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Published by Entangled Publishing, LLC, Entangled Teen on June 26th 2014
Genres: Coming of Age, Fiction, General, Love & Romance, paranormal, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 320
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From Jennifer L. Armentrout, author of the Covenant series, comes the unputdownable first novel in the New York Times bestselling Lux series. Aliens are the new vampires, and sexy Daemon Black will set your pulse racing...STARTING OVER SUCKSWhen we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I'd pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring... until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.AND THEN HE OPENED HIS MOUTHDaemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something... unexpected happens.THE HOT ALIEN LIVING NEXT DOOR MARKS MEYou heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon's touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I'm getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades.IF I DON'T KILL HIM FIRST, THAT IS
Where to even begin? This is my first Jennifer L. Armentrout book, and yes, I know I’m behind. Why did I wait so long to start this series? I have no idea. I remember a younger version of myself finding this book one day and writing it down as a must read—I actually have proof. A few years later and I finally have a copy of the book in my hands—well, a compilation of the first two books. It took sheer force of will for me not to start the next one immediately, though I can’t say I did too good of a job because I’ve almost finished Onyx, too, as I write this. Yeah, this series is addictive (or should I say Daemon Black?).
“’I’ve always found that the most beautiful people, truly beautiful inside and out, are the ones who are quietly unaware of their effect.’”
I go through fixes. For a while I’ll be fixated on a particular genre, a type of character, or even binge on a every single book an author currently has published; it’s a cyclical, never-ending process (I’m sure there’s some sort of bookish math behind it, but why complicate things?). I now have a new fix: Daemon Black. He’s one of those characters that you’ve heard about, the one everyone obsesses over, unabashedly claims as the go-to book boyfriend, but you’ve secretly never read any of the books and don’t understand the fascination—I get it now. While he came off as arrogant and a monstrous jerk (the names that Katy comes up with were, and continue to be, quite entertaining), I couldn’t help but sort of like him. The problem with Daemon: he was perfect until he opened his mouth. I had so many mixed emotions that they all eventually were tangled beyond recognition, but don’t we love characters that can do that to us? Characters that make us feel more than one thing? He brought a heavy dose of mystery and intrigue, as well as some curl your toes moments that made it impossible to stop reading.
“’You really have a things for books.’…’It’s cute.’”
Katy is a kindred spirit for all readers and for those who love to talk all things books. Within the first couple of pages she talked about her bookish apparel, which, for those obsessed with reading, is a must. When I first met her, she was reserved and shy, but Daemon brought out a different side of her. Her character changed throughout the book, and while it might have seemed sudden, she had to deal with a lot of unexpected—some that didn’t even seem plausible. Daemon wasn’t the only Black in her life, however, and I loved the relationship that she had with his sister, Dee. Her bubbly personality made it impossible not to smile in some scenes, even if what she said made absolutely no sense. She and Katy formed an interesting bond from the start, and the relationship seemed to attribute to her change.
“’What do you mean ‘far, far away’? Because I’m suddenly seeing visions of the beginning of Star Wars.’”
Romance—more like tension—is a key component to the novel, but so is science fiction. The Luxen are a unique race, as well as the Arum. I’ve read a lot of science fiction pertaining to aliens, each of them different. The Luxen and Arum are opposing forces—aliens made of light fighting against the creatures that lurk and make up the shadows—and a great deal of the book dealt with the constant struggle of escaping the Arum. The fighting drove the story in a different direction than the romance, but they complimented each other—one contingent on the other.
While reading the book, I went to Goodreads to see what others have said about it—which is a lot. Some made references to Twilight, saying that the book shared some commonalities. I do see some similarities, but Armentrout infused enough originality to send the story in a completely different direction than the Twilight Saga. Since there were some similarities, the book will appeal to fans of Stephenie Meyer’s books but different enough to attract a whole new fan base.
I couldn’t put this book down. I kept committing myself to one more chapter until I could barely concentrate on the words on the page. When I opened the book back up I couldn’t believe I had convinced myself to stop at all because the book is that good.
“Because this was absolutely insane…Worse than giving a one-star review, scarier than asking for an interview with an author I’d give my firstborn to eat lunch with, more stupid than kissing Daemon.”
Eva @ All Books Considered
Great review! I love this series and need to re-read it before I read the last book! Better late than never!!!
Moriah Chavis
Thank you! These books are definitely worthy of a reread. 🙂
Brooke
I have heard so many amazing things about this series and have yet to pick it up! Your review makes me want to read it!!
Moriah Chavis
It’s worth reading! I’m glad you enjoyed the review. 🙂