Book Review: Unearthed

Title: Unearthed (Unearthed #1)
Author: Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner
Genre: Young Adult | Sci-Fi | Adventure | Romance
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Publication Date: January 9, 2018
Source: Publisher
Format: Audiobook


When Earth intercepts a message from a long-extinct alien race, it seems like the solution the planet has been waiting for. The Undying's advanced technology has the potential to undo environmental damage and turn lives around, and Gaia, their former home planet, is a treasure trove waiting to be uncovered.
For Jules Addison and his fellow scholars, the discovery of an alien culture offers unprecedented opportunity for study... as long as scavengers like Amelia Radcliffe don't loot everything first. Mia and Jules' different reasons for smuggling themselves onto Gaia put them immediately at odds, but after escaping a dangerous confrontation with other scavvers, they form a fragile alliance.
In order to penetrate the Undying temple and reach the tech and information hidden within, the two must decode the ancient race's secrets and survive their traps. But the more they learn about the Undying, the more their presence in the temple seems to be part of a grand design that could spell the end of the human race...(goodreads) 


Unearthed was a wild ride that reminded me of These Broken Stars. 
Plot: Unearthed took off from page one and did not stop to catch its breath! Amelia arrived on the uninhabitable planet Gaia to find valuable technology that would make her enough money to pay off debts. Jules arrived on Gaia with hopes of learning more about the Undyiing race that left a mysterious message for Earth, he also wanted to clear his father's name of being a traitor. The two came from completely different worlds and had to learn to trust each other quickly as they fought off mercenaries and solved puzzles left by an ancient alien race. 

I enjoyed how creative both authors were in creating the booby traps and complex puzzles that people were dying to solve. It was fun trying to piece everything together along with Mia and Jules and I couldn't believe how many the twists and turns there were. At a certain point, the twists and turns became exhausting and I just wanted the ending. I kept thinking to myself "man this book is long", but it really wasn't. Unearthed was just over 380 pages, but it felt like I was trudging through 500 pages. I would have preferred if some of Unearthed were trimmed, but that ending was something not to be missed. 

Characters: Jules and Mia gave me major Tarver and Lilac vibes, this was mostly because they were two individuals from completely different worlds and were thrown together to survive. I loved their chemistry and how they learned to trust each other. Mia was the street-smart scavenger while Jules had a slightly more pampered life living as an academic. Their relationship's progression was natural, but I mostly enjoyed how they learned to play off the other's skills.

Worldbuilding: I'm not the best with sci-fi because a lot of the worldbuilding goes over my head. Unearthed was easy to follow because it mostly took place on an uninhabited planet, the last third of the novel was when it started to get more "sci-fiy" and I started to become lost on the terminology and happenings.

Narrator Performance: I heard Steve West in an audiobook a while ago and I wasn't impressed, I thought he sounded too old for a teenage boy. In Unearthed, I thought he was perfect. He delivered the lines with emotion and pulled off different voices and accents wonderfully. This was my first time hearing Alex McKenna narrate and I really enjoyed her performance. She pulled off tough Mia well and did a very impressive male voice. I highly recommend the audiobook for these two!

Short N Sweet: Unearthed is an exciting introduction to a new series that fans of These Broken Stars will take to immediately!

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