Publication date: May 31, 2013

Publisher: Entangled Publishing

How I got the copy: Bought

Rating:  5 Stars
  

    

From Goodreads:

This is a stand alone novel that is an adult spin-off
of the Lux Series You do not need to read a Lux book to read Obsession and vice versa.

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?

Plot: 8/10

Characters: 9/10

Setting: 10/10

Pacing: 10/10

Style: 10/10

Cover:  Not sure why they're naked in a field, but the cover does capture the essence of the novel...sexy times.

47+50=97 (5 Stars)

     Jennifer L Armentrout can't write romance...said no one ever.  Seriously, this woman is the queen of steamy scenes!  My devotion as a fangirl for Daemon and Aiden has never faltered, but I think they need to scoot over because there needs to be room for Hunter now.  

     After reading the Lux series, never did I expect to fall for an Arum.  JLA took his dark side and somehow made it attractive.  Although at times he was really frustrating.  I was right there with Serena when she wanted to throw things at him.

 

    The plot was not lacking either.  Sometimes with romance novels there's hardly any plot development.  Not only does this book take us deeper into the world of the Arum and Luxen, but it also gave us a sneak peek at what Daemon is up to after the end of Opal.  I kind of wish he had been in it more.

     While I love the snark that JLA writes in all her novels it kind of starts to feel like they're all the same characters with the same voices.  Katy and Alex are very different, but their humor is similar.  And I felt like Serena was an adult mixture of those two.  Daemon and Hunter were very similar in their cockiness and protectiveness.  

Format: Audio

Publication date: April 16, 2013

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

How I got the copy: from the publisher in exchange for an honest review (Thank you!)

Rating:  5 Stars
  

From Goodreads:

Escaping a cheating ex, finance whiz Sara Dillon’s moved to New York City and is looking for excitement and passion without a lot of strings attached. So meeting the irresistible, sexy Brit at a dance club should have meant nothing more than a night’s fun. But the manner—and speed—with which he melts her inhibitions turns him from a one-time hookup and into her Beautiful Stranger.

The whole city knows that Max Stella loves women, not that he’s ever found one he particularly wants to keep around. Despite pulling in plenty with his Wall Street bad boy charm, it’s not until Sara—and the wild photos she lets him take of her—that he starts wondering if there’s someone for him outside of the bedroom.

Hooking up in places where anybody could catch them, the only thing scarier for Sara than getting caught in public is having Max get too close in private.

Plot: 8/10

Characters: 8/10

Setting: 9/10

Pacing: 8/10

Style: 8/10

Cover:  I love that blue font on the black and white.  It goes perfect with the first books cover while still looking completely different.

41+50=91 (5 Stars)

     Companion novels sometimes are hard to get into because while the characters are familiar, they are not the ones you originally fell in love with.  This story was  not that way at all.  Chloe and Bennett (from Beautiful Bastard) are in it a lot, especially in the beginning.   We get to see how they're doing since the last book.  If it's even possible I loved Max and Sara more than Chloe and Bennett though.  Max is British, established, funny, and charming.  And Sara is emotionally guarded, feisty, and adventurous yet still very cautious.  The two were the perfect pair.  On paper they don't make sense together, but their chemistry was palpable.  I loved that for once the woman had complete control over the arrangement.  Too often in books it's the man making all the rules and being distant.

     I love how the characters are also very different than the first book.  They don't hate each other like Chloe and Bennett did.  In fact they're infatuated with each other the more they get together.  The plot was formatted the same as the first book where the characters hook up for most of the book, then something blows up at the end, and then they finally admit their feelings.  This always lends for an exciting and captivating story.

     Listening to this made me want to listen to audiobooks all the time now.  I love the guy that read for Max.  His accent sounded like a British Gerard Butler to me.  I'm a huge fan of Gerard so that was a major plus for me.  It definitely added to the experience to be able to hear the POVs read by the different people.  The only thing I didn't like was when Sara was narrating and the woman read Max's dialouge.  Her voice got really low and weird and kind of ruined the intimate moment.  Originally I was a little worried it would be awkward to listen to a book of this genre, but it actually was not awkward at all.  There were no weird sound effects or anything.  It was narrated well.  

     Fans of Sophie Kinsella's books should definitely try this one.  It's got the same humor and romance, with a pinch of those intimate scenes these two authors write so well.  This is definitely a great beach read.

     

     Also, there's another book and some novellas coming out in this series!!!!  Who else is excited!?

“Beside me, Richie chimed in. "What the... Max. there's a girl on your face."

Sara pulled back and her eyes widened in realization. "Oh, crap."
"Calm down," I told her quietly. "No one here gives a f*** who we are. They hardly remember my name every week."
"Patently untrue," Richie said. "Your name is Twat."
I tilted my head to him, smiling at Sara. "Like I said.” 
― Christina Lauren, Beautiful Stranger

Michelle from Dark Faerie Tales: 4.5 Stars Kristen from Kristen's Book Blog: 5 Stars