Lately I have found myself really getting into books by Jennifer Armentrout, like the Lux and Covenant series. Starting in August she will be releasing a new book every month through December! This month, the book was “Cursed”.
Dying sucks– and high school senior Ember McWilliams knows firsthand. After a fatal car accident, her gifted little sister brought her back. Now anything Ember touches dies. And that, well, really blows.
Ember operates on a no-touch policy with all living things–including boys. When Hayden Cromwell shows up, quoting Oscar Wilde and claiming her curse is a gift, she thinks he’s a crazed cutie. But when he tells her he can help control it, she’s more than interested. There’s just one catch: Ember has to trust Hayden’s adopted father, a man she’s sure has sinister reasons for collecting children whose abilities even weird her out.
However, she’s willing to do anything to hold her sister’s hand again. And hell, she’d also like to be able to kiss Hayden. Who wouldn’t? But when Ember learns the accident that turned her into a freak may not have been an accident at all, she’s not sure who to trust. Someone wanted her dead, and the closer she gets to the truth, the closer she is to losing not only her heart, but her life. For real this time.
When I first started “Cursed”, the feel of it was much different than any of Armentrouts other books. Now, people don’t freak out, it wasn’t different-bad, it was actually refreshing different. The whole vibe was not angsty romance( at least not at first 
), the story line had a great build up. We really got to know Ember and how hard her life was before a heartthrob was tossed into the equation. There was some really good foreshadowing, I was able to get “bad feelings” about certain characters and loved seeing the way things panned out.
Ember has a ton of baggage and her whole situation is just messy. While she is a young girl, she is growing up quickly having to take care of her sister. Having the ability to kill someone with a touch can make a person feel a little desolate. She has to be mature in most aspects of her life, but her inner monologue was still very juvenile. Her thoughts brought a very realistic quality to her character, just because she had to act like an adult doesn’t mean she had to think like one. I like the struggle she has with her gift, she does have to learn to trust her-self, and that came across really genuine. I was rooting for her to get it together the whole time.
Hayden at first is this shadowy figure that I wasn’t sure I could trust. I came to look at him as a strong support for Ember. He has a strong sense of morals and it really conveys in his personality. Hayden and Ember have some serious issues, but boy oh boy do they have serious chemistry! The majority of the book I was wanting a miracle cure for them to be able to touch!
I do have some bad news, after finishing I was eager to know if their would be more. So, I tweeted at Jennifer L. Armentrout and she said “It’s currently a standalone”. BUMMER CITY! This book has so much potential for a series. I would love backstory on the other characters, they are all unique and finding out you are “gifted” is a journey I would love to read about. I really hope she gets a huge desire to work more with this novel.
Please go purchase this book! Also, check out Jennifer L. Armentrouts site for updates and information on her books.
What do you think of this plot? How in the world would you manage not being able to touch the person you love, not even hold hands 
?
