2/25/2017

Opposition by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Wow, wow, and WOW again! I am definitely out of stars. This was one hell of a great show, and I was flashed by hindsight. If you don´t know the author by now, you should read this series. Jennifer L. Armentrout has a fantastic way to catch emotions, fantasy, and a bit of Sci-fi in one single book. Holy Moly, I was on the edge during some pages and though I was aware that there had to be a Happy ending, I wasn´t sure how and if it would really happen.

Opposition

by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Lux Series #5
Publisher Entangled Teen on August 5, 2014
Genre Fantasy
Pages 500
Format Paperback
Source Library

Goodreads

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Katy knows the world changed the night the Luxen came. She can´t believe Daemon stood by as his kind threatened to obliterate every last human and hybrid on Earth. But the lines between good and bad have blurred. Daemon will do anything to save those he loves, even if it means betrayal. But when it quickly becomes impossible to tell friend from foe, and the world is crumbling around them, they may lose everything to ensure the survival of their friends … and mankind.

Story

Katy can´t believe that Daemon has left with the Luxen. Since days she hasn´t heard anything from him nor seen him at all. Beth is pregnant and feels worse and needs things. So Katy and Archer decide to go on the dangerous trip to town, not knowing what they will find or how they will survive. Since the Luxen arrived on Earth, everything has changed. And for Katy, it means that she doesn´t know where Daemon is or what her mother is doing. 

Style

A thrilling story is brought to you through the eyes of Katy and Daemon. At first, you still are in shock about the things that had happened at the end of book four. And so are most of the figures. The fifth book continues right after that and shows a life that has changed completely. Nobody is safe anymore. The Luxen seem to want to destroy Earth or at least mankind and to take over. In a very sensitive way, the author has written this book. Yes, it is very bloody sometimes and there are a lot of cruel things going on. But it is always with a hint of softness and emotions that go right through your heart. 

Characters

After everything that they had to go through, it is amazing to see how Daemon, Dawson, Dee, and Katy deal with everything. Okay, I wasn´t too happy when I saw how Dee had changed, but that is part of the plot and the way how Katy deals with her is quite remarkable, though very brutal. Again the author proofs that there are an inner strength and priorities that some of us keep up to it no matter what. Katy is one of them. She wants freedom and peace, but not at all costs. Her reaction when she has to learn what the military does to fight the Luxen is just wow.

Conclusion

Again, I am almost with no words. This book was, in my eyes, FANTASTIC! You have to read it and in case you don´t know the author yet, this series would be a great start. I highly recommend this.

Happy reading

Jennifer L. Armentrout

Jennifer L. Armentrout lives with her husband and their Jack Russell Loki in Martinsburg, West Virginia, USA. In algebra class, she spent most of her time writing short stories, which explains her dismal grades in math. When she´s not hard at work writing, she spends her time reading and watching zombie movies. The author has won numerous awards, including the 2013 Reviewers Choice Award for Wait for You, the 2015 Editor´s Pick for Fall With Me and was 2014 nominated Best in Young Adult Fiction by YALSA. 

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2/23/2017

Origin by Jennifer L. Armentrout

I don´t know how she does it, the author I mean, but I seem to be unable to put those books down. Everyone ends with something unthinkable and leaves you with all kinds of emotions swirling around your mind and heart. I was in shock when Katy got captured at Mount Weather, and the emotional rollercoaster got even worse when I started to read this fourth book and had to witness all the things Katy had to endure. The good thing, she is smart and does everything she is able to survive and never loses herself.

Origin

by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Lux Series #4
Publisher Entangled Teen on August 27, 2013
Genre Fantasy
Pages 400
Format Paperback
Source Library
Goodreads
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Daemon will do anything to get Katy back. After the successful but disastrous raid on Mount Weather, he´s facing the impossible. Katy is gone. Taken. Everything becomes about finding her. Taking out anyone who stands in his way? Done. Burning down the whole world to save her? Gladly. Exposing his alien race to the world? With pleasure. All Katy can do is survive. Surrounded by enemies, the only way she can come out of this is to adapt. After all, there are sides of Daedalus that don´t seem entirely crazy, but the group´s goals are frightening and the truths they speak even more disturbing. Who are the real bad guys? Daedalus? Mankind? Or the Luxen? Together, they can face anything. But the most dangerous foe has been there all along, and when the truths are exposed and the lies come crumbling down, which side will Daemon and Katy be standing on? And will they even be together?

Story

Katy is in the hands of the ones she was fighting to get Beth back. They do horrible things to her and Daemon has to do the unthinkable to free her. But when he finds her, she isn´t the girl she once was. Too many cruel things had happened. Too many unbelievable brutal things she had to suffer. And Daemon knows for sure: if they ever want to live an almost normal life again, he has to resist and play the game of the enemy. But who is the real enemy here?

Style

Two perspectives, from Katy and Daemon, show both sides of the medal. There are scenes in which you want to shout out NO! and then there are scenes in which your heart stops beating because of all the awful and mean things that Daedalus is doing to Katy. Jennifer L. Armentrout uses a sensitive but insistent language, her writing style is soft but never boring and on every page, something happens you never expect. And the love between Katy and Daemon tops it all. Okay, a lot of terrible things happen, and yes, I don´t agree with all of them, but they all seem to be very logical and to be needed to bring the story forward. Jennifer L. Armentrout uses every emotion a human being can possibly have and makes you astonished that even simple words can have such a deep impact.

Characters

Blake gets finally what he deserves. Call me whatever you want, but his sick mind, all his wrongdoing and pathetic excuses, and that he always blamed the others being responsible for his wrong decisions – I just couldn´t hear it anymore. Good, it was a logically thing that what Daedalus did with him or better said made him do. But when Katy reacted to that, she had all my sympathy.

Katy has changed a lot and yet she is still deep inside her the girl she once was. She is no killer and will never become one. She has a conscience. Life is precious to her and to challenge her takes quite a lot. To get her into the fighting mode you have to threaten what she holds dear, what means the most to her. Yes, she is a great girl and never stops to believe that something good has to be inside everyone.

Conclusion

What can I say? I was devastated, totally emotional, and didn´t know what to do or how to react after I had finished this book. I have no hunch how the author does it, but she caught me again with every line, every word, and every action she showed in this novel. I highly recommend this book to everyone who loves fantasy with a great portion of reality in the hands of romance.

Happy reading

Jennifer L. Armentrout

Jennifer L. Armentrout lives with her husband and their Jack Russell Loki in Martinsburg, West Virginia, USA. In algebra class, she spent most of her time writing short stories, which explains her dismal grades in math. When she´s not hard at work writing, she spends her time reading and watching zombie movies. The author has won numerous awards, including the 2013 Reviewers Choice Award for Wait for You, the 2015 Editor´s Pick for Fall With Me and was 2014 nominated Best in Young Adult Fiction by YALSA. 

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1/28/2017

Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout

This series is such a blast, that I had to read the third book right after I had finished the second. Good, I didn´t read it overnight, as I had the other two, but this was kind of different. Yes, I devoured it as well, but I also needed to take my time with it –so many beautiful and surprising things happened. And one thing is for sure: Blake YOU ARE SO DEAD! Yes, that figure cost me some nerves and I am not at all happy with what he did. But more to that later.

Opal

by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Lux Series #3
Publisher Entangled Teen on December 3, 2012
Genre Fantasy
Pages 452
Format Paperback
Source Library

Goodreads

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No one is like Daemon Black. When he set out to prove his feelings for me, he wasn´t fooling around. Doubting him isn´t something I´ll do again, and now that we´ve made it through the rough patches, well … There´s a lot of spontaneous combustion going on. But even he can´t protect his family from the danger of trying to free those they love. After everything, I´m no longer the same Katy. I´m different … And I´m not sure what that will mean in the end. When each step we take in discovering the truth puts us in the path of the secret organization responsible for torturing and testing hybrids, the more realize there is no end to what I´m capable. The death of someone close still lingers, help comes from the most unlikely source, and friends will become the deadliest of enemies, but we won´t turn back. Even if the outcome will shatter our worlds forever. Together we´re stronger… and they know it.

Story

Everything seems so perfect. Katy and Daemon are having an almost great time and she finally lets her feelings out and admits that she wants to be with him. They could be like any normal couple if there wouldn´t be Blake. He shows up again and despite the fact that Daemon doesn´t trust him at all, Katy wants to learn from him. But how wrong she was and how right Daemon, she has to learn the hard and painful way. 

Style

To see how the love between Daemon and Katy starts to bloom and how he does everything to keep her from harm is a beautiful and very entertaining show. The author brings everything to life from Katy´s view and she wants to do everything that´s in her power to become independent. But her powers aren´t the same or as strong as Daemons and soon she has to realize that she will never be able to fight the way Daemon and his folks can and do. Jennifer L. Armentrout has a wonderful way to bring the dialogues, the scenes, and her figures alive. She uses a soft but incisively tone, writes in an easy to read language and yet you become more and more aware that there needs something to happen or the next book in this series wouldn´t make any sense.

But I had to swallow very hard when I read what she did to Katy in the End and I only thought: Blake you are so dead! Because he turns out to be even more devilish than expected and to get me, as a reader, to that point, requires quite some talent. And Jennifer L. Armentrout has it definitely. She achieved it with one single line. Okay, the reading speed isn´t as fast as it was with the other two, and for some reason, I needed more time to read it, but that doesn´t mean that I haven´t enjoyed every second of it.

Characters

The things that are happening leave their marks on Katy. Not all of them are visible, but enough to change her. She is still a girl with great beliefs, principles, and incredible inner strength. And yet you can see that she isn´t the innocent girl anymore from a few months back when everything started. Her soul is darkened though she still doesn´t want to get the innocent hurt. On the other hand, she knows very well that she can´t help everyone, that she can´t keep everyone safe. 

Daemon is one hell of a character. He doesn´t trust Blake a bit, but he can´t and won´t stop Katy from making that experience all by herself. And when Blake proves how evil he really is, and what he is willing to pay to get what he wants, it is too late. Daemon is forced to step back and all of a sudden the page flips and now he has to learn how his brother had felt when the same happened to him.

Conclusion

That. Is. So. Cruel. I don´t know what to say. The end was not what I expected and I am surprised and shocked. The author has really quite a way to keep her readers stick to her books and I can´t wait to read how this story will continue. Highly recommended.

Happy reading

Jennifer L. Armentrout

Jennifer L. Armentrout lives with her husband and their Jack Russell Loki in Martinsburg, West Virginia, USA. In algebra class, she spent most of her time writing short stories, which explains her dismal grades in math. When she´s not hard at work writing, she spends her time reading and watching zombie movies. The author has won numerous awards, including the 2013 Reviewers Choice Award for Wait for You, the 2015 Editor´s Pick for Fall With Me and was 2014 nominated Best in Young Adult Fiction by YALSA. 

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1/20/2017

Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout

I am running out of stars here! After I was so thrilled when I had finished the first book, I had to read the second one right away – and now I am out of words. Well, kind of. This was sooooooo amazing, so threatening and so touching – all at the same time. I can´t even remember when I read a series the last time in one single swoop within days. The first was an overnight read and the second one kind of too. The author has a way to grab my attention with her language, her style, and how she describes scenes and things – unbelievable!

Onyx*

by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Lux Series #2
Publisher Entangled Teen on August 7, 2012
Genre Fantasy
Pages 448
Format Paperback
Source Library

Goodreads

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Being connected to Daemon Black sucks ... Thanks to his alien mojo, Daemon´s determined to prove what he feels for me is more than a product of our bizarro connection. So I´ve sworn him off, even though he´s running more hot than cold these days. But we´ve got bigger problems. Something worse than the Arum has come to town … The Department of Defense are here. If they ever find out what Daemon can do and that we´re linked, I´m a goner. So is he. And there´s this new boy in school who´s got a secret of his own. He knows what happened to me and he can help, but to do so, I have to lie to Daemon and stay away from him. Like that´s possible. Against all common sense, I´m falling for Daemon. Hard. But then everything changes … I´ve seen someone who shouldn´t be alive. And I have to tell Daemon, even though I know he´s never going to stop searching until he gets the truth. What happened to his brother? Who betrayed him? And what does the DOD want from them – from me? No one is who they seem. And not everyone will survive the lies …

Story

Katy is somehow connected with Daemon now. And does not like it at all! For her, this connection got nothing to do with real feelings. Not to mention love. And yet there is something that lets her blood run hot whenever Daemon is near, whenever he touches her. And Daemon? For him, it is one hell of a situation, too. But in a good way. A very good way. So he does everything to prove to Katy, that there is more between them than only that connection that happened when he had to heal her. 

Style

Jennifer L. Armentrout has a remarkable way to describe things, to bring scenes and figures alike to life and gripped me completely with her story. Her style is intense, touching, threatening and yet I couldn´t stop reading. From the first appearance of Blake and later Will I had an awkward feeling about them. The one seemed too good to be true and the other, well he was for my taste a bit too understanding. 

Characters

All characters are not without a burden. Katy lost her father and is still mourning. Dee and Daemon lost their entire planet and brother and have to deal with the situation on earth. Being a guest isn´t easy for them and when they find out bit by bit what the DOD really knows the entire situation gets worse instead of better.

Katy is, in my opinion, one hell of a great character; literally and figural. She changed in a breathtaking way from the young grieving but still kind of innocent teenage girl that can´t harm any innocent life to a girl that would do anything to keep the love of her life safe and sound but without doing the unthinkable by killing others; innocent or not. Yes, she has to do some pretty awful things, but she always knows that she has a choice and that it is up to her what she does and how she does it. She has a conscience. She isn´t reckless or ruthless.

Daemon is a totally different caliber. No, not the opposite, but when he kills, he can live with it. Unlike Katy. But the moment he has to kill a human, it has its impact on him and he needs some time to deal with it. But besides that, he is as charming, dangerous, and infuriating as ever. He wants Katy, sees her as his, and does everything to keep her safe. What a fantastic guy.

Conclusion

And again, a great book. I felt so touched, so speechless and so moved when I was done with this second book of the author´s Lux Series. I can´t even now find the right words. Highly recommended.

Happy reading

*The novel was published in Germany under the title ONYX by Carlsen.

Jennifer L. Armentrout

Jennifer L. Armentrout lives with her husband and their Jack Russell Loki in Martinsburg, West Virginia, USA. In algebra class, she spent most of her time writing short stories, which explains her dismal grades in math. When she´s not hard at work writing, she spends her time reading and watching zombie movies. The author has won numerous awards, including the 2013 Reviewers Choice Award for Wait for You, the 2015 Editor´s Pick for Fall With Me and was 2014 nominated Best in Young Adult Fiction by YALSA. 

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1/17/2017

Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout

I don´t know why I haven´t shown any interest in this series before. Maybe because this is one of the books the world went crazy about when it came out some years ago. Maybe it was the cover design (which isn´t really my thing) that kept me from reading it or that I had other books to read on my list and no time to discover something new. Now after I´ve read it I can say that I am very happy about it. It turned out that this story is a very promising one and that the author uses a writing style I am not used to. So I discovered not only a new author – at least new to me – but a new series as well.  

Obsidian

by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Lux Series #1
Publisher Entangled Teen on May 8, 2012
Genre Fantasy
Pages 299
Format Paperback
Source Library

Goodreads

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Starting over sucks. When 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 mouth. Daemon 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 me. You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon´s touch has lit me 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.

Story

Katy moved with her mother, a widow, to a new town. Fresh from Florida, the small town in the middle of nowhere seems not only tiny but boring. And the thought to be the new girl at school isn´t something she asked for. Not to mention her new neighbor, Daemon, who seems to be an arrogant as well as a great looking guy with a body to die for, she has enough on her plate to deal with. But when weird things start to happen and she has to face the danger of the unexpected kind, she knows by instinct, that something with her new friends is different – very different.

Style

From the first line, I was hooked and on very fast reading speed. The author writes in a varied way, sets up some great and quick-witted dialogues and her figures are not from this world – literally *smile*. There isn´t one single page where you could get bored, though I sometimes had the feeling that I´ve read some of it before in other books. The scenes between Katy and her mother sounded like some of another author´s book, without using the same words, and the destiny of her father wasn´t new either. But despite that, I had a great time reading it, no doubt. The writing style the author has is fascinating. She is soft but to the point and yet there is a power in her words and every page that is quite remarkable.

Characters

Being a teenager isn´t easy and being one who is new in town and human on top of it doesn´t make things any better. School usually is exhausting enough with all the learning, but when you are the target of a girl who hates you for no other reason than the fact that you are human, well then you really don´t need anything else. 

Katy loves books and she blogs about it. A fact that made me laugh when I read that line and when I read about a certain post name, I laughed even louder. Yes, some things we have in common *smile*

Despite that, she is a teenager who knows what she wants. She is a real beauty even though she wouldn´t call herself that. With big eyes, long hair, and a sinuous figure she is actually the dream of some guys – though they won´t get her. Not even close. The way how she sees things, how she handles the new situation, and how she reacts to some facts Dee and Daemon present her, is really remarkable. And exactly what makes her so valuable for Dee and Daemon later in the story.

Conclusion

Holy something on a dashboard, that was AMAZING! In the end, I was very moved, in a weird emotional stage and speechless. Never thought that a book would get me the way this one did. Highly recommended!

Happy reading

Jennifer L. Armentrout

Jennifer L. Armentrout lives with her husband and their Jack Russell Loki in Martinsburg, West Virginia, USA. In algebra class, she spent most of her time writing short stories, which explains her dismal grades in math. When she´s not hard at work writing, she spends her time reading and watching zombie movies. The author has won numerous awards, including the 2013 Reviewers Choice Award for Wait for You, the 2015 Editor´s Pick for Fall With Me and was 2014 nominated Best in Young Adult Fiction by YALSA. 

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