Obsidian (Lux, #1)

by Jennifer L. Armentrout

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.

• ISBN10: 1937044297
• ISBN13: 9781937044299
• Publish Date: 1 November 2011
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Entangled Publishing
• Format: eBook
• Language: English

Reviews

[Chelsea]

Initial Thoughts
If you haven’t read the book yet and you don’t want it to be ruined for you like it did to me, then I suggest you skip this part. Before I started reading this book I had seen a review somewhere, I can’t remember where though. They reviewed this book with a high rating and I was really excited to read it until they said the only reason it didn’t get 5 stars was because it reminded them of Twilight. So as I’m starting the book I can’t help but pick out all the similarities and I think it ruined it for me.

My New Best Friend
I loved Dee. She was bubbly and funny and didn’t care what people thought of her, mostly. She was just such a great character! She made friends with a human because she liked her and not because she wasn’t allowed to. She really just wanted a normal friend. I loved that she never backed down from anything either. She stood up for herself which is really admirable. If she were a guy she’d be in the my crush section for sure.

My Crush
Obviously my crush is Daemon. You can’t read this book and not fall in love with him. Aside from him being perfect, he’s a smartass and I loved that. He wasn’t a typical guy that you read about where they’re gorgeous and play sports and whatever. He had an attitude sometimes and it was pretty funny.I loved his relationships with his sister, Dee and Katy. I especially loved that him and the main character didn’t get together in this book. The author wasn’t trying to rush their relationship and it made me really happy. He also is really sure of himself. He knows the effect he has on Katy and uses that to his advantage. He’s pretty funny.

Writing Style
The writing wasn’t perfect for me but I loved the story so much I overlooked it. It wasn’t all bad but I just thought that some parts could have been written a little better. Nothing about the writing ruined the book. Most of it was really good.

Closing Thoughts
The only reason this book didn’t get 5 stars was because of the thing I mentioned in the initial section. And it wasn’t in a bad way because this book was really good. It was just the reminder that killed it for me. I just loved the story line. There was a clear definition between the good guys and the bad guys, and then the humans stuck in the middle. The characters were all very well done and the fight at the end was great. The author didn’t chicken out on fights but they were all fun to read. When I finished the book, I decided that I really did enjoy and was looking forward to the next one.

Bonus
Daemon. That it all.

[thebookdisciple]

Very interesting! I love paranormal YA and I was pleased with this one. It was unique. Some parts were a bit dull and sometimes the language gets a little irritating (trying to sound like a teen sometimes comes off as awkward!), but overall I really enjoyed it and am diving right in to the next book.

[Berls]

This review appeared first on Fantasy is More Fun

Actual rating is 3.5 stars.

My Initial Reaction...

Obsidian was pretty good. I really liked the MC - How could I not love a character who has a book blog? - but the angst between Daemon and Katy really got old.

The Narration...

Justine Eyre was an okay narrator for me. There's a very growl-like or gravelly aspect to her voice that kind of grated on me at first, but I grew used to it. She did do a good job creating different voices for each character - although at one point I distinctly remember thinking someone else was talking and finding out it was Daemon, so she wasn't as great as I would like at keeping the voices consistently distinct. Oh and she said Daemon's name about three different ways, which really irritated me. One of the things I like about audiobooks is learning how a character's name is "supposed" to be said. So that was a real bummer. I'll probably continue this series on audio just because that's how I started it and the problems aren't enough to take away from Obsidian. They just don't enhance it the way a great narrator does.

The Characters...

I liked most the characters in Obsidian, particularly the main character, Katy. I think I just could associate with her pretty easily because she's a book blogger and at some level that means we have a lot in common. It was neat hearing her mention things like Waiting on Wednesday or getting giddy over her book haul. I also liked her relationship with her mom and felt that she was a pretty decent person. But we didn't get as deep into her personality as I would have liked. Her father died recently and I felt like we should have seen more of that impact on her. She's likable, but I don't love her yet.

I think the only character I loved was Katy's next door neighbor Dee. I loved the way she wanted to be friends with Katy from the start - wants to be as normal as possible and have normal friends. She wants to garden and read Katy's blog. I feel for her, because she's in a tough situation and doing her best to make her life within the restrictions she has to follow. She's a good friend and I hope we'll see a lot more of her in future books.

And Daemon. I get the appeal - hot next door neighbor with amazing abilities. But his attitude grated on me after a while. At first I got it - he's trying to protect his family and Katy's a problem. But after a while it just got OLD and he became less hot and more of an ASS. I do like the personality he's starting to sprout as Obsidian ended, but then Katy's got this stick up her ass too. So IDK, but I'm not feeling their tension. It's more like annoying squabbling than sexual tension at this point for me. I hope that improves in the next book.

The Story...

I like what Armentrout has done with the Luxen in Obsidian. It's creative and different, at least for me. As I started reading Obsidian I hadn't read any reviews recently, so I really didn't know where things were going and for about the first 50% I was on my toes.

But after the first major reveal, things kind of fell into predictable territory for me. Not to say I didn't enjoy Obisidan's story - I really did - but I would have liked it much better if there had been a few more twists and lot less predictability.

I enjoyed the Luxen abilities and the action was pretty great. Based on my comments about the characters, you already know that the romance fell pretty flat for me.

The other thing that kind of frustrated me about Obsidian was the way time passed. It was very choppy - I'd feel like a day had passed but it had been weeks and vice-versa. The same kind of choppiness hurt the general flow of Obisidan. A scene would end very suddenly and we'd pick up at another point and it just felt a bit jarring. I'm willing to entertain the possibility that this was because of the way the audiobook was read, at least in part.

Concluding Sentiments...

All-in-all, I'd say that Obsidian is a pretty solid start to a series and while I'm not in love with it, I'm definitely planning to continue it, in hopes that those things that bugged me will get better.

[Jo]

Originally published on Once Upon a Bookcase

I've heard so many good things about the various series by Jennifer L. Armentrout, I decided it was about time I gave her a go myself. I picked Obsidian because it had been raved about, it had a hot alien, and it the main character is a book blogger. Sold! And wow, this book is awesome!

Katy has moved to West Virginia with her Mum. It's the last place she wanted to go; she's not too keen on being the new girl in such a small town. She tries to make friends with her next door neighbours before school starts, and that's when she meets him. Daemon. The most arrogant, insulting - not to mention smoking hot - guy she has ever met. His sister, Dee, is adorable, and they become close friends. But Katy can't stand Daemon - yet can't help being drawn to him. When he stops time to save her life, she discovers a secret: he and Dee are aliens. Aliens with enemies. And he's just put a trace on her, alien mojo making her shine brighter than Times Square. Now the Arum are after her. So Katy now has to spend a whole lot more time around Daemon. What a bummer...

SO GOOD! Oh my god, it's ridiculous how good this book is! It's the first YA book I've read with actual aliens, and so it was quite a new idea for me. The fact that Katy - Kat - is a book blogger was just awesome! When she first starts questioning what's going on with Daemon and Dee, being a fan of paranormal novels, she goes to what she knows. It's hilarious when she asks Daemon if he's a vampire, and he replies with such derision that he is definitely not a vampire. But it's awesome, because she's thinking about what she's read, and what could possibly be happening, and it just makes the book feel so much more real. As a book blogger, you can't help thinking as you read, "She's like me! She reads! She blogs! SHE'S GOT AN ALIEN LIVING NEXT DOOR!" Of course, it's fiction, but it makes it all the more believable that maybe... just maybe us normal people could have something exciting waiting for us round the corner. I must be honest and say that sometimes, she does make book blogging sound a little ridiculous. Her obsession with her blog just seems over done to me. I love my blog, and I work hard at it. But I don't compare huge, terrible events to that time when I couldn't go to that book event. Nor do I act like an addict needing a hit when I'm unable to blog for a while. It was just a bit much sometimes. There isn't too much focus on the blogging though, overall, so I could forgive those moments for the general awesomeness of the book.

Daemon is just so awesome. I swear, when it comes to bad boys, I've not read a character that is as rude or insulting as Daemon. And yet... although he's a flirty guy and quite arrogant, you can tell his rudeness is all an act. He's fighting what he feels, and you can tell. Some of the things he does are really quite out of order, and there were times when I was thinking, "Oh my god, you did not just do that!" But really, underneath it all, he's a guy who loves his sister, and wants more than anything to keep her safe. Because those Arum will stop at nothing to steal their abilities and kill them, and Kat is putting them all in danger. And this has also got to be the steamiest YA novel I've read, and I'm not just talking sexual tension, although there is a lot of that! It doesn't go too far, but further than I was expecting.Seriously though, how a girl is supposed to resist Daemon Black, I just do not know.

The action in this book is phenomenal. Normally, when there are abilities involved, there's not much proper fighting that you're aware of, and some of the time, it's like that in this book. But there are other times when it does get really physical, and god, you wonder how on earth there could possibly be a sequel! Those Arum are quite a violent bunch. They're kind of scary.

There were times, at first, when Obsidian reminded me of Twilight. The hot guy who is aloof and rude, who tells you you shouldn't be near him, and yet is always there. The sister who is bubbly and friendly. The girl who hates your guts as soon as she lays eyes on you. And all of them sitting together in the cafeteria, in a school where they are held in awe, and yet avoided. Sound similar? At first I wondered if it was going to be a kind of Twilight spoof. Yet, as the story really gets going, they just seem like minor coincidences, because it ends up being really quite different. There is even a references to Twilight at one point, when Kat asks Daemon if he's all sparkly, and the disdain in his voice is just awesome!

Such an incredible book! I'm already reading Onyx, the second book in the Lux series, and it's awesome! I will definitely be reading more of Armentrout in the future. Unbelievably good!

[Nicole Lynn]

Find the full review on PopCrunchBoom.com!

The Review

Let me be straight with you. Yes, yes I did become a Lux series obsessor. (maybe even a member of the Luxen Army…maybe…I’m not admitting to anything ;) )

Before I read Obsidian by Jennifer Armentrout, I was hesitant. Although other people’s opinions might draw my attention to a book, I don’t let their opinions influence whether or not I will like a book or even if I will read a book. Sometimes a book has great reviews, but it just doesn’t fit my mood or even the genre I like to read. Anyway, with Obsidian I wasn’t sure how I felt about aliens. I mean aliens are supposed to be tiny green men right? Or maybe tiny little people hanging out in a fake human body’s head (Men in Black anyone??). But, I was drawn in by the clear romantic relationship arc of the story. I am such a sucker for those. I was just praying that this would be good and not a corny love story. I’m glad my prayers paid off!

Obsidian had chemistry! The two main characters Katy and Daemon were perfectly written. I loved the way the scenes felt every time the two characters interacted–you could feel the sizzle and sexual tension. It wasn’t cheesy or a romance novel. It was just written well and I was an instant fan.

The story didn’t just focus on the love interest, it also brings in the whole world of the Luxen. The Luxen are the alien race living on Earth and Daemon just happens to be one. And trust me he is no tiny green man! He’s beautiful in and out of his human form. I really enjoyed the way Armentrout created her alien race. The Luxen are believable and that is important to me as a reader. I say it a lot, but if I can’t buy into an author’s idea or world then I won’t enjoy the story. Armentrout introduces the readers to an Earth where the Luxen are known by the government, where Luxen can assimilate and are really just better at being humans than we are, and where the general populous are mostly unaware of the Luxen’s existence. I only found a few faults in this world she built, but some of those were explained later on in the series.


When we are first shown the “villians” of the story–an evil alien race–I was instantly thinking Transformers (because my mind works in Pop Culture references). But that thought was quickly gone and replace with just a pinch of disappointment. The enemy as an alien race is a little predictable. So is the secondary “enemy” which was the government (again Men in Black flashback–another obsession of mine!). I do have to give Armentrout some leeway since there isn’t too many options when it comes to enemies for an alien race. The interactions between the opposing sides were well written and full of believable action. What made me feel a little bit better was what we find out about the government enemy in books two and three. This make the enemy more unique.

What I found really creative was what happens to Katy when she is around a Luxen using a lot of their “powers.” This is just another unique aspect of the Luxen world and an interesting plot mover for the novel. This also becomes more interesting as the series continues!

I believe Armentrout did a wonderful job writing the character Katy. I identified with her which helped a lot in persuading me to read on. She was a typical teen girl character, but through the novel she grew. Eventually, we as readers saw Katy become more bold, stronger, and truer to her self and her abilities. Katy didn’t want to become just a human in the way, but wanted to help and fight back. I like strong female leads, but I like watching them realize their strength more than already seeing it there. Armentrout wrote this character development really well. I also like Katy’s obsession with blogging about books (hey that’s me too!) and her relationships with her mom and Dee.


In the end, I couldn’t put the book down! I fell in love with the series and would recommend it to anyone into paranormal romance. I think I fell so fast because Obsidian is a great series that didn’t involve vampires and werewolves. I’ve mentioned it before in previous posts. Even though I love vampires, werewolves, faeries, and fallen angels, I just need a break from them. This was a refreshing series for me and I can’t wait to continuing reading it! I’m also looking into reading Armentrout’s other books. She is actually coming to a bookstore near me in November, so I’m hoping to talk with her and get a book signed! I’ll most likely follow that up with a post.

[cornerfolds]

You can find more of my reviews at Cornerfolds.com!

This book has been sitting on my Kindle unread for quite sometime. It's a book I've browsed past at least a dozen times, but never actually read. I've even opened it, skimmed the first couple of pages, and given up. But with nothing I was dying to read, I decided to give it a go. I finished it in just four days, but I've found that a quick read doesn't always imply a good book...

Obsidian was more of a soap opera than Downton Abbey. Honestly. And this is coming from a girl who actually (mostly) enjoyed the Twilight books.

Katy is a ridiculous character. As is the relationship between Katy and Daemon. She hates him, she wants to have his babies, she hates him while wanting to have his babies. And he's the same way! He hates her, he likes her. Seriously people, life is not this difficult. He is outright mean to her throughout the book, even in public, telling her to stay away from him and that he can't stand her. And yet she continues to spend time with him.

This is the Katy/Daemon relationship summed up in a few sentences: Katy and Dee hang out, Daemon is a jerk, threatens her constantly, and yet won't leave her alone at school for some reason, constantly poking her with a pen (wink wink nudge nudge) and flirting with her, much to the amazement of her super slutty classmates. You can never be sure from one second to the next how Katy will react to Daemon. Sometimes she's super pissed by his assholery and others she's super turned on because apparently his bright green eyes make the panties drop. At some point, he admits that he likes her (kinda) and wants to be with her because she's attractive.

Girls! This is not normal behavior! If a guy is a jerk to you, move on! And guys, if you like a girl, tell her. Don't be an ass. This is not third grade.

The premise behind the alien species is a breath of fresh air to the YA Paranormal Romance genre, but that's about where it ends. The whole thing seems a little silly, in my opinion. Every single Luxen in existence is super hot? Okay. Why would he give her his best weapon and then tell her to run the other way when he could have just ended things quickly? And who in her right mind runs off to lead the bad guy AWAY from the super strong girl who has a much better chance of winning? And don't even get me started on her decision to go to the bonfire...

The main characters are morons. The "romance" belongs on daytime television. The only reason this book got two stars is because I kept turning the pages to see what happened next - because surely one of the two would get over themselves and just say what they actually felt?!

I know a ton of people love this series and more power to you! I just couldn't deal with these characters. I doubt I'll be reading book two.

[Angie]

I’d been very nervous to pick up Obsidian, because it seems like almost everyone absolutely loves it. Now I’m thinking, why did I wait so long?! After reading the prequel last year, it definitely seemed like the type of series I’d enjoy, and this first installed confirmed it. I really am a sucker for all things paranormal, and I guess that extends to extraterrestrials now, too.

I liked Katy. She’s a pretty normal girl, and she’s a book blogger! This was interesting, yet also really weird to read about. I got excited whenever a popular meme was mentioned, but then I also thought that any non book bloggers will have no idea what she’s talking about. Oh well. I also liked how she could actually admit that she was attracted to Daemon despite him being an asshole supreme. Too many heroines act like it’s a bad thing to find someone attractive just because they’re mean. That’s not really how it works. Although I was annoyed by how much time was spent on Katy’s observations of Daemon’s flawless physical attributes. We get it, he’s amazingly sexy. No need to remind us several times per chapter!

I also loved the budding romance in Obsidian! Enemies to lovers are my favorite kind of romance aside from forbidden romances, and in this case it’s kind of both. Being together puts both of their lives at risk, since the Luxen leave a “trace” on any human that’s around when they use their powers, effectively putting a target on their back for their enemies to find. Katy and Daemon also don’t get along from day one, but once they start spending time together, there is a ridiculous amount of tension! They bicker, bicker, bicker, and then holy hell, things explode! I did like how Katy essentially told him that she won’t be with him until he gets his crap together, because who wants to date a jerk?

The plot was fun, too, but nothing special. This will probably be no surprise, but I have to say it: there are a lot of similarities to Twilight. I think that’s going to be the case for most YA paranormal series from now on, but there were several scenes that seemed to be taken straight out of Twilight and altered slightly to fit the alien concept. Although I do think I like aliens made of light slightly better than sparkly vampires. Also Dee is giving Alice a run for her money as my favorite bookish sister.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[nitzan_schwarz]

Read this review and more on Afterwords

Let's go back to the year 2012. It was a simpler time, (did you ever think you'd refer to high school as "simple"?) with simpler reading tastes. Hey, it's true. Looking back at Obsidian, I am reminded of that.

Once upon a time, I've labeled Obsidian a five star favorite of mine. Now, Obsidian is not a bad book by a long shot, as evident by the very respectable 4-star status. There is a reason it took over Goodreads by storm, popping out around every group and every comment. But at the same time, with my new experience in reading, I wouldn't classify it as a 5 star any longer. And definitely not a "favorite", which is a very coveted label I don't give just any book.

I mean, it's been five years and I haven't finished the series yet. I am still stuck on book one. Maybe this will be the year I take it off my currently reading list.

Anyways, I would classify Obsidian as a quick and fun read with a good amount of action and character development, despite the familiar premise. I mean, girl moves into a new town where she meets beautiful yet odd people. Now, where have we heard that before?

Still, there is something charming about this story.

It starts with our main character, Katy. I kind of had to like her, since we share a last name (different spelling). That being said, Armentrout made her easy to love and relate to. She's a normal girl like you and me (albeit one with a sad background); she loves reading and has a book blog, loves gardening, and doesn't let her shy nature to deter her from being courageous. And she ain't gonna bow down to no jerk.

''I checked out your blog."
Oh. Dear. Baby. Jesus. How did he find it? Wait. More importantly was the fact he HAD found it. Was my blog now googleable? That was awesomesauce with an extra heaping of sauce."

That's why I was a bit annoyed by the fact Armentrout kind of had to dumb her down in order to stretch the tension. I mean, how many weird things and how many secret conversations you have to overhear before you figure out the truth? It's STARING you in the eye!

Those secret conversations have to do with her neighbors, Dee and Daemon. Dee quickly becomes Katy's best friend, with her infection nature (described as Tinker Bell on Crack). But Daemon... Daemon is a whole other story. The guy is gorgeous, and he knows it. In a totally obnoxious kind of way.

I kind of expected to hate the guy, based on the many odes to his jerkiness on GR, but for once getting let down by all the hype was a good thing. I ended up actually liking him. Sure, he's a jerk, but in a kind of charming way. I know, I know, how weird and twisted of me. I just couldn't help it! And I think even the most unconvinced of readers would fall for him once you read his POV in the bonus scenes.

The romance between these two is definitely a selling point for this whole novel, as Armentrout does something not all YA managed to do for me. Which is; convince me her two leads belong together. No one would fit Daemon as well as Katy does, because no one stands up to him or challenges him the way she does.

"Oh, yeah." Carissa nodded. "They were googley-eyes in class on Friday. It was pretty steamy, the whole 'I'm screwing you with my eyes' thing they had going on."

Katy and Daemon have a love-to-hate and hate-to-love type of relationship, where they banter and fight constantly, but it's always in a way that makes you wonder if they're actually flirting. My favorite part about it is that... well, attraction might not be enough. Katy knows what she wants... and that isn't a guy like Daemon, who acts like the biggest asshat she's ever met most of the time. The small moments she thinks she might be seeing the real Daemon aren't enough to make her want a relationship with him. And I loved that. I love the fact that Daemon is going to need to work and sweat for Katy's love and respect. As he should.

Aside for these core people, there is a colorful cast of side characters that added spice and hilarity to the novel, like Carissa and Lesa, Katy's two friends from school, who double as the angel and demon on Katy's shoulder.

"I don't know. I mean we haven't talked about it. He literally left afterwards, and all he's done since then is poke me with his pen."
"Probably because he wants to poke you with something else." Lesa said dryly.

The triplets, too, were an interesting addition, although we didn't get to see much of them or Matthew in this installment.

One of my major criticism of this novel back when I read it was that some of the conversations felt off. Like once in a while, one sentences that had nothing to do with anything that came before would pop out and I was left blinking in confusion and wondering what prompted it.

So, yeah, I don't consider Obsidian a 5 star read, but it's a great one nonetheless!


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Original Review
To read this FULL, REAL and MUCH BETTER review go to my blog; Drugs Called Books

first read: 2-3 October, 2012
Second Read: 29-30 June, 2013
Obsidian was a great, great read; fun and quick with a good amount of action and character development and a standard plot line that was handled in a different and lovely way.
I really liked the romance and the characters, who were well build and well executed, and felt very real. I liked how they handled things, and I liked the choice for supernatural beings here.
I did have some problem with the writing on a few occasions.


WARNING: this book is very "sexually aware" as I'd like to call it. There are remarks about sex in it, and heavy make-out sessions that end without some clothing. If you're bothered by things like this, some scenes in this book might bother you.

[girlinthepages]

I'm so glad to have been pleasantly surprised with this YA series. I was starting to loose hope that maybe I was getting too old for the genre, because I hadn't read a series that I had really, really loved in a long time. But Obsidian really captivated me, and I'm anxiously awaiting for the next two books to arrive on the library hold shelf for me.

I'll admit that at first I wasn't impressed. First of all, Daemon was (and still is) a HUGE jerk. It seemed overdone. And not a jerk in a sexy, bad-boy-who's worldly-and-just-a-tad-too-old-and-experienced-for-you way (example: Patch from Becca Fitzpatrick's Hush Hush series). Jerk as in some of the things he did were beyond curel. I was really concerned reading this from a feminist perspective because I did NOT want the protagonist to fall in love with a hot guy with a razor sharp tongue and validate his behavior with his lust, perpetuating the cycle in our society that men can treat women poorly and still be seen as worthy mates.

Luckily, my love for the protagonist solved this problem. Katy took no you-know-what from Daemon, and was realistic about him from the get-go, acknowledging that yes, he is super attractive and my hormones lust after him, but no, I will not allow myself to become obsessed with him because I deserve to be treated better. She's also honestly hilarious.

For example, after a steamy encounter with Daemon that resulted in a near electrical storm and Daemon leaving her in the dust, her first observation is not to cry, but to poignantly say:

"That son of a bitch blew up my laptop"

...I couldn't stop laughing.

Katy stuck to her convictions throughout the story, proved to be an extremely funny narrator, and I loved the fact that she's a book blogger herself, as though the author is acknowledging her audience. Katy is the most refreshing, genuine, and likeable female protagonist in a YA paranormal romance series that I've read in a long time.

*Mild spoilers below*

Regarding the romance: It was not rushed at all. Even by the end of the book it's still ambiguous as to what the relationship between Katy and Daemon really is, and the book spends a lot of time developing it, rather than rushing into it and having the characters be together and established by the middle of the book. Like I said before, Katy does not allow herself to be treated poorly, and stands up for herself even when it may seem futile. Some may find it frustrating that it takes the romance so long to build, but I feel closer to both Daemon and Katy because of it; I feel like I know the nuances of their kind-of relationship, and I feel more invested in it (to the point where I could not stop thinking about the book for days after). This is a book that sticks- the mark of a truly good read, when you can't even bring yourself to read anything for days after because you're still reeling from the story and have to give it time to settle.

I also appreciated the departure from vampires/werewolves/angels/demons/etc genre for aliens. I normally don't go for sci-fi, but the use of extraterrestrials for a YA paranormal romance was a really interesting twist, and I think made it feel less juvenile. Also, Armentrout's acknowledgement of the realism of high school and hormones and realism helped- Katy faces drunk driving, attempted date rape, assault, and more, situations many teenage girls are at risk of today. She also doesn't shy away from teenage hormones, and provides realistic encounters with just enough detail without making them smutty. This book is honest, funny, and witty while resting comfortably in a genre that is often over sensationalized, juvenile, and overdone. This has been my favorite read of the summer yet.

This book should honestly be getting the hype that Twilight did.

[e_rodz_leb]

*Slaps forehead* HARD

That’s how I feel for taking so long to read this book. It has been sitting in my Kindle for a long time, and I finally decided to check for myself what all the fuss was about. Well, now I know that Obsidian is an amazing book!

**At this point I have to make a quick side story. A few weeks ago I had to travel for business and of course, my trip took place on the first day of the FAA furlough. I was supposed to arrive at my destination at 2:00 and instead got there at 9:00! Anyway, I read the whole book and started another one (thank goodness for the longevity of my iPad’s battery!). End of whining (seriously one of the worst traveling experiences ever!) **

Did I mention that this book is amazing? The characters alone deserve a standing ovation. I mean Katy and Daemon together are a thing of beauty, I could actually see the sparks fly when they were close to each other. Katy is loyal, smart, well grounded, and brave. On the other hand, Daemon can be a bit abrasive and off putting (and gorgeous of course) but you can tell that he is a good guy deep down. I think he really enjoyed his babysitting duty. What do you think? Apart from them, we meet Dee and a few other high school friends and some of the other Lux that live close.

The plot is awesome! Did I mention that this book is about aliens? Such an incredible imagination! The story is full of discovery, twists and turns and even mystery. I’m not sure if I would have acted as cool as Katy did with all the strangeness going on, but I understand the allure. The writing is splendid, and goes hand in hand with the characterization. The story is action packed, even though we are introduced to a new sort of being and alien culture. I really don’t know what else to say about this incredible book, it’s a good thing I had all the time in the world to read it because I couldn’t put it down :)