ARC Review: Ashen Winter by Mike Mullin

Title: Ashen Winter (Ashfall, #2) 

Author: Mike Mullin 

Rating: 4 Stars 

Release Date: October 16th, 2012 

It is a well known fact that the second book in a trilogy tends to be the weakest book of the series. It drags, it sets up the story for the epic conclusion, and it is simply an all-round fest of boredom for the reader. Mike Mullin’s Ashen Winter however, is (thankfully) one of the few exceptions to this rule. Ashen Winter is filled with danger, romance, and heart-pounding action that is certain not to disappoint.

While Ashfall followed the story of Alex and his journey to reach his parents in Warren, Ashen Winter follows the journeys of Alex and Darla as they struggle through the freezing cold winter to find Alex’s missing parents. The story opens with the two finding a gun that belonged to Alex’s father in the possession of a bandit – a rogue who clearly has information about the current whereabouts of Alex’s parents. However, if Alex and Darla found travelling through the snow to reach Warren to be difficult, this endeavor only proves to be more of a challenge this time around as now the people are more desperate, more ruthless, and the weather has only turned more brutal. Furthermore, the support they have always depended on from one another just may be ripped away and Alex may find himself searching for more than just his parents in this scintillating sequel.

In all honesty, I did not enjoy Ashen Winter nearly as much as I enjoyed Ashfall. That being said, I still think that Ashen Winter was an extremely respectable follow-up novel to Mullin’s surprising debut and like its predecessor, it managed to keep my attention while I flipped frantically through its pages, unable to stop reading. What I liked best about Ashen Winter though, was the fact that Mullin really took human nature into account. In this novel, we are exposed to the more savage, unrelenting side of humanity and are shown to just what extents people are willing to go to get what they want and live. Ashfall showed us some of these extremes, but Ashen Winter truly went deeper. As more time passes by while humans are forced to survive in the raw wilderness that is now their home, a far more brutal and ugly side of despair and what it can do to you is shown. I felt as if all this was very realistically and effectively portrayed through Alex, who proves to be an engaging and empathetic narrator once more.

Speaking of Alex, I really enjoyed seeing his character development throughout this novel. The volcanic eruption that turned his life upside down also managed to make him into a tougher, strong-willed, and more morally aware human being. His interactions with Darla, his family, and other complete strangers all slowly exposed different sides of him that we weren’t able to see as much in Ashfall and I think the manner in which he grew was very realistically portrayed as well. There is a lot more I wish I could say on the matter of Alex, but I would hate to reveal any more for fear of spoilers. Thus, I can only assure you that Alex continues to be the determined and faithful protagonist that we all fell in love with in Ashfall and Mullin only makes it easier for us to side with him, root for him, and revel in his unique narration.

That being said, Ashen Winter did have a major flaw that I was unable to reconcile with. One of my absolute favorite characters was not present for over half of the novel and this loss was felt very keenly. Although I did like seeing the impact this had on Alex and how it drove the original plot-line of the story, I definitely would have enjoyed this book more if that character were present for just a little bit more of the book. In addition, I felt as if some areas of this story tended to drag and only the last couple of hundred pages truly seemed to pick up the pace. Yet, these are small qualms to have with such a brilliantly written novel and although I frowned upon them, I still managed to enjoy this novel despite it.

Ashen Winter is a truly spectacular sequel to Ashfall - one that leaves you satisfied, on the edge of your seat, and waiting for more all at the same time. I can definitely admit that the most difficult part about reading this book will be waiting for the third installment in this amazing series to release. Mike Mullin has quickly become not only one of my favorite authors, but an author to definitely watch out for. Not only is his work extremely well researched, fantastically written, and remarkably balanced out with action, suspense, romance, and relationships, but he also does not hesitate to reveal the darker aspects of humanity and the gory parts of human survival. This series has quickly become one of my most anticipated reads every year and I can guarantee that fans of Ashfall will not be disappointed by this far-from-disappointing sequel!

Thank you to NetGalley and Tanglewood for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review. 

Interview with Sara Walsh!

Sara Walsh's The Dark Light is a novel I definitely expected to enjoy, but little did I know I would finish it and wind up adding it to my 'favorites' list at once. When I put down The Dark Light, I simply could not stop thinking about its story, its characters, or even how Walsh had managed to craft such an intriguing, unique, and suspenseful novel. Thus, when Sara agreed to do an interview with me on Ivy Book Bindings - my very first since I began my blog - I was absolutely thrilled! I am overjoyed to welcome Sara to my blog today and I hope you will all enjoy my interview with her just as much as I enjoyed conducting it myself! :) 

 

Mysterious lights have flickered above Crownsville for as long as Mia can remember. And as far as she's concerned, that's about the only interesting thing to happen in her small town. That is, until Sol arrives. Mia's not one to fall for just any guy, but she can't get Sol--or the brilliant tattoo on his back--out of her mind. Then Mia's brother goes missing, and Mia's convinced that Sol knows more than he's sharing. But getting closer to Sol means reevaluating everything Mia once believed to be true. Because Sol's not who Mia thought he was--and neither is she.

Interview with Sara Walsh    

My Questions for the Interview   

Sara's Responses to the Questions

My Comments to the Interview

Hi, Keertana! Thanks so much for inviting me over!

Hi, Sara! Thank you so much for visiting!

First and foremost, I have to ask - what made you think of parallel universes? 

I wanted to create a world that was separate, yet connected, to our own, and to show how what happens in one world can have consequences in the other, so a parallel world seemed to fit that idea. Also, I love the idea of layers of worlds, and how what we see around us every day--in this case, the American Plains--might not always be as they seem. That’s pretty much the idea behind The Dark Light.

I love the idea of parallel universes myself, so the way in which you wrote about them in this novel was absolutely fascinating! I especially like the concept of, "a world that was separate, yet connected, to our own." I definitely felt that while reading this novel.

It is mentioned in your biography that the idea of The Dark Light came from a local news event of a boy mysteriously reappearing after a decade. What other events/novels/music/etc. inspired you to write this novel? 

The boy’s reappearance, coupled with a road trip across the plains, was the catalyst for The Dark Light, but it wasn’t until I was writing that I saw a lot of the ideas that influenced me as a young reader appearing in the story. As a child, I loved stories about regular people in fantastical settings, like Alice in Wonderland and The Chronicles of Narnia. About halfway through the first draft, I realized that was exactly the kind of story I was writing, and just decided to have fun with it. I’d say The Dark Light is basically a modern day Narnia with kissing!

I think that's a great way to describe this, Sara, especially as The Dark Light has the same magical feel as Narnia does, only a more mature scale. 

One of the biggest reasons why I loved The Dark Light so much was because of the characters. Which character do you feel you are most like? 

Of all the characters in The Dark Light, I’m probably most like Delane. I’m pretty laid back, I like to goof around with friends, and I tend to look on the bright side about most things in life.

I love that you're like Delane, Sara, especially as Delane is one of my favorite characters in this novel! I loved getting to meet him and was pleasantly surprised by the large role he played in this book as Sol's best friend!

The Dark Light has been classified as a mixture of genres - do you agree with this? What genre(s) would you categorize it in and why? 

I totally agree. The Dark Light is a mixture of genres. I classify the story as fantasy, but even then it’s a blend of different fantasy sub-genres--paranormal, urban, and a touch of traditional fantasy, too. There’s definitely romance in the story. Action and adventure. And there are elements of mystery. I never deliberately set out to blend genres to this extent. I do read widely, and I think that’s where a lot of the genre-blending comes from. The aim for me was to take all the elements that I love in a story and to just have fun with them.

I love that The Dark Light is such a wonderful blend, simply because it can appeal to a wider audience that way and it has a large dose of originality in it, so that's wonderful! 

I found the concept of Sol's tattoo, the Lunestral, to be fascinating. Can you explain how you came up with the idea for this and what role tattoos play in this story? 

I always pictured Brakaland as a very visual society, and I wanted to reflect that in the characters that inhabited the world--someone like Vermillion, for example. Many of the people there were going to be bright and bold with huge variation between each other. For me, body art was a great way to show how Brakalanders carry their stories on their skin, and how those stories connect characters to their past and the mythologies of the culture, and that was certainly true of Sol. I then took it another step and decided it would be fun to embody those tattoos with mystical characteristics, like the seeing eye on Duddon Malone’s hand, and how Sol’s Lunestral offers protection from demons.

I loved the way you used tattoos in this novel, so thank you for elaborating more on your motivations behind that. It was definitely an aspect of this novel that I loved! 

I know a lot of authors use online programs to organize their writing and some even write by shorthand first before transferring their material to the computer, so what is your method of writing? 

I have to admit that I’m really boring and just sit down at my PC and write. I do scribble down notes in all kinds of strange places, and I always keep the iPad by the bed in case I wake in the night with a shiny, new idea. I don’t tend to outline in huge amounts of detail, just enough to cover the major events in the story. I’m not always sure how I’ll link those events until I start writing. For me, discovering how the story comes together is the best part of writing.

I know a lot of authors who tend to write that way as well, Sara, so it's nice to see that novels can work out even without elaborate planning and outlining.

I know many readers (including me) have fallen in love with Sol. How did you go about creating his character? 

Thank you! Sol was the toughest character to write, by far! He’s an incredibly reserved, incredibly focused guy, and as we only ever see him from Mia’s point of view, it was a real challenge to chip away at that front so that Mia, and the reader, can ultimately see the other sides of him. With Sol, I knew from the start that I wanted to play with the hot, sexy, mysterious bad boy image, and flip it. On the outside, Sol appears to fit that mold--and he certainly has a reckless side and a past that we only really touch on in the story--but beneath that I knew I wanted Sol to be much more--a true friend, a loyal companion, a guy who sees the bigger picture.

I have to tell you, I think you achieved exactly what you set out to do with Sol. While I adored his bad boy image from the outside, it was what was inside Sol that made me - and Mia! - fall so hard for him, so I love that we were able to see the real Sol underneath his exterior image. 

I thought Mia was an extremely unique protagonist, simply because her strengths lay in her inner perseverance and courage opposed to any type of outer displays of strength, such as swordplay. What made you make the conscious decision to create Mia in this manner? 

With Mia, I needed a character who didn’t have all the answers, but who wasn’t afraid to do whatever it took to get her brother back. I needed someone who was independent and determined, so we could watch how she’d react when totally out of her element. Mia’s strength does lies on the inside, but she also has lots of vulnerabilities, especially in terms of her past. She can be very single-minded, almost to the point where she’s too independent.  For me, one of the key parts of Mia’s journey was always going to be her realizing that it is okay to trust other people.

I really loved Mia in this novel, especially as she was so easy for me to relate to as well. I think it's remarkable that you are so aware of your characters and what you want for them and it definitely shows in your writing - especially Mia's flaws, which really only add to her character and personality. 

If The Dark Light ever sold movie rights, who would be in your dream cast? 

I seriously have no idea! I’d want relatively unknown actors for Mia and Sol, just so we can get to know the actors as we get to know Mia and Sol in the story. I’d love to see who a casting director would pick as Vermillion. She’s definitely one of my favorite characters in the story. Very fun to write.

I can definitely see how Vermillion would have been fun to write! She's an eccentric character, to say the least, so I think some new actors would work really well for the casting of this novel! 

Lastly, I have to admit that The Dark Light is a wonderful stand-alone novel, but it also leaves just enough hanging for a possible sequel. Do you/have you planned a sequel to this novel? If not, what other future plans do you have in terms of writing?

It’s early days and as yet there are no plans for a sequel to The Dark Light, though I do know where this story would go next and where it would ultimately end up. It is something that I would love to write. Beyond The Dark Light, I do have an idea for an epic YA sci-fi that I’m itching to write. Like The Dark Light, there will be new worlds and plenty of twists and turns.

Yay! I'm so excited about your future plans, Sara! I'd love to re-visit the world of The Dark Light but your YA Science Fiction Novel sounds amazing as well! I can't wait to hear more about it soon! :) I would like to thank you so much for taking the time to visit my blog today! I love this interview and I'm sure everyone else enjoyed this one immensely as well! :D

Sara Walsh is British, but happily lives in Annapolis, Maryland. She graduated college with a degree in psychology, but soon decided that telling stories was much more fun. When not writing, Sara is usually reading, drowning in tea, or frolicking around town with the world's cutest St. Bernard. The Dark Light is her first novel.

Want to learn more about Sara? Visit the following links: Sara's Website/ Blog/ Twitter/ Facebook/ and Goodreads. Or, if you'd like to buy a copy of The Dark Light, you can do so on Amazon.

Well...what did you think? I loved interviewing Sara and her responses were wonderfully detailed and completely made my day! I think my favorite answer had to be the one about Sol, simply because he is so swoon-worthy! (Seriously, it's worth reading this novel just for him!) I hope you enjoyed this interview as I really loved hosting it and if you haven't checked out The Dark Light yet, I would highly recommend it. It is one of my favorite debuts of the year and if you need any more persuasion or want to learn more about this book, I'd encourage you to check out my review of it! :)

Review: The Dark Light by Sara Walsh

Title: The Dark Light

Author: Sara Walsh 

Rating: 4.5 Stars 

The Dark Light is one of the few novels I can claim has truly taken me by surprise. I am usually one of those readers who look up a novel before I pick it up, reading over both the positive and negative reviews and finally deciding whether or not I want to read it. Thus, I am quite aware of where the story is headed during the first few chapters and am prepared for any unsuspecting let downs. The Dark Light, however, was an exception to this ritual. I had seen its gorgeous cover on more than one blog during its blog tour weeks, so when I saw it, yet again, in my local library, I knew I had to check it out. Surprisingly, I simply dove into this novel headfirst and was shocked, surprised, thrilled, and absolutely exhilarated by the story I found inside its pages. The Dark Light was everything I ever dreamed of and wanted from a well-written urban fantasy novel with mixed genres, but it was also so much more.

The Dark Light, from the surface at least, seems like every other young adult paranormal romance. We have our protagonist, Mia, who has a tough family life as she lives with her half-brother and Uncle Pete who is drunk most of the time. We have our school-boy-crush who finally asks Mia out to prom and, we have our bad-boy-extraordinaire, Sol. When Sol moves into Crownsville, he has naturally caught the eye of every guy and girl in the small town, not only because of his unexpected move or killer good-looks, but because of the large tattoo that adorns his back. Mia, however, has seen the tattoo before on the ankle of her half-brother and hoping to find answers about the father she shares with her sibling, she goes looking for answers. Crownsville is a dangerous place though, for young boys have gone missing, presumed to be kidnapped, for a few weeks now. Thus, when Jay, Mia’s brother, is sucked away by an ethereal light with only Sol and Mia as the sole witnesses, Mia is determined to find her brother at all costs, especially if it means making the enigmatic Sol, who clearly knows more than he’s letting on, talk and spill his secrets.

I don’t think there are enough words – or the right words really – to express just how much I loved this book! While The Dark Light starts out slow and mysterious, it slowly picks up into a fast-paced action novel, filled with phenomenal world-building, three-dimensional characters, and breathtaking plot twists. I am one of those extremely nit-picky and critical readers when it comes to world-building, but I loved the manner in which it was explained here. Walsh introduces us, for the first time in YA Literature, to the concept of parallel universes, a theory I’ve been obsessed with over the past few years. Thus, with this unique idea in mind, we are thrown into the world of Brakaland, Sol’s world where magic reigns free – or used to – and dangerous demons are a thing of every day. Each and every original element of Walsh’s world is revealed to us in time, making this a wonderfully-written debut that avoids the usual qualms of boring info-dumping. Furthermore, Walsh takes some age-old ideas, such as demons, and puts her own creative spin on them. In addition, she ensures that we are constantly reminded of how close to our own world this parallel universe is and the inner workings of her realm were remarkably crafted.

Yet, the complex world-building aside, what made me love this novel so much were the characters. Mia is a protagonist I absolutely loved. She is, first and foremost, a normal human girl; thus, when she is thrown into a world of rebellions, evil sorcerers, and demons, she remains strong in the only way she knows how. While most kick-ass heroines these days seem to wield swords, Mia’s strength lies in her inner ability to persevere on, remain courageous in the face of danger, and use a mature sense of level-headedness. Furthermore, I found that she was easy to relate to as her actions mirror those of us if we had been thrown into a parallel universe. More than that though, Mia is a character I appreciated for her tough family situations and strong friendships, but while we do sympathize with Mia occasionally, we are rooting for her success even more.

While I have to admit that Mia was my favorite character, I should probably admit that she’s my favorite female character. (Sorry Vermillion, you kick-ass shape-shifter!) Sol, on the other hand, was my favorite character overall. (Once again, sorry Delane, you sweet, sweet best friend!) Gosh, what can I say about Sol? We know he’s hot, we know he’s sexy, we know he has a huge tattoo across his back. What I didn’t expect, however, was Sol’s depth, kindness, and understanding. Yes, he carries an aura of a typical bad-boy, but he’s not. In reality, Sol is a true sweetheart: he is passionate about his country, he is a loyal friend, he is a courageous fighter, he is a wonderful listener, and he is an empathetic guy. What more could you possibly ask for? Plus, Sol carries a heavy burden and the gentle unveiling of his past, his secrets, and who he really is amidst the turmoil in Brakaland is a remarkable and deep story as well. Furthermore, I loved the romance between Sol and Mia, primarily because there was no love triangle, but it was also evident that these two really understood each other. For them, the most important aspect of each other was their personalities and flaws opposed to their outer beauty, even though there was plenty of that as well. It was a slow and mostly subtle romance for the majority of the novel and when that changed to become a beautiful love story, I was a melting pot of mush. ;)

The Dark Light, like every other novel out there, isn’t perfect. Yet, it is one that I was thoroughly invested in and loved with all my heart. It is fair, however, to claim that the ending was a little disappointing. Mia and Sol’s final showdown with the villain in this novel, who is, believe me, evil, was wrapped up all a little too quickly for my liking and the entire scene just screamed, “convenient”! Nevertheless, despite that qualm, I still enjoyed The Dark Light immensely! It ends off in a very conclusive manner, wrapping up everything nicely while leaving just a few plot threads loose and prepared for a sequel, if there ever should be one. I love these types of endings as they give way for so much more imagination on part of the reader and I know I spent days thinking about this story, even after I was finished with it. Overall, this is a novel I would highly recommend. Its small flaw didn’t alter my perception or enjoyment of this novel in the least and I was amazed and simply blown away by the depth of the characters, complexity of the world-building, and originality of the plot. If you pick just one more debut novel this year, let it be this one. I haven’t read a YA Novel this good in a loooong time and believe me, it won’t let you down! 

I was so enamored with this book that I actually decided to interview Sara Walsh, the author of this phenomenal debut! Check out my interview with Sara, here! :D

Showcase Sunday (#12)

Showcase Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by Vicki at Books, Biscuits and Tea. Its aim is to showcase our newest books or book related swag and to see what everyone else received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops and downloaded onto eReaders this week.

For Review: 

The Blessed (The Blessed, #1) by Tonya Hurley

I was really excited when I received this one for review earlier this week and now I'm...not. I've been reading a lot of reviews of this one, and I am quite sure that it isn't for me. With my huge workload these days, I really doubt I'll get around to reading this one, which is unfortunate as I know a lot of readers are anticipating it, but we'll see. It's not a priority though, that's for sure. :/ 

Bought:
Since my birthday was last week, I decided to purchase some Australian Novels that aren't available in the US. I actually received this early last week, but I'm so excited to finally have them! :)

Holier Than Thou by Laura Buzo 
Laura Buzo became one of my favorite authors with her debut, Good Oil, which is releasing later this year in the US under the title, Love and Other Perishable Items. It was a beautifully written tale and I'm more than a little curious to see what Holier Than Thou, Buzo's venture into the emerging "New Adult" Genre will bring! 

Queen of the Night (This is Shyness, #2) by Leanne Hall 
This is Shyness was an absolutely spectacular novel, so I knew I had to get my hands on this sequel as soon as I could! I'd heard that it was better than its predecessor, and it so was! I love, love, loved it! 

Night Beach by Kirsty Eagar
Kristy Eagar brought me to tears with her debut, Raw Blue, and I can't wait to read this thriller/horror novel of hers. It's received some mixed reviews, but I'm curious to see what I'll think of it. 

Borrowed:

Unwholly (Unwind, #1) by Neal Shusterman 
I wasn't exactly what you could call a fan of Shusterman's Unwind, but I did like it a lot, so I'm curious to see how this one compares. I've heard it's much better than its predecessor, so we shall see! 

In the Woods (Dublin Murder Squad, #1) by Tana French 
I've been meaning to read this book for awhile, especially after seeing all the raving reviews for the other novels in this series, so I am thrilled to finally be starting it this week! It's a creepy, chilling, murder mystery and I haven't read one of those in awhile, so I can't wait to begin this one! :)
Silver by Rhiannon Held
I've actually finished this one already and I wound up really liking it! It's an Adult Urban Fantasy which is completely unique and unlike anything I've ever read in this genre before, so it was refreshing and the werewolf lore was extremely interesting too! I'd highly recommend this one, despite its few flaws!

What new books did you get this week? Link me up! 

Series Review: Lux by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Title: Obsidian (Lux, #1) 

Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout 

Rating: 3 Stars 

Unless you’re a hermit, you will have no doubt heard about this series by now. Not only are the cover models on over 50% of most covers these days, the cover for this novel has also become the new ‘most popular’ profile image, not to mention the fact that there are girls all over the country swooning over Daemon Black. Thus, despite the mixed ratings, I just had to pick this one up and frankly speaking, I was quite confident that I would hate it. Yet, surprisingly enough, I wound up frantically flipping through the pages of this book, laughing, having my jaw drop, and ultimately needing the sequel immediately! Obsidian, like most paranormal novels, has its fair share of flaws, but it is also a really fun story that is bound to suck you in and force you to like it, even against your better judgment.

I suppose from the surface, Obsidian can be called ‘just another Twilight’ and that would be an accurate description – from the surface. Yes, we have our classic ‘girl meets hot guy’ and ‘hot guy is a paranormal creature’ and ‘hot guy warns girl to stay away from him’ and ‘hot guy falls in love with girl anyway’ type of story arc, but there are also some major differences that make this novel better than your average Twilight. For one, Katy is an awesome protagonist. When she moves to West Virginia and befriends her neighbor, Dee, she refuses to let Dee’s twin brother, Daemon, intimidate her into staying away from their family. Furthermore, instead of being a sparkly vampire, fallen angel, hot demon, mesmerizing mermaid, or a sweaty werewolf, Daemon and Dee are aliens! (Unfortunately, they aren’t from Gallifrey, but one day my alien in a blue box will come…even though I live in America…)

I’ve said it before and it demands to be said again: Katy is awesome. Not only is she a book blogger (Woo-hoo!), but she also stands up for herself and knows how to hold her own. She’s fiercely loyal to her friends, intelligent, witty, and quick to put together the facts in front of her and accept who Daemon and Dee really are. While Katy is an incredible protagonist, Daemon is a guy I really couldn’t warm up to in this novel. I know girls are swooning over him left, right, and center, but I didn’t see the appeal. Frankly speaking, Daemon is a jerk. He does everything in his power to break up the friendship between Dee and Katy and while we do slowly begin to understand his motives, I never truly got him until I read the prequel novella, Shadows, so when I originally read this novel, it’s safe to say I hated Daemon with a passion.

Overall though, Obsidian is a great novel. It has an awesome protagonist, wonderful bonds of friendship, creepy alien battles, and a love interest who the main character isn’t swooning over. If that isn’t enough to make you pick this one up, then I don’t know what is! ;)

Title: Onyx (Lux, #2) 

Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout 

Rating: 3.5 Stars  

So…remember how I said I hated Daemon in Obsidian? Well, I was more-or-less determined to continue to hate him and suddenly…I didn’t. Onyx, the sequel to Obsidian, focuses on the relationship between Katy and Daemon as Daemon tries to win over Katy and prove that he really does like her, despite their previous interactions. In the process, Daemon winds up winning over the few readers (like me) that he hasn’t already won over and you finish this novel utterly swooning over this green-eyed alien. Yet, even beyond the romance plot, the Department of Defense senses something suspicious with the Luxen in West Virginia and is out to investigate. While dealing with the Arum, the sworn enemies of the Lux, was bad, the DOD is even worse and what Katy and Daemon could uncover about them will be life-changing.

While Obsidian seems to follow the typical Twilight type of plot line, Onyx is a completely different novel. For one, the plot is much more dangerous, intriguing, and the stakes are much higher. If you thought Obsidian sucked you in, think again because Onyx is un-put-downable. I loved the overall plot of this one much more than the one in Obsidian and it had so many jaw-dropping moments that all I could do was flip the pages in awe. If the plot has a flaw, it’s the cliffhanger ending which makes me want to fast-forward to December when Opal releases, but either than that cruel, cruel, ending, Onyx is astounding.

Thus, while it is better than Obsidian plot-wise and Daemon improves drastically, completely winning over everyone, what Onyx lacks is the kick-ass Katy I fell in love with before. Katy is still as stubborn, witty, and intelligent as she was before, but her constant denial of her feelings for Daemon became extremely irritating after a point. Furthermore, the friendships that were prominent in Obsidian completely disappeared and I was so disappointed in Katy for forgetting about her friends in this installment. While Katy and Daemon had some truly phenomenal conversations where they really talked and grew to understand one another and even accepted their previous mistakes and errors, I was disappointed by Katy in this one. I still really like her, especially compared to other protagonists, but I hope we can see more of the Katy from Obsidian in the sequel.

Ultimately, Onyx is a sequel that is even better than its predecessor. It has a heart-pounding plot, an incredible romance, and characters that truly worm their way into your heart. If it wasn’t for Katy’s strange personality/priority shift, this book would definitely be receiving a solid 4 Stars from me, but regardless, I’d encourage you to pick it up. If you didn’t like Obsidian, chances are you’ll enjoy this one much better and if you did love Obsidian, I doubt I have to tell you to pick this one up. Now, if only December would arrive sooner… ;)

Title: Shadows (Lux, #0.5) 

Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout 

Rating: 4 Stars 

Wow! Seriously, this novella was awesome! I liked it a lot better than both Obsidian and Onyx, so that really surprised me. First and foremost, Shadows is the story of Dawson, Daemon's twin brother, and how he falls in love with Bethany. While you should chronologically read this before Obsidian, it doesn't contain too many details, so I'd recommend reading it after Obsidian or even after Onyx like I did as it shed a lot of details on some of the plot lines in Onyx. 

Ultimately though, why I loved this story so much was because of Dawson. We all know Daemon is a jerk and we hate him inObsidian and then come to love him in Onyx, but Dawson is a real sweetheart. I loved him from the start and his kindness, courage, and determination was all so sweet. Bethany too is an awesome heroine, although she isn't quite as kick-ass as Katy was. I still really liked her though and her love story with Dawson was very different from that of Katy and Daemon, which is interesting to note as both couples are perfect for each other in their own ways. 

Yet, what really made this novel so wonderful was the sibling relationship with Daemon, Dawson, and Dee. We don't really get to see much into their lives in the Lux Series, but with the multiple POVs in Shadows, we really got to understand the depth of their love for one another. Plus, Daemon's actions in Obsidian make so much more sense after reading this, so I'm glad this was able to shed some light on that as I have a new amount of respect and even more love for Daemon now than I did before. 

Overall, if you're a Lux fan, this is a must-read. If you're on the fence about this series, it's also a must-read. If you don't like the series because of Daemon, then you definitely need to check this one out as it'll change your opinions drastically. If you haven't read this series yet...then what are you waiting for? Go! You won't be disappointed - that's for sure! ;)