Aurora by Julie Bertagna

June 2011, MacMillan Children's

Paperback

Review copy 

Dystopian 

Rebellion, strong individuals, war, love, families, friendship, marriage, betrayal, peace, lots of surprises, some violence, tissues needed

Summary from Pan MacMillan

Much of Earth is underwater – in the high mountains at the top of the world Lily survives with her mother and her people . . . but she feels trapped. Elsewhere, beneath the exclusive sky-cities that tower above the waves, Fox has been waiting too. But when Fox and Lily meet on a virtual plane, they realize the time has come to act. The world must be made whole again, even if it means losing each other!

Nayulseka's reasons for loving Lily...once I got over how annoyed I was at not having Mara as the central character (she does appear later on), I quite enjoyed viewing the world through Lily's eyes. It's not easy having a mother who had amazing adventures and won't let her own daughter have fun. 

Is there another character who deserves a mention? (Mara!) Candle is another new character I loved: she's not as weak as she looks, she's plucky, and has a level of attitude about her. 

How evil/nasty is the enemy? The enemy is the same as before, so pretty evil. There are also personal enemies for each character, whose dangerous emotions (such as jealousy, envy, greed...) make them in some ways more dangerous than the very people Mara, Lily and their people were fighting against. 

Are there plenty of plot twists and surprises? Plenty - I smiled in places, my heart skipped several beats and I needed a tissue quite a bit. 

One of my favourite parts was....the end because it's a very heartwarming part of the book.

In places the chapters felt too short, especially when followed by a chapter for the same point of view character - it gave the story a choppy feeling. However, the way the various plots weave together is incredible, so I give it 9.5/10. 

You can find out more about the series and Julie on her website. 

Suggested reads

Make sure you've read book one, Exodus 

and book two, Zenith