Illuminae

I hope everyone had a blessed and merry Christmas! New books and gadgets for exercise filled mine, but I cannot forget the true meaning of Christmas, Christ's birth. Instead of attending our usual church, my family visited Cabrini Shrine, where we celebrated an intimate Mass with about 200 people. This was a nice pause from the usual crowds of Christmas.

As a continuation of my book blogging, I just finished reading Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff. Usually, I am not a science fiction fan. Apocalyptic worlds set in the future generally stress me out. Reading should not be stressful when it is one of my greatest stress-relievers. So when one of my good friends handed me this book, I was afraid I would not make it through. However, I had nothing else to read, and I trusted my friend's praise of the book, so I started.

Immediately, I was hooked. Kaufman and Kristoff brilliantly combine zombies, computer hacking, and spaceships with a love story. As an added bonus, it was the furthest thing from sappy. Although I occasionally enjoy a good love story, the overwhelming amount of cliche sappy novels sold in bookstores infuriates me. But that is a rant for another time.

Illuminae features exes Ezra Mason and Kady Grant as they take on Artificial Intelligence to save the world, forced to put their broken relationship behind them. The whole book is told through documents - instant messaging, surveillance cameras, emails, etc. This puts a unique twist on the traditional science fiction genre.

Be sure to check out this book; science fiction fans and romance-lovers alike will delight in its unique twist on the conventional story of boy-meets-girl-and-they-save-the-world.

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