Audiobook Review: The Darkest Star by Jennifer L. Armentrout

The Darkest Star by Jennifer L. Armentrout is the newest book from the Lux universe and is a must read for fans! I absolutely devoured this book and I hope you check out my review below! Thank you to Tor Teen and Macmillian Audio for the review copy which in no way influences my thoughts below. The Darkest Star is available now in all formats, but if you like audiobooks, I highly recommend!

Also just yesterday the cover and an excerpt for book two, The Burning Shadow, was released on goodreads (very spoilery if you haven’t finished The Darkest Star).

The Darkest Star (Origin, #1)

by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Published by: Tor Teen
on October 30, 2018
Genres: Young Adult, Paranormal
Pages: 368
Bookshop
Goodreads

When seventeen-year-old Evie Dasher is caught up in a raid at a notorious club known as one of the few places where humans and the surviving Luxen can mingle freely, she meets Luc, an unnaturally beautiful guy she initially assumes is a Luxen...but he is in fact something much more powerful. Her growing attraction for Luc will lead her deeper and deeper into a world she'd only heard about, a world where everything she thought she knew will be turned on its head...

#1 New York Times, USA Today, and internationally bestselling author Jennifer L. Armentrout returns to the universe of the Lux in this brand new series, featuring beloved characters both new and old.

Audiobook Review

The Darkest Star is a new spin-off book in the Lux universe, called the Origin series. This is Luc’s story. Luc, the smartass, powerful Origin, who’s always full of one liners, yes him. This new series may be set a few years in the future after the ending of the Lux series, but you can read The Darkest Star without having read the prior series. Now in my humble opinion, if you haven’t read the Lux series, you are missing out. I believe you will enjoy this new series more and your book loving heart will be more fulfilled if you read the Lux series (mostly because I love it so much).

Luc is doing what he did best, running a night club, which is a safe space for the Luxen and humans. The world is different now that they know the Luxen exist and are now registered with the government. When one day Luc’s whole life turns upside down, when Evie walks into his club. The stakes are raised when the club gets raided, and Luc helps Evie hide as she’s underage and there with a fake ID.

Little does Evie know that this is just the start to something bigger than she could ever imagine. She immediately knows she’s in trouble, but not because of the raid, but because Luc seems to know her, even though she showed up with a fake name on her ID.

Of course danger comes for Evie, as she gets wrapped up in whatever Luc is involved in, but ultimately the bonds that are growing between her and Luc are the most concerning for Evie. Their constant longing, swooning, and stolen glances are everything. The slow burn and the desire that each of them are trying to ignore, but ultimately cause the same sparks to ignite, is just Armentrout’s style and everything the reader wants!

If you aren’t aware of Armentrout’s writing style, you are in for a smooth, fast-paced, flow that is easy to read and feels natural. She tells the reader everything they need to know to follow this world, and the stakes. I also really enjoyed the fact that this book includes a lot of parallels to current political on issues like race, immigration, and politically driven fear-mongering. Of course, all told in the construct of an alien race trying to live peacefully with the humans.

And I am sure you are all wondering if we get to see Daemon Black again, and we do, along with the whole crew of characters from the original series, and I hope they become a little more involved in the following books.

The audiobook was wonderful and the narrator had such a smooth voice and handled emotions wonderfully and the differentiation of characters was great.

The Darkest Star is not to be missed for Lux fans, Jennifer L. Armentrout fans, and anyone who enjoys smart & witty dialogue with a thrilling plot!