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Exodus Trilogy #2
Aurora
On Aurora, humanity's final outpost is heading for disaster.
In 2080, the starship Exodus left Earth, carrying some 1600 people, to give humanity a second chance. Now, in 2245, the colonists are trying to build a future on distant Aurora. But the doomed world that sent them on their long voyage had turned authoritarian and repressive, leading a small group to form a plan to let those sent on the Exodus choose a different path.
While Kenneth Taylor struggles to accept his self-imposed silence even on the new world, Thomas Dunn is slowly subverting the colonial administration. Governor George Havelar, on the other hand, plans to make sure the mistakes of the past are not repeated as he proposes a radical plan for human expansion. In the north a simmering discontent is threatening to break up the unity of the human settlement on Aurora, and former scramjet pilot Tina Hammer realizes she cannot stay out of the conflict. Maria Solis, torn between loyalty to her father's faction and her own desires, is suddenly being forced into the conflict as she witnesses a terrible crime.
With an entire planet to discover, tensions rise as opposing forces work their plans. While the leadership of the colony tries to affirm its control, others are working to regain lost liberties.
Will humanity's final outpost survive the confrontation, or succumb to destruction?
In 2080, the starship Exodus left Earth, carrying some 1600 people, to give humanity a second chance. Now, in 2245, the colonists are trying to build a future on distant Aurora. But the doomed world that sent them on their long voyage had turned authoritarian and repressive, leading a small group to form a plan to let those sent on the Exodus choose a different path.
While Kenneth Taylor struggles to accept his self-imposed silence even on the new world, Thomas Dunn is slowly subverting the colonial administration. Governor George Havelar, on the other hand, plans to make sure the mistakes of the past are not repeated as he proposes a radical plan for human expansion. In the north a simmering discontent is threatening to break up the unity of the human settlement on Aurora, and former scramjet pilot Tina Hammer realizes she cannot stay out of the conflict. Maria Solis, torn between loyalty to her father's faction and her own desires, is suddenly being forced into the conflict as she witnesses a terrible crime.
With an entire planet to discover, tensions rise as opposing forces work their plans. While the leadership of the colony tries to affirm its control, others are working to regain lost liberties.
Will humanity's final outpost survive the confrontation, or succumb to destruction?
296 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 22, 2013
176 people are currently reading
260 people want to read
About the author
Andreas Christensen
32 books134 followersAndreas Christensen is a Norwegian science fiction and fantasy author. His most recently published work is Frostfall, an epic fantasy.
His popular series the Exodus Trilogy received rave reviews in both the U.S. and the U.K. and has been compared to classics such as Heinlein and Asimov. The Rift Saga is set approximately two centuries after the events of Exodus, and a reviewer described it as "Hunger Games on steroids". In a good way...
He is currently working on new projects, including a "second generation" story set in the Aurora universe, in addition to the Legionnaire Series.
Andreas Christensen has a degree in Psychology from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and his professional background is mainly from public service. He has a weakness for cats, coffee and up until recently, books so heavy he'd need a separate suitcase in order to carry them every time he traveled. Luckily, the world has changed, and the suitcase has now been replaced by an e-reader.
You can find Andreas Christensen here:
Website and blog: christensenwriting.com
Twitter: @achr75
Facebook: facebook.com/christensenwriting
Get your FREE copy of ALIVE, the Exodus companion novella. Just go to christensenwriting.com to get started!
His popular series the Exodus Trilogy received rave reviews in both the U.S. and the U.K. and has been compared to classics such as Heinlein and Asimov. The Rift Saga is set approximately two centuries after the events of Exodus, and a reviewer described it as "Hunger Games on steroids". In a good way...
He is currently working on new projects, including a "second generation" story set in the Aurora universe, in addition to the Legionnaire Series.
Andreas Christensen has a degree in Psychology from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and his professional background is mainly from public service. He has a weakness for cats, coffee and up until recently, books so heavy he'd need a separate suitcase in order to carry them every time he traveled. Luckily, the world has changed, and the suitcase has now been replaced by an e-reader.
You can find Andreas Christensen here:
Website and blog: christensenwriting.com
Twitter: @achr75
Facebook: facebook.com/christensenwriting
Get your FREE copy of ALIVE, the Exodus companion novella. Just go to christensenwriting.com to get started!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
August 29, 2016
Aurora, the sequel to Andreas Christensen's Exodus, is a book that could have been intriguing, that could have been thought-provoking, that could have been entertaining, had the author done some research. As it stands, it is far too implausible to take seriously. There's also the problem that the choice of plot and conflict is misguided. A story about a colony of humans trying to survive on a brand new planet, and the struggles they come across in the process, is intriguing enough to write a novel about, but Christensen instead focuses his conflict on a far less interesting political conflict that boils over from the first book. The conflict in fact feels forced, as the government is not oppressive until the plot requires it. It's unfortunate that the author has little interest in developing the more intriguing parts of the world he has created.
Aurora continues where Exodus left off, with the remainder of humanity on their new home planet trying to survive. At the heart of the conflict is the government, which many people protest is too heavy-handed. Having anticipated this, a group of rebels back on Earth had planted people who could change this political culture. One of these is Thomas Dunn, who is such a shady character it's a wonder that the new president, George Havelar, trusts him, or that Maria Solis, the Latino daughter of Ramon Solis, right hand man of Havelar, would fall in love with him. But I guess the characters are so paper thin it's hard to care anyway.
Other key players include Kenneth Taylor, a psychologist who doesn't really like the way Havelar runs things, but keeps quiet. Tina Hammer was one of the commanders of the flight to the planet, but she has retired from military life in order to build a fishing empire. Greg Hamilton was the lead commander, who joins Tina. Ben Waters was one of thirty or so teenager who was smuggled aboard the Exodus and was lucky enough not to be shipped back to Earth. Each of these characters has some sort of grumblings about the way Havelar runs things, but the problem is it's not very clear what he does that's so problematic. The main issue is that he does not allow expeditions to explore very far on the new world. No reasoning is provided, but the complaints seem more akin to a teenager complaining about too many rules than an adult reaction. They hardly warrant any sort of rebellion. And even when Havelar unveils in secret some plan he has, it doesn't sound crazy or evil, just stupid.
Christensen is far less concerned about survival on a new planet than he is with his political conflict, and that's a shame. His brushing off of potential conflicts based around survival also adds immensely to the implausibility of his world. For example, it isn't until a third of the way into the novel that somebody finally dies. After light-years of travel and over 150 years, only two people have died by the time we reach a third of the way through book two. Human history tells us that whenever people colonize a new land, whether or not it was already populated by other people, lots of people die. They die from disease. They die from the elements. They die by each other. They also die by wildlife. It should be no different with colonizing a new planet. In fact, there's reason to believe survival could be harsher on a new planet. Descriptions of life on the planet show characters living a life of luxury compared to what you would expect. It's true that technology is better, but there are so many unknowns that it's impossible that it took so long for anybody to die, even by accident or human stupidity.
Christensen is not a particularly good writer. I don't mean to say he's a bad writer, but perhaps his talents aren't well-suited to fiction. He doesn't dive into the heads of characters very well, even though chapters are split up by character. One character could easily replace the other. Mantras tell writers to show rather than tell, and while there are fantastic tellers out there, Christensen is not one of them. He may have benefited more from showing his plot unfold rather than tell about it. Events happen and we learn about them after the fact, and this has the affect of making things harder to believe. There's also the issue that the dialogue is poorly organized. A line of dialogue will be followed, without a paragraph break, by a description of a character who is not speaking. Here is an example of the way Christensen writes his dialogue throughout the entire story:
" 'Don't worry about it. And by the way, I'm not that kind of psychologist.' She smiled back at him."
In most stories, this dialogue indicates that the speaker is the "she" in the paragraph, who would be, in this case, Maria Solis. The problem however, is that Kenneth Taylor is actually the speaker. It's true that context makes this easy to figure out, but the way Christensen ignores these rules of writing dialogue breaks the novel's magic. It brings the reader's attention to the fact that they are reading a novel because the reader must re-calibrate their brain to say that no, it's not Maria who is speaking, but Kenneth. It is maddening, and this example is typical of how Christensen writes his dialogue throughout the entire novel.
I can say that at least you won't take up a lot of time with these books. They are over fairly quickly, but you probably won't gain any new understandings of the world or even be particularly entertained. Christensen seems to want to reflect the political climate of our time, but he places this sort of thing in the wrong kind of book. In a book about surviving on an alien planet, it's not unreasonable to want to see humans struggling to survive. And just when things begin getting intense, a deus ex machina is inserted that adds immensely to the implausibility. I just can't find it in me to continue reading this series.
Aurora continues where Exodus left off, with the remainder of humanity on their new home planet trying to survive. At the heart of the conflict is the government, which many people protest is too heavy-handed. Having anticipated this, a group of rebels back on Earth had planted people who could change this political culture. One of these is Thomas Dunn, who is such a shady character it's a wonder that the new president, George Havelar, trusts him, or that Maria Solis, the Latino daughter of Ramon Solis, right hand man of Havelar, would fall in love with him. But I guess the characters are so paper thin it's hard to care anyway.
Other key players include Kenneth Taylor, a psychologist who doesn't really like the way Havelar runs things, but keeps quiet. Tina Hammer was one of the commanders of the flight to the planet, but she has retired from military life in order to build a fishing empire. Greg Hamilton was the lead commander, who joins Tina. Ben Waters was one of thirty or so teenager who was smuggled aboard the Exodus and was lucky enough not to be shipped back to Earth. Each of these characters has some sort of grumblings about the way Havelar runs things, but the problem is it's not very clear what he does that's so problematic. The main issue is that he does not allow expeditions to explore very far on the new world. No reasoning is provided, but the complaints seem more akin to a teenager complaining about too many rules than an adult reaction. They hardly warrant any sort of rebellion. And even when Havelar unveils in secret some plan he has, it doesn't sound crazy or evil, just stupid.
Christensen is far less concerned about survival on a new planet than he is with his political conflict, and that's a shame. His brushing off of potential conflicts based around survival also adds immensely to the implausibility of his world. For example, it isn't until a third of the way into the novel that somebody finally dies. After light-years of travel and over 150 years, only two people have died by the time we reach a third of the way through book two. Human history tells us that whenever people colonize a new land, whether or not it was already populated by other people, lots of people die. They die from disease. They die from the elements. They die by each other. They also die by wildlife. It should be no different with colonizing a new planet. In fact, there's reason to believe survival could be harsher on a new planet. Descriptions of life on the planet show characters living a life of luxury compared to what you would expect. It's true that technology is better, but there are so many unknowns that it's impossible that it took so long for anybody to die, even by accident or human stupidity.
Christensen is not a particularly good writer. I don't mean to say he's a bad writer, but perhaps his talents aren't well-suited to fiction. He doesn't dive into the heads of characters very well, even though chapters are split up by character. One character could easily replace the other. Mantras tell writers to show rather than tell, and while there are fantastic tellers out there, Christensen is not one of them. He may have benefited more from showing his plot unfold rather than tell about it. Events happen and we learn about them after the fact, and this has the affect of making things harder to believe. There's also the issue that the dialogue is poorly organized. A line of dialogue will be followed, without a paragraph break, by a description of a character who is not speaking. Here is an example of the way Christensen writes his dialogue throughout the entire story:
" 'Don't worry about it. And by the way, I'm not that kind of psychologist.' She smiled back at him."
In most stories, this dialogue indicates that the speaker is the "she" in the paragraph, who would be, in this case, Maria Solis. The problem however, is that Kenneth Taylor is actually the speaker. It's true that context makes this easy to figure out, but the way Christensen ignores these rules of writing dialogue breaks the novel's magic. It brings the reader's attention to the fact that they are reading a novel because the reader must re-calibrate their brain to say that no, it's not Maria who is speaking, but Kenneth. It is maddening, and this example is typical of how Christensen writes his dialogue throughout the entire novel.
I can say that at least you won't take up a lot of time with these books. They are over fairly quickly, but you probably won't gain any new understandings of the world or even be particularly entertained. Christensen seems to want to reflect the political climate of our time, but he places this sort of thing in the wrong kind of book. In a book about surviving on an alien planet, it's not unreasonable to want to see humans struggling to survive. And just when things begin getting intense, a deus ex machina is inserted that adds immensely to the implausibility. I just can't find it in me to continue reading this series.
August 20, 2018
this story has a lot of potential, both with world-building and with social experimentation. a lot of it fell flat, though, and I don't get the sense the author really knew how grasp the idea of storytelling as 'showing' us what's happening rather than simply 'telling' us.
I'm not really interested in the trilogy by now, but I got all 3 so I may as well see how it finishes up.
Also, this second book needed better editing. Mostly with commas and a couple words that were left out here and there. I didn't notice this in the first book.
I'm not really interested in the trilogy by now, but I got all 3 so I may as well see how it finishes up.
Also, this second book needed better editing. Mostly with commas and a couple words that were left out here and there. I didn't notice this in the first book.
April 16, 2018
Interesting and has me hooked, but reading it truly feels like proofreading a rough draft. There are ideas and backstory information repeated almost verbatim multiple times within the same chapter. It’s not fully fleshed out either, there is a lot of information left in the “in-between” which just feels unpolished. But as with the first book in the series, the sci-fi story is interesting enough and original enough to have me reading on. Which is fine seeing as these stories are only 140 pages each.
May 23, 2017
Another ok book, it does suffer (in my opinion) from some of the same problems as a few other books I've read, in that the author tells, he doesn't show. A lot of times we're told how smart or how this or how that someone is, or how they now are changing their focus and being inspiring etc, where it instead could've showed us them being this instead of just told (especially when it doesn't seem to bear out in their behavior).
There are pieces of world building and plot that at least feels like it'd be a lot more interesting to follow up on than the somewhat eugenics focused governor.
There are pieces of world building and plot that at least feels like it'd be a lot more interesting to follow up on than the somewhat eugenics focused governor.
November 8, 2017
Aurora, the story of hardship, conquering, a genuine challenge of starting up basically anything new especially a new world and civilization. The main characters include Ramon Solis, his daughter Maria, Kenneth Taylor, and Greg Hamilton. Ramon is the level-headed protagonist that has sort of becoming an antagonist for all the right reasons and is only willing to do any of this as long as his daughter is protected showing that he is indeed a good person. Greg Hamilton is a big burly general looking man that is the leader of the rebellion and a very level headed person that really wants no fight but is willing to fight for what he believes in.
I connected with only a few charters such as Ramon because he is a nice guy only wanting to do whats right but he can become distracted and go off course for what he thinks will work to his advantage. Whats mildly concerning is how few events could go down for this to be a plausible thing that could happen to our civilization.Obviously this is very unlikely and will probably never happen but still… This obviously reminds me of his first book but the way he brought the idea over and incorporated it almost flawlessly, it is really remarkable
My favorite part of this book would probably have to be when Greg and Ramon are meeting at Port Hammer after all of the stuff has gone down and are trying to negotiate a peaceful resolution but that didn’t work out to well and Ramon ended up leaving flustered and ready for a fight and Greg and company likewise. I would recommend this book to anyone else because of how well the author writes and just how it is laid out in an enjoyably complicated manner that is so good to read.
I connected with only a few charters such as Ramon because he is a nice guy only wanting to do whats right but he can become distracted and go off course for what he thinks will work to his advantage. Whats mildly concerning is how few events could go down for this to be a plausible thing that could happen to our civilization.Obviously this is very unlikely and will probably never happen but still… This obviously reminds me of his first book but the way he brought the idea over and incorporated it almost flawlessly, it is really remarkable
My favorite part of this book would probably have to be when Greg and Ramon are meeting at Port Hammer after all of the stuff has gone down and are trying to negotiate a peaceful resolution but that didn’t work out to well and Ramon ended up leaving flustered and ready for a fight and Greg and company likewise. I would recommend this book to anyone else because of how well the author writes and just how it is laid out in an enjoyably complicated manner that is so good to read.
December 21, 2021
I had the same issues in this book as I had with the first book in this trilogy - it was boring. There’s no character interaction, the politics plot was just what I was expecting and above all else, nothing really happened!! Even though this is the second book in the series it felt like it was a filler or a book to set up the next one, which I don’t mind in a first book (and actually felt that with book one) but not the second book as well.
Also, the politics took more of a central role rather than what could have been a lot more interesting, for example, like how humans survive on a new planet and the social aspects of this. Yes, politics will be important and have their place but I just felt this was the least interesting thing that could have been focused on. It just feels like it could have been so much better as the concept is great but the execution just fell flat.
Also, the politics took more of a central role rather than what could have been a lot more interesting, for example, like how humans survive on a new planet and the social aspects of this. Yes, politics will be important and have their place but I just felt this was the least interesting thing that could have been focused on. It just feels like it could have been so much better as the concept is great but the execution just fell flat.
February 9, 2018
Mostly Enjoyed It.
This is book two in a series and I was anxiously looking forward to seeing what happened when they reached their new planet after being forced to leave earth. Although it’s an interesting story I was disappointed. Sixteen hundred people left and what happens? War with each other! Sad but probably true. A nice twist near the end that broadens the possibilities! I will read book three to see what happens.
This is book two in a series and I was anxiously looking forward to seeing what happened when they reached their new planet after being forced to leave earth. Although it’s an interesting story I was disappointed. Sixteen hundred people left and what happens? War with each other! Sad but probably true. A nice twist near the end that broadens the possibilities! I will read book three to see what happens.
June 12, 2022
This second book of the trilogy still suffers from boring and repetitive bits that a better editor could have fixed. Now Earth's survivors survive their many years of broken cryogenic sleep and land on Aurora. A resistance group evolves when the Governor Havelar gets more and more authoritarian and brutally restrictive, and eventually the two sides are in a very deadly war.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 12, 2019
Mankind's Future ?
A fascinating tale of man's journey to the star's in our universe. From our beginnings, destruction of our next home, to the varied places we found in escaping the destruction of that home world by a rogue planet. Definitely a can't put down novel.
A fascinating tale of man's journey to the star's in our universe. From our beginnings, destruction of our next home, to the varied places we found in escaping the destruction of that home world by a rogue planet. Definitely a can't put down novel.
September 12, 2019
Excellent Post- apocalyptic Read
If you had the ultimate power to start a new world ( or the old one over again), what would you change?
This series addresses this mind-blowing question...
Loved it...
If you had the ultimate power to start a new world ( or the old one over again), what would you change?
This series addresses this mind-blowing question...
Loved it...
September 12, 2019
Not as good as the first book
This book doesn’t read a fluidly as the first book. The landing on the new planet was skipped over and finally mentioned a chapter or so later. This book skips around more than I prefer.
This book doesn’t read a fluidly as the first book. The landing on the new planet was skipped over and finally mentioned a chapter or so later. This book skips around more than I prefer.
October 30, 2019
Very good. An enjoyable read
I have read all three books in this trilogy and found them to be well written and enjoyable to read. The author should consider continuing on with the story though. Don't leave us all wondering '' what's next? "
I have read all three books in this trilogy and found them to be well written and enjoyable to read. The author should consider continuing on with the story though. Don't leave us all wondering '' what's next? "
May 30, 2021
OBSESSED!!
I absolutely love this series! There are so many lessons that can be learned from this series!
I love the new world Aurora! The political struggles are so close to home.
I absolutely love this series! There are so many lessons that can be learned from this series!
I love the new world Aurora! The political struggles are so close to home.
December 3, 2022
I was hoping this was going to be about exploring the new planet, encountering new life forms, getting along in the new environment. I was so disappointed to read that it's about imposing a warped political viewpoint and the resulting rebellion, and almost nothing about this new planet.
May 12, 2017
See last book for synopsis
October 18, 2017
Enjoyable
Enjoyable continuation of the aurora story, a page turner. Recommend for sci-fi fans of any age. More description of aurora would have helped.
Enjoyable continuation of the aurora story, a page turner. Recommend for sci-fi fans of any age. More description of aurora would have helped.
October 28, 2017
I couldn't finish this unfortunately. Why did a really interesting survival on an alien planet turn into a political war? Snooze
April 4, 2018
Good series!
April 11, 2018
Adventure in Space
Keeps you on the edge of your seat. I will be disappointed there isn’t more
when the last book of the trilogy is complete
Keeps you on the edge of your seat. I will be disappointed there isn’t more
when the last book of the trilogy is complete
May 2, 2018
Freedom vs. Solidarity and governmental wishes to control everything <-- to the bitter end.
May 15, 2018
I am loving this series. I find it very entertaining.
June 7, 2018
Ggg
Badgggg bbb bbb bbbv bbbggg mmmgg week uuu ooo SSS gggggg ttt bbb fgg ddd !mm jjj kkk uuu and
Badgggg bbb bbb bbbv bbbggg mmmgg week uuu ooo SSS gggggg ttt bbb fgg ddd !mm jjj kkk uuu and
July 20, 2019
It’s a good continuation of the first book but it’s starts to stray away from science toward fantasy. Not a bad thing but rather unexpected and somewhat disappointing turn.
August 4, 2019
Aurora is the second novel in the Exodus series. For further input see the review for the Exodus Trilogy. This is an excellent SYFY novel for the genre.....DEHS
August 20, 2019
Good sequel
Better than most...let us see what the future brings from this Norwegian sci fi writer....maybe good things for the future
Better than most...let us see what the future brings from this Norwegian sci fi writer....maybe good things for the future
September 6, 2019
The first book was intriguing and I flew through it sufficiently quickly I felt I just wanted to know what happened to the characters heading off to this new planet.
Sometimes I wished I hadn't and reading Exodus has at times felt a bit like a slog due to the clumsy prose and forced dialogue. There is no subtlety to the situational build up nor layers of complexity to peel away.
Sometimes I wished I hadn't and reading Exodus has at times felt a bit like a slog due to the clumsy prose and forced dialogue. There is no subtlety to the situational build up nor layers of complexity to peel away.
August 27, 2020
Oh Evan, I did not see that one coming!
December 2, 2020
The character development continues and then there are a few plot twists to keep me intrigued. Looking forward to book 3.
October 4, 2021
Very interesting plot and characters. This was another quick read for me...I did enjoy it. But I have to say it was not as well written as the first book. I am curious to find out what's next.
October 18, 2021
Good story, well written. Compelling well developed characters.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews