Review: ‘White Hot Kiss’ by Jennifer L. Armentrout
White Hot Kiss
by Jennifer L. ArmentroutSeries: The Dark Elements #1
Published by Inkyard Press on March 26, 2019
SubGenres: Young Adult Fantasy
Format: eBook
Pages: 400
Source: Purchased
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Layla just wants to fit in at school and go on a date with Zayne, whom she's crushed on since forever. Trouble is, Zayne treats Layla like a sister--and Layla is a half demon, half gargoyle with abilities no one else possesses. And even though Zayne is a Warden, part of the race of gargoyles tasked with keeping humanity safe, Layla's kiss will kill anything with a soul--including him.
Then she meets Roth--a demon who claims to know her secrets. Though Layla knows she should stay away, it's tough when that whole no-kissing thing isn't an issue. Trusting Roth could ruin her chances with Zayne, but as Layla discovers she's the reason for a violent demon uprising, kissing the enemy suddenly pales in comparison to the looming end of the world.
White Hot Kiss is the first full-length novel to Jennifer L. Armentrout’s The Dark Elements series. I love how Jennifer L. Armentrout has it with gargoyles versus demons in this series. It’s different from another young adult paranormal I’ve read before, and I couldn’t wait to read this book after reading the prequel. The series follows Layla’s story, which was introduced as a secondary character in the prequel.
Female Protagonist: Layla is half demon/half warden (gargoyle shifter) who can’t shift into a gargoyle and has the power to suck out the soul of anyone who has a soul. (Which sucks because she can never kiss the boy she likes.) I liked her character and getting to know her in the first book of the series. She’s trying to be a typical teenager, but she can’t in a world full of gargoyles who are trying to protect her (or smother her). Then there is an issue with demons trying to kill her or attempt to use her for the apocalypse.
Storyline/MyThoughts: First, be prepared because this book does involve a love triangle. Layla is in love with Zayne, a Warden, but he treats her as a little sister. She also falls hard for an upper-level demon named Roth, who she’s not sure if she trusts or not. Roth is compelling, though, and I LOVED his character. I was rooting for her to hook up with Roth instead of Zayne. Zayne was a pain in the butt with her in this book, especially when a particular other gargoyle showed up and wanted Zayne’s attention.
Jennifer L. Armentrout had me hooked at the prequel for the series, but she had me with White Hot Kiss. It’s not only the storyline that kept me reading but the boys that Layla has in her life. Although, as I stated above, I rooted for Roth the whole time. The bad boy vibes from him and how he treated Layla were different compared to Zayne.
I felt for Layla in the story. After all, she didn’t fit in because she’s half-demon and half gargoyle. Her Wardens (gargoyle shifters) are wary of her because of what she can do, and they were keeping secrets from her. There are also demons who she would tag for the Wardens, but then she finds out that maybe not all demons are evil. It’s a crazy world for a teenage girl who wants to be normal.
The ending was the big shocker for me. I was not prepared and felt terrible for Layla. I did like how she grew at the end of this book and came into new powers. She kicks butt! This book does leave a cliffhanger because readers will be left wanting more, especially with how Jennifer L. Armentrout ended this book. I know I can’t wait to dive into the next book, Stone Cold Touch. I’m ready to find out what happens next.
Standalone or Part of Series: It’s part of the Dark Elements series.
Cliffhanger: Yes.
Would I recommend this book? Yes. If you love the Young Adult Paranormal/Fantasy genre, you will enjoy this series by Jennifer L. Armentrout. I can’t believe it took me this long to read this series, but I’m making up for it now. The Young Adult genre (paranormal/ fantasy) always manages to get me out of a reading funk because it was got me into reading when I was younger and will always be my first love. It also helps when you have terrific authors like Jennifer L. Armentrout, who create unique paranormal worlds. 🙂
About Jennifer L. Armentrout
# 1 New York Times and # 1 International Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Charles Town, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki. In early 2015, Jennifer was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a group of rare genetic disorders that involve a breakdown and death of cells in the retina, eventually resulting in loss of vision, among other complications. Due to this diagnosis, educating people on the varying degrees of blindness has become of passion of hers, right alongside writing, which she plans to do as long as she can.
Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Tor, HarperCollins Avon and William Morrow, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen. Her Wicked Series has been optioned by PassionFlix. Jennifer has won numerous awards, including the 2013 Reviewers Choice Award for Wait for You, the 2015 Editor’s Pick for Fall With Me, and the 2014/2015 Moerser-Jugendbuch- Jury award for Obsidian. Her young adult romantic suspense novel DON’T LOOK BACK was a 2014 nominated Best in Young Adult Fiction by YALSA. Her adult romantic suspense novel TILL DEATH was a Amazon Editor’s Pick and iBook Book of the Month. Her young adult contemporary THE PROBLEM WITH FOREVER is a 2017 RITA Award Winner in Young Adult Fiction. She also writes Adult and New Adult contemporary and paranormal romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.
She is the owner of ApollyCon and The Origin Event, the successful annual events that features over hundred bestselling authors in Young Adult, New Adult, and Adult Fiction, panels, parties, and more.
My obsession with reading started over 30+ years ago when I went to my first Scholastic Book Fair and found R.L. Stine's Fear Street series. Later, I came across Anne Rice's novels at my public library when I was fourteen when my obsession with vampires started. I was the girl who preferred to be a vampire over a princess any day. My husband says I would leave him a heartbeat for a vampire that looked like Spike or Angel (from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) or Damon Salvatore from The Vampire Diaries. (It's true, though, and he's accepted it.)
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