Apollyon by Jennifer L. Armentrout

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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.

My thoughts

Wow, this book..! I have no words, so I'll have to go with something like: A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. I'm surprised to say that Apollyon is even better than Deity. Yeah, I didn't think that was possible, because I was in awe of Deity. But Apollyon just blew right past it. Several times during the book I was like: asdfghjkl. And then I went through all the emotions, and I think my internal monlogue jumped between whaaat and noooo and  yeah, go Alex and awww. 

The book started just a bit after Elixir ended - and I think it would be best, okay, necessary - to read it before reading Apollyon, even though it's novella and set between books. So, Alex is still in this freaky bond with Seth and being all Evil Alex, with Aiden on the outside trying to bring out the real Alex. The question is, can Alex break the bond? What happens if she does? And how can Alex keep Seth from becoming the God Killer before it's too late? 

There was a lot of action in this book, much more than any of the other books, but I think JLA balanced it well with some quiet moments inbetween, where everyone could get some peace before everything spazzed out again. And I seriously couldn't stop reading this book. When I reached the last pages, I hoped more would magically appear, so I could just keep reading. Alas, none did. But I thoroughly enjoyed and devoured every one of those that were.
We get to meet many new gods in this book, which I think was awesome, and Apollo is also still around, with that excellent timing of his. On a side note, I love Greek mythology, and I think JLA use it extraordinary in this series, and I absolutely love how many parts of said mythology is incorporated in the story. From Olympus to the Underworld to all the different gods and creatures.

My favorite part in JLA's books is and always will be the characters - I simply love the characters she creates. They feel so real to me.
Alex has matured a lot during all the books. After becoming the Apollyon everything has changed for her, and with it she has changed. She is more in control of herself, thinking a lot more before she acts and says anything. But even though she has changed a lot, she is still very much herself. She always has a snarky or sarcastic comment at hand, she's fierce and unyielding, stubborn, protecting of those she love - and still very much in love with Aiden St. Delphi.

Aiden.. oh my.. Can I just say I love him? For each book I love him a little more, and in Apollyon he opened more up, was less in the rigid, constant control of himself and was very caring of Alex. He is still this strong character we met in Half-Blood who will stop at nothing to protect those he love.
There was a lot more moments between Alex and Aiden than I had even dared to hope for. And boy, did I LOVE that. I cannot get enough of them. They were so cute around each other that I couldn't help smiling stupidly all the time. It was also funny seeing them together around others, no longer keeping their relationship a secret.  

I very much liked all the secondary characters too. I liked seeing the new sides to Marcus as well as Lea, laugh with Deacon and Luke and just generally see the crowd - and I was constantly afraid that something would happen to any of them. I was kind of on the edge of my seat all the time.
And then there's Seth. After Deity I pretty much hated Seth. Like really hated him, but after Apollyon.. well, he didn't redeem himself (yet), but I think there's hope for him. And I liked that. 

Now I can't wait to read Sentinel, but fortunately (thank gods), Apollyon didn't end on a big a cliffhanger as Deity (which just sucked daimon butt), so I think can impatiently wait for the last book. Wow, the last book. It's going to be sad leaving all these awesome characters... But we've still got an adventure ahead of us, and after reading Apollyon I have no doubt that it'll be absolutely amazing.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆