Book Review: Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Series: Lux (#2)
Genres: Young Adult, SciFi, Paranormal, Fantasy, Romance
Published: August 14, 2012
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

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’s 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….

Review ~

But like, What? Ms. Armentrout comes again with another amazing novel! Oh my gosh....It's amazing. Yea, sure, I will admit this is my least favorite out of the four so far, I mean, maybe Opposition could be my least favorite,who knows? Well, usually the last book is usually a fail, so I'm excited, but scared for the last book that Jennifer Armentrout has written.

“I always liked you. From the moment you first flipped me off.”

Kat's the same. By same, I mean the most amazing type of "same" a character could ever be! Also, there's this question that's probably bugging a few of you readers: Is this better than Obsidian? To be honest, I don't think so. I loved Obsidian, it was just the start of everything where we meet the Blacks, Thompsons and Swartz. It's just the instigator. But, I did love Onyx nonetheless. I've read the other books already(Opal and Origin), and I have to say that this is my least favorite. I don't know why. It didn't seem as action packed as Origin(obviously not), but unlike Opal, it didn't leave that huge cliffhanger that makes you want more and it didn't have the mysterious character that appears sometime in Onyx leads to the cliffhanger.

“I could always give you a teaser. You bookish people love teasers, don't you?”

The beginning, well I can say it wasn't slow! Especially during the middle - end. It was so intriguing. Yes, yes, yes. Jennifer Armentrout has officially made it on my favorite YA author list! It's just amazing, she knows when to write when Katy is serious, sarcastic or sad. I mean, throughout the whole book, you see all the elements of Katy's attitude in this book, I don't think she's changed a lot from Obsidian, but the minor changes make a huge difference when you're reading this.

Book Review: Cursed by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Series: Stand Alone
Published: September 18, 2012
Publisher: Spencer Hill Press
Genres: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Dying sucks
...and high school senior Ember McWilliams knows firsthand.

After a fatal car accident, her gifted little sister brought her back. Now anything Ember touches dies. And that, well, really blows.

Ember operates on a no-touch policy with all living things--including boys. When Hayden Cromwell shows up, quoting Oscar Wilde and claiming her curse is a gift, she thinks he's a crazed cutie. But when he tells her he can help control it, she's more than interested. There's just one catch: Ember has to trust Hayden's adopted father, a man she's sure has sinister reasons for collecting children whose abilities even weird her out. However, she's willing to do anything to hold her sister's hand again. And hell, she'd also like to be able to kiss Hayden. Who wouldn't?

But when Ember learns the accident that turned her into a freak may not've been an accident at all, she's not sure who to trust. Someone wanted her dead, and the closer she gets to the truth, the closer she is to losing not only her heart, but her life.

For real this time.

Review ~

Right. I love Jennifer's writing. The first series of hers that I've read was the Lux series, and I'm in love with it. I'm aiming to read her covenant series soon, but so far, I've read a few novellas and this stand alone from her, and I can't say how much her writing amazes me. There is so much detail, and the plots in each story is different, yet you can still see similarities of her writing story in each novel.

Yes, I will admit, I haven't read many other books that has a plot with "My touch can kill you" except for Shatter Me/Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi. And like, When I read the summary, my mind immediately started thinking about Shatter Me and whether or not it'll be similar in any way, which I hope not. And yes, my hopes were true. In no way was this story similar than Shatter Me aside from the fact that the main protagonist can kill by touch.

I loved Ember as the main character. I loved reading through her point of view, seeing the way she sees things. It was fascinating to read her thoughts. She's magnificently written with a lot of detail, and that's one reason why I love J.L.A's writing. And Hayden. He's not like the "bad boy" type of boy, he's the "good boy". But seriously, he's a guy, and Jennifer's detailed writing on Hayden was very, very interesting to imagine through Ember's point of view. Haha.

I loved how the story unfolded. I felt like everything was being revealed to us at a steady pace. However, the romance, I felt like it was a bit rushed. I mean, I understand this is a stand alone, but a little bit longer with a steady paced romance between Hayden and Ember would've be awesome. Also, Even though I loved Ember as a character, she annoys me so much! Like...her irrational decisions and stupid mind...omg. Just pisses me off. Bad.

Notable Quote(s):

Hayden leaned against the locker next to mine and sighed. "I don't dance - ever. An elephant has better moves than I do."