Origin by Jennifer L. ArmentroutSeries: Lux #4
Genre: Science Fiction
Release Date: August 27, 2013
Publisher: Entangled Publishing
Source: Bought
Add it: Goodreads
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?
I feel lost. If you’ve known me for a while, then you will know that I am a huge fan of the first three books in the Lux series. I read them back-to-back in December, and I adored them. They weren’t perfect or original, but they were fun and steamy and I didn’t have to think while reading them. Origin, on the other hand, was almost the complete opposite. There were parts that made me want to ragequit, and I was too busy making comparisons to other books to love this book.
This review is going to contain mild spoilers within the bulk of the text, and major spoilers under the spoiler tag. I tried to keep it spoiler-free, I really did, but I couldn’t help myself. I just had to explain the ridiculous plot points and reveals. Stay away if you’re a spoiler-phobe like I am.
I liked Katy, as always, although Daemon drove me insane. And not in a good way. Every other chapter he was talking about how he would burn the world down to save Katy, or kill them all to keep her safe, or sacrifice everything for her. Look, I get that he’s protective, and I get that Katy was in danger, but O-M-G tone it down! His chapters kept ending with a sentence that read something like “I would burn everything down for her.” “They would burn.” It lost its effect after the first time, and every time after that it was just ridiculous. I was a mixture between annoyed and rolling around on the floor with laughter.
I liked Origin. I did. It was fast paced, with a great action scene towards the end, lots of death and destruction, an intriguing ending that made me want to read the next book.
But I had a major problem:
I couldn’t stop comparing Origin to Breaking Dawn. I’ve had a rant discussion with Tatum, and although she hasn’t read Origin (yet!), she agrees that there are several similar plot points that connect the two novels. Normally I wouldn’t have made the connection, but since I thought (and a lot of other people too) that Obsidian was similar to Twilight, I couldn’t help but think that Jennifer L. Armentrout has regressed back to using Meyer’s story as a base for her own work. I know, that sounds overly dramatic of me, but that was my feeling throughout most of the novel.
Before I break out the spoiler tag, let me explain briefly why I think that Origin is somewhat a rehash of Breaking Dawn. It’s always good to present evidence, right?
Did you know that male Luxen and female hybrids can procreate? No, nor did I. Not until it was revealed in this book, the fourth in the series. That sounds awfully familiar to me, and it should to you, since Breaking Dawn was the book in which we discovered that – SURPRISE – male vampires can impregnate female humans. The science in Origin does make more sense than it does in Breaking Dawn, admittedly. I mean, the Luxen aren’t dead, so it’s perfectly reasonable that their organs are all working fine. But still.
Then there’s that other thing…
The comparisons just ruined the book for me. I enjoyed it, and I found it easy to read, but it pissed me off so much. I feel so conflicted. I don’t like that Jennifer L Armentrout seemed to borrow these plot points, especially since her other novel, Half-Blood, came across as a Vampire Academy rip off.
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See as soon as I read the bit in the spoiler, I was like “Amber is so going to hate this bit!”. I get where you’re coming from though because I was a bit confused as to why they had to do it if it wasn’t even real. I mean, what was the point? But I’m a major sucker for romance so I kind of got swept up in the moment. It did kind of border on copying Breaking Dawn, but the Luxen/Hybrid offspring were WAY cooler that anything SM came up with.
I literally stopped breathing when you said Kate gets pregnant,quickly followed by dissapointment,kinda.
I still loved this book, I can’t help it. I think my review is scheduled to be posted sometime next week, or maybe even the week after that. I see the whole offspring part a bit differently, and I have to admit, it didn’t even occur to me to think about Twilight or Breaking Dawn. If I’m remembering correctly (which I may not be), that pregnancy was completely unprecedented, whereas here it happens and they’re just finding out about it happening. Using artificial insemination, etc. Loved getting Daemon’s POV (even if he was on a rampage during some of it). Loved Archer and also the fact that Dee was back to being Dee. Thought some of the betrayal stuff was twisty and unexpected. I’m pretty easy to please, though, but I thoroughly enjoyed this book. ~Pam
I REALLY want to read this series! I do own the first book in this series, but I have soo many other books that I have to read though. Can’t wait to get into this series! 🙂
so I skipped some parts of your review because I really don’t want to even read minor spoilers but it is so surprising since all I’ve been hearing is people saying Origin is the best book out of the four. Oh damn.. I think one of the comments spoiled something for me…. but basically I would get annoyed by the twilight comparisons since so far I haven’t really witnessed it. Personally I love the Covenant series more *HINT HINT HINT HINT* and so far it hasn’t disappointed me. Don’t know how I feel about Origin now since I really trust your opinion. Might wait until the last boo is out though.
– Juhina @ Maji Bookshelf
I haven’t even purchased this one yet. I enjoyed the others–fun and fast reads. But like you the longer I stare at them the more similarities I see with other stuff. I honestly don’t have the urge to buy or read this one 🙁 I wish I did. After reading your review I think I’ll continue to hold off.
Thanks for sharing an honest opinion–even though it goes against the grain.
My Friends Are Fiction
Amber giving Origin three stars?! -gasp-
But yeah, the feeling you have, that lost feeling, is what I feel about Obsidian and ESPECIALLY Onyx. It’s just, I don’t get what so special about the Lux series. =3=
And ugh, Half-Blood. I still can’t bring myself to read Pure because of all the VA similarities/ripoffs. >___<
Okay I think my last comment got lost lol! First off Awesome review Amber, I’m gutted that this didn’t live up to your expectations and I read the spoiler and OMFG I’m pissed! Like why? Why would there be a need for such a lame ass obvious plot device as *that*! Ugh just ugh! Sigh, I’ll still read it but I think I’ll firmly be on Team Amber hanging out in the land of disappointment and mediocrity. I’m off to eat chocolate!
Katy does get pregnant and it’s a boy which they named Adam. The author wrote this but it’s not published.