November 2021 Not First in a Series BOTM - Aurora's End, by Amie Kaufman

[Alaina]

The squad you love is out of time. Prepare for the thrilling finale in the epic, best-selling Aurora Cycle series about a band of unlikely heroes who just might be the galaxy's last hope for survival.

Is this the end?
What happens when you ask a bunch of losers, discipline cases, and misfits to save the galaxy from an ancient evil? The ancient evil wins, of course.
Wait. . . . Not. So. Fast.
When we last saw Squad 312, they working together seamlessly (aka, freaking out) as an intergalactic battle raged and an ancient superweapon threatened to obliterate Earth. Everything went horribly wrong, naturally.
But as it turns out, not all endings are endings, and the te4am has one last chance to rewrite thirs. Maybe two. It's complicated.
Cue Zila, Fin, and Scarlett (and MAGELLAN!): making friends, making enemies, and making history? Sure, no problem
Cue Tyler, Kal, and Auri: uniting with two of the galaxy’s most hated villains? Um, okay. That, too.
Actually saving the galaxy, though?
Now that will take a miracle.

**This BOTM thread will be open until December 5th @ Midnight (in your time zone)**

[Jenn]

Part 1: (view spoiler)[ oh my gosh so much to dissect! So scarlett, finn, and zila are all stuck in the past. Tyler is being held captive by saedii. Auri and Kal are in the future?? I need answers! (hide spoiler)]

[Alicia]

Best book in the series by far! I was hesitant after I found book two pretty mediocre, but I loved this one.

[Vanessa Gayle ⚔️]

20%

(view spoiler)[What the frack is happening? Are they really in a time loop? What prevented them from dying in a massive explosion and how did they get to this part of space? Where is the battle?

Fuck yes! Tyler and Saedii kissing is evrything that I needed! And Saedii being the one to initiate it is even better. Best kiss-fight ever.

2177---->2380? Fuck yes, time travel!

The flashbacks that Kal has to his childhood were so raw and vivid. His mother getting beaten by his father, his father letting his sister beat the shit out of him to make him learn his ways, his memories of his mother, it was all so emotional.

How did the Ra'haam overtake Earth? Did Kal, Auri, and the Starslayer time travel too? And if so, did they travel forward or backward since the Ra'haam have devoured worlds? (hide spoiler)]

[Vanessa Gayle ⚔️]

Jenn wrote: "Part 1: [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[I know! The time travel stuff is weird. I can't wait to find out how that even happened. It does seem like Kal and Auri are in the future and that Saedii and Tyler are in the present and we know that Scarlett, Zila, and Fin are in the past. They are all split up and in different time periods, it seems like. (hide spoiler)]

[Jenn]

End of part 2: (view spoiler)[ Future Tyler is heartbreaking. To see all that they have lost and to think that Auri just had abandoned them. And while I'm happy that Scarlett and Fin are getting close, their time loop is getting shorter. They need to figure out why they are there and what they need to do. Everything is so chaotic! (hide spoiler)]

[Jenn]

♛Vanessa♛ wrote: "Jenn wrote: "Part 1: [spoilers removed]"

[spoilers removed]"

I need them all back together!

[Jenn]

End of part 3: (view spoiler)[ I am a sobbing mess. I'm happy that Zila found someone but omg, her leaving the messages and everything, knowing she put all of this into motion. I can't. And future Tyler sacrificing himself for his daughter. Nope. Just sobbing. (hide spoiler)]

[Jenn]

Finished: (view spoiler)[While I'm not too sure on the whole 'love saved the day' thing, and I'm a little fuzzy on what actually happened to the Ra'haam, I loved the sense of family that was found in this book. I'm honestly surprised no one besides Cat died. I would have thought Jay would have upped the ante here considering he couldn't kill anyone in the Illuminae Files (hide spoiler)]

[Alicia]

Jenn wrote: "Finished: [spoilers removed]"

Yeah, I was a bit ambivalent with that part too

[Vanessa Gayle ⚔️]

32%

(view spoiler)[Aww, does Zila like Kim? So adorbs!

“I shall see you in the stars.” I have to admit, it’s kind of beautiful. The way that Saedii told Tyler that Syldrathi don’t say goodbye but this instead. And her explanation about atoms and all that. Very scientific and the nerd in me found it very romantic.

Holy moly, yes! Tyler and Saedii getting it on! They so have to be experiencing the Pull. I just love these two together. Saedii is so vicious and Tyler is so alpha. They are just perfect!

OMG, yes, it is the Pull! And in that moment that Tyler and Saedii shared after they made whoopie you can really see the war within herself. She has these feelings for Tyler but she is also who she is- a templar of the warbreed cabal, the Starslayer’s daughter- and Tyler is half Terran and there are just so many obstacles between them. They are so different and their lives and loyalties are different. It was kind of sad to see all that in that moment. Even sadder, I think, when she have him her dagger, kissed his knuckles, and told him that she would see him in the stars. I just love these two so much it makes my heart hurt. (hide spoiler)]

[Vanessa Gayle ⚔️]

46%

(view spoiler)[OMG, Tyler! I can’t believe that Auri, Kal, and the Starslayer are in the future and are seeing a forty-something Tyler. I am freaking out right now.

OMG, Lai has to be Tyler and Saedii’s child. Kal was remarking to himself how she looked familiar and that her hair was a mix of silver and gold. That she wore the Waywalker sigil on her brow but she was hostile like a Warbreed Syldrathi. Holy shit.

Jeez, I can’t imagine dying over and over again. This loop that Scarlett, Zila, Fin, and Kim are in sucks. Let’s hope they get things right at some point soon.

Hahaha. “This is a book?”

Aww, Fin is so adorable. His talk with Scarlett about intimacy really hit me in the feels. (hide spoiler)]

[Vanessa Gayle ⚔️]

69%

(view spoiler)[The loops are getting shorter. I wonder what that means?

The future that Tyler lives in is bleak. I feel so bad for all the survivors. The Starslayer and Auri are trying to hold off the Ra’haam so the survivors can escape. It just occurred to me how much Auri and the Starslayer could do if they worked together. I wonder if they worked together to defeat the Ra’haam then would they both live in the end?

Oh Magellan, I missed you. Not surprised that Magellan knows about the plan to save the galaxy. Or about Kim.

Oh wow, things are making more sense. Nari is one of the founders of the Aurora Legion. And all the information about their journey and all the stuff left for them has been passed down from commander to commander through the centuries to get to the moment when Tyler and the rest of them left Aurora Academy.

Okay, I did tear up a bit there when Auri and Kal hug forties-Tyler.

I had a feeling that Zila would stay. (hide spoiler)]

[Vanessa Gayle ⚔️]

88%

(view spoiler)[Poor Tyler. Laying there probably dying and having to kill Cat for real this time. At least he was able to stop the explosion of Aurora Academy.

Okay, I am legit crying now. Forties-Tyler just died and Kal has realized who Lai is and who Tyler is to her. And now the Starslayer does too. I am so emotional right now.

Holy shit, the pen!

OMG, I am for real crying right now. When Tyler wakes up and sees the message that Nari and Zila left him. My heart is aching right now.

Holy moly, the Ra’haam spores hatched on Octavia and destroyed the entire fleet of ships that were there to destroy it. Like, the ships of every world. All of their armies are gone now. What the hell are they supposed to do? This would be a good time for Auri to show up with the weapon. (hide spoiler)]

[Vanessa Gayle ⚔️]

Finished!

(view spoiler)[Yes! Saedii has brought her warships to help fight the Ra’haam. And Fin and Scarlett’s reaction to Tyler and Saedii’s obvious affection towards each other was priceless. Fin and that not-so-discreet fist bump. It made me laugh.

I just realized that when Tyler had that vision of Aurora Academy being blown up that was probably Auri transmitting that thought into his mind from across time, right?

Did the Starslayer sacrifice himself to save them in the end? That part is a little unclear to me. And what happened exactly? Did his essence get transferred into Auri or some weirdness?

Okay, I just finished and I am a sobbing mess. I am still a tad confused about where Auri sent the Ra’haam though. I mean, the Ra’haam’s hive mind got transferred to her and then she transferred it somewhere else? I get the whole part about making the hive mind feel love and all that but the physical aspect was confusing.

Zila finding Auri’s family was so beautiful. And then her finding her great x10 niece at the end, gah! And Zila staying in the past with Kim was so bittersweet. I can’t believe everything that Zila did. She definitely deserves that statue. I thought that the ending was very fitting. And I loved all the couples at the end. I’m really sad to say goodbye to these characters. I loved this series so much! (hide spoiler)]

[Vanessa Gayle ⚔️]

Jenn wrote: "End of part 2: [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[I know! Future Tyler was so heartbreaking to see. I am glad that he was still fighting though. And that he had his daughter there with him. And the time loop was so scary! It would suck to have to die over and over again until they got it right or risk never being able to return home and eventually dying for real. (hide spoiler)]

[Vanessa Gayle ⚔️]

Jenn wrote: "End of part 3: [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[I am a mess right now too. Like, I am legit weeping. Zila staying behind was so bittersweet. I hate that she had to leave her friends but I am glad that she found happiness. And all the stuff that she did to help set everything up, gah! And future Tyler sacrificing himself for his daughter got me right in the feels. And telling her that her mother loved her and was proud of her just like he was? Yeah, I cried. (hide spoiler)]

[Vanessa Gayle ⚔️]

Jenn wrote: "Finished: [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[I agree about the Ra'haam. I am not sure where they ended up or how. I honestly couldn't tell if they were sucked into the ship and tossed into another galaxy or what. I get the idea behind it but not necessarily the physical aspects of it. And you're right. I can't believe that more people didn't die. Though I guess I'm glad that they didn't. Perhaps they spared us more deaths with the bittersweet trapping of Zila in the past. I dunno. I'm a total mess right now though. I don't want to say goodbye to these characters. These two better write another series together or I may riot. =P (hide spoiler)]

[Emma]

Ch 12 @31%
(view spoiler)[ I really hope Auri is going to survive this book. The book title has taken on a horrible new significance when I read about her being so keen to use the weapon again even though she knows it will damage her. (hide spoiler)]

[Emma]

Ch 15 (view spoiler)[ the time loop sections are really well done- pretty amusing!
So the cause of the time loop is the two separate parts of the Crystal, one of which is round Scarlett’s neck (hide spoiler)]

[Emma]

Ch 22
(view spoiler)[ Nari as one of the Academy’s founders!! (hide spoiler)]

[Emma]

Ch 30
(view spoiler)[ I’m impressed Tyler found the strength to kill Cat. (hide spoiler)]

[Emma]

Ch 31
(view spoiler)[ no surprise there: Lale being Tyler and Saedi’s kid (hide spoiler)]

[Emma]

Ch 35 (view spoiler)[ that might have brought a tear to my eye.. (hide spoiler)]