Synopsis:

Anna Whitt, the daughter of a guardian angel and a demon, promised herself she’d never do the work of her father—polluting souls. She’d been naive to make such a vow. She’d been naive about a lot of things.

Haunted by demon whisperers, Anna does whatever she can to survive, even if it means embracing her dark side and earning an unwanted reputation as her school’s party girl. Her life has never looked more bleak. And all the while there’s Kaidan Rowe, son of the Duke of Lust, plaguing her heart and mind.

When an unexpected lost message from the angels surfaces, Anna finds herself traveling the globe with Kopano, son of Wrath, in an attempt to gain support of fellow Nephilim and give them hope for the first time. It soon becomes clear that whatever freedoms Anna and the rest of the Neph are hoping to win will not be gained without a fight. Until then, Anna and Kaidan must put aside the issues between them, overcome the steamiest of temptations yet, and face the ultimate question: is loving someone worth risking their life?

Favorite Lines:

“Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul, and sings the tune without words, and never stops at all…”

“I was more myself with you during those three days than I’ve ever been with anyone in my life. It’d be easier if I could be fake with you, but you bring out everything in me, little Ann. All of it.”

“’Spend the night with me. I’m tired of living like I’m not alive.’ He dropped his hands from my face to grip my shoulders. ‘I’m bloody sick to death of it. I want one night to be alive. With you.’ He closed his eyes and leaned his forehead on mine. ‘Please, Anna. One last night and we’ll go back to being safe again. I need this. I need you.’”

My Opinion:

Coming into this book, I read the synopsis and figured there wouldn’t be any Kaidan but I was desperate for whatever I could get so I dove in. Naturally, I got hooked and stayed up until 3am to finish the book in one sitting; I’m a sucker. Sweet Peril, and the whole Sweet series for that matter, takes place over an extended period of time. Because of this, the books will jump ahead every few months and then pause to spend some time in each area. I usually don’t like this way of writing because I feel like you are missing out on a lot of the character time, but Higgins really makes it work in Sweet Peril. If anything it really adds to the build up and anticipation of the story.

At the end of Sweet Evil, the first book in the series, Kaidan moves to L.A. without saying goodbye to Anna and sends her a postcard that breaks your heart in such a simple way (you’ll understand if you have read it). Sweet Peril, focuses on Anna as she tries to navigate the world alone without Kaidan in the same state as her. Like I said above, I was sure that there would be no Kaidan and the story was going to focus on Anna but Kaidan does make his appearances every once and awhile and these were the moments I was living for. Because he was out of the state, Kaidan was not around much but Anna would seek him out for obvious reasons and when they saw eachother….my heart would stop beating and I would hold my breath (you would think I was Anna seeing him or something). Your heart will actually stop every time she sees him; that’s how good Higgins is. She builds up with such anticipation and makes you want the ship to happen so every little second that you get with them is like sweet, blissful, torture.

One thing that I have love/hate feeling towards is Kaidan’s behavior. I get why he is doing what he is doing and it becomes more clear towards the end of this book why he acts the way he does, but that doesn’t make it any less frustrating. He is such a little butt for denying her for so long but I feel for him and think its sweet. I still want to just skip to the part where he admits his feelings and stops being all “knight in shining armor” in his own way. But ultimately the way he acts is part of his personality that draws readers to him and makes us love him even more.

Something that I am going to admit and wish that I didn’t feel this way because it’s slightly embarrassing is that I relate to Anna and the way she feels about Kaidan on a cellular level. I think that is what makes me relate to her so well and how I see myself reflected in her. She knows how she feels and she gets rejected over and over and some of her thoughts throughout the series so far are her trying to deal with that rejection and figuring out how to live her life. I think a lot of us readers have been in her shoes but I have never read a series that laid out feelings so similar to mine and let me relate in a much deeper and more personal level. The vulnerability that Anna feels is not something that a lot of writers can nail on the head as well as Higgins did.

Summary:

Overall, I am in love with this series so far. So much so, that I might even venture to say it’s in my top 5 for favorite series. I am seriously going to have to reread all the books once I finish the series, which is not something I normally do right away. If you want all the feels with biblical references thrown in here and there, then this is the book series for you. It is extremely well written and addicting. I can’t wait to read the next one!

 

Sweet Peril

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Synopsis:

Embrace the Forbidden

What if there were teens whose lives literally depended on being bad influences?

This is the reality for sons and daughters of fallen angels.

Tenderhearted Southern girl Anna Whitt was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She’s aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but it isn’t until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage and her willpower is put to the test. He’s the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.

Forced to face her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns?

Favorite Lines:

“’Which is your favorite place?’ I asked. ‘I’ve never been terribly attached to any place. I guess it would have to be…here.’ I stopped midchew and examined his face. He wouldn’t look at me. He was clenching his jaw, tense. Was he serious or was he teasing me? I swallowed my bite. ‘The Texas panhandle?’ I asked. ‘No.” He seemed to choose each word with deliberate care. ‘I mean here in this car. With you.’”

“The purpose of life is to find your way back to a spiritual way of thinking and living—to be able to get past the physical stuff. That’s pretty much the whole test. And every soul is given talents and strengths to help them along the way.”

“He’d been right when he said the truth could hurt far worse than any lie.”

My Opinion:

I’m going to start this review by telling you all how I found this book. I previously read and reviewed the Lux series. It wasn’t my first time reading it but it was my first time reviewing it. During the reread for the review, I noticed that the main characters had to get fake IDs under the names of characters from Katy’s favorite book. So, I googled the characters names to see if they were real characters in a book and they were! They were the characters from this book and the synopsis sounded interesting so I decided to read it. I’m not entirely sure why there were bad reviews on Goodreads but I have noticed that a lot of people are very harsh on a lot of books that I end up loving. The lesson to be learned is don’t listen to reviews and give a book a chance because you might love it despite it not being another readers cup of tea.  I was not familiar with the author in the slightest but I’m very glad that I read it because once I started, I couldn’t put it down. I ended up staying up until after 3am to finish it.

I kind of think that the title Sweet Evil is lame, but this book is anything but lame. The story follows a girl named Anna who is adopted at a young age and has special powers. Because she was adopted she doesn’t know why she has these powers and tries hard to have a normal life. Then Kaidan Rowe happens. Next thing she knows, Anna is going across country with Kaidan finding out as much as she can about this world she didn’t know existed but she is a part of, all while falling for the off-limits Kai.

I didn’t like that Kai is soooooooo off-limits (but understandably so). Higgins does a really good job at making it understandable why Kai is the way he is. It’s just so frustrating because you ship him with Anna and you want it to happen. I found myself thinking “screw the rules, get together already”. And maybe they will….eventually.

I love that Anna and Kai mesh so well together. They aren’t the same, but Anna shows Kai a different way to live and Kai brings Anna in to his world. They both are learning and discovering new things together. I related to how Anna felt after certain things happened between Kai and her. How she was struggling to move on and her overall thought process; I’ve been there. I was reading it and literally thinking “this is me”. I know this is vague, but you’ll get it once you read it. If you’ve ever gone through any sort of breakup or rejection you’ll read it and go “Wow. I’m not the only one who thinks like this”. I know I did.

Summary:

Overall, I loved this book. It wasn’t too confusing and it has just the right amount of mystery and intrigue. Now all this series needs is for my ship to get together (it better get together). I highly, highly recommend this book if you want a romance that makes your heart soar and then crash (don’t worry, it should get better). Like I said, don’t judge the book based on other reviews, including my own.  I’m here to write about books that I have read in hopes of inspiring you to read them if you’re looking for your next book series and aren’t sure what to read. I’m not here to tell you that a book isn’t worth your time or that you have to read the series. I hope you read this review, and make your own judgement of whether this would be something your interested in. Until next time, happy reading!

 

Sweet Evil

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Synopsis:

Kate Brandeis has it all: a famous reporter at the age of twenty-four, she’s the face of the Republic of the Americas. She has a loving fiancee and all the success she could wish for. But when she learns of the death of a long-forgotten friend, her investigations unravel her perfect memories, forcing her to face the fact that she’s been living a lie.

Jackson MacNamera, trained from a young age in the art of mind control, returns to the Republic for his mother’s funeral. Within a few hours of his arrival, authorities collect Jackson and take him by force to a room ironically called The Liberty Box, where he must choose between surrendering his thoughts to the new Republic, or fleeing for his freedom.

Kate, bereaved and confused, finds her way to a cave community of refugees, where Jackson seems to offer her an escape from her grief. The two forge an uneasy bond, and in the process Jackson learns that Kate has some insight which may help the hunters in their attempt to free other citizens from the tyranny of the Potentate. Against the expressed wishes of the Council, the hunters plot a series of daring raids, attempting to prove that not only is freedom possible, but that the citizens are not too far gone to desire it. But with the odds so stacked against them, can the refugees succeed in their rescue missions right under the Potentate’s nose?

Favorite Lines:

“…the missing link between our physical bodies and our awareness is our minds.”

“…power is never the point. Power is a byproduct of a peaceful and quiet mind…but the moment power becomes an end in itself, the peace evaporates.”

My Opinion:

I was contacted to read and give an honest review of this book by the author and I was pleasantly surprised with the novel. The story follows Kate and Jackson, two very different people living very different lives that get caught up in the same problem: the government is actually crazy and people are brainwashed; no big deal. The citizens in this story who live in the Republic, formally known as America, all live with a metaphorical film over their eyes that causes them to think they are all happy and healthy when in reality, they are starving and the country is in ruins. It kind of reminds me of a video game called “We Happy Few” where people take medicine to live in a “perfect” society when in reality everything is much darker than originally thought.

This story was full of very interesting concepts that make me curious to read more about them. A lot of what I found interesting revolves around being completely at peace with your mind and being in control of your thoughts beyond just our basic understanding of the brain. While doing research for this review, I learned that Gray is actually a Naturopathic Medical Doctor which could explain some of the events and concepts that take place in the book.

The only thing that I feel is missing from this book, and it might just be me and my preferences, is that I wish that this book had more romance in it. There are touches here and there, there is an obvious connection between Kate and Jackson. I understand the hesitation, given the previous events that took place in but there was very little on the romance side. Perhaps this is because Gray wants to stick to more action based writing rather than emotions but with the introduction of a potential love triangle at the end of the book I hope she includes more of a romantic side in her upcoming books.

Summary:

Overall, this story was very well put together and like I mentioned before, was full of concepts that I found fascinating. I have never read a story about a dystopian world in such a manner as The Liberty Box, making it an utterly unique tale. I will be interested to see where Gray takes the story next and look forward to continuing the series.

 

The Liberty Box

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Synopsis:

Katy knows the world changed the night the Luxen came.

She can’t believe Daemon welcomed his race or stood by as his kind threatened to obliterate every last human and hybrid on Earth. But the lines between good and bad have blurred, and love has become an emotion that could destroy her—could destroy them all.

Daemon will do anything to save those he loves, even if it means betrayal.

They must team with an unlikely enemy if there is any chance of surviving the invasion. But when it quickly becomes impossible to tell friend from foe, and the world is crumbling around them, they may lose everything— even what they cherish most—to ensure the survival of their friends…and mankind.

War has come to Earth. And no matter the outcome, the future will never be the same for those left standing..

Favorite Lines:

“It didn’t matter how many hours, days, months, or years we had stretched out in front of us; we’d always be together. This kind of love was the real deal, stronger than a whole planet full of psycho aliens and an entire government.”

“I broke every rule of my kind to heal you and keep you with me. I married you and burned down an entire city to keep you save. I’ve killed for you. Did you think that I’d forget what you mean to me? That anything in this world—in any world—would be stronger than my love for you?”

“To this day, I had no idea how he got that dip on either side of his hips. Like what kind of sit-ups does one do for that? The only time I sat up from laying down was to get out of bed. Or get some chocolate. Or a book.”

My Opinion: 

Opposition is technically the last book in the Lux series. There is Oblivion which is a collection of all the books from Daemon’s point of view as well as an apparent novella called The Wedding (I wonder what that’s about). There is also an adult spin-off called Obsession telling the story of Hunter and Serena who we have met before and will see again in this book. Another spin-off that has not come out yet is called The Darkest Star; it looks like this will be more than a standalone book.

The last book ends on a pretty big cliff hanger and this book picks up where the last left off. This book is definitely the most eventful of the series; it has to be in order to tie everything up. Opposition is full of plot twists. As soon as you think you know what is happening, Armentrout does a 180 and makes you question everything you thought you knew. Towards the start of the book, your heart will be breaking but it will get all stitched up nicely ONLY TO BE BROKEN AGAIN and then fixed. It’s like Armentrout likes making us hurt, throwing us a band-aid, and then making us hurt again.

What I like so much about this book outside of all the action and plot twist is that Armentrout has a lot of references to other books in the series. She revisits topics brought up in previous books and touches on things that will hopefully happen in the spin-off books. We see more of Hunter and Serena, as well as, Luc and Nadia. She leaves a little opening for the latter that will hopefully be the beginning of the Origin series. Armentrout also does an amazing job (like always) at using pop-culture references to keep some humor in the book. This keeps the mood from being too down and makes you aggressively exhale nose through your nose (also known as a silently laugh).

Summary:

This is honestly probably the best book in the series simply because it ties up all the loose ends, covers such a wide variety at a nice pace without being confusing, and I personally thought it was the most well written in the series.

The sad thing is that it leaves you wanting more and there is no more to give in the series except for the short novella (Lux #5.5) and the two spin-offs. Hopefully they are just as good as this series has been and that we get to see a peak at Katy and Daemon from other character’s points of view, because I don’t think I’ll survive never hearing from them again. Until next time, happy reading!

 

Opposition

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Synopsis:

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?

Favorite Lines:

“I’ll burn the world down to save her.”

“I love you Katy. Always have. Always will.”

“She was beautiful, and I was so, so desperately in love with her.”

My Opinion:

This book is another one of those books that shows how characters overcome major struggle and continue to develop. Origin picks up right where the last book left off and shows us the inner workings of the bad guys while bringing Katy and Daemon closer together in new ways (don’t gutter brain that).

This books FINALLY shows dual POV between Katy and Daemon, which is something I love. If you ever read Oblivion, that is all told from Daemons POV but it’s always nice to have the flip back and forth between the two characters. I always love seeing into the guy’s brain because most stories are told from the girl’s perspective so very rarely do we get to know what the other person is really thinking and there are a lot of thoughts that don’t get verbally expressed and therefore are missing from the story.

If you pay attention in this book we are briefly introduced to Hunter through Daemon’s POV when he goes to talk to Luc. Hunter is a character in Armentrout’s Adult spin-off of the Lux series called Obsession. The meeting is also a part of Obsession told from Hunter’s POV. I always love when books crossover into one another (as long as they aren’t too confusing). There is also another spin-off in the makes that I believe will focus on Luc called The Darkest Star. It will be a part of a trilogy and is set to have a release date of October 30^th, 2018.

The ending of this book will leave you surprised, upset, and confused. Spoiler alert: death is involved. You might even have conflicted feelings with what goes down towards the end of this book. I just wish the characters could have a two second break from all the chaos to relax and be together before the poo hits the fan. But then, where would be the fun in that. The end of this book provides us with the perfect bridge into the next book, Opposition.

Summary:

I’ll keep this summary short and sweet so we can all get on to reading our books. This book has a lot of drama in it and a lot of action. It provides insight into different areas of the Lux universe that we have yet to see and furthers both Daemon and Katy’s character development and relationship development. It is a must read for the series.

 

Origin

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