White Hot Kiss by Jennifer L. Armentrout

White Hot Kiss by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Series: The Dark Elements #1
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publication Date: February 25th 2014
Source: Netgalley [Harlequin Teen]

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.

Wow. Wow, wow, wow. White Hot Kiss completely blew all of my expectations out of the park and has firmly cemented it's place at the top of my favourite Jennifer L. Armentrout book so far (she's still got tons of books to come out, but for now, this one is my favourite). Not only did she manage to write such an amazing story that had gargoyles and demons! She also managed to create the most swoon-worthy guy yet. And boy did I swoon over Roth a lot.

Honestly, I was hooked as soon as I picked up this book. I'd already gotten a glimpse at Layle and Zayne when I read Bitter Sweet Love so I was just excited to read more about them! The first chapter completely hooks you in and you get to see a little bit of what Layla can do (and she's awesome). Also, we meet Roth for this first time! 

Layla is half demon, half gargoyle and has been raised among the wardens. Zayne is her closest friend and is the only person who isn't scared of getting close to Layla - even if she could suck out his soul if he got too close. Honestly, I really felt for Layla. She has a huge, massive crush on Zayne but there's no way in a million years she could ever be with him because her kiss is lethal. She would give anything to be normal and it killed me seeing her struggle with who she is. She doesn't really know anything about her parents or about her abilities since she was raised among the wardens, and they seem to be keeping her in the dark. Layla was such an amazing character and I loved seeing her gain confidence throughout the book and she developed into an even more amazing character.

There was a demon in McDonald's.

And it had a powerful hunger for Big Macs.

You could say there is a slight love triangle in this book, but it didn't bother me one bit. Layla is completely head over heels for Zayne, and Zayne does have feelings for Layla, but they can't be together because Layla could kill Zayne if they got too close. Enter Roth - the sexy, swoon-worthy, cocky demon who knows more about Layla than she does. Now, Roth doesn't have to worry about Layla's 'deadly kiss' because he has no soul. I actually really liked both guys. Zayne was such a sweetheart and he genuinely cared about Layla. He was always looking out for her, standing up for her, and he was always there for her. But Roth completely won my heart. The tattoo's, the bad boy attitude and the cockiness completely won me over and he had me swooning throughout the whole book. There's a lot more to Roth underneath the bad boy exterior. He cares about Layla and wants to protect her. He's hilarious, charming and oh so sexy. 

Roth dropped my hair only to place the tips of his fingers on my chin. A spark of electricity made its way down to my toes. Tilting my head back, he stared down at me with a mischievous grin. "When I said I wasn't a real boy?"

"Yes."

He smirked as he leaned forward. I tried to clamp my legs shut, but his thigh slid between mine. "I think I'm definitely becoming a real boy."

Oh, sweet Jesus....

The plot of White Hot Kiss was extremely intriguing. We had Layla trying to discover more about her powers and where she came from; Layla and the Wardens hunting demons; Layla being attacked and hunted by paranormal creatures; Layla and Roth and trying to uncover why Layla was being hunted. Everything about this book captured my attention and had me desperate for more. I couldn't wait to find out more about Layla and why she was so important.

In that tiny moment of time, just a flicker of a second, his golden eyes met mine. "Free will, huh? Damn. It is a bitch."

And then he smiled - he smiled - at me, a real smile, revealing those deep dimples. "I lost myself the moment I found you."

The ending was horrible and made me cry. I've came to expect horrible cliffhangers from Jennifer L. Armentrout and this one was no different. It really tugged on my heart-strings and left me heart-broken and in desperate need of Stone Cold Touch.

Overall, Jennifer L. Armentrout has definitely done it again. She's gone and written a fantastic book, with amazing characters that has left me completely heart-broken and anxiously awaiting the next book. White Hot Kiss is definitely a book I recommend to anyone who loves paranormal books and also to anyone who loves a bit of steamy romance because this is just perfect.