Review: Origin by Jennifer L. Armentrout (10/10)

Summary:

Daemon will do anything to get Katy back.

After the successful but disastrous raid on Mount Weather, he’s facing the impossible. Katy is gone. Taken. Everything becomes about finding her. Taking out anyone who stands in his way? Done. Burning down the whole world to save her? Gladly. Exposing his alien race to the world? With pleasure.

All Katy can do is survive. 

Surrounded by enemies, the only way she can come out of this is to adapt. After all, there are sides of Daedalus that don’t seem entirely crazy, but the group’s goals are frightening and the truths they speak even more disturbing. Who are the real bad guys? Daedalus? Mankind? Or the Luxen?

Together, they can face anything.  

But the most dangerous foe has been there all along, and when the truths are exposed and the lies come crumbling down, which side will Daemon and Katy be standing on? And will they even be together? 

Review:

At this point in my life, I should have written enough so that I would be able to review a book with ease and clarity. Jennifer L. Armentrout has left me speechless and without even a sliver of the eloquence I’d need to give Origin, the latest installment in the Lux series, justice. Truly, this series ceases to amaze me, delivering one book after another that steps up the bar considerably and brings us the jovial, wonderful, pure incredibility that is the Lux series.

     In Origin, we pick up with Katy, the wholly spunky and slightly nerdy—albeit in the most adorable sense—blogger/ alien hybrid. At the end of Opal, Katy was alone with an Arum (AKA scary dark aliens who have a fetish for hybrids) in Daedalus, an institution with a reputation to strike fear into any Luxen or hybrid. It is the place that held Dawson and Bethany captive until they escaped and were rescued, respectively. It is the place that supposedly kept Blake’s Luxen friend separated from him. It is the place that Katy is now having the life sucked out of her by an Arum.

     ‘“This is going to hurt,” the Arum said. He leaned in, his face inches from mine and his breath cold against his mouth.

“Oh God,” I whispered.

A burst of pain encompassed every cell in my body, and the air flew out of my lungs. Suspended there, I couldn’t move away. My arms didn’t work. Someone grabbed me from the side, but I couldn’t feel. It felt like I was still screaming, but there was no sound.

There was no Daemon.”

     Doesn’t that just give you chills? It is the ultimate cliff hanger, and Jennifer L. Armentrout far from disappoints with the opening of Origin. We are immediately introduced to the new, harsh, terrible setting of Daedalus, from the cell/quarters where Katy stays and is constantly monitored, to the medical rooms where “thorough” examinations take place, to the training rooms, where Katy is made to fight against unstable hybrids to test her own stability with the Source. The entire ordeal of Daedalus was exhausting for Katy and for me as a reader, because Jennifer does such a tremendous job in delivering her story that it truly felt as if I were the one being held captive by a secret government organization. I felt as if I, not Katy, was being subjected to these terrible training sessions and physical exams, being made to eat the bland food and live in a constant state of “what torture is next?” I missed Daemon for my own reasons, but I also felt the pure, deep yearning for Katy’s other half as she spent days, then weeks and months, without Daemon Black, the Luxen—light alien—who healed her and mutated her into a hybrid, therefore connecting them in a way that went beyond the bond they’d previously shared.

    Daemon may be my favorite male character, like ever. Don’t worry, though. In Origin, to make up for missed moments between Daemon and Katy, Jennifer L. Armentrout has given us half the book told magnificently and so accurately in the POV of Daemon Black, the hottest alien I’ve ever heard of. I’ve said this a million and one times: I am not a fan of different POV’s. However, the voice of Daemon is so brilliantly accomplished that it only made the story that much better. I loved reading about the love and vulnerability that Daemon had, seeing what went on in his head beyond the snarky comments, and most of all, kissing—and other stuff—scenes are SO much steamier when told from Daemon Freaking Black. While Katy’s world stays very much stagnant in Daedalus, Daemon is on super speed as he goes to rescue her. It was amazing how Jennifer could portray all of the emotions that went through his mind as Daemon went to rescue Katy. There was a masculinity and pride that is so unique to Daemon. I love it so, so, so much. Once Daemon and Katy are together, interesting turns of events cause everything around them to change, but their relationship only grows stronger. I am obsessed with the idea that a semi-nerdy blogger can end up with that glowing piece of you know what, and the way Jennifer writes their love story makes it seem like a real life possibility.  I’m not going to spoil the entire book for you, but let me just say this: Nancy Husher, the head honcho at Daedalus, makes a VERY interesting proposal that will shock your socks off when they are in Daedalus…in conjoining rooms…with a shared bathroom…with no cameras….Get my flow? Nancy Husher is one messed up lady. But really, all women who wear pantsuits are, aren’t they? She is, after all, behind the experiments at Daedalus, some of which scar Katy physically and emotionally, such as hurting her fatally to get Daemon to heal her. Origin is by far the most gruesome but riveting installment of the series. I think if I had to pick a favorite, it would be this one. The blend of humor, fantasy, romance, and action made for a top-notch read, one I can see having worn, overly loved pages in a few years from all the re-reading.

One note; there is a bit more steaminess in Origin, and a word to the wise: you cannot prepare yourself for the hotness that is Daemon Black, and you cannot deny the hotness that is Daemon Black, and you cannot turn away from the hotness that is Daemon Black, but be aware that if you are young and impressionable that you might want to save a few pages here and there for later so that you can fully appreciate this incredible hotness that is, what? Daemon Black, of course. Especially when Katy and Daemon leave Daedalus (do they escape, or do they get released? You have to read and find out), they certainly make up for lost time. There is an interesting twist in the book at the point of leaving Daedalus, which I’m not going to ruin if you haven’t read it, but if you have: was that not the best impromptu thing in the entire universe??? And how it happened in the “My Blog is Better Than Your Vlog” tee? YES! YES! YES! Trust me that when I say that you will not want to miss out on this ending, I mean it whole-heartedly. I haven’t given books 10’s out of 10 since my newbie blogger days, but this is a must –read and it deserves it! Jennifer Armentrout, you rock my socks off!!!!

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What did you think about Origin? Comment what rating you would have given it in the comments below!!!!!!!!!