Series Review: The Lux Series by Jennifer L. Armentrout

I love a good story. Who doesn’t? You get to travel to different worlds, experience different realities, learn about characters that you eventually get to know and love…what’s not to like about that? Books are perfect to fulfill this desire, but at the same time you must always be careful which book you pick up. For every masterpiece like Legend, there’s always a disappointment like Incarnate. There is no other genre where this is more apparent than the paranormal romance genre. This genre used to be my favorite, but over time and as I’ve become more and more critical, a lot of the stuff I used to love has become, well…not as good, to put it simply. Also, with the plethora of terrible paranormal romance books that I’ve read and reviewed, I think I’ve had enough with this genre for the time being. However, if there’s one series that I’d like to end this phase on, it would be the Lux novels, and when the fifth book came out, I was excited. Does Lux as a whole still hold up, or does it succumb to everything that makes paranormal romances terrible? Sit back, relax, and read on as I review one of my favorite series of all time, the Lux series.

The Setup:

The book takes place (initially, anyway) in a small town in West Virginia. Our main protagonist Katy has just moved there from Florida with her mother, and needless to say, she needs some time to adjust. When her mom asks her to go food shopping, she decides to go next door and ask her neighbors for directions. Instead of your typical meet-and-greet, however, Daemon Black, a very attractive but incredibly arrogant and standoffish person, opens the door. If you couldn’t tell already, he’s the love interest. Katy still gets her directions, but through some very hilarious and sarcastic exchanges. As time goes on, Katy begins to suspect that there may be more to Daemon Black and his acquaintances…something that is beyond human…Anyway, despite it seeming incredibly generic, the way that this setup is executed makes up for the entire thing. It’s definitely nothing we haven’t seen before, but I’d rather read a story that does something clichéd correctly instead of a story that tries something new incorrectly.

The Characters:

This cast of characters is great. Sure, they’re not incredibly deep, but they are complex and feel like regular human beings opposed to plot devices. Firstly, there’s Katy. She is one of my favorite protagonists period, as Jennifer L. Armentrout is incredibly good at writing them (though Sam from Don’t Look Back is still my favorite). Katy’s development from a happy-go-lucky bookworm to a darker and more serious version of herself is brilliant, subtle, and very realistic considering the situations she’s thrown into. I don’t want to spoil anything, but…let’s just say that she doesn’t go through very favorable experiences. Next, there’s Daemon, the love interest. He’s the typical jerky smartass who secretly has a heart of gold that always manifests itself into every paranormal romance novel, but what makes him a good character isn’t his originality but the execution of his character. His reasoning behind avoiding Katy is very logical and makes sense unlike other love interests (cough Patch cough), and even before I learned why he was acting like a jerk, he is hilarious. His dialogue is so funny that I ended up highlighting nearly 75% of the first two books, before everything becomes, well…not funny. There are other characters like Dee, Ash, Andrew, Adam, Katy’s mother, Blake, Luc, Archer, and many more, and they were all fine, fulfilling their roles while not overshadowing the mains. Overall, the character cast is perfect, and while some did feel expendable, they were likable and felt defined.

The Story:

This is where the books range from absolutely amazing to kind of lackluster, though the story itself is never bad. The romance is one of the strongest that I’ve seen in a very long time. Daemon and Katy’s feelings for each other seem very genuine, especially because the books really focused on developing it. They don’t even become an official couple until the third book, which is rare in most romance stories. Though, admittedly, it did get slightly repetitive in the fifth book when half of the dialogue was about their significant other, as well as their thoughts. As for the pacing, the individual books were paced rather nicely. None felt like filler or a waste of time. However, I feel like the story, as a whole, should’ve been condensed into four books instead of five. It did drag at a few points, and there were some pretty useless scenes thrown in that could’ve easily been taken out. Then there’s the tone. The tone is very fickle, and I had no idea whether I should take it seriously or not. This is more of a problem with the writing, though, which I will get to momentarily.

The Writing Style/Grammatical Errors:

I really like Jennifer L. Armentrout’s writing style, utilizing quick wit, humor, and not staying on one topic for more than a few pages. However, at times it can get a bit wonky. Dialogue like “holy alien babies” can really destroy your immersion into the story, especially during an intense scene. During the first two books, it was fine; the tone was pretty light-heated, and I didn’t mind it as much. Heck, it was pretty funny. But when the books got serious, this unfitting dialogue was still used, and it left me wondering if I should actually take the transpiring scene seriously. As for grammatical errors, I couldn’t find any major ones, so props for that.

Final Judgment:

Overall, The Lux Series is still one of my favorite series of all time, even with its flaws. It’s the best paranormal romance story in existence, with an entertaining story, wonderful characters, and a nice writing style even if the dialogue choices were sometimes questionable. I give the series a 3.5 out of 5, and a recommendation to check them out. But, like always, it is up to you to decide your own opinions.

ScoreCard: 

I don't have any further recommendations. Sorry.
The next review will be on a science-fiction anime. Here’s the hint: Come and save me!

See you then!