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There is so much hype surrounding this book, but after seeing Gemina make so many of my friends’ “Favorite Books Published in 2016” lists, I couldn’t ignore this series any longer. I also knew that it was told in a multimedia format, filled with interviews and IM conversations, and that made me a little apprehensive. This book was so unexpectedly addictive.

This story starts off in a much further progressed world, in both years and technology, than ours, on a hidden and secluded planet far, far away. Our two main protagonists, Kady and Ezra, have just broken up, and despite the awkwardness they are forced to be in class with one another. That is, until their hidden and secluded planet comes under attack, and they have to rely on each other to reach the evacuation ships.

Once safe, they are forced to board different ships, Kady on Hypatia, and Ezra on Alexander, and there is also a third ship in their fleet, Copernicus. These three ships are literally running for their lives and being pursued by an enemy battleship, the Lincoln, but they soon realize that the enemy catching up to them isn’t the only thing that is putting them in danger.

This story will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat, while you constantly tell yourself “just one more page” until you look at the clock and see it is 3AM. It is action packed, and the format is so easy to read, that these 600 pages will feel like 300 pages.

You won’t only fall in love with Kady and Ezra, but you will also fall in love with the whole ensemble of side characters. You’ll laugh and you’ll cry. You’ll be surprised and oh so anxious. You will feel like an absolute fool for not reading it sooner.

So why did I give this four stars? Because I couldn’t help but be constantly reminded of Dead Space. Don’t get me wrong, this book is still completely unique in its formatting and execution, but once the very climatic parts on Alexander started happening, I kept picturing myself playing that damn video game franchise.

AIDAN was my favorite, hands down. Kudos to both of these very talent authors for making that AI seem so scary, heartbreaking, and real. His points of view made this book for me, and once we got to those points of view, I couldn’t stop turning the pages.

“THE UNIVERSE OWES YOU NOTHING, KADY. IT HAS ALREADY GIVEN YOU EVERYTHING, AFTER ALL. IT WAS HERE LONG BEFORE YOU, AND IT WILL GO ON LONG AFTER YOU. THE ONLY WAY IT WILL REMEMBER YOU IS IF YOU DO SOMETHING WORTHY OF REMEMBRANCE.”

I was also surprised by all the twists and turns. Like, one of them was a little predictable, but the rest honestly did blindside me, especially that ending. How could you not want to immediately pick up Gemina after that ending?

I also feel like this book would be pretty universally liked, if you don’t mind the format. Like, I would totally recommend this to everyone; Sci-Fi lover or not. My only regret is not reading it sooner, because I was scared of the hype train, but now I have Goodreads and my amazing friends to thank for another beloved book in my collection.