NetGalley, and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

I’ll be honest, I don’t even know how to start this review. I absolutely loved this book and hated it all at the same time. It was such a dramatic ending to the series, but I’m so sad to leave the squad behind, knowing they will have adventures and we won’t be going along.

As always, I guess, let’s start with the characters. They were all so dramatic and dynamic and everything that was good about them in the first two books was taken and made better. Since this book is multiple POV, and the characters spent most of this book apart, I’m going to review them in groups.

First will be Tyler and Saedii: I love them both for dramatically different reasons. Tyler is such a guy and I adored that about him. He has a plan. He is in charge. He knows what he wants. But Saedii comes in and throws that off. She also has a plan. She also is in charge. She also knows what she wants. Unlike Tyler though, she is in a position to get it. Saedii was the star of this book for me. I am in love with Saedii after finishing this story, and no one can convince me otherwise.

Next, Fin, Zilla, Scarlet: Their story was a bit confusing, and it was definitely intentional. Follow this piece closely because if you don’t, what happens to them (one of them in specific) will SLAP YOU IN THE FACE. I loved these three so much, but I had to reread some of their chapters a few times.

Finally Aurora and Kal: I would die for Aurora. I would die for Kal. I love them. I want all of the good things for them. But, because of who they are, good things don’t exactly come easily. But! Aurora and Kal are the best part of this series and if you don’t agree, you are very wrong.

There were side characters that stood out, but overall I didn’t care about anyone too much other than the squad.

As for the plot of this novel, the beginning was a bit confusing, but a reread of the prior two novels could have fixed that. I think that this story was the perfect blend of science fiction, action, and romance. Can we make that a genre? Every fight and battle, no matter if it was between armies or just people, was so gripping, I was on the edge of my seat. I love that you never know where characters stand: who’s going to make it and who won’t.

Overall, I loved this book. I could see how it was going to end, but the details of it were fuzzy until they actually happened. I think that it was a great balance between suspense and anticipation. I think every story arc wrapped up in a very satisfying way, even though not all of them were how I wanted them. I am so glad for the happy ending that this book had, even if the journey is over.

What a joy this book was, and as Saedii says, Squad 313, I’ll see you in the stars.

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This is a story about time.

I laughed, I cried, I drank coffee so I could read all night. This was the perfect conclusion to a series I loved, and I’m so happy that the exit was fitting for squad 312. At its core, this has always been a series about sacrifice and devotion- and those themes and the characters embodying them are beautifully rendered here at the end of it all.

One of my favorite things about this series is that it contains 2 of my favorite tropes: found family, and an underdog heroes journey- and I think if the author duo decided to write 10 more books in the series I would happily read them all.

That being said I still think this cover is terrifying!

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️/5

Thank you so much Netgalley Random House Children’s for this eArc!

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Sooooo good! Such a clever, heartfelt, and romantic (okay, yes, and very action packed!) ending to one of the best sci-fi series I’ve read in a while. Great, distinctive characters and witty banter make you cheer on this band of misfits as the adventure comes to a nail biting close.

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I can’t believe I just read the last book in The Aurora Cycle Trilogy. I loved these books so much. I fell in love with every single character. All of them have my heart. In Aurora’s End we see Squad 312 reeling from what happened at the end of Aurora Burning and everyone is separated. While I missed the squad together, I loved reading everyone’s different stories. I was honestly stressed reading this book. I had no idea what was going to happen or if anything was going to work out. Several times I thought about reading the last chapter, but I decided against it, and I am glad that I did. The end left me so satisfied. This series will always hold a place in my heart and I would love to read these books from the beginning one day.

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What an epic conclusion to one of my all time favorite series! I have been following the Aurora Cycle books for the past few years, and it was so bittersweet to be reading the final installment. Squad 312 has earned such a big place in my heart--truly one of the most epic friend groups I have ever read in literature. I was nervous in picking up this finale, as the previous book left off in a major cliffhanger, and I was not sure how this book was going to go. I am so happy that this book did not disappoint in the slightest! Jay and Amie have truly pulled off such a fast-paced, emotional, and wonderful finale that was an instant 5 star rating. I can't wait for other fans of the Aurora Cycle to experience this book--and all the fantastic scenes, characters, and action it entails. Loved this so much!

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This third and final book really gave us the ending we deserved. The characters growth and journey throughout this book really made the stakes higher and conclusion more worthwhile. This book is worth the wait and if there are any doubts please take a chance on it. And I will see you in the stars.

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Excellent ending to a wild and fun trilogy. Jay and Amie’s writing is so easy to fall back into. All the characters lived up to my expectations, some more. Thank you for the ARC.

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Our crew is down to the wire with saving their galaxy and everyone in it.
This was a great ending to this series. I'm a sucker for endings where everyone walks away happy.
Aurora's End has the adventure, heart and humor I enjoyed from the first two books in this series.

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