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

Origin (Lux #4)
Jennifer L. Armentrout
Published: Aug. 27, 2013 (Entangled Teen)
Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon
Review Source: Purchased

Reviewed by: Jo

Rating (out of 5): 4.5 stars

Note: While this review will be spoiler free, it does reference events in previous books of the series. If you haven’t started this series check out VBC’s review of the first book, Obsidian.

When we left Katy at the end of Opal things weren’t looking good. In fact things were looking positively dire. Betrayed, captured and all alone, Origin takes us into the heart of Daedalus as Katy begins her rigorous and barbaric testing.

Katy’s point of view isn’t the only one featured however. Unlike previous books, roughly every other chapter is told from Daemon’s perspective. Decimated by Katy’s capture after the rescue mission, he will stop at nothing to get her back.

Origin is the darkest Lux book yet. The themes are maturing along side the characters, especially as they find themselves in ever increasingly desperate situations. Katy’s chapters are a mixture of pain-filled danger and anxiety-inducing dread as the secret government agency attempt to learn more about her hybrid abilities. Isolation and disorientation play on her perceptions, particularly when she is shown things that contradict her beliefs. Through these chapters we begin to get a much better understanding of Daedalus’ scale, procedures and goals; all of which are pretty terrifying. Katy endures a lot in this book, losing a huge amount and surviving through events that will undoubtedly change her forever.

Daemon’s chapters not only gives us the opportunity to see what is going on outside Katy’s prison, but also the chance to get inside Daemon’s head; a place I was more than happy to delve into. He’s just as cocky inside as out, but he’s always been willing to put himself in front of those he loves in the face of danger. After admitting the depth of his feelings for Katy, he realizes he’s not just willing to face danger but actually walk into enemy hands, regardless of the consequences. Love, fight, tease: Daemon has never done things by halves and it’s no different in Origin.

The first half of Origin is tense reading, comprising of information gathering and secrets being revealed, broken up by the brutal intervals of Katy’s ‘tests’. It’s difficult to go into the plot in too much detail without spoilers, but from around the halfway point Origin is wall-to-wall action. Major developments come one after the other, both in world building and character relationships. New allies are made, betrayals cut deep and more than one character is lost. There was one (major) development that I could have done without, but that’s more to do with personal preference and I could understand why the characters might make that decision under those circumstances.

The momentum steams along to an explosive climax that will have huge (and I mean HUGE) ramifications for further books. And just when I thought it couldn’t get any bigger the last chapter pulls out a curve ball that I honestly didn’t see coming. Once again I’m left stunned at the end of a Lux book.

It may be dark, tense and adrenaline fueled but Origin does have lighter moments that will make some fans very happy. This, the penultimate book in this series, is a game changer. I have absolutely no idea what will happen in the final book and to tell you the truth I love that; I have sneaking suspicion it’ll be epic though.

Sexual content: Sex, references to rape and invasive medical procedures.