White Hot Kiss Review

WHITE HOT KISS
Series: The Dark Elements #1
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Paranormal
Release Date: February 25th 2014

Book Length: 392 pages
Publisher: Harlequin Teen 
Source: Physical copy, Goodreads 
Review: 5/5 *Full Review Below.

Blurb:
One kiss could be the last. 

Seventeen-year-old Layla just wants to be normal. But with a kiss that kills anything with a soul, she's anything but normal. Half demon, half gargoyle, Layla has abilities no one else possesses. 

Raised among the Wardens—a race of gargoyles tasked with hunting demons and keeping humanity safe—Layla tries to fit in, but that means hiding her own dark side from those she loves the most. Especially Zayne, the swoon-worthy, incredibly gorgeous and completely off-limits Warden she's crushed on since forever. 

Then she meets Roth—a tattooed, sinfully hot demon who claims to know all her secrets. Layla knows she should stay away, but she's not sure she wants to—especially when that whole no-kissing thing isn't an issue, considering Roth has no soul. 

But when Layla discovers she's the reason for the violent demon uprising, trusting Roth could not only ruin her chances with Zayne… it could brand her a traitor to her family. Worse yet, it could become a one-way ticket to the end of the world.

I COULD READ THIS A THOUSAND TIMES AND STILL LOVE IT!

**Hannah Cassie, stay away from this, go and finish WHK ;)**

This was my first book by Jennifer L. Armentrout and I think it will forever be a favourite of mine. Don’t get me wrong every book or series she releases I become obsessed with to the point were they get 5 stars because I haven’t moved off my ass for hours because I can’t bear to part from the book and compare every other book boyfriend on the planet to her gorgeous characters… This isn’t sad at all!

So when it came to reading White Hot Kiss again, I was absolutely thrilled to find it was like reading the book a fresh with all the plot twists, drama, tension, angst and FEELS!

JLA manages to make people made of stone sexy and demons with some interesting piercings and tattoo’s the hottest people on the planet. When she decides to write a male love interest she does not hold back.

Naturally we have two warring enemies The Wardens (gargoyles) and The Demons. Layla is a hybrid of the two; because of this she can see people’s souls and leave a ‘mark’ on a Demon that only The Warden’s can see and use to hunt them. Warden Zayne is Layla's best friend and childhood crush but he still treats her as an annoying friend/sister, nothing can ever happen between them; Layla can’t kiss anyone with a soul and Zayne has the purest soul, to do so would kill him. Perfect!

Enter Roth, the baddest thing in town; Roth, a demon who also happens to be the most alluring, sexy, arrogant person ever… and that whole nothing kissing people with a soul? Not a problem here, demons don’t have souls. Layla is helpless to Roth’s antic’s, she knows he’s bad news, if the Wardens found her even speaking to a demon she would be branded a traitor but what can she do when he turns up at her school, the park and even the bathroom? There's only so much resisting a girl can do!

“At some point, Roth had gotten hold of my cell and replaced Zayne's name with Stony and listed his own number under Sexy Beast. What a tool. I grinned.”

I’m sure it’s obvious that this book will feature a love triangle but trust me you will not mind it but if you really do oppose them I would still give this book a try as it’s much more focused on one side of the triangle and not a pissing contest at every turn. The romance is sizzling as JLA always pushes the boundaries on YA, which I love! It does get a little cheesy at times and maybe you want more action but it really doesn't take anything away from the story and truly these thoughts only enter your mind after you've read the book and reflect on it.

"I think you like me," Roth said suddenly.

I stopped pacing and my heart did a funny little jump. "What? No."

He tilted his head to the side, his lips spreading into a teasing grin. "The way you lie to yourself is sort of cute."

"I'm not lying."

"Hmm..." He sat up, eyes glimmering with mirth. "You wanted me to kiss you earlier.”

Heat flooded my cheeks. "No. I did not."

"You're right. You wanted me to do much, much more."

This was such a fun read, even the secondary characters were amazing, this book is filled with sexual tension, forbidden romance, childhood-crushes and a lot of humour that will have you laughing along the way. The cliffhanger for me was heartbreaking, it was no less traumatic reading it the second time around.. some series sacrifices are made!

“I lost myself the moment I found you.”

***

Hopefully you're joining us in The Dark Elements Re-Read, to find out mine & Erika's thoughts be sure to check out our Q&A of White Hot Kiss HERE. We would love to hear your thoughts/feels, loves and hates!