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Obsidian
A fast, funny teen paranormal romance about aliens hiding among small-town humans, driven more by banter and slow-burn tension than by world-building. A low-stakes entry point into the Lux series.
What It's About
Obsidian is the first book in Jennifer L. Armentrout's Lux series, a young adult paranormal romance. Its narrator, Katy, is a teenager who moves to a small West Virginia town with her sister and quickly finds herself drawn into a secret she never expected: some of her new neighbors are not entirely human. The premise is a familiar blend of high-school life, outsider unease, and a boy who is clearly more than he seems, and the book leans into those familiar pleasures rather than reinventing them.
The experience is mostly a first-person ride. Katy's voice is wry and self-deprecating, and much of the reading pleasure comes from her sarcasm and the back-and-forth with the love interest. The plot moves in a steady, brisk way, with frequent scenes of tension and flirtation punctuated by moments of danger. The mythology is introduced in pieces and is intentionally kept partly open, so the book works more as a hook for the series than as a self-contained story of world-building.
If you go in expecting a tightly plotted science fiction novel, you will find something lighter. If you go in wanting a quick, emotionally charged read with a distinctive narrator and a romance that builds on heated attraction and suspicion, the book delivers what it promises.
Read this if you…
- want a funny, conversational teen narrator with a sharp sense of humor
- enjoy slow-burn paranormal romance with a lot of flirtation and tension
- are looking for a light series to start that is easy to read in a few sittings
Skip it if you…
- want hard science fiction or detailed, carefully explained world-building
- prefer standalone novels with fully resolved plots
Key Ideas
- 1
A wry, self-aware first-person narrator
Katy's voice does most of the work. She is sardonic about her own situation, quick to deflect, and often funnier than the events around her. Readers who enjoy a chatty, slightly exasperated narrator will find the book's sense of humor its most reliable strength, even when the plot slows down.
- 2
Romance built on suspicion and tension
The central relationship runs on a push-and-pull of attraction and distrust. Much of the emotional momentum comes from Katy trying to figure out what the boy next door is hiding while also being unable to stop noticing him. The slow-burn structure is the core appeal for most readers of this genre.
- 3
Aliens hiding in plain sight
The science fiction element is a secret alien population living among ordinary people, which lets the story play with ordinary teen anxieties about belonging and being misunderstood. The sci-fi is more backdrop and motivator than rigorous speculation, and it works best when read as a metaphor for feeling different.
- 4
A deliberate opening to a longer series
Much of the book is setup. Questions about the wider conflict and the alien society are raised rather than fully resolved, so the book is most satisfying as the start of a commitment to several volumes. Readers looking for a closed, standalone story should know this in advance.
Limitations
Common criticisms focus on the repetitive rhythm of the narration, with frequent recaps of Katy's feelings and reactions, and on romance dynamics that some readers find possessive or overheated. The worldbuilding is thin in this first volume, and many questions are deferred to later books. The book is marketed to teens and includes some mature content, including sexual tension and violence, so it is not a children's book despite how it is sometimes shelved. Its tropes are familiar to anyone who has read much in the genre, so its originality depends on how much you enjoy the voice.
Questions Readers Ask
- Is Obsidian suitable for children?
- It is generally marketed to teen and older young adult readers rather than children. The romance includes heated moments and the story contains some violence and frightening situations. Parents of younger readers may want to check content before handing it over. Its prose and vocabulary are accessible, so the main consideration is maturity of themes, not reading level.
- How does Obsidian compare to Twilight?
- Both are contemporary young adult romances with a teen narrator, a brooding love interest, and a supernatural secret at the center. Obsidian is more openly comic and sci-fi-flavored, with a narrator who jokes more, while Twilight is more lyrical and gothic. Readers who loved the romance in Twilight often enjoy this one, but the tone is noticeably lighter.
- Should I read the whole Lux series after this?
- Only if you enjoyed the voice and the romance. The first book sets up many threads that later volumes develop, and it ends without fully resolving the larger conflict. Readers who wanted a complete story may feel unsatisfied, but those who wanted a light, continuing series will likely find the rest of the books a natural next step.
- Published
- 2012
- ISBN
- 9781620610077
- Difficulty
- beginner
- Category
- Children's Books
Book details and cover from Google Books.
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