Rage and Ruin (Harbinger, #2)

by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Book 2 of The Harbinger contemporary fantasy series features angels, demons and gargoyles in a battle to save humanity. For fans of Cassandra Clare, Gena Showalter and Holly Black.

A half human, half angel and her bonded gargoyle protector must work with demons to stop the apocalypse while avoiding falling in love. The Harbinger is coming...but who or what is it? All of humankind may fall if Trinity and Zayne can't win the race against time as dark forces gather...and Lucifer himself may walk the earth once more.
Tensions rise and Zayne and Trinity must stay close together and patrol the D.C. streets at night, seeking signs of the Harbinger, an entity that is killing Wardens and demons with no seeming rhyme or reason. Forbidden to be with each other, they fight their feelings and turn to unusual sources for help--the demon Roth and his cohorts. But as more deaths pile on and they uncover a sinister plot involving the local high school and endangering someone dear to Zayne, Trin realizes she is being led...herded...played for some unknown end. As anger builds and feelings spiral out of control, it becomes clear that rage may be the ruin of them all.

• ISBN13: 9781335018250
• Publish Date: 6 August 2020 (first published 9 June 2020)
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 14 November 2023
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Inkyard Press
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 576
• Language: English
• URL: http://harpercollins.co.uk

Reviews

[pagingserenity]

Immediate thoughts after reading:

God dang it! It ended on another massive cliffhanger. I NEED to read the next book ASAP and I don't know if I can wait it full year for it.

Overall, I think this was just below a 4 star novel, but not as low as a 3.5. It's kinda hard to explain. There's a lot of things I think this book did well, like its intriguing plot and weaving in the obligatory book one recap in nicely. But once again Trinity has a hard time winning me over. She reminds me of Katy during the first 2 books of the Lux series, and that's not a compliment. Don't get me wrong, I like her and appreciate her struggles, but it's obvious she's a bit too sheltered (which I guess isn't completely her fault).

Anyways, I really enjoyed seeing Roth and Layla again. And that's kinda another issue I have with this book and series. Let's just say I'm still much more invested in the Dark Elements characters than Trinity and Zayne. So while I enjoyed the book, I don't know if I'd say the spinoff was 100% successful.

[alindstadtcorbeax]

Star Rating: —> 5 MILLION,BILLION, TRILLION STARS!
(Technically 5, but the rating system is SO limited; bah, semantics)

AHHHHH! This was one of my absolute top favorite reads of the year, I am shaking, literally... i’m crying, no, sobbing. I can’t get over how insane this was... an emotional rollercoaster ride that I waited a year for and is over ALREADY & I’m going to have to wait againnnn for most likely around a year to get to read the last book in the trilogy! I had to have written a short review for this 3 times (all after 3 in the morn of course), and fell asleep each and every time before i could post it. i am beyond enthusiastic about this book, you have no idea, and everyone needs to read this series, BUT I’m absolutely exhausted and feeling quite defeated over the whole deleted-review-3-times deal so a more inclusive RTC!

(Seriously though! You NEED to get your hands on this RIGHTNOW!)

___________\\
Okay seriously... 3.5 MORE DAYS!!!! Flipping my shit rn!
Ahhh my darling JLA!

BTW I MUST thank @jessica for introducing me to her brilliance a year ago! ❤️
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Ugh look at that cover! Everything I expected from Rage & Ruin ;-)
Love!
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YASSSSSS I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS TO SHOW UP FOR SO LONG! CAN’T WAIT UNTIL WE ARE GIFTED WITH THE COVER!

*breathes in deeply*

Ahhemm, I’m very excited about this. Obviously. YAY!

[whisperingchapters]

I can always count on Jennifer L. Armentrout to bring it hard with an action-packed novel! This sequel is even better and will hook you from the start. I mean, I read 523 pages in a day. That's how hooked I was. I couldn't stop reading!

Rage and ruin had not corrupted me. They powered me.

➺ JLA sure knows how to create a sarcastic, witty and badass female character. Trinity shone so bright in this sequel! While Trin was great in the first novel, I felt like something was missing there, but things changed for this sequel. I enjoyed her character so much more. Because of her character and her point of view, there was a lightness to the story--lots of hilarious content--that I loved.

He stared at me as if he’d ordered a tender marinated filet, but instead had ended up with a cheap f lat beef patty. I was sort of offended. I was 100 percent organic Angus beef, thank you very much.

➺ Zayne *dreamy sighs*. I fell harder for Zayne. I felt disconnected from him in the first novel (even though I loved his character), but in this one, HE STOLE MY HEART! I was all in my feels because of him. From the start, his feelings for Trinity are so palpable from the pages. I will always love the bad guy, which is why I was Team Roth in the OG series, but man, Zayne is surely fighting Roth for that second place in my life (second place, because Rhysand will always be first).

"You're under my skin and in my blood. I can't get you out.

I love how in awe Zayne is of Trinity. He truly admires her strength, even when all she sees is weakness. He pushes her to be better, to embrace her eyesight issues. He's always there to support her. Unfortunately, this romance is forbidden. No one really knows why it's forbidden, but boy was it delicious to read this forbidden romance and the electrifying chemistry between them!

"I knew there was a risk for us—and there is an us. I also know that you're worth the risk. That we're worth the risk.""

➺ Speaking of our favorite Crown Prince of Hell, the gang from Dark Elements series continues to appear in this spin-off, and I couldn't be happier! Roth, Layla, Cayman and a certain familiar come back again, and I firmly believe the novel wouldn't have been the same without them. All of them brought even more badassery to the story, yet also showed that this gang is loyal 100%.

"I don't know about you guys, but this sharing-and-caring moment makes me feel like we're a real team that can get stuff done. Like the Avengers, but more evil."

➺ This action-packed novel had my heart racing a thousand miles per second! I knew JLA could write action, but dear goodness, she threw this one out of the ballpark. Not only was the action phenomenal, but there was always something happening, never a dull moment.

JLA did a fantastic job in building up the tension, slowly amping up everything to the point I seriously thought my heart would burst out of my chest! And guys, while I kiiiind of figured out what being was behind everything that was happening, I was also shocked by who it was! COMPLETELY SHOCKED! And then! Jennifer has to go and write a scene that broke my heart in its entirety (I don't know how I'm breathing right now). AND THEN! There's a cliffhanger that had my jaw dropping to the floor. I still can't believe that that happened!

It definitely makes you want to read this in one or two sittings. It didn't feel like it was 608 pages. It all flew by so fast! I still can't believe I have to wait a year to read the next book!

[Leigha]

I received this book for free from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Trinity and Zayne are back as they hunt down the Harbinger in this ho-hum young adult romance.

THIS is the book I expected from the first in the series, Storm and Fury. Love triangles – err quadrangles? Yes! Moody and self-righteous Zayne? Yes, he’s here too! Not to be outdone, you’ll see lots more Roth (although not much Layla *thank the gods*). My biggest problem by far is the romance between Zayne and Trinity. Zayne did some shady shit in the novel, and yet it felt like Trinity was always in the wrong. Did Zayne actually do anything morally unethical? No, but the communication between the two made me really, REALLY dislike them both toward the end.

The book wasn’t a total loss – the last 30% was fast-paced and interesting, pulling away from the angst filled romance to the actual plot. I just…I REALLY liked the first book in the series. It completely blew me out of the water how much I enjoyed it considering I detested the original series. It was disappointing to see all the issues I had with the original trilogy resurface in this book. I plan on reading the last book, but I hope the love story is toned down.

tl;dr I didn’t like this book nearly as much as the first novel, but overall it’s still an entertaining read.