Written by Cally Black
Science Fiction, Aliens, #LoveOzYA
320 Pages
Published August 1st 2017
Thank you to Hardie Grant Egmont
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★★★★★
The latest winner of the Ampersand Prize is a genre smashing hostage drama about fourteen year old Tamara, who's faced with an impossible choice when she falls for her kidnappers. Yet this is no ordinary kidnapping.
Tamara has been living on a star freighter in deep space, and her kidnappers are terrifying Crowpeople, the only aliens humanity has ever encountered. No one has ever survived a Crowpeople attack, until now and Tamara must use everything she has just to stay alive. But survival always comes at a price, and there’s no handbook for this hostage crisis.
As Tamara comes to know the Crowpeople's way of life, and the threats they face from humanity's exploration into deep space, she realises she has an impossible choice to make. Should she stay as the only human among the Crows, knowing she'll never see her family again or inevitably betray her new community if she wants to escape?
The Garuwa are a convoluted species populating interstellar space on conscious vessels requiring minerals to survive, resident to thousands of warrior Garuwa prepared to defend their populace. Humans are a necessary carnage as the Starweaver Corporation vessels are commandeered and pillaged. Tamara is being held captive and begins to assimilate, emulating the intricate language of whistles and forging friendships within the female species.
Living in isolation, Tamara has never experienced a sense of community beyond observing those on board the Starweaver Layla through the ventilation system. Her relationship with Lazella is maternal and tender, providing Tamara with comfort after the loss of her parents. Tamiki is a perceptive young boy, gentle and understanding the importance of quiet whispers. Throughout her narration, Tamara's distress is palpable as Tamiki remains on board the desolate vessel. I admired Tamara's intelligence and determination to survive. Her compassion allows her to recognise that although the Garuwa appear hostile, the species embrace Tamara as a member of their community. A wonderful illustration of inclusion.
In The Dark Spaces obscures the boundaries of morality, humans and Garuwa have created a hostile environment and interspecies conflict. It also explores colonisation and the mining of resources, a reference to the aggressive infringement on Indigenous land. An ingenious, introspective and remarkable young adult debut.
Contains spoilers for books 1-3 of the Lux series.
Lux: Book 1.5
Written by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance
1005 Pages
Published December 1st 2015 by Entangled: Teen
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★★★★
I knew the moment Katy Swartz moved in next door, there was going to be trouble. Lots of it.And trouble’s the last thing I need, since I’m not exactly from around here. My people arrived on Earth from Lux, a planet thirteen billion light years away. Plus, if there’s one thing I know, it’s that humans can’t be trusted. We scare them. We can do things they only dream about, and honestly, we make them look weak as hell. ‘Cuz they are.
But Kat is getting to me in ways no one else has, and I can't stop myself from wanting her—or wanting to use my powers to protect her. She makes me weak, and I’m the strongest of our kind, tasked with protecting us all. So this one simple girl…she can mean the end for us. Because the Luxen have an even bigger enemy—the Arum, and I need to stay on my game.
Falling for Katy—a human—won't just place her in danger. It could get us all killed, and that’s one thing I’ll never let happen..
Okay so a little backstory here: I am reading the version which includes the first three novels told in the POV of Daemon. There's another version which only has the first novel that's like 300 some pages - but I fucking LOVE the Lux series so of course I'm going to read the version that is longest because yeah.. who wouldn't? I adore this world to shreds and just had to read it from my boyfriends POV (HAH JK BECAUSE HE'S WITH KAT *sobs*) but a girl can dream, right? So what I'm gonna do is break this review up into three little subsections. I also encourage you guys to get the ebook because it has all three books, the physical copy only has the first. Here we go, lovelies.
SHORT VERSION: (because this is a long ass review) I loved it, even when I hated it, I loved it.
Kynndra's Thoughts
BOOK ONE: OBSIDIAN
Alright, so this is the one in which Katy moves into alien territory. Also the one where Daemon (an alien) does his damndest to keep Kat out of his, and his sisters life. Unfortunately, that does not happen. When Kat is 'tagged' by some kick-ass alien power, her life is in danger. Once a human is tagged they can be used by the Arum (evil aliens who want to steal the powers of the Luxen). Daemon (who aggressively denies his feels for Kat) will do anything to keep his sister, and Kat safe. It's a battle of wills as Daemon and Katy dance around their chemistry and the bond they have formed. Meanwhile, the Arum are on the prowl - needless to say, shit happens.Okay, I'll be honest I have adored the Lux series for a year or two now and I might be a little biased. Reading the first book from Daemon's POV was so different than reading the original which was in Kat's POV. It's been awhile, but I have to say I preferred seeing the story from Kat's eyes; however, I also adored being offered the chance to read Daemon's side of the story. It was hella corny, but it made me LAUGH SO DAMN MUCH. Daemon is an asshole, but a loveable one? I don't know. I think JLA's portrayal of a teenage boys thought process was spot on. Some parts had me blushing, others smirking. I loved every second. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. You read JLA's YA novels for the fun, and snarky goodness that lies within. Also the chemistry between characters is amazing. You don't read her work for some poetic masterpiece (at least not the Lux series, I haven't read her other series).
It took me a little while to re-adjust to the Luxen world, but once I did I was entranced and fell in love with Daemon and Kat all over again. If you can ignore the fact that the book is basically all about how much Daemon likes Kat and how many times Daemon has to save Kat - then I'm sure you'll enjoy it. I certainly did. JLA is one of my all time favorite authors because she's a god at making such addicting stories and characters. SO GOOD PEOPLE. SO MUCH ASSHOLERY THAT WAS AMAZING.
"Maybe I was so good at my douchebag skills, as she called them, she had no clue how I was really starting to feel about her."
BOOK TWO: ONYX
So the second book is essentially the 'rift' between Kat and Daemon. This is where Kat, having been healed by Daemon on a molecular level mutates into basically a alien human hybrid. Whoops. So this shady kid named Blake swoops on in and says he knows what Kat is - and that he too is a mutated alihuman. Blake claims he can train Kat to hone her new alien powers. Enter Daemon, who does not trust Blake at all, but Kat wants to learn how to look after herself. Kat's decision to trust Blake instead of Daemon causes shockwaves in their relationship. But one day, Kat sees someone who should be dead which causes mayhem in the Luxen's lives. Together they must find out the truth.I wasn't a HUGE fan of the second book. Mostly because I was annoyed at how Kat acted and how she snubbed Daemon. But it's understandable considering their past encounters where Daemon was kind of a dickweed to her. SO it is forgiven. We got there near the end which is really all that matters at this point. I just always feel that the second book always lacks something in nearly every series. This one in general got irksome because it was essentially all about Daemon's jealousy and Kat lying to herself about how she really felt.
I still loved all of Daemons good old sass and snark. Which there is never a shortage of. I couldn't get enough of it. I just wish there had been a little less of *ermahgurd Kat's body is perfect, ermahgurd Kat is hurt, emahgurd Kat lemme love you* but I really loved all the parts where he protects her and heals her. I'm a sucker for characters protecting/dying/hurting for another (sorry I'm a fictional character sadist). The feelings are so strong when that happens, I love watching How Daemon goes from a dick to lowkey falling in love with his Kitten. The ending had me is shambles, I knew what was going to happen but it hurt more seeing it come from Daemon's eyes.
“I knew right then I would burn down the whole universe for her if I had to. I would do anything to keep her safe. Kill. Heal. Die. Anything. Because she was my everything.”
BOOK THREE: OPAL
The last book of Oblivion in Daemon's POV is Opal, the one in which Dawson (Daemon's believed to be dead brother) has returned. This book consists of the Luxen scooby gang coming together to figure out how to get Dawson's girlfriend Beth back from the DOD (essentially the alien control squad). This task is harder than anyone could have imagined. With Kat now in control of her powers, she too assists much to Daemon's displeasure. Their mission means they must trust the untrustable in order to succeed. Lots of tragic shit goes down, hold on kiddos.The third book within Oblivion was my favorite. It was more exciting and had a larger view on the plot instead of constantly focusing on Kat and Daemon's banter. Which, don't get me wrong - I love their banter, but it does get hella repetitive after awhile. I think I enjoyed this one more because Kat could finally hold her own a bit more. Also, because I absolutely adore Dawson. He was so broken though, but I just adored the scenes where he would smile and kind of be that little ray of sunshine despite the year or so of torture he had to endure.
I can't express how much I love JLA's way of making a book seem as if it's merely pages and not an entire novel. I flew through this one not only because of the amazing characters but because of how many damn cliffhangers she can pull out of her hat. Seriously, Daemon and Kat could be having dinner and the next second they would be clutching each other as the other lay dying. IT HAD ME STRESSING EVEN THOUGH I KNOW THE OUTCOME ALREADY. Again, at the end there's a huge cliffhanger which had made me nose my way through the original fourth book just to refresh my mind on what happens.
In Conclusion
I'm a huge fan of Jennifer L. Armentrout, I think she's iconic in the YA paranormal romance department. I adored the Lux series when I read it back in 2014, and I love it now having relived it through the eyes of one (loveable) asshole of an alien named Daemon Black. I will admit that I loved it more when I first read it in its original format, but it was still extremely fun being able to go through the emotions and read more content from the Lux world. If you're a fan of this series, and are wondering if it's worth reading it - I will tell you it is. If you've never read this series before, and enjoy a fun, yet cheesy YA PNR series then start with the original series first. Also I can not wait for the Obsidian movie, which I REALLY hope happens (read more on that here).
Kynndra is currently (slowly) reading A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin and wondering what the new year will bring, hopefully good stuff.
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How do you rid the Earth of seven billion humans? Rid the humans of their humanity.
Surviving the first four waves was nearly impossible. Now Cassie Sullivan finds herself in a new world, a world in which the fundamental trust that binds us together is gone. As the 5th Wave rolls across the landscape, Cassie, Ben, and Ringer are forced to confront the Others' ultimate goal: The extermination of the human race.
Cassie and her friends haven’t seen the depths to which the Others will sink, nor have the Others seen the heights to which humanity will rise, in the ultimate battle between life and death, hope and despair, love and hate.
Push (The Game: Book Two)
Written by Eve Silver
Science Fiction, Aliens
Published June 10th 2014
352 Pages
Thank you to Katherine Tegen Books and Edelweiss
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It’s either break the rules or die.
Miki Jones lives her life by her own strict set of rules, to keep control, to keep the gray fog of grief at bay. Then she’s pulled into the Game, where she, and her team, will die unless she follows a new set of rules: those set by the mysterious Committee.
But rules don’t mean answers, and without answers, it’s hard to trust. People are dying. The rules are unraveling. And Miki knows she’s being watched, uncertain if it’s the Drau or someone, something, else. Forced to make impossible choices and battling to save those she loves, Miki begins to see the Committee in a glaring new light.
And then the Game crosses a new boundary, pushes harder into Miki’s and her friends’ lives, and there’s nothing in the rules that can save them now.
When sixteen year old Kyra Agnew wakes up behind a Dumpster at the Gas ’n’ Sip, she has no memory of how she got there. With a terrible headache and a major case of déjà vu, she heads home only to discover that five years have passed... Yet she hasn’t aged a day.
Everything else about Kyra’s old life is different. Her parents are divorced, her boyfriend, Austin, is in college and dating her best friend, and her dad has changed from an uptight neat-freak to a drunken conspiracy theorist who blames her five-year disappearance on little green men.
Confused and lost, Kyra isn’t sure how to move forward unless she uncovers the truth. With Austin gone, she turns to Tyler, Austin’s annoying kid brother, who is now seventeen and who she has a sudden undeniable attraction to. As Tyler and Kyra retrace her steps from the fateful night of her disappearance, they discover strange phenomena that no one can explain, and they begin to wonder if Kyra’s father is not as crazy as he seems. There are others like her who have been taken... And returned. Kyra races to find an explanation and reclaim the life she once had, but what if the life she wants back is not her own?
United They Stand.
Seventeen years ago an entire generation of aliens were sent to Earth in order to save their home planet and integrate into the human population. Now, those aliens are being hunted. Amery Jones is your typical teenager, except for the fact she is an alien and a member of the government’s secret Project Integrate.
When Amery’s best friend Lola is kidnapped in order to get to her, there is only one person that can help, the exceedingly annoying and charming Lochie Mercury. Together, Amery and Lochie must put aside their differences and attraction in order to rescue Lola before it’s too late.
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?
Your heart beats only with their permission.
Everything changed on The Day. The day the windows shattered. The day the power stopped. The day Dol's family dropped dead. The day Earth lost a war it didn't know it was fighting.
Since then, Dol has lived a simple life in the countryside, safe from the shadow of the Icon and its terrifying power. Hiding from the one truth she can't avoid.
She's different. She survived. Why?
When Dol and her best friend, Ro, are captured and taken to the Embassy, off the coast of the sprawling metropolis once known as the City of Angels, they find only more questions. While Ro and fellow hostage Tima rage against their captors, Dol finds herself drawn to Lucas, the Ambassador's privileged son. But the four teens are more alike than they might think, and the timing of their meeting isn't a coincidence. It's a conspiracy.
Within the Icon's reach, Dol, Ro, Tima, and Lucas discover that their uncontrollable emotions, which they've always thought to be their greatest weaknesses, may actually be their greatest strengths.
428 Pages