He’s arrogant, domineering, and... To. Die. For.Hunter is a ruthless killer. And the Department of Defense has him firmly in their grasp, which usually doesn’t chafe too badly because he gets to kill bad guys. Most of the time he enjoys his job. That is, until he’s saddled with something he’s never had to do before: protect a human from his mortal enemy.
Serena Cross didn’t believe her best friend when she claimed to have seen the son of a powerful senator turn into something... unnatural. Who would? But then she witnesses her friend’s murder at the hands of what can only be an alien, thrusting her into a world that will kill to protect their secret.
Hunter stirs Serena’s temper and her lust despite their differences. Soon he’s doing the unthinkable—breaking the rules he’s lived by, going against the government to keep Serena safe. But are the aliens and the government the biggest threats to Serena’s life… or is it Hunter?
Let me start off this review by thanking the person who made me read this; Nicole from booksandstarlight because before she mentioned how good it was, I wasn't going to read it at all. Partially because I couldn't stand any more Lux series feels and partly because Jennifer Armentrout said it was a stand-alone novel about an Arum which didn't need to be read in order to understand the main books. After reading Obsession, I think it's very important to read it and I'll explain why in this review.
Before reading Obsession, I believed that Luxen were good, Arum were bad. It was as simple as that but as I made my way through this book I understood more about the entire reasoning behind why the two alien sides hate each other. Through time on earth, the lines have blurred between these two groups. I was completely surprised to discover how the war began and who the bad guys really are here yet for reasons made up by the government; Luxen are obviously favored, we know that from the other books in the series. What this novel does is show us an entirely new perspective. I definitely understand a lot more now and am a little more sympathetic towards the opposing side; the Arum.
Whilst reading this book I came to discover that not all Arum are bad, some are actually very good. Take Hunter's brother... well the ones he claims anyways, he's kept out of trouble and doesn't try to wreak havoc on innocent people. Actually, Hunter's family is the perfect way to explain how the Arum are; Lore, one of the brothers, is a wonderful person. He stays off the radar and likes it that way but he'd do anything for Hunter. Then there's Sin, aptly named, and the complete stereotype we had of the Arum in books 1, 2 and 3 of the Lux series. Cold, cruel, selfish and enjoy bringing people and Luxen pain. As I said, this family is the perfect way to explain how Arum really are, there are good ones and there are downright awful ones. We also find out that not all Luxen are sunshine and rainbows, some can be just as cruel and unforgiving as the worst Arums.
Without reading this I'd still think the Arum were the ultimate bad guys here. It shows a completely new side to them and how they live, even why they kill and feed from the Luxen. It's safe to say that I learnt a helluva lot from Obsession and not only about the Arum but it also helps me understand the circumstances behind everything that happens in Origin too. Especially the ending but I wont elaborate because I'm trying (painfully) to keep this spoiler-free. Basically, without reading this book I wouldn't fully understand the ending of Origin and why what happened, happens. Does that make sense? Maybe.
I loved the characters! Serena was lovely yet strong-willed and incredibly brave. She took the whole alien thing as if someone just told her that humans breath and although that worried me at the start, I understood at the end. She kind of keeps all the hysteria in until the dam breaks and then we see all of those emotions spill out. It was also really cool that Hunter could read auras because it gave us a sense of how Serena felt when we weren't reading her POV. She held her own, carried herself well and didn't lose hope even when she thinks it's the end. Loyalty turned out to be her strongest trait! She didn't cower from Hunter even at the beginning, she didn't let him intimidate her which I loved her for. I loved watching her fall for Hunter and vise versa, it was really beautiful and whenever she asked to see him in his true form even though it scared her a little, she was amazed rather than disgusted. It was strange to see Hunter so conscious about being in his true form too, how he thought she'd cower and hide. She always believed he was a good person inside and she was right.
Hunter was fab. I probably wanted him as much as Serena did to be honest... I was a mess when he said those three little words. I also loved his brothers, both were complete opposites of each other but they added a little something to the story - it was fun to see how Hunter interacted with them both so differently. One with pride and relaxed happiness and the other with caution and barely controlled anger.
If you've read this book, do you think it was beneficial to read it? Did it help you understand in the same way it did me?
No comments:
Post a Comment