Review - Lux Novels - Jennifer L. Armentrout

Lux Series by Jennifer L. Armentrout. Publisher: Entangled Teen
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal

The Lux series is about a group of aliens that travelled to earth to live. They have assimilated seamlessly - or have seemed to until some unexpected things occur. A Floridian named Katy that moves to West Virginia is our heroine. Her dad died of cancer and her devoted work-a-holic mom is wanting to start over in a new place. Ketterman, West Virginia is a very small town full of strange people. And there is an obvious tension from the very beginning. Her next door neighbors are siblings. Beautiful siblings. Her first encounter is with an annoying but beautiful boy named Damon. She then gets to meet his equally beautiful sister who is charming and very likable. They are destined to become great friends - in spite of huge differences. Those differences are what this book is based on. That - and overcoming those differences. And of course an undeniable sexual attraction. A girl - who doesn't really know she is beautiful and a boy - who definitely does know he is beautiful - fall in love. Each additional book opens to new characters and perpetuates the saga of Katy and Daemon as well as Daemon's family and those connected with  a secret government operation that uses people to further their plans. No one can be trusted (but the person you love and that loves you back) and everyone has a dark side.

These books are easy reading, light, fun and exciting. Jennifer Armentrout is good at hooking you into reading more. Young adults and teens will eat it up.

I like that she takes different groups of characters and shows there are good ones and bad ones. There is no black and white - lots of gray, all good all bad. Each person has strengths and frailties - they can be good - but they can be bad. It takes into account that bad decisions can't be undone. They can be absolved by sincerity of intention - as long as that person is willing to look past what is seemingly too big of an obstacle to overcome. There is also a sense of working off your bad decisions - making it right.

Titillation (I really don't like this word - but it is accurate) is all throughout the book. It will hold a teen or young adult captive for sure. There is pre-marital sex and absentee parents abound. These kids are raising themselves. With limited help from supportive and loving parents. A teenager's dream. If only all teenagers were as mature as these kiddos. Another thing that realistically speaking our young people need to realize, is that it takes more than just loving one person and them loving you back to keep you happy. There are parts of the book that make Katy and Daemon's complete and utter happiness in their love seem like the pinnacle of all things. Which, of course, is not true.

And the kids have potty mouths. Words like douchebag, dickhead, slut shaming, and there are others - such as fuck -  but you get the picture. Really not so different than what I hear in the hallways at school. If you have a teenager - they have more than likely heard these words. It is a maturity thing. Most kids grow out of it. But you need to know it is there.

Jennifer Armentrout has young adult fiction and she labels it well. It really is all about the relationship. Katy is sassy and she doesn't cave to the male lead. She fights him and herself to be who she is. Does she care about others in relation to Daemon? Yes - she does. The couple is a happy accident though. Typical pushing away because of the inability to believe he could be attracted to her but the attraction cannot be stopped and therefore they end up in a big mess that has to be overcome because of their - da da da dum....forbidden love. But it is an enjoyable big mess.

She also does adult fiction which - if your teen tumbles into looking for more of her books - is soft porn. And it is racy stuff. You should be aware of that. And it is available from your online library - so they can have it on their device and you might never know unless you are pretty good at keeping up with what they download.

My job in this review is not to recommend one way or the other. It is strictly to give parents an idea of what their child is reading. And if you find they are reading it, the information above should give you a good basis to ask questions that will allow them to think realistically.

God bless and keep you.
Happy Reading