[Lisa’s Review]: Half-Blood (Covenant #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

The Hematoi descend from the unions of gods and mortals, and the children of two Hematoi - pure-bloods - have godlike powers. Children of Hematoi and mortals - well, not so much. Half-bloods only have two options: become trained Sentinels who hunt and kill daimons or become servants in the homes of the pures.

Seventeen-year-old Alexandria would rather risk her life fighting than waste it scrubbing toilets, but she may end up slumming it anyway. There are several rules that students at the Covenant must follow. Alex has problems with them all, but especially rule #1:

Relationships between pures and halfs are forbidden.

Unfortunately, she's crushing hard on the totally hot pure-blood Aiden. But falling for Aiden isn't her biggest problem - staying alive long enough to graduate the Covenant and become a Sentinel is. If she fails in her duty, she faces a future worse than death or slavery: being turned into a daimon, and being hunted by Aiden. And that would kind of suck.

I’m currently re-reading this series, and I’m only now getting around to writing this down, but here’s what I remember from the day I stumbled over this series: I remember reading the synopsis for this book, thinking, holy crap, I have to read this right freaking now. Greek mythology, badass female warrior, and romance that puts the “forbidden” in forbidden romance? Count me in. Needless to say, I went and ordered every book that was out at this point and then got the eBook, so I didn’t have to wait until the books get there. I ended up going through the first three books before I ever held the paperbacks in my hands. And yes, it’s simply that good. 

Half-Blood is one of those books you completely drown in. You lose your sense of space and time and return to the real world hours and hours later, still craving more. I can’t believe I haven’t read this series in years. Right from the start, there’s action. Alex is on the run, trying to evade a group of Daimons after losing her mother and having her entire life ripped apart by the seams, again. The first few chapters are fast-paced. It’s a lot to take in all at once, but Jen gradually untangles the characters we meet and then takes the time to walk you through this mythological world she’s building. Alex is, to this day, years later, still one of my absolute favorites. She’s fierce, loyal, and tough-as-nails. Her particular brand of sassiness completes the package and brings humor and playful banter to the story. But beyond her smart-mouth, which is more defense mechanism than anything else, she’s also vulnerable and a seventeen-year-old girl, worrying about things that seventeen-year-old girls worry about. 

Don’t even get me started on her totally forbidden, sex-on-legs, pureblood trainer, Aiden. He’s mature beyond his age, loyal, protective, and everything I ever wanted in a guy. Their chemistry is off the charts from the get-go and only gets better with time. And while there’s another guy, lovely Seth, introduced to the story about half-way through, I always was and always will be Team Aiden. The stakes have never been higher; it’s forbidden romance at its best. 

The plot is well-paced. The world-building is on point. There are twists and turns that make your heart race a million miles an hour, and before you know it, there’s more at stake than Alex’s dream of becoming a Sentinel. Long story short: Half-Blood is a phenomenal start into an equally outstanding series. From humor to angst to forbidden romance to action and a fantastic set of secondary characters, this book has it all. Must-read for every fantasy lover out there.

Lisa

Hi! I’m Lisa. I’m twenty-three, a college student and a book lover. I spend every free minute, and most of my lectures, reading all kinds of books, which is how I ended up here. While I particularly enjoy books of the young and new adult variety, I also love historical fiction, sci-fi, fantasy, paranormal, all things romance, and one or the other classic as well. If I’m not reading, I’m either working, sleeping, binge-watching my newest obsession on Netflix, or on my way to Starbucks, to satisfy my slight caffeine addiction.