Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Series: Lux, #1
Source: Bought
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Publication Date: May 8, 2012

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.

"The ones who throw their beauty around, waste what they have? Their beauty is only passing. It's just a shell hiding nothing but shadows and emptiness."

Hmm. How to say this? I actually enjoyed Obsidian a lot more than I expected to. Based on reviews, I could've gone either way. But in the end... I went both ways. See, there are parts of me that really enjoyed this one - that devoured it in just a couple of sittings, and this was the book to throw me out of my funk... but there are also parts of me that didn't think it was ridiculously great or anything.

I mean, I spent the first half of the book silently calling Daemon a douche. Because he is one, and it's really obvious. I actually find it ironic that the quote I used was from him... seeing as he throws around his beauty all the time. I mean, come on. He does, and he is a jerk and he is a douche... but there's just something that I like about him. It becomes more obvious in book two - in this one, I was mostly unsure.

Speaking of unsure, I don't know about Katy's book blog. It seems a little... fishy. I mean, she never really thinks about it, unless she's actually blogging, or talking about how she's going to read a book... which she never seems to do. Not gonna lie, I think about this little corner of the universe all the time. I'll think about things I want to say in certain reviews, or about how I need to promote more on this platform or whatever - my blog is constantly running in the background of my mind.

So, yes... I find it a little fishy that Katy doesn't think about hers all the time. And, well... the girl doesn't like country music. I knew that we couldn't be friends from that point on. (Just kidding. Kind of.) But really, Katy is more of a filler character than anything else. I think what the story is really about is.... you guessed it, Daemon. He seems to be the one with the development, while Katy is just kind of... flat and meh.

Which seems ridiculous, I mean come on! She's the main character! Where's the development? Where are the quirks and the personality traits? She's like (dare I say it?) Bella.

First off, I kind of want to curse a friend of mine - but she's right. Applaud yourself, Rashika! You made me notice all of the similarities between Obsidian and Twilight. I mean, dang. There are so many similarities, except for the fact that Daemon doesn't creepishly watch her while she sleeps, and she isn't obsessed with him immediately. She thinks he's hot, though. In the words of Razzy, "it's like a better version of Twilight."

All in all, I kind of feel like Obsidian is a guilty pleasure. It was a fun and quick read, but it's not like "OMG I LOVE IT FOREVER, ALL THE STARS" or anything like that. Solid 3.

Top Ten Popular Authors I've Never Read

Easy, peasy. I mean, I can probably think of fifteen off of the top of my head! Possibly... maybe?! Keep in mind that every author I put on this list I do want to read - I just don't have time!!

1. Richelle Mead, author of the Bloodlines series.
2. J.K. Rowling, author of Harry Potter.
3. James Dashner, Maze Runner series.
4. Lauren Kate, author of Fallen.
5. Marie Lu, author of Legend.
6. Sarah J. Maas, author of Throne of Glass.
7. Eoin Colfer, author of Artemis Fowl.
8. Julie Kagawa, author of the Blood of Eden series.
9. Pittacus Lore, author of I am Number Four.
10. Patrick Ness, author of The Knife of Never Letting Go.

Look at all these authors! Jeez, I feel so lame now. So lame that I used lame in a sentence.

The Friday Society by Adrienne Kress

The Friday Society by Adrienne Kress
Series: N/A
Source: Bought
Publisher: Dial Books
Publication Date: December 6, 2012

An action-packed tale of gowns, guys, guns –and the heroines who use them all 

Set in turn of the century London, The Friday Society follows the stories of three very intelligent and talented young women, all of whom are assistants to powerful men: Cora, lab assistant; Michiko, Japanese fight assistant; and Nellie, magician's assistant. The three young women's lives become inexorably intertwined after a chance meeting at a ball that ends with the discovery of a murdered mystery man.

It's up to these three, in their own charming but bold way, to solve the murder–and the crimes they believe may be connected to it–without calling too much attention to themselves.

Set in the past but with a modern irreverent flare, this Steampunk whodunit introduces three unforgettable and very ladylike–well, relatively ladylike–heroines poised for more dangerous adventures.

If I'm honest with you, I'll tell you that I love books with girl power. There is not one girl in this world who "needs" a guy to save her, and I love it when that crosses over into YA lit. It sends a great message, because there are so many girls out there that think they "need" a guy to be something. And this is one of the best examples of a girl power kind of book - it's a totally badass steampunk version of Charlie's Angels, but without a "Charlie".

Before I go on, let me just tell you that I love Charlie's Angels. It's just such a fun movie, and, like I said - GIRL POWER! So I was bound to at least like this one. And I did, but not as much as I had originally hoped. I think the thing that killed it for me was the ending - you know how I have problems with those.

I'm not going to reveal spoilers, but let's just say that I wasn't too surprised in the end.... to say the least. There were a few twists that I didn't see coming, but the ending... it just takes the cake for predictable, unfortunately. But here I go, starting the review at the end again! Let's talk about something more interesting, like say... I don't know, maybe the characters?

Like I said before, there is a seriously awesome amount of girl power in this book. Like, a lot! And I love love loved that! I enjoyed all of our main characters, and it was fun to read from each of their different points of view. I never got confused about who was speaking (and there were no name titles), but I think, hands down, that Cora was my favorite.

She was super smart - like, inventor smart (funny, that... she is an inventor) and she's so awesome! I loved her spunk, and the way that she wasn't afraid to stand up for what she believed in. Or to help someone who was in need. She was funny, and she liked to kind of blend into the background - which was a nice change.

That doesn't mean that I didn't like Michiko and Nellie, though! I just liked them for different reasons. I liked Michiko's drive and discipline, and Nellie's flair for girliness. Cora was definitely my favorite, though!

In other news, I think this book has the most realistic "relationship" ever described - it was hilarious when it happened, but... in the end, I think it's nice to see a relationship that doesn't work out in the end. Also a good message.

All in all, I'd say that The Friday Society was a fun steampunk adventure, with plenty of action and interesting characters - but I feel like the ending could have been better.