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: 162061006X
• ISBN13: 9781620610060
• Publish Date: 17 May 2014 (first published 1 November 2011)
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Entangled Select
• Format: eBook
• Pages: 506
• Language: English

Reviews

[Raven]

This book! Wow!

Katy and her mom move from Florida to West Virginia a few years after Cancer takes her father from them in efforts to start over with their lives and move on from the cloud of depression that comes with such grief. They move in next door to Daemon and his twin sister Dee. Dee instantly bonds with Katy and the two become fast friends. Daemon is a total jerk towards her and makes it quite clear that she should stay away from Dee. Daemon grinds on Katy's nerves but at the same time she cant help to be attracted to this man that even Gods would be jealous of. When trouble strikes, Daemon comes to the rescue and saves Katy, much to her suprise. She had thought something was off about the twins, but it becomes increasingly obvious that they are more different than she thought. So different in fact, that they are Aliens.

The story is fantastic. It is engaging and pulls you in right from the start. The plot is entertaining and well thought out. The twists and turns are perfect and well placed. It is so hard to find anything wrong. There was one scene where Katy notices Daemon is wearing sweats and the next page he is putting his hands in his jean pockets, but otherwise the whole thing is just perfect.

I love how the aliens are described. It gives new meaning to it. Because of Hollywood, too often aliens are insect-like and creepy. Its nice to see aliens that are beautiful and amazing.

The characters are brilliant. Everyone feels so well thought out and developed. The side characters were engaging and nice to read about without shoving themselves into the front of the stage. Dee is adorable. She is so desperate for a friend that you feel sorry for her, but as things progress you understand why she is that way and it becomes nearly impossible not to love her.

Daemon and Katy have killer tension through the whole thing. Their banter is fantastic and you cant decide if you want her to slap him or just rip his shirt off and jump him. They are so obviously perfect for each other right from the start and its so fun to watch them slowly see that and still fight how drawn they are to each other.

All in all this book was completely perfect. A good book should be throughally enjoyed, well chewed and digested. This book digests you instead. It sucks you into its grasp and then fondles you, leaving you flushed and scandelized but wanting so much more.

Very highly recommended for all!

[bookishzelda]

Talk about a steamy YA novel; wow this book has some serious chemistry.
So we are talking aliens here and the best thing about them is the possibilities are endless. So many worlds can be out there that you can pretty much do anything and Jennifer Armentrout does a terrific job of it. Even though I knew they were aliens, I felt myself on pins and needles waiting for the big reveal. If I had time to read this book in one day, I would have, without a break. Even though I’m a sci-fi fan this is one of those books that you do not have to be to read it. The writing, the flow and the plot could entice any reader.
The characters are fantastic I love Katy our female lead. She is strong and passionate and I like how she has pep talks with herself to not be the push over. She stands up to Daemon and anyone else that tries to mess with her for that matter and it makes you admire her. She is also a book blogger which I found to be really interesting. Katy really doesn’t judge anyone. Which is something I really like about her, she has a normal freak out reactions to new information but she gives people a chance.
Daemon is that guy that you absolutely hate but want at the same time. He is so smug and arrogant that you want to get him to want you so you can break his heart. Of course you also want him to want you because you want him. I love the chemistry between Katy and him because they are constantly trying to be the one with the last word. Even though Daemon is a royal jerk, we also get to see his soft side with his sister. Now how can you not like a guy that’s protective of his family?
Dee and Katy’s friendship is cute and genuine. Dee is that side character that you want to hug and be friends with too.
It’s one of those books that you curse at yourself for not reading when it originally came out. Then realize you are grateful that you didn’t because you have no idea how you are supposed to wait for the next installments.

[littleread1]

Well, I wasn't going to tell you they were aliens, but the product description did it for me. So now that is out of the way. This is your typical YA book, angsty teens, love/hate relationships, and something forcing the two to work together and work through their mutual attraction. I have heard others relate it to Twilight, and not in a positive fashion. (You can read more about that here) I can see where they are coming from. However, I disagree. The heroine, Katy, has a brain in her head, and is just fine being left alone. She doesn't feel lost without Daemon. These characters all actually have DEPTH and understandable MOTIVATIONS. Not just magically attracted.

Daemon, however much I get his motivations, is a giant dick. He is that super sexy, boy next door, with no filter between his brain and his mouth. Well, that's not entirely true, he knows exactly what he is saying and what effect it will have on Katy. But haven't we all had "that guy" that we were attracted to that wasn't exactly the nicest? If you say no, you are lying to yourself. But that's fine with me!

Katy doesn't just fawn all over him. She fights back. SHE IS NOT A PUSHOVER. Thank goodness. she gets back at him when and how she is able to. That scene in the cafeteria, I felt for her, and was then laughing at everyone else, even as I continued to feel protective of her. The one thing I didn't understand was her immediate friendship to Dee. She is just too bubbly and needy for me ... but maybe it is me because I wouldn't be friends with her from the get-go; too much energy for me. I am way too lazy for that. All in all, this book gets a solid 4 stars from me, and I will eagerly await the next installment, Onyx.

[violetpeanut]

First, let me say that the cover completely turned me off. It looked like the typical cliche teenage romance novel. The only reason I gave it a chance was because it got such great reviews from a pretty wide variety of readers - not just the hysterical fangirls lusting after the hottie male protagonist. I'm glad I did give it a chance because it's one of the most fun reads I've had in a while.

Despite my thorough enjoyment of the book, I cannot give it 5 stars because the plot is an obvious Twilight ripoff. Twilight with aliens instead of vampires. Average girl moves to new town and develops a love/hate relationship with the hot boy who has some extra special powers and saves her life. She becomes best friends with the sister while the rest of the family hates her. The hot boy eventually confesses his true nature and the bad guys come after the girl to get to the guy. The author even makes a veiled reference to Twilight at one point so she obviously knew what she was doing.

Despite the obvious similarities, there are a few things that make this book better than [b:Twilight|41865|Twilight (Twilight, #1)|Stephenie Meyer|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1307515757s/41865.jpg|3212258] in my opinion. First, the dialogue was well written. It was by turns funny and dramatic without becoming cheesy. Second, the lead protagonists had a much more realistic relationship. The relationship between Edward and Bella in Twilight always struck me as disturbingly obsessive. The relationship between Katy and Daemon was funny and heartbreaking and infuriating and much more true to what a "real" teenage romance can be while still building enough romantic tension to satisfy the reader. Third, it was just all-around better written. This was a quick read for me that drew me in immediately (once I got past the awful cover). The pacing of the book is perfect (especially for the target audience). The plot moves along nicely while still filling in enough details of the back-story for things to make sense.

All in all, 4 stars for a very enjoyable, if not wholly original, read.

[kaeta]

I'm in agreement with everyone calling this a complete Twilight ripoff. The sad thing is, it's better written than Twilight and the main character actually has a personality. But it's hard to get over the similarities. And the she goes and actually makes fun of Twilight mid book. That's just too much.