ARC Review: Endgame by Ann Aguirre

 

Endgame

(Sirantha Jax #6)

by Ann Aguirre

Opening line:

This is not a love story.
It is my life, and as such, there is love, loss, war, death and sacrifice. It’s about things needed to be done and choices made. I regret nothing. 

These opening lines summarize the entire Sirantha Jax series for me. What a journey it’s been! Ann Aguirre has accomplished a great feat with this series. Infusing love and war together to make a pulse-pounding, heart-breaking read, the Sirantha Jax series has become a series that will remain on my keeper shelf for some time.

The first thing I want to mention is Vel. There is a good chuck of him in this book and his presence makes Jax consider her feelings for him.

“Vel and I came to a new understanding. It’s not the same relationship I have with March, but there are feelings, and we’ve been together for the last turn. I’m not sure how March is going to react to that, if he’ll think he’s got competition, which seems silly, considering Vel and I aren’t even the same species. It’s just not the same. Hopefully, March is enlightened enough to get that.” 

If you’ve followed this series from the beginning then you know of the developing friendship Vel and Jax have. I love the friendship that Vel and Jax have. It’s so nice to read a book where different types of love are evident. It’s not always the romantic kind and I think Aguirre shows just how well bonds can be forged without sex being involved. However, I never once thought that Vel was competition for March. However, March doesn’t feel this way...

“You’re jealous of him?” 

“He put his mark on you, Jax. Of course I hate it...but then, I’m a primitive male. Obviously, I don’t get your ‘special connection’ that transcends sex.” Anger radiates from him. “You know how that makes me feel? Like you get all your emotional needs met somewhere else, and you just come to me for a good, hard-"

“Seriously?” My jaw drops. “You’ve been inside my head repeatedly. You know that’s not true.”

“All I know is that you love someone who isn’t me. You’ll go anywhere with him...but you never stay with me.” 

It’s times like these that break my heart. March and Jax are perfect for one another, but their relationship is far from perfect. They fight often and communicate less but the fact that neither one is willing to give the other up is a testament to their love. Aguirre showcases the ups and downs of a relationship. It almost mimics the acts of war – there are moments of triumph and happiness and there are also moments of extreme loss and grief. Love and war couldn’t be any more similar in this series.

In my AFTERMATH review, I noted some similarities I’ve noticed to Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games series. As I was reading ENDGAME, I felt that once again. Sirantha Jax is now at La’heng, a homeworld that has been conquered by foreigners. As a part of a grass-roots rebellion, Jax does her duties to broadcast the first communiqué from the La’heng Liberation Army and tell those who have had humanity stripped of them that there is a cure – the Carvati’s Cure. This scene reminded me of MOCKINGJAY where Katniss does her own broadcast to rebel against President Snow. However, while I absolutely despised the ending to MOCKINGJAY, I can say that I thought ENDGAME finished on a high note. I’m saddened to see this series end, but am thrilled with what journey Ann Aguirre has taken me on.

*ARC provided by publisher

 

 

Purchase Links: Amazon

Review: Aftermath by Ann Aguirre

 

Aftermath

(Sirantha Jax #5)

by Ann Aguirre

Opening line: Dying isn’t like living; it requires no effort at all.

Ann Aguirre started this series with a heroine who was strong and kickass, but in the fifth book, AFTERMATH readers come to realize just how much growth Sirantha Jax has done since the first book. Jax makes a decision that results in the death of 600 soldiers. In life, that’s an obscenely large amount of souls lost. But in war, that’s a lot of manpower gone. As people burst out in outrage, Jax must do what she must and face the consequences of her actions. Didn’t matter that she thought she was acting in the best interest of her people. People died because of her, and she feels the weight of that burden on her shoulders.

As she awaits trail, March goes on a personal hunt to find his nephew. It’s not in March’s ability to sit idle while the rest of the world waits on Jax’s trial. They communicate through touching letters to one another that display the amount of heartache and love they have for one another. It’s because of their relationship that I continue reading this series. It’s the one bright spot amid the darkness that war causes.

This entire series reminds me of THE HUNGER GAMES where everything wrong occurs and yet, you have these strong characters that are able to bear the weight of such a suffocating journey. Be warned that when you read this series, it’s a dark and gloomy one where people unnecessarily die in the face of war and there are few bright spots at the end of all this. But similarly, the Sirantha Jax series is just as addicting and easy to read as THE HUNGER GAMES. Ann Aguirre grips you in this tautly written novel and releases you at the most inopportune parts, until you’re begging to be drawn into this fantastic sci-fi world again. This series is simply one of the best, regardless of genre.

 

 

 

Purchase Links: Amazon

Review: Killbox by Ann Aguirre

Killbox

by Ann Aguirre

(Sirantha Jax # 4)

Ann Aguirre possesses the unique ability to tug on your heartstrings and then wrench your heart out. That’s how I felt when I read KILLBOX. There’s just this wide range of emotions that overcome me whenever I read a Sirantha Jax novel and sometimes, it’s hard to get through because I’ve become too invested in these characters.

KILLBOX has to be one of my favorites of the series because readers see Jax as she’s supposed to be. No longer the ambassador for the Conglomerate Ithiss Tor, Jax can go back to doing what she does best – jumping grimspace. I feel like we’ve almost come full circle with Jax returning to her true passion as a jumper. I compare how she was I GRIMSPACE and see this kickass heroine who sometimes acts before she thinks and when I see Jax in KILLBOX, you can see the tremendous growth she’s had as a character. Kudos to Ms. Aguirre for accomplishing such a task. Jax will probably remain one of my favorite heroines for some time.

As with the previous books, the tone of this one is also very dark and gloomy. War is a tough time and with each subsequent book, I feel as if my heart is getting heavier and heavier. This series is not always easy to read but there are enough bright moments that make me sweet on the characters.
However, that ending –argh!- that ending really killed me. Way to go, Ms. Aguirre for almost killing me. I don’t know why I allow myself to be a subject of this pain. I’m just a glutton for punishment and the Sirantha Jax series hurts so good! 

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Review: Doubleblind by Ann Aguirre

Doubleblind

by Ann Aguirre

(Sirantha Jax # 3)

If you’re looking for a great read that has action, politics, relationship issues and some angst, then the Sirantha Jax series is for you. All of the things I just listed are present in spades and the combination makes for a really entertaining read.

Ann Aguirre doesn’t straw away from the politics in this one. When Jax and her crew arrive at Ithiss-Tor, there is a lot of tension because the Bugs don’t want anything to do with them. In fact, such open hostility makes for a lot of the action we see in this book.

As if that wasn’t enough for Jax to worry about, she also must deal with the pressing issue of March. Since we saw him in the last book, March has turned into a liability – his constant trigger happy temper has landed him in a few fights that have been more gnarly than usual. And this standoffish behaviour has been pointed in Jax’s direction as well. Sometimes, she deals with it well. Othertimes, it simply hurts.

I love this dynamic between March and Jax because although there are sparks of how they once were in GRIMSPACE, we don’t see them as much as I would like. There is nothing that would make me happier if these two were back together, however seeing them this way only makes me believe that they do belong together.

Another character worthy of mention is Vel. There’s just something about him that you can’t help but love. He’s such a solid guy that is reliable and I love his sarcastic quips here and there. It sort of lightened up the tone and I can always appreciated that because a lot of this book is dark and heavy.
I’ve got KILLBOX up next but I wonder if other people feel as emotionally drained as I do whenever I read this series. It seems to take a lot out of me because of its emotional rollercoaster ride. There’s still three more books and I don’t know where Aguirre will take me. But that’s just the beauty of it all too. 

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Review: Wanderlust by Ann Aguirre

Wanderlust

by Ann Aguirre

(Sirantha Jax # 2)

Things are not going to well for Sirantha Jax. Though she is madly in love with March and he reciprocates those feelings, there are still a lot of things that Sirantha has to deal with. First off, many still see her as dead, so now she needs to take on a new task in order to make some money because her funds her taken away upon her “death”. Secondly, she has people wanting to kill her and now, Sirantha is feeling the after-effects of jumping too much.

As the second book in the series, Ann Aguirre does a great job of recapping previous events for loyal fans and new readers alike. I found that her writing is always so smooth and articulate. I’m not usually a fan of first person POV however, I flew through this book because Sirantha is such a engaging character.

While I thought GRIMSPACE was a world wind of activity, I thought the first half of this book was a little slower in pace. It wasn’t slow per se, but just compared to Ann’s regular style, I felt that some parts lagged slightly more than others. However, the second half truly put the pedal to the metal and I devoured it completely.

Aguirre makes it extremely difficult to make you put down her books because she writes such tightly written scenes. I fear that if I blink, I may miss some of the action because a lot goes on. This is one of the series where you need to buy all the books first in order to have them on-hand and ready because once you flip that last page, you’re going to want to pick up the next book immediately.

I loved the tension between March and Jax because even though it broke my heart to read some of the scenes, I thought it also solidified the fact that these two are meant to me. Call me a sap, but I NEED THEM TO BE TOGETHER!!!

WANDERLUST turned out to be more than I excited. With heartbreak, pulse-pounding action and suspense, you’ve got a read that will have you panting for more! 

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes and Noble