Review: Elixir (Covanant, #3.5) by Jennifer L.Armentrout

Title: Elixir (Covenant, #3.5)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Published by: Spencer Hill Press
Pages: 80
Source: Bought
Format: Ebook
Rating: 3.5 stars

Summary from Goodreads: Aiden St. Delphi will do anything to save Alex. Even if it means doing the one thing he will never forgive himself for. Even if it means making war against the gods.

Ahh the drama.  To be young, in love, fighting to keep the ones you love themselves, and defying the gods...that is really the life.

This is everything a novella should be.  It was a complete story in itself, yet highly depended on understanding what was currently happening in the series.  I felt like Elixir really had something to add to the Covenant series instead of just telling us a back story.  It had conflict and resolution and I think was a powerful addition to the series.  However if you are not familiar with the series you could not read this novella as a stand alone.  It is highly connected to the series and therefore to truly grasp what is happening one needs to read the previous books before reading this novella.

In Elixir you get to interact on a different level than usual with the characters and understand more of Aiden's perspective.  I love that you see him lose control a bit.  Usually he is so put together and stoic and in Elixir you can see his struggle and raw emotion.   

You hear bits and pieces about the Elixir that is given to Half Bloods previously in the series, but in this novella it hits a bit closer to home.  This is something that Alex (and many other Half Bloods have feared) and yet it may be the only way to not start a war with the gods that will affect everyone.    

One thing I think was done really well was to understand how difficult a decision is.  Sometimes decisions about other peoples lives are portrayed as simple and yet Elixir really shows us the positives and negatives of a decision and how hard they are to make for another person.  Just because it is the easy way (or at times the harder way) is it the right way?  

Who would have thought a short 80 page novella could bring such a heavy topic to life?  Elixir did that and so much more.  

What are your views on novellas?  Do you love them or not really care for them?  How much do they add to a series?

Review of Deity by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Title: Deity (Covenant, #3)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Published by: Spencer Hill Press
Pages: 330
Source: Library
Format: Paperback
Rating: 4.5 stars

Summary from Goodreads: Alexandria isn't sure she's going to make it to her eighteenth birthday--to her Awakening. A long-forgotten, fanatical order is out to kill her, and if the Council ever discovers what she did in the Catskills, she's a goner... and so is Aiden.

If that's not freaky enough, whenever Alex and Seth spend time "training"--which really is just Seth's code word for some up-close and personal one-on-one time--she ends up with another mark of the Apollyon, which brings her one step closer to Awakening ahead of schedule. Awesome.

But as her birthday draws near, her entire world shatters with a startling revelation and she's caught between love and Fate. One will do anything to protect her. One has been lying to her since the beginning. Once the gods have revealed themselves, unleashing their wrath, lives will be irrevocably changed... and destroyed.

Those left standing will discover if love is truly greater than Fate...

It took me awhile to get into this series, but now I'm loving it like cheesecake!

Alex is my favorite type of heroine.  She's full of sass, determination and is not going to be slowed down by rules or Uncles and Stepfathers who are determined to set them.  I love her spunk and total disregard for her own safety in light of helping others.  Plus she has two guys who are after her and they are hello-sexy (though quite infuriating at times).  

I loved seeing different sides of characters in Deity along with a few new characters as well.  It is about time that some of the other characters in the series got some much needed attention.  Obviously I love the main characters, but it adds so much to a story when we get bits and pieces about other characters as well.  It feels more real to me and like I'm chilling with the whole family instead of just my besties.

Besides all the supporting character love, I cannot believe how much action and plot twists Jennifer L. Armentrout threw into one book.  I feel like I could go on forever about many of the events that took place in Deity.  Some were epic and completely shock worthy, while others made me furious and at times a bit confused.  I thought I had everything figured out, but apparently there are some things you could not have guessed.  For instances the ending...I was crushed!  I couldn't believe what happened and now I have to wait until the next book to figure what is going to happen next.  Uggh!

I'm pretty sure I'm confusing you and I probably sound pretty cryptic, but I don't want to give anything away because trust me this book is worth reading.

Review of Pure (Covenant #2) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Title: Pure (Covenant #2)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Published by: Spencer Hill Press
Pages: 329
Source: Library
Format: Paperback
Rating: 4 stars

Summary from Goodreads:  There is need. And then there is Fate

Being destined to become some kind of supernatural electrical outlet isn't exactly awesome--especially when Alexandria's "other half" is everywhere she goes. Seth's in her training room, outside her classes, and keeps showing up in her bedroom--so not cool. Their connection does have some benefits, like staving off her nightmares of the tragic showdown with her mother, but it has no effect on what Alex feels for the forbidden, pure-blooded Aiden. Or what he will do--and sacrifice--for her.
When daimons infiltrate the Covenants and attack students, the gods send furies--lesser gods determined to eradicate any threat to the Covenants and to the gods, and that includes the Apollyon and Alex. And if that and hordes of aether-sucking monsters didn't blow bad enough, a mysterious threat seems willing to do anything to neutralize Seth, even if that means forcing Alex into servitude or killing her.
When the gods are involved, some decisions can never, ever be undone.

Exciting, enticing, and downright addicting.

Pure is one of those novels that exceeded my expectations.  Usually the second book in a series is kind of a let down for me since instead of any real action, they seem more of a filler to set up the next book in the series.  However, Pure gripped me from page one and kept me wanting more. 

Get ready for an emotional rollar coaster.  I'm not talking about one of those kiddie ones at the fair, I'm talking about one of those huge old wooden ones where you get butterflies just looking at it.  Literally while reading this book, one minute you'll be laughing and the next you'll be wishing you bought stock in Kleenex for how many tissues you will go through....it's that good. 

Most of the characters are very complex and bring more to the table then you'd expect.  That being said though, I'm never really sure how I feel about Alex.  I think she's impulsive, has a bad temper, but is truly a good person inside.  Sometimes her actions are over the top and I want to tell her to step back and think about the consequences.  I think this affects her more in this novel than it previously had.  I do admire her though. and feel bad that she is in love with someone who she's forbidden to be ina relationship with, much less love.  With a twist of cruel fate though, she is destined to be with someone else.  I usually don't like love triangles, but Jennifer L. Armentrout has done an amazing job of making this one feel real.  There seems to be true emotion for every party involved and while I am definitely rooting for one of them the other guy is slowing sneaking into my heart. 

This series has hooked me and I can't wait to see where the story goes next.  Has anyone else read Pure?   What are your thoughts on the love triangle between Alex, Adrian, and Seth?

Review of Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Title: Half-Blood (Covenant #1)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Published by: Spencer Hill Press
Pages: 281
Source: Library
Format: Paperback
Rating: 3.5 stars

Summary from Goodreads: The Hematoi descend from the unions of gods and mortals, and the children of two Hematoi-pure-bloods-have godlike powers. Children of Hematoi and mortals-well, not so much. Half-bloods only have two options: become trained Sentinels who hunt and kill daimons or become servants in the homes of the pures. Seventeen-year-old Alexandria would rather risk her life fighting than waste it scrubbing toilets, but she may end up slumming it anyway. There are several rules that students at the Covenant must follow. Alex has problems with them all, but especially rule #1:Relationships between pures and halfs are forbidden. Unfortunately, she's crushing hard on the totally hot pure-blood Aiden. But falling for Aiden isn't her biggest problem--staying alive long enough to graduate the Covenant and become a Sentinel is. If she fails in her duty, she faces a future worse than death or slavery: being turned into a daimon, and being hunted by Aiden. And that would kind of suck.

I must start off by saying that I didn't really know much about this book except that a lot of people were loving it and the cover was simply stunning.  I was excited by the mythology in the story and this new form of demi-gods.  After the first couple of pages I saw a striking resemblance to another popular YA series, but that didn't bother me.  I'm sure we could find many similarities in a lot of books if we really looked for it.  Half-Blood did start off a bit slow, but I kept reading because I was eager to see where the story would lead.

Alex is a bit cocky and a little too confident for her own good.  Sure, she was top of her class before she left and she has killed two Daimons, but it won't be smooth sailing to get her back on track.  Alex is a fun character who is fierce and determined, but completely rash.  She had trouble controlling her emotions which often lead her to bad decisions.  I liked this about Alex.  Jennifer Armentrout gave Alex much more dimension than you see in your typical heroine.  Alex may have been brave and deadly, but she also was vulnerable and often her strong facade broke down.  She also had passion and it came through in almost everything she did, especially when it came to Aiden. 

Half-Blood was packed with action and the forbidden love aspect kept the tension high and the romance smokin.  There were some unexpected surprises that will keep you glued to the pages and it become obvious by the nervousness in my tummy that I was completely invested in these characters and their futures. 

Half-Blood is a strong start to what I'm sure is to be a great series.