Review: Obsidian: A Lux Novel

Obsidian: A Lux Novel

by Jennifer L. Armentrout

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Purchase: Amazon | BookDepository
Release Date: December 6, 2011
Publisher: Entangled
Age Group: Young Adult
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Source: Gifted/Own
Rating: Perfect Bed Partner

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About the Book:

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 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.

I stared at the pile of boxes in my new bedroom, wishing the Internet had been hooked up. Not being able to do anything with my review blog since moving here was like missing an arm or a leg...

Jennifer Armentrout has dived into the sparkling pool of Young Adult Fiction and, by her creative hands, has created spectacular ripples with her latest releases, Half-Blood and Obsidian. It's so very difficult to resist the allure of the hype that is buzzing over her books. And I'm so grateful that I didn't waste too much time trying to and that I succumbed relatively early. Katy - spunky teen, fellow book lover, and resident book blogger - wants to remain okay with moving to Middle of Nowhere, West Virginia just before her last year in high school, leaving behind all that she's known and everything her late father loved in good ol' Florida. Since her father's death, Kat has done her best to refrain from causing troubles for her mother and has been succeeding, leading an average, normal, safe life. But stopping next door for directions to the nearest grocery store and meeting a devastatingly handsome, yet brutally rude guy brings the unexpected and the supernatural right to her still untarnished doorstep.

Between being verbally attacked by the sexy, standoffish Daemon and being ambushed by the bubbly, ingenuous Dee, the Black twins leave Kat with her head spinning. Who are the Blacks and why is Daemon so intent on pushing Kat away from a fast-forming, though premature friendship with his exuberant and oh-so-lovable sister? Fending off Dee would be a remarkable feat because she has such an attractive personality. A shade wide-eyed and adorably friendly, Dee is a sweet, lonely girl earnestly looking for a "normal" companion. She finds that in Kat and their ensuing bestfriendship is cute and fun, a necessary relief from the sexual tension humming in the air and the distressing, suspicious murders of young girls in what's supposed to be a plain, boring town (isn't that always the way? :P).

Enjoyable to read, the paranormal element and mystery unfolds in perfect proportions. But what really turned me on to the book, and what has stuck with me during the few days after I finished it, is the exciting relationship connecting two characters who simultaneously hate and delight in each other. The best part of a love/hate romance? A sarcastic or teasing comment can snowball into an avalanche of Sexy Times that are sure to catapult your blood pressure to soaring heights. Kat and Daemon don't get along under regular circumstances, but when the quiet and the dazzling night wrap them in a warm embrace, and it's just them and no one else, there's a spark that kindles swiftly and passionately and sweeps the two together until we're all breathless.

There's an addictive quality to Armentrout's writing, an unidentifiable something that's present and gifts us with a spicy, intense page-turner that I blew through in a matter of hours. Waiting only 6 months for Onyx shouldn't be too terrible...

Hopefully.
Maybe.

I wished I had something clever to say, maybe even a little flirty, but his intense stare sent any coherent thought scattering.
Confusion flashed in his eyes as he leaned forward, his lips parting slightly. "I think I understand now."
"Understand what?" I whispered.
"I like to watch you blush." His voice barely above a murmur as his thumb traced circles on my cheek.
He lowered his head, resting his forehead against mine. We sat like that, the two of us, caught in something that hadn't been there before.(61-62)

"I checked out your blog."
Oh. Dear. Baby. Jesus. How did he find it? Wait. More importantly was the fact that he had found it. Was my blog now Googleable? The was awesomesauce with an extra heaping of sauce. "Stalking me again, I see. Do I need to get a restraining order?"
"In your dreams, Kitten." He smirked. "Oh, wait, I'm already starring in those, aren't I?"
I rolled my eyes. "Nightmares, Daemon. Nightmares." (97)