Review : Apollyon by Jennifer L Armentrout

Summary (from Goodreads)

Title : Apollyon (Covenant #4)
Author : Jennifer L Armentrout
Publication Date : April 9th 2013
Publisher : Spencer Hill Press
Goodreads - The Book Depository

Fate isn't something to mess with and now, neither is Alex. Alex has always feared two things: losing herself in the Awakening and being placed on the Elixir. But love has always been stronger than Fate, and Aiden St. Delphi is willing to make war on the gods and Alex herself to bring her back.

The gods have killed thousands and could destroy entire cities in their quest to stop Seth from taking Alex's power and becoming the all-powerful God Killer. But breaking Alex's connection to Seth isn't the only problem. There are a few pesky little loopholes in the whole an Apollyon can't be killed theory, and the only person who might know how to stop the destruction has been dead for centuries.

Finding their way past the barriers that guard the Underworld, searching for one soul among countless millions, and then somehow returning will be hard enough. Alex might be able to keep Seth from becoming the God Killer or she might become the God Killer herself.

Personal Thoughts

The Covenant series is a rarity. It's a series that keeps improving by the book. With every book, my expectations have been increasing by ten-fold. After reading the brutal ending of Deity, I was dying to know what would happen to Alex and the rest of the cast. So, what's my conclusion? Well, this might actually be the best book in the series yet.

Along with being the spunky main character that she is, Alex has now grown to become a mature and headstrong girl. The reader can sense the growth that she has undergone, a result of all the traumatic events that she has gone through. In Apollyon, she was even more protective about the people she loved that she was in the previous installments of this series. Her growth, honesty and courage in the face of all sorts of danger makes you want to root for her to come out of everything unharmed. Alex has always been a likable character, but now after reading Apollyon, I feel like I have created an emotional bond with her. Alex is the friend that I need in real life, reliable and devoted. Her relationship with the rest of the characters has also strengthened throughout the series. While Alex might be the main character of this series, the character who I thought got the chance to really shine was Aiden. Aiden has always been devoted, caring and basically a really strong guy. In Apollyon, his qualities have doubled. He was even more swoon-worthy than in any of the other books. The rest of the secondary characters were as developed and well-crafted as Alex and Aiden.

The world-building also became a lot more transparent in Apollyon. I felt like I had a better understanding of the lore and mythology of the Greek Gods. The plot starts moving as soon as you step into the world of Apollyon and let me tell you, the ride was thrilling. Armentrout threw twists and turns all over the book. As a reader, you get to experience all sorts of emotions. Although, I thought the story line and the world building were exceptionally well done, I felt like the book ended too abruptly. It sort of felt like Armentrout was forcing herself to end the book in a cliffhanger, which I thought was quite unnecessary. Other than that though, my favorite part of Apollyon has to be, without a shadow of doubt, the romance. Aiden and Alex were so much more open about their relationship and their bond had grown even deeper than it had. These two not only loved each other, but they respected each other and this respect was what I appreciated the most in their relationship. There were some tender and really steamy moments in this book that had me fanning myself. Jennifer L Armentrout, in my opinion, has grown tremendously as an author and this was clearly visible in Apollyon. Her prose was already very addictive, but now I feel like her writing is also memorable.

All in all, Apollyon is, according to me, a successful installment, that lives up to the series. Everything is just amplified in this book : character development, world building, pacing and romance. Fans of the series will undoubtedly be very much satisfied!

Rating

Cover : 4/5
Plot : 4/5
Characters : 4/5
Writing : 4/5

Big Thanks to Spencer Hill Press for the ARC of Apollyon.