Illuminae (The Illuminae Files Series #1)

by Amie Kaufman, Jay Kristoff

Overview

For fans of Marie Lu comes the first book in an epic series that bends the sci-fi genre into a new dimension.
 
 “A truly beautiful novel that redefines the form." —Victoria Aveyard, bestselling author of Red Queen

This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do. This afternoon, her planet was invaded.
      The year is 2575, and two rival megacorporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than a speck at the edge of the universe. Now with enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to evacuate with a hostile warship in hot pursuit.
     But their problems are just getting started. A plague has broken out and is mutating with terrifying results; the fleet’s AI may actually be their enemy; and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a web of data to find the truth, it’s clear the only person who can help her is the ex-boyfriend she swore she’d never speak to again.
      Told through a fascinating dossier of hacked documents—including emails, maps, files, IMs, medical reports, interviews, and more—Illuminae is the first book in a heart-stopping trilogy about lives interrupted, the price of truth, and the courage of everyday heroes.
 
“Prepare yourselves for Illuminae.” —EW.com
 
“[Y]ou’re not in for an ordinary novel experience. . . .”  —Bustle.com
 
“A truly interactive experience. . . . A fantastically fun ride.” —MTV.com
 
★ “[O]ut-of-this-world awesome.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred
 
★ “…stylistically mesmerizing.” —Publishers Weekly, starred
 
★ “[A]n arresting visual experience.”—Booklist, starred
  
★ “[A] game-changer.” —Shelf Awareness, starred

“Brace yourself. You're about to be immersed in a mindscape that you'll never want to leave.”  —Marie Lu, bestselling author of the Legend trilogy
 
"Genre: Undefinable. Novel: Unforgettable." —Kami Garcia, bestselling coauthor of Beautiful Creatures & author of Unbreakable
 
“An exuberant mix of space opera, romance, zombies, hackers, and political thrills.”  —Scott Westerfeld, bestselling author of  Zeroes and Uglies
 
“Stunningly creative. Smart, funny, and romantic.”  —Veronica Rossi, bestselling author of Under the Never Sky
 
“This is one of those rare books that will truly keep your heart pounding.” —Beth Revis, bestselling author of Across the Universe
 
“This book is xxxxing awesome.”
—Laini Taylor, bestselling author of Daughter of Smoke and Bone

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780553499117
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	10/20/2015
Series:	Illuminae Files Series , #1
Pages:	608
Sales rank:	506,771
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.90(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Amie Kaufman is the New York Times bestselling co-author of the Starbound series. Jay Kristoff is the award-winning author of the Lotus War series. Collectively, they are 12’5” tall and live in Melbourne, Australia, with two long-suffering spouses, two rescue dogs, and a plentiful supply of caffeine. They met, thanks to international taxation law, and stuck together due to a shared love of blowing things up and breaking hearts. You can learn more about Amie and Jay at amiekaufman.com and jaykristoff.com.

Editorial Reviews

★ 07/20/2015
Star-crossed lovers fight for survival in this visually stunning adventure, the first in a trilogy and told through myriad documents and archived information, including instant messages, email, interview transcripts, memos, and security footage. Following a devastating attack on their home planet, Kady Grant and Ezra Mason, having just broken up, end up on different ships, part of a refugee fleet fleeing a cosmic dreadnought. Additionally, a virus is turning the survivors into bloodthirsty monsters, while one ship’s murderous AI takes extreme measures to protect the fleet. Though separated, Kady and Ezra rekindle their relationship while everything collapses around them. What starts off as a spacefaring action-romance evolves into a nerve-wracking horror story as the true scope of the situation becomes clear. Kaufman (the Starbound trilogy) and Kristoff (the Lotus War series) offer a stylistically mesmerizing tale, where story and art are interchangeable, and words act as pictures. The more experimental sections may require extra effort on readers’ parts, but the result is worth it. Ages 14–up. Agent: (for Kaufman) John Adams and Tracey Adams, Adams Literary; (for Kristoff) Matt Bialer and Lindsay Ribar, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

06/01/2015
Gr 7 Up—Kady Grant has typical problems: school, parents, and a boyfriend she just dumped. But life spirals out of control when Kady's planet, Kerenza, is attacked by an unknown enemy. As destruction unfolds around her, Kady manages to escape her planet on one of three ships. Kady is considered lucky, with her mother on one ship and her ex, Ezra, on another. As the convoy flees Kerenza with the enemy close behind, it is clear that the problems have just begun. A deadly virus is spreading through one of the ships; AIDEN, the onboard computer of the lead ship, has gone rogue; and the enemy is in close pursuit in an attempt to destroy the last witnesses of the Kerenza catastrophe. Using a nontraditional writing style, Kaufman and Kristoff craft the narrative using illustrated screen shots of spaceship blueprints, interviews, data, and messages that make up the "Illuminae Files." Despite the minimal presence of conventional paragraphs, there is a surprisingly natural flow as elements are seamlessly woven together to create a satisfying dossier-style reading experience. The characters are immediately real and with harrowing accounts, unexpected twists, and gut-wrenching selflessness, they become even more endearing over the course of the book. While reminiscent of the works of Isaac Asimov and Orson Scott Card, this work is a distinct piece that stands alone. VERDICT A great recommendation for middle and high school science-fiction fans.—Paige Rowse, Syosset High School Library, New York

School Library Journal

★ 2015-06-23
In the wake of an interstellar incident, a post-mortem dossier comprising interview transcripts, memos, instant-messaging transcripts, diary entries, and more is assembled in this mammoth series opener. Teenage colonists and exes Kady's and Ezra's lives are rocked by the 2575 assault on the Wallace/Ulyanov Consortium's illegal mining colony by their corporate rival, BeiTech Industries. They are among the lucky ones who manage to evacuate—Kady to the science vessel Hypatia and Ezra to the United Terran Authority's battlecarrier Alexander. The latter escorts both Hypatia and the freighter Copernicus in a monthslong race to safety while pursued by a BeiTech dreadnought, one likely to win should the ships engage again. Ezra's recruited as a fighter pilot. Kady avoids conscription by flunking tests and highlighting her defiant personality, which allows her freedom to hack the ships. What she discovers disturbs her and leads her to communicate with Ezra again—both for more information and because of their unfinished business. The two teenagers—a focus of the dossier due to their sleuthing—share and uncover disturbing information about an incident with Copernicus, the damage sustained by Alexander's artificial intelligence system, and a terrifying virus. The design's creative visuals take advantage of the nontraditional format, which gracefully juggles document types, foreshadowing, clues, voices, and characters. As the characters' time runs out, the story ambushes readers with surprises. The account completes the incident's history but not its fallout. Ambitious, heartbreaking, and out-of-this-world awesome. (Science fiction. 13 & up)

Kirkus Reviews

Prepare yourselves for Illuminae.” —EW.com
 
“[Y]ou’re not in for an ordinary novel experience. . . .”  —Bustle.com
 
“A truly interactive experience. . . . A fantastically fun ride.” —MTV.com
 
“[O]ut-of-this-world awesome.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred 
 
“…stylistically mesmerizing.” —Publishers Weekly, starred 
 
“[A]n arresting visual experience.”—Booklist, starred 
  
“[A] game-changer.” —Shelf Awareness, starred

“Brace yourself. You're about to be immersed in a mindscape that you'll never want to leave.”  —Marie Lu, bestselling author of the Legend trilogy

“It certainly filled the Battlestar Galactica–shaped hole in my heart.”—Victoria Aveyard, bestselling author of The Red Queen
 
"Genre: Undefinable. Novel: Unforgettable." —Kami Garcia, bestselling coauthor of Beautiful Creatures & author of Unbreakable
 
“An exuberant mix of space opera, romance, zombies, hackers, and political thrills.”  —Scott Westerfeld, bestselling author of  Zeroes and Uglies
 
“Stunningly creative. Smart, funny, and romantic.”  —Veronica Rossi, bestselling author of Under the Never Sky
 
“This is one of those rare books that will truly keep your heart pounding.”—Beth Revis, bestselling author of Across the Universe
 
“This book is xxxxing awesome.” 
—Laini Taylor, bestselling author of Daughter of Smoke and Bone

From the Publisher

A full cast, sound effects, strong pacing, and thorough characterizations expand as well as anchor this sci-fi adventure. When their planet is attacked, a military ship and a research vessel flee, carrying scientists, military personnel, and civilians, including Kady and Ezra, a recently broken-up couple whose skills become crucial to the survival of the fleet. The voyage is threatened by a pursuing warship, a dangerous virus, and AIDEN, the military ship’s increasingly unstable AI. Told through documents, recorded communications, transcribed footage, and the narrative from AIDEN, this story is a behemoth of a space opera. The cast handles a bevy of moving parts with grace and masterful concentration, combining humor and terror with hope and determination. K.S.B. 2016 Audies Winner © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine

JANUARY 2016 - AudioFile