Highlights / Lowlights: OBSIDIAN by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Title: OBSIDIAN
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout (@JLArmentrout)
Published: November 2011
Series: Lux #1
Genre: YA Sci-fi
Publisher: Entangled Publishing POV: 1st person Pages: 294  Format: Kindle eBook Source: Bought Rating: The Great Hall

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.

Highlights: New town, new school, new friends, and a few new problems – Katy is off to quite a start. Katy is an amusing narrator, not to mention a book blogger, so it was easy enough to enjoy and relate to her character. OBSIDIAN is an entertaining story to read, and I can see why so many readers love this book. I was grinning, laughing out loud, scoffing, and utterly unable to contain my wide variety of reactions once I began this novel. While I found the romance to be underwhelming, I highly enjoyed character interactions and Armentrout's type of humor. 

Lowlights: Predictable, with an overall plot that is reminiscent of other stories, and some clichés are thrown in as well. Daemon was a frustrating love interest, what with his constant need to act like a jerk. The summary states that there are aliens, but it took what felt like an eternity for Katy to figure it out¹. The alien "reveal" had too much info-dumping, too. 

Rating: The Great Hall (high 3 out of 5). OBSIDIAN was very likable, but honestly, the only reason I bought this book was because it was on sale for Kindle. While there are some flaws, I do think I would read it again, but I'm not sure if I'll ever read the rest of this series. But, anyone who is interested in OBSIDIAN should definitely check it out, because it is a humorous and fun story. 
1 Which sucks, because then you're all "Katy, they're aliens! ALIENS!!" until she finally figures it out. And then once the alien reveal happens, you're like "Duh, I've only been been telling you that they're aliens for how many pages?"² 2 Umm, I mean, there was no talking to fictional characters. I would never do that, because that would be crazy. *walks away innocently*

Review: Venom by Fiona Paul

Venom
Fiona Paul
October 30th, 2012
432 pages (hardcover)
Philomel
Source: Publisher (unsolicited)

"Cassandra Caravello is one of Renaissance Venice’s lucky elite: with elegant gowns, sparkling jewels, her own lady’s maid, and a wealthy fiancé, she has everything a girl could desire. Yet ever since her parents’ death, Cassandra has felt trapped, alone in a city of water, where the dark and labyrinthine canals whisper of escape.

When Cass stumbles upon a murdered woman—practically in her own backyard—she’s drawn into a dangerous world of courtesans, killers, and secret societies. Soon, she finds herself falling for Falco, a mysterious artist with a mischievous grin... and a spectacular skill for trouble. Can Cassandra find the murderer, before he finds her? And will she stay true to her fiancé, or succumb to her uncontrollable feelings for Falco?"

Prepare yourself for a story with vivid descriptions and a tantalizing mystery, because Venom delivers that and so much more. From luxurious masked balls to an eerie graveyard behind Cass's home, Fiona Paul's descriptions excelled using the third person POV to intricately depict each new locale. While it could have been easy to let the scenery outshine the characters or the plot, everything remains nicely balanced and equally well-written throughout the novel.

The deeper Cass digs into the mystery of a murdered courtesan, the more danger she finds herself in. With a killer that may be targeting her, not to mention her conflicting feelings for Falco (a mysterious and amusing artist) and Luca (her kind fiancé, who has a few secrets of his own) Cass's normal life spirals out of control. While at times it may feel like you've seen it all before¹, Venom takes each element and creates a story that is undeniably difficult to set aside. Mysterious, passionate, and surprising, Venom doesn't disappoint.

Highlights: Fiona Paul kept the mystery alive throughout the entire story by withholding the last final clues for the end. Despite the two love interests, it never felt like a love triangle since Cass only has eyes for one young man. Each love interest is more complicated than I expected – both are flawed, so it's challenging to choose a side. Description was lovely and so very vivid. 

Lowlights: Originally, I was going to give this book five stars based on pure enjoyment of the story. But, there were some issues. Multiple clichés, and the secret society in the summary was barely mentioned in the novel. Cass could be a bit too reckless sometimes, but I understand why she was (the story wouldn't have went anywhere if she wasn't a bit reckless). 

1 There's one section that seemed exactly like a scene in Titanic, if only a more PG-13 version. Not a bad thing, but it did make me want to watch Titanic again...