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Onyx (GEM 3) by Freya Barker-review tour

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Onyx (GEM 3) by Freya Barker-review tour

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date November 6, 2023

GEM: A PRIVATELY-FUNDED ORGANIZATION OPERATING INDEPENDENTLY IN THE SEARCH FOR—AND THE RESCUE AND RECOVERY OF—MISSING AND EXPLOITED CHILDREN. ALTHOUGH, AT TIMES WORKING IN CONJUNCTION WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT, GEM AIMS TO ENSURE THE VICTIMS RECEIVE JUSTICE…BY WHATEVER MEANS NECESSARY.
____

Operator Onyx; balanced, strong, a guardian

She’s the voice of reason, advocates, and strategizes.

Supporting the team from the background, Onyx rarely goes out in the field. However, when a widespread child exploitation ring is discovered, her particular skill set is needed to get close.

Unfortunately, her boss—a man she’s never laid eyes on before—is dead set against her taking the lead. Outvoted, he finds a way to keep her in his sights, risking his own exposure.

•••••

REVIEW:ONYX is the third (and final?) instalment in Freya Barker’s contemporary, adult GEM dark, erotic, romantic suspense series. This is Rajani ‘Onyx’ Agarwal, and Jacob Branch’s story line. ONYX can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary but I recommend reading the series in order.

SOME BACKGROUND: GEM stands for Gather, Evaluate, Mobilize

GEM, a group that works independently of other organizations, searching for missing and exploited children; and CARD (Child Abduction Rapid Deployment) is a division of the FBI working to stop those trafficking in children. Approximately twenty years earlier Raj (Onyx), and her fellow GEM agents Kate (Opal) and Janey (Pearl) were abducted from a teen youth center, help captive and abused by a madman who was believed to have died in a fire at the center but their investigations into the missing and exploited all reveal a connection to the center, and the probability the baddest of the bad survived.

NOTE: Due to the nature of the story line premise, there WILL BE triggers for more sensitive readers.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Onyx and Jacob) ONXY focuses on the take down of the last man that destroyed Onyx, Opal and Pearl’s lives. Raised in a group home for troubled teens, the boys and girls were used and abused by the people in charge but a fire allowed the children to escape, and the survivors are searching for the ones who got away. Fast forward to present day, the members of GEM are all former childhood victims whose duty it is to protect those most vulnerable but as a side proclamation, GEM searches for the men who destroyed their lives, and with only one man still on the run, Onyx goes undercover in the hopes of taking down the remaining abuser who is about to turn the tables on our story line couple. With the help and coordination of GEM’s boss and CEO Jacob Branch, as well as Jacob’s friend Hamish, the trio face down the nightmare who continues to destroy so many lives.

The world building continues to focus GEM, but more specifically the three women and their boss Jacob Branch, who have pledged to help those unable to help themselves. With the number of missing and exploited children on the rise, GEM is kept busy searching for those unable to help themselves.

The relationship between Onyx and Jacob is employee and boss but very few people are truly aware Jacob’s secret or his real identity. As Onyx begins to tumble down the rabbit hole, secrets are revealed, lies are exposed, and Onyx struggles to accept what happened and why. The $ex scenes are intimate, erotic and intense without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

There is a large ensemble cast of colorful and charismatic secondary and supporting characters including Opal and Mitch, Pearl and Lee, Hamish Adrian, and Jacob’s caretaker Bernice Nelson. The requisite evil has many faces.

ONYX is a story of secrets and lies, betrayal and vengeance, power and control, forgiveness, acceptance and love. ONYX is twisted, passionate and dramatic story of tragedy and recovery; the characters are struggling and broken; the romance is fated but predicated on deceit and deception.

There are several moments of confusion, a couple of twists to the story line that at times left me wondering what happened and why but all will be revealed throughout the story.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Opal
Pearl

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

USA Today bestselling author Freya Barker loves writing about ordinary people with extraordinary stories.

Driven to make her books about ‘real’ people; she creates characters who are perhaps less than perfect, each struggling to find their own slice of happy, but just as deserving of romance, thrills and chills in their lives.

Recipient of the ReadFREE.ly 2019 Best Book We’ve Read All Year Award for “Covering Ollie, the 2015 RomCon “Reader’s Choice” Award for Best First Book, “Slim To None”, and Finalist for the 2017 Kindle Book Award with “From Dust”, Freya continues to add to her rapidly growing collection of published novels as she spins story after story with an endless supply of bruised and dented characters, vying for attention!

Facebook: http://bit.ly/FreyaFacebook
Twitter: http://bit.ly/FreyaTwitter
Instagram: http://bit.ly/FreyaInstagram
Web: http://bit.ly/FreyaWeb
Goodreads: http://bit.ly/FreyaGoodreads
Newsletter: https://www.subscribepage.com/Freya_Newsletter
Bookbub: http://bit.ly/FreyaBookBub

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Jennifer Armentrout-Interview with the Author

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Jennifer Armentrout-Interview with the Author

FROM the Website: USA TODAY Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Martinsburg, 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, working out, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russel Loki.

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 also writes adult romance under the name J. Lynn.

TRC: Hi Jennifer and welcome to The Reading Café. We would like to start with some background information. Would you please tell us something about yourself?

Jennifer: I currently live in West Virginia and like most authors, I’ve always wanted to be a writer. I’m a big fan of scary movies and zombies, which is strange because zombies scared the crap out of me as a kid. I write adult and YA in pretty much every genre. I have a hard time parting with books, that’s why I have duplicate copies of some signed and way too many.

TRC: Many authors develop their interest in writing at an early age. Do you remember what was the catalyst that sparked your interest in writing? Who or what do you credit with your desire to write?

Jennifer: I’m not sure what the catalyst was, but I’ve always wanted to be a writer. I think it had to do with the fact that I read so much growing up–the old school YA and historical romance novels.

TRC: What difficulties or challenges have you faced as a writer?

Jennifer: The biggest challenge is focusing. When you have multiple books out or multiple books coming out, it can become very difficult to keep focus on writing, because there’s a lot of other stuff that needs to be done. Hours are spent catching up with emails or on the phone with editors/agent/publicists/crit partners and before you know it, you’re too tired to write. So focusing and making time can be a big challenge.

TRC: The LUX series focuses on a town of aliens trying to blend into regular life. Where did you come up with the idea of aliens posing as humans? What triggered your imagination as it pertains to alien life forms in a Young Adult storyline?

READING ORDER:  Obsidian/Shadows/Onyx

Jennifer: My adult editor at Entangled had asked me if I’d be interested in writing about aliens in high school. Initially, I laughed and was like no. Who wants to read about aliens? But the more I thought about it, the story started to take place in my head. Having the aliens try to blend in adds conflict and coming up with the type of alien was the most difficult part. For half the book, I kept picturing giant insects eating brains. Seriously.  Finally, the idea of them being made of light just popped into my head. The rest was history. =)

TRC: Occasionally you take the LUX series cover models with you on your promotional tours. Who are the models and why the decision to tour with the actors and models?

Jennifer: The models are Pepe Toth and Sztella Tziotziosz. The decision kind of came from the publisher’s wanting to get new pictures of them for the book covers, and we thought we might as well do some book trailers while they were over here…. and that spun into going on tour with them. Both of the were great and we hope to have them back for another tour.

TRC: ONYX is your August release in the LUX series. Would you please tell us about the premise of the storyline?

LINKS TO ORDER:
Amazon Paper Books
Amazon Kindle
The Book Depository
B&N Nook and Paper Books

Jennifer: Onyx is the sequel to Obsidian, so I don’t want to say too much for those who haven’t read Obsidian, but it deals with the consequences of what happened at the end of Obsidian, delves more deeply into the world of the Luxens and their interactions with the DOD. There’s romance, action, a bit of heart break, and a lot of secrets revealed.

Click HERE for our review of OBSIDIAN.

TRC: With the popularity of the characters, have you considered continuing the series? Any spin-offs?

Jennifer: There has been some talk about a companion novel. It’s almost completely written, but there isn’t much I can really share about that right now.

TRC: DEITY is the next instalment in the Covenant series. Would you please tell us about the premise?

LINKS TO PREORDER:
Amazon Paper books
The Book Depository
B&N Paper Books

Jennifer: Like Onyx and Opal, the premise is really spoilery. But It picks up where Pure left off. Seth and Alex return to Deity Island. A lot of things happen in Deity and Alex faces a lot, but you do find out who Alex wants to be with in Deity and a lot of the gods start popping up.

TRC: The covers for the Covenant Series are beautiful. Who designed the covers? Where you involved in the cover selection for this particular series?

READING ORDER:  Daimon/Half Blood/Pure/Deity/Elixir

Click HERE for our review of DAIMON- the prequel novella in the Covenant series.

Jennifer: The publisher had the covers designed and I did have a say in them, but they get all the credit for those beauties.

TRC: CURSED is your September new release. Would you please tell us something about the series?

LINKS TO ORDER:
Amazon Paper Books
B&N Paper Books
The Book Depository

Jennifer: Cursed is currently a standalone and deals with a girl who was brought back to life by her little sister. I kind of think that if someone  dies and comes back to life, they aren’t going to be right, you know? And Ember isn’t. Everything she touches dies. The book has a big mystery element to it, and instead of really focusing on the different gifts, it’s about Ember finding out who was responsible for the accident that took her life and that of her father’s.

TRC: The premise is similar yet different to the X-men comics. How many books do you have planned for the series? Will Hayden and Ember be the primary characters for each novel?

Jennifer: Right now there is only one book. I think whenever you have a group of kids that have abilities, you cannot escape the comparison to X-Men. If you have a bunch of adults with super powers, you’ll hear the same comparison. It just comes down to if the premise goes it a different direction, which Cursed isn’t about saving the world or doing heroic acts. It’s about a girl who’s trying to accept the life she’s been dealt with.

TRC: DON’T LOOK BACK is your new series schedule for release in the fall of 2013. Would you please tell us something about the new series?

Jennifer: Don’t Look Back is scheduled for March 2014, and there isn’t much I’m allowed to really share about that book yet. What I can say it’s a mystery/thriller that deals with less of memory and murder. And the book has successfully creeped out my crit partners if that tells you anything =)

TRC: What have been some of the challenges you have faced with regards to research, logistics and publication?

Jennifer: The biggest challenge is waiting for a book to come out when it has a far out release date. You kind of forget about the book until it gets closer to that date.

TRC: You have a very prolific series of storylines and books. Writer’s Block is a very real phenomenon that many authors face from time to time. How do you handle the stress of Writer’s Block?

Jennifer: I try to work through writer’s block when I get it. Luckily that hasn’t really happen. What I get is the case of inability to focus. And once again, I try to power through it. That doesn’t always work and when it’s really bad, I take a day off from writing.

TRC: Many authors bounce ideas between other authors, or family and friends. With whom do you bounce ideas?

Jennifer: With my friends. I’d be lost without them.

TRC: What is happening in the next six months?

Jennifer: Well, the next six months are going to be super busy for me. I have a book coming out every month:

August- Onyx

September- Cursed

October- Unchained (adult/ under pen name J. Lynn)

November- Deity and Elixir

December- Opal

January- Tempting the Player (adult/ under pen name J. Lynn)

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food
Anything red meat

Favorite Dessert
Chocolate!

Favorite TV Show
Supernatural

Favorite Movie
Don’t really have one

Last Move you Saw
The Darkest Hour

Dark or Milk Chocolate
Milk

Last Vacation Destination
Florida I guess

Do you have any pets?
I have a Jack Russell named Loki!

TRC: Thank you Jennifer for taking the time to answer our questions. We are looking forward to all of your new releases in the coming months. Congratulations on all of your success.

Jennifer: Thank you for having me!

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Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout – a Review

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Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout – a Review

Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout is the second book in her  Lux series.  Upfront I have to say as much as I enjoyed Obsidian, Onyx is better.  I loved this book.  Of course, getting to spend more time with Daemon, Katy, Dee and their friends, is fun and Jennifer Armentrout outdoes herself.

Onyx picks up not long after Obsidian ended.  Katy Swarz still has the hots for Daemon Black, but as Onyx begins,  Daemon wants Katy just as much.  Instead of being the rude and nasty boy, who constantly pushed her away in Obsidian, Daemon has changed his tactics.  He is attentive to her, acts in front of everyone like she is his girl, sweet talks to her, and totally throws Katy for a loop.  She doesn’t know how to react to this new Daemon, and it confuses her even more.  Katy wants a normal life, with a normal boy, and a relationship just like her mother and father had.   In Obsidian, Katy was healed by Daemon, and a connection was born between them.  This will play a major part in Onyx, but early on, Katy brushes off the change in Daemon due to that connection.

Katy meets a new boy in school, Blake Saunders, who seems like a nice guy, and it doesn’t hurt that he looks like a gorgeous blond California surfer. Blake likes Katy, and a friendship begins.  This of course doesn’t sit well with Daemon.  It’s fun to watch Daemon spend all his time with Katy, even if she wants to go out to dinner with Blake, whom she still considers a friend.  Daemon is unresistable, his green eyes, his mischievous grin, and Katy just cannot resist him, as much as she tries.  Their is sexual tension between them, but it was fun to watch their steamy kissing sessions, which Daemon says is needed to remove her trace.  Yeah sure…:)  Did I mention how swoonworthy, Daemon is?

But the change in Daemon is real, we the reader know he loves Katy, and of course Katy loves him, but it wouldn’t be fun, if this relationship was fast and easy.   But it is enjoyable and Armentrout has a lot of humor in this tense story.

Onyx is not just about the romance of Daemon & Katy.  This is such an exciting and tense story.  Filled with lots of action, and danger throughout the whole book.  Early on Katy begins to discover that she has inherited some strange abilities, and realizes that this is from the connection she has with Daemon.  At first, Katy tries to keep it a secret, but both Daemon and Blake accidently see Katy’s new abilities.  During an attack, out on a date with Blake, she discovers that Blake also has some powers.  We learn a lot more about the humans who gain powers from connections given to them due to a Luxen healing them.  We also learn more about the DOD, & other factions who may be interested in Katy, and because of this, Blake starts to train Katy how to control her new abilities, much to Daemon’s chagrin.   Daemon and Blake do not hit it off, as Daemon is jealous at first.  But during some training sessions, Daemon tries to tell Katy he doesn’t trust Blake.  Katy ignores that as jealousy and continues to train, as she wants to learn how to defend herself and help her friends (Luxens), against the Arum and others who keep coming after them.

Katy soon begins to realize that her love for Daemon is so strong, she will do anything to save him and his friends.  Along the way, she makes some decisions she feels she must do, and there will be consequences.  This book is so much more exciting, with a lot of action and danger then Obsidian was.  There are a number twists, betrayals, and surprises as we race to the climatic finish.  So much so that lives will be lost, all will be effected, and changes will be made. The ending was not a cliffhanger, but wow.  This is a book you can’t put down, as it is so exciting.  If you loved Daemon, Katy and Dee in Obsidian, you will love them even more in this book. Kudos to Jennifer Armentrout for this sensational continuation of this series, and I for one cannot wait for the next book.

READING ORDER
1. Obsidian
2. Shadows (prequel)
3. Onyx

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

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