Book Review: Origin (Lux Series Book 4) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Title: Origin
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Series: Lux Book 4
Pages: 364 
My Rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

Daemon will do anything to get Katy back.

After the successful but disastrous raid on Mount Weather, he’s facing the impossible. Katy is gone. Taken. Everything becomes about finding her. Taking out anyone who stands in his way? Done. Burning down the whole world to save her? Gladly. Exposing his alien race to the world? With pleasure.

All Katy can do is survive.

Surrounded by enemies, the only way she can come out of this is to adapt. After all, there are sides of Daedalus that don’t seem entirely crazy, but the group’s goals are frightening and the truths they speak even more disturbing. Who are the real bad guys? Daedalus? Mankind? Or the Luxen?

Together, they can face anything.

But the most dangerous foe has been there all along, and when the truths are exposed and the lies come crumbling down, which side will Daemon and Katy be standing on?

And will they even be together? 

Okay, so I know I said I already had a favorite Lux book, but I may have spoken too soon. Origin is amazing!!! This was one of my favorite ones yet! Origin switches back and forth between Daemon's and Katy's point of view, and you can clearly tell which point of view you are reading.

The last book, Opal ended on a bit of a cliffhanger, and Origin picks up right where it left off. At first the book was a bit slow, but it picked up fairly quickly. There is so much that Katy or even Daemon don't know about, but are a big part of it all nonetheless. So many things were brought to light in this book, but it left me with way more questions than answers. I just kept coming to one bombshell after another, and I loved it!!

I recently saw a post from Jennifer L. Armentrout saying how Obsidian made it on the top young adult books of all time list, and it without a doubt deserves to be on there! This is a great series, and I am so glad that she has decided to write a book completely in Daemon's point of view!!

"Daemon Black could be as prickly as a hedgehog having a really bad day, but underneath all that spindly armor, he was sweet, protective, and incredibly selfless."

"I don't have all day, guys. I have things to do. A nap I want to take this afternoon. There's a new movie out on Netflix I want to watch, and a goddamn coupon for a free Whopper Jr. that's calling my name."

"We're stuck between a mountain and a volcano about to explode."

"While you're deep in something, you never say or do what you need to. It's always after the fact, when it's too late, that you realize what you should've said or done."

TBR Spotlight: Embrace by Jessica Shirvington

TBR Spotlight is a weekly post that I do that showcases one of the many books on my infinite TBR list. This week's pick is Embrace by Jessica Shirvington. 

Embrace by Jessica Shirvington

 

 

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It starts with a whisper.

It's time for you to know who you are..."

Stange dreams leave her with very real injuries and there's a dark tattoo weaving its way up her arms. The guy she thought she could fall in love with just told her he's only half-human - oh, and same goes for her. And she keeps hearing a distant fluttering of wings.

Violet Eden is having a very bad 17th bithday.

But if angels seek vengeance and humans are warriors, you could do a lot worse than betting on Violet Eden.

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Jessica Shirvington is the author of THE VIOLET EDEN CHAPTERS also known as THE EMBRACE SERIES, stand alone novel, BETWEEN THE LIVES and has an exciting new duology called DISRUPTION on the way in 2014.

An entrepreneur, author, and mother living in Sydney, Australia, Jessica is also a 2011 & 2012 finalist for Cosmopolitan’s annual Fun, Fearless Female Award. She’s also one of the lucky few who met the love of her life at age seventeen: Matt Shirvington, a former Olympian and current sports broadcaster for Foxtel and Fox Sports. Married for twleve years with two beautiful daughters, Sienna and Winter, Jessica knows her early age romance and its longevity has definitely contributed to how she tackles relationships in her YA novels. 

The Book Description, Author Description, and Author Photo all came from Goodreads.

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Have You Read Embrace?
 

 

Friday Finds! (#12)

I know I'm a day late on this, and I'm so sorry!! I had a busy day Thursday and Friday, so yes, I am posting a Friday Finds post on Saturday. I know this is weird, but hopefully I won't have to do this too often. Anyways, here is this weeks picks!! 

Ignited by Desni Dantone

 

Book Description (Goodreads) 

Seventeen year old Kris Young is on the run from a throng of superhuman golden-eyed freaks hell-bent on seeing her dead, and she doesn't know why. Good thing she has her guardian angel to protect her...sort of.

Kris is aided by Nathan, the mysterious man that ends up being anything but angelic when he rescues her for the fourth time in fourteen years. Even if the handsome hero illusion is shattered by his harsh treatment of her, he knows how to fight this strange enemy and is determined to keep her safe at all costs.

As the body count rises in their wake, Nathan introduces Kris to a world in which not everyone is human and the battle lines between good and evil are clearly drawn. Kris's piece in the puzzle is something neither is aware of and, as they uncover the truth, neither is prepared for what they find. Overcoming twists and revelations that shatter both of their lives, they discover that nothing is as it seems and nothing, least of all their hearts, are safe.

From debut author, Desni Dantone, Ignited is the first novel in a tale of first love, mystery and adventure that will introduce you to an exciting new world as Kris discovers how she fits in it.

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The Portal & The Panther by R.A. Marshall

 

Book Description (Goodreads)

 The only thing seventeen year-old Jon Parker wants is to escape his sleepy Arkansas hometown. But everything changes when Jon stumbles into the boys’ bathroom and transforms into a black panther.

Without choice, Jon is thrust into a world where parallel universes are real, shapeshifters exist, and dangerous “intruders” control the elements with a mere thought. Like it or not, Jon's new mission is to protect our world from intruders from other worlds.

But is it a mission Jon will accept? Haunted by his past and facing an uncertain future, Jon struggles to know who he can trust. Ultimately, his decision will impact the people he loves -- and our whole world.

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Survival by A.M. Hargrove

 Book Description (Goodreads)

 While on a backpacking trip in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, nineteen-year-old Maddie Pearce finds her world has been thrown into a vortex and is madly spinning toward the impossible. Abducted by a mad psychopath, Maddie narrowly escapes with her life. But that is only the beginning. Her mysterious rescuer introduces her to a world that Maddie has difficulty accepting as reality. Will this strikingly gorgeous stranger be the key to her future or will she return to her mundane world, scarred from her experience? Follow Maddie as she is forced to make difficult decisions that carry her to mysterious places.

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So What Do You Think? Do These Books Sound Interesting To You?

 

 

 

Friday Finds! (#11)

Friday Finds is where I just list a few books that I recently found that sound interesting. Most of them are just random e-books that I found while doing a little web surfing, Enjoy!!

Oaken by Melody Robinette

Book Description

When 17-year-old Autumn Oaken and her twin brother Luke find their parents brutally murdered, they are soon summoned by their grandfather who lives not in another city, but in another world called the Underground—home to all magical creatures seeking refuge from humankind. 

The twins journey into the Underground, discovering that they are not only elves, but “royals”…and that their bloodline is in danger of extinction at the hands of the evil elf Vyra Vaun, their parents’ murderer. Living in a skyscraper tree called Arbor Castle, the twins seek to join the Warriors, a group of elves who fight to defend the kingdom and to stop Vyra and her malevolent followers. 
But Autumn soon becomes distracted, locked in an elfin love triangle with forbidden, golden-haired Avery and brooding, green-eyed Victor, who has a dark secret. She realizes she must make a choice. Little does she know her decision could very well mean the difference between life and death for all of the Underground. 

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Hidden Moon By K.R. Thompson

Book Description

The first installment of the Keeper Saga, Hidden Moon is a story of danger, romance, and magic. Seventeen year-old Nikki Harmon knows that her life will never be the same. Forced to move after her father's death, she is determined to keep what is left of her family together, even if she can't get cell service. What she doesn't know, is that she will encounter mythical creatures in her quest to solve the mystery of the Trail Killer, and that she will be torn by her feelings for two very different guys. As she unearths the deadliest secret of all--will she lose her heart to one of them, or will she lose her life?

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Bloodfire by Helen Harper

Book Description

Mack might be, to all intents and purposes, a normal looking human, but she lives with a pack of shapeshifters in Cornwall in rural England after being dumped there by her mother when she was just a young child. She desperately wants to be accepted by her surrogate family, not least because a lot of them hate her for merely being human, but for some reason her blood just won't allow the transformation to occur.

With a terrible temper to match her fiery red hair, Mack is extraordinarily useful in a fight, and when her pack alpha is brutally and abruptly murdered, she swears vengeance. Unfortunately, his murder also draws in the Brethren - the leaders of the shapeshifter world - who will slaughter everyone in Mack's small rural pack if they discover her true identity. Unfortunately Corrigan, the green-eyed muscle-bound Lord Alpha of the Brethren, doesn't let much slip by him...

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So what do you think? Do these books sound interesting to you?

TBR Spotlight: Shade by Jeri Smith-Ready

TBR Spotlight is a weekly post that I do that showcases a book on my extensive To Be Read list!! This includes the book description, author description, and a link to the book's page on goodreads (just click on the cover)!!

Shade by Jeri Smith-Ready

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Best. Birthday. Ever. At least, it was supposed to be. With Logan's band playing a crucial gig and Aura's plans for an intimate after-party, Aura knows it will be the most memorable night of her boyfriend's life. She never thought it would be his last.

Logan's sudden death leaves Aura devastated. He's gone.

Well, sort of.

Like everyone born after the Shift, Aura can see and talk to ghosts. This mysterious ability had always been annoying, and Aura had wanted nothing more than to figure out why the Shift happened so she could undo it. But not with Logan's violet-hued spirit still hanging around. Because Dead Logan is almost as real as ever. Almost.

It doesn't help that Aura's new friend Zachary is so understanding - and so very alive. His support means more to Aura than she cares to admit.

As Aura's relationship with with the dead and the living grow ever complicated, so do her feelings for Logan and Zachary. Each holds a piece of Aura's heart... and clues to the secret of the Shift.

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Jeri Smith-Ready has been writing fiction since the night she had her first double espresso. A steady stream of caffeine has produced twelve published novels for teens and adults since 2001.

Jeri lives in Maryland with her husband and two cats, who often play tag-team "sit in the author's lap and keep her from writing." (The cats, that is, not the husband. Though, actually...)

You can find her at www.jerismithready.com

The Book Description, Author Description, and Author Photo all came from Goodreads.

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So, what do you think of Shade? Have you read it?

TBR Spotlight: Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

TBR (To Be Read) Spotlight is a weekly post I will be doing that showcases a book on my wish list. Trust me, there is no shortage of books listed. As of right now I have 206 books listed as to-read on Goodreads!!

Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

►◄►◄ Description ►◄►◄

The new Abby Abernathy is a good girl. She doesn’t drink or swear, and she has the appropriate number of cardigans in her wardrobe. Abby believes she has enough distance from the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college with her best friend, her path to a new beginning is quickly challenged by Eastern University's Walking One-Night Stand. 

Travis Maddox, lean, cut, and covered in tattoos, is exactly what Abby needs—and wants—to avoid. He spends his nights winning money in a floating fight ring, and his days as the ultimate college campus charmer. Intrigued by Abby’s resistance to his appeal, Travis tricks her into his daily life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain abstinent for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis’s apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match.

►◄►◄ About the Author ►◄►◄

Jamie McGuire was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She attended Northern Oklahoma College, the University of Central Oklahoma, and Autry Technology Center where she graduated with a degree in Radiography.

Jamie paved the way for the New Adult genre with the international bestseller Beautiful Disaster. Her follow-up novel, Walking Disaster, debuted at #1 on the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists. Beautiful Oblivion, book one of the Maddox Brothers books, also topped the New York Times bestseller list, debuting at #1.

Novels also written by Jamie McGuire include: apocalyptic thriller, Red Hill; the Providence series, a young adult paranormal romance trilogy; Apolonia, a dark sci-fi romance; and several novellas, including A Beautiful Wedding, Among Monsters: A Red Hill Novella, and Happenstance: A Novella Series.

Jamie lives on a ranch just outside of Enid, Oklahoma with her husband, Jeff, and their three children. They share their thirty acres with cattle, six horses, three dogs, and a cat named Rooster.

Find Jamie at www.jamiemcguire.com or on Facebook, Twitter, Tsu, and Instagram.

Book Description, Author Photo, and Author Description are all from Goodreads


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What do you think of Beautiful Disaster, or better yet have you read it?

Friday Finds! (#10)

Usually for Friday Finds, I pick two free e-books and post them on here. But, this week I'm going to switch things up a bit and just put a few books that I have recently found that sound really interesting. They may or may not actually be free. I just hate posting free books on here when the prices change. It is always a little heartbreaking discovering an e-book you thought was free really isn't! Oh, and if you click on the book covers, it should send you to their goodread's page!

Insanity (Mad in Wonderland) by Cameron Jace

Book Description (From Goodreads)

After accidentally killing everyone in her class, Alice Wonder is now a patient in the Radcliffe Lunatic Asylum. No one doubts her insanity. Only a hookah-smoking professor believes otherwise; that he can prove her sanity by decoding Lewis Carroll's paintings, photographs, and find Wonderland's real whereabouts. Professor Caterpillar persuades the asylum that Alice can save lives and catch the wonderland monsters now reincarnated in modern day criminals. In order to do so, Alice leads a double life: an Oxford university student by day, a mad girl in an asylum by night. The line between sanity and insanity thins when she meets Jack Diamond, an arrogant college student who believes that nonsense is an actual science.

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Here by Ella James

Book Description (From Goodreads)

Milo Mitchell's life used to be charmed, but that was before her family dissolved, she went a little crazy, and her best friends started acting more like strangers. Spending Saturday morning in a treehouse with a stun gun for company and a herd of deer for friends is the only exciting thing in her life...until she shoots a fawn and finds her dart stuck in a guy.

Her gorgeous victim is dressed in a Brioni tux and armed with a hanky. He has no idea who or where he is. Afraid her dart caused his amnesia, Milo takes him in, names him Nick, and vows to help him solve his mystery. Soon the pair find Nick's face in a newspaper obituary, and Nick beings to have strange, ethereal memories of Milo--who is sure she's never met him. Suddenly Nick knows things he shouldn't know and is doing things he shouldn't do. When the Department of Defense shows up, Nick and Milo run--toward a shocking conclusion that could destroy both their worlds.

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Captivate Me by S.J. Pierce

Book Description (From Goodreads)

Seventeen-year-old Kat Walsh is a Gifted - a human with paranormal abilities. With her mom a former Angel and her dad a dream prophet, it's always been in her genetic make-up to be extraordinary. Unfortunately for her, the world can't handle the strange or unusual. So when she slips up and uses her powers at her high school in Ireland, the entire student body treats her like a freak - even the ones she thought were her closest friends.

Broken, but hopeful for a fresh start, she allows her parents to enroll her in a boarding school buried deep within the forests of a small Colorado town. At Midland Pines, School for the Gifted, she feels as though she can finally be herself; she makes new friends and even has the attention of the most popular guy in school - Levi. Everything feels normal again... or does it?

Not long after her arrival, weird dreams of an alluring boy whom she's never met surface during the night, and the eerie, shadowy trees encircling their school seem to call to her. As these disturbing, yet enticing developments intensify, other bizarre occurrences happen - students and staff turn up missing, and mystery visitors leave gifts while she sleeps. With all of these other things vying for her attention, a desperate Levi has to fight even harder to keep her interest. But with the dreams of the attractive boy slowly captivating her heart, Kat has to make a choice - will she settle for 'great' Levi, or will she search for her elusive dream visitor, possibly stumbling across 'amazing?'

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So what do you think? Do these books

 sound interesting to you?

Friday Finds! (#5)

Okay and this week's Friday Finds are...

Paradox by Kelly Carrero

Book Description (From Amazon)

Never in a million years would I ever fall for the son of a drug lord. Or so I thought until I moved two doors down from Jett. 

Zara thought her life was over when she had to move just days before graduation. The situation went from bad to horrible, when she discovers just how cruel the kids at her new school can be. 

When Zara is set up by some bullies and almost raped, she somehow gets free, but she’s haunted by the eyes of the one she believes rescued her. 

Later, bad boy Jett is only too willing to step in and help. In fact, Zara can’t seem to get rid of him or his family, who all seem to have a strange obsession with her. 

Will letting down her guard be one of the biggest mistakes of her life, or is Zara destined to become a part of his life, an existence that no human could ever understand?

My Thoughts

The cover to Paradox looks really interesting, I mean what are those markings on that incredibly cute guy? Also, I want to see what happens to the bullies at school. I am really hoping that Jett or his family takes them down a notch.....or two.....or three. 

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Embers by Karen Ann Hopkins

Book Description (From Amazon)

Embers is an epic paranormal adventure/romance about an eighteen year old girl who discovers that she's immune to fire and any other injury when she’s in a horrific car crash that kills her parents. Following a violent episode with her aunt's boyfriend, Ember flees Ohio to live with an old relative in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. Ember's exuberance at escaping a bad home life soon turns to trepidation when she learns that she's a Watcher, a descendant of angels. 

While Ember is instructed about her heritage and the powers that go along with it, she strikes up friendships with two teenagers who live inside of a frightening walled compound in the forest. Inexplicably drawn to one of the young men in particular, an impossible romance develops. But it’s cut short when Ember discovers that her new friends are fighting on the opposite side of a war that's been raging between two factions of Watchers for thousands of years. When the compound’s inhabitants threaten the townspeople, Ember takes action, sealing her fate in the ancient battle of good versus evil, and the grayness in between.

My Thoughts

I really love books that have a whole good and evil thing going for them. What I like even more about this one is that it talks about that there are shades of gray. Sometimes things are just too black and white, and these shades of gray sound very interesting. Obviously Ember is going to be very torn throughout this book, which makes this sound like an emotional ride that I want to be on!

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You can check out Paradox and Embers on Amazon!!!

Friday Finds! (#7)

Every week I try to find two e-books for free that actually sound interesting. This week's picks are........

The Legend of the Blue Eyes by B. Kristin McMichael

Book Description (From Goodreads)

Arianna Grace liked her boring, Midwestern, teenage life where she ignored the many unanswered questions of her childhood. Why were her parents dead? Why did she not have family? Where was she raised until she was five? When someone offers to explain it all, Arianna thinks she’s just getting answers. Instead, she is thrown into a world of night humans who drink blood.

On Arianna's sixteenth birthday, her world is thrown upside down when she changes into a vampire. Night humans, or demons, as some call them, live in normal society. Learning all of the new rules of a world she didn’t know existed might be hard enough, but it's further complicated by two former-friends that now want to help her take her role as the successor to her grandfather. 

There is a war going on between the night humans. Sides have been taken and lines are not crossed. Four main clans of night humans are struggling for control of the night. Divided into two sides, clans Baku and Tengu have been at war for centuries with the clans Dearg-dul and Lycan. That is, until Arianna Grace finds out the truth; she’s the bridge of peace between the two sides. But not everyone wants peace. With the night humans divided, Arianna is now a pawn in the war between them. She must choose a side—her mother’s family or her father’s—and for once in her life, decide her own fate.

My Thoughts

Yes, I love vampire books!! Arianna's parents seem like they were the Romeo and Juliet of this Night Human world, which means Arianna is a bridge between the two different sides. She will probably be involved in a somewhat game of tug-of-war between the two sides.

I am really interested in this world and finding out what makes the two sides so different. I am so glad this book popped up for free on my wishlist!

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Broken by Dean Murray

Book Description (From Goodreads)

Adri Paige is too busy dealing with the emotional fallout from losing half of her family to deal with boys. At least she thought so until the two most intriguing guys in her new school take an interest in her.

Both boys are gorgeous and blessed with obscene amounts of money. They should have the emotional depth of note cards, but instead display undercurrents she doesn't fully understand. Rumors the pair destroys peoples' livelihoods seem ludicrous until she gets caught in the crossfire and her family almost loses their home. She's increasingly unsure either boy is really human, and their rivalry is rapidly turning deadly.

Broken is a complete novel in its own right, but also represents one-half of a double novel when paired with Torn. Regardless of which book you start with, the two are designed such that you can continue on to the other in order to get answers to questions not answered in the book you started with. The series continues with Splintered which is available as part of the Bitten Story Bundle.

My Thoughts

So, I'm pretty sure that there is a wolf on the cover, so I'm thinking werewolves are involved somewhere in some way. It is definitely possible that one of the boys, or both, could be a werewolf. Oh, and since I mentioned the boys, I'm also thinking that there could be a love triangle..........

Okay I know some people see the word love triangle and actually physically cringe. But, I am not one of those individuals. It is true that some love triangles are terrible and you just want them to end, but truly good ones are really amazing and I love them so much!! I'm definitely hoping this is one of those really good ones, if there even is one. 

Also, Dean Murray has created an entire world with these books. There are even multiple entry points from different perspectives, which is extremely cool!! 

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You can check out The Legend of the Blue Eyes and Broken on Goodreads!!

Friday Finds! (#8)

I've got another Friday Finds Ready!! I found two books that are currently free for Kindle. Now, most likely they will not stay free for long!!

Crimson Midnight by Amos Cassidy

Book Description (From Goodreads)

They say London is the city that never sleeps. Man, you have no idea…

A new job, a new life and a new home, Rose has left the pain of the past behind. But if she thinks she’s going to have it easy she’s in for a shock. There’s Roman for starters, a complication with a capital C. With the racing pulses and the x-rated thoughts, she can barely keep it together. And then he decides to drop a bombshell. It’s the domino effect alright, because hot on the heels of his revelation come a few unpleasant ones of her own. Rose discovers that there is a darker side to London, an ancient secret, a world that she belongs to and one that could get her killed.

Question is, can she keep it together long enough to kick danger’s arse?

My Thoughts

Crimson Midnight takes place in London, which is an exciting city itself......even without the darker side. I have always wanted to go to London and would love to learn more about it! I'm hoping some of the big landmarks are mentioned in this book. 

Besides the whole London thing this book has going for it, I am also liking the whole "complication with a capital C." I don't know why but I just really like the line, actually I like a lot of the description! I am hoping that this is really how Amos Cassidy writes, because if it is, I think the book will have some really hilarious parts!

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Barely Alive by Bonnie R. Paulson

Book Description (From Goodreads)

In twelve weeks, seventeen-year-old Paul Ledger will be dead. At least he hopes so. 

Paul is trapped in the worst cult the United States has ever seen. Infected with a zombie virus, symptoms culminate in a dead body but thriving mind over a course of twelve weeks. If he doesn’t earn the final death he longs for, he’ll be chained in a basement facility, moaning for human flesh for eternity. 

Sent out to kidnap girls for food, toys, or whatever the boss wants, Paul nabs Heather McCain. He’s not a fan of humans as a general rule, but even his graying skin and insatiable hunger for her flesh don’t stop her from reaching out to him. Give him the second chance he doesn’t know he needs.

Overcome by his cravings, Paul bites her delectable skin. Amazingly, she doesn’t develop the zombie-like side effects. When the boss discovers Heather’s immunity, he gives Paul an ultimatum – deliver up Heather and her family to continue the research or watch as Paul’s brother suffers the zombie fate. 

Paul has a chance to endure his short zombie existence knowing his brother is safe. But he’ll have to sacrifice Heather to do it. 

My Thoughts

I've never read a book from the perspective of a male character. I have read it where the author switched back and forth between the male and female characters, but never just the male. Even though this is a little out of the norm for me, I still found it interesting.

I am a huge fan of The Walking Dead, and I loved the movie Warm Bodies. But, I have yet to read a zombie book though! 

I just think this sounds like a good book that would be different than what I am use to. It would be a new experience for me! I get the male perspective and Zombies!

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YOU CAN CHECK OUT 

CRIMSON MIDNIGHT AND 

BARELY ALIVE ON GOODREADS!!