Because I am hooked, and right now I will do anything to get my hands on the second book, Pure!
Title: Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Pages: 281
Release Date: October 18th 2011
Published by: Spencer Hill Press
Source: Publicist (thanks Kate)
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository
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.
Alex is a Half-Blood, born from a Pure mother and a mortal man. She has been on the run with her only parent until the Daimons caught them in Miami, and along with her mother's death, Alex's life slowly unraveled before her. Suddenly she's back on Covenant grounds, trying her best to become a Sentinel. And a Pure, Aiden St. Delphi is there to help her become one. Alex likes Aiden, but Pures and Half-Bloods can never be. As Alex navigates her world, she discovers the truth about her mother, and a lot of things about herself and about a Prophecy that will change her life forever.
I will admit it, it was hard to like Alex at first. It took me around 90 pages before I started to see her good points. My sympathy for her was overflowing but it was hard to feel pity. She annoyed me so much for her brashness and impulsive behavior and she rarely heeds anyone's plea and advice that she makes a fool out of herself countless of times. But I gradually came to like her as I understand her reasons for doing what she does. A heroine with such a strong personality is hard to come by, but I appreciated her snarky comebacks and sarcastic comments as I read about her. She's been through a lot and for Alex, she could care less about the rules as long as she's doing the right thing.
Half-Blood is one of the rare novels where I loved both male leads. Usually in a love triangle I tend to immediately side with one person, but both Seth and Aiden can catch the readers attention for their good points. It's hard to choose, and I will be going with the minority, but as of page 166, I am on Team Seth. Let me explain.
Seth is the Appollyon, and as such, he has much power than Half-Bloods, maybe even some of the Pures can have. He controls all four elements and the fifth one, Akasha. At first he comes off as stoic and uncaring, but he has such an allure, maybe because he is dangerous? Bad boys have a distinct appeal, especially the powerful ones.
Seth and Alex's moment made me laugh so much. I don't know if they just dislike each other but as two halves of a whole they must have some sort of awareness or even a connection to each other. Thinly veiled desire masked by insults? It's always a delight to see their interactions, even if Seth is unstable. But isn't Alex just like that too? Her behavior fits. I take delight in all of their bickering and their sarcastic jibes at each other, and I think if given time, their relationship will bloom. I am so excited because it has so much potential!
If you think Pures are hot, then Aiden St. Delphi is scorching. He's righteous, fiercely protective and a strong character as well. There's a lot of sadness and tragedy surrounding his life even as a Pure, but it's something that made him a person like Alex can rely on. He's the type of guy who's genuinely nice, and maybe a little bit of a stickler for rules, and he tends to do the right thing most of the time, someone who thinks of others more than himself. He had to grow up fast so he didn't have much time to enjoy living his life. Wouldn't you like to fall for a guy like him?
I will try not to expect anything because it's still too early, but whichever guy Alex chooses, happiness won't be easily achieved. The idea of starcrossed lovers can play either way if Alex chooses Seth, and especially if she chooses Aiden. Ah, the course of true love never did run smooth.
I am enamored by the world of the Gods, the Pure, the Half-Bloods, everyone. I love every single moment I've spent reading about every single thing about it. The politics, the mythology behind it, the myths, the legends, the complicated world that surrounds Alex's life. It was fascinating. It's dark and dangerous and a combination of that works like a charm. In a world where Gods play, the Pures and the Half-Blood are merely pawns in a deadly game. It makes me think of how hard and cruel reality is for Alex, for Aiden and for all that is in the Covenant. Survival is what's important, and like what Alex went through, more often than not they had to cheat death and even kill the ones they love. It's a brutal, harsh world.
How do you defy the Gods? Let the Defender of Man, Alexandria, show you. Half-Blood is a welcome addition to the captivating world of Gods and Mortals, Half-Bloods and Pures. It's a matter of life and death. It's one girl's fight to take control of her destiny. It was enough for the mythology side of the novel to enchant me, but it was the healthy cast of vibrant characters, heart stopping action, toe-curling romance and sexy, red-hot moments that got me addicted. It's intense. It's wonderful. It's awesome!
My rating:
Content (plot, story flow, character):
Content (plot, story flow, character):
Stunning: Worthy of a Goddess' Praise!
Book Cover:
Lovely hibiscus!
I received this book free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
The characters I have to say I loved them all in some sort of way, even the evil ones. One thing I love is when you at first detest a character but then you realize you missed something and grow to like them. I completely felt that with Seth and Marcus. Also, a thought that popped in my head... I liked Kain and now I cannot help but thinking if his name was deliberately picked. Hmm :)
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