Alienated by Melissa Landers

Title: Alienated
Author: Melissa Landers
Format I Read: Kindle
Pages: 344
Genres: Romance, Science Fiction
Release Date: February 4, 2014
Stars: 5
Goodreads Link

I think I'm in love I'm in love. I really am. Where can I sign up for the L'eihr exchange program? Seriously, Ms. Landers, I'm begging you.

I absolutely devoured this book. I started it yesterday and nearly stayed up until the wee hours of the morning to read it. Unfortunately, it's midterms week so I had to squeeze the end in today. But wow.

Alienated has everything you could ever think to ask for in an alien romance. It has a spunky, intelligent, compassionate, and independent heroine. It has a swoon worthy, coarse-but-then-sweet, cocky, and evolving love interest. It has an absolutely captivating conflict, in which the author combines politics, science fiction, and teen angst. I was truly fascinated.

I loved that the novel took place after the aliens "invaded" (but not really). There wasn't some crazy apocalyptic first contact with the aliens. We got to see the aftermath, which was filled with lots of cool politics and culture clashes. We also got to see both sides of the story: that of Cara and that of Aelyx. I loved the third person that alternated focus between Cara and Aelyx. It was perfect for the story.

Gosh, there are so many things about this book that I could gush about. It's truly impressive when an author manages to flood you with information and explain the complexities of the story without the reader even noticing. The plot, the setting, and basically everything about the L'eihr culture were foreign and complex, yet it was easy to understand. There was no single moment where I thought huh? There were even explanations of some of the L'eihr words, like Aelyx's name (A-licks)! The way this novel was written, I felt like I was living it.

I also just loved the blog posts. That was a fantastic touch and a nice tie-in with the title. Then again, I just loved everything about this book. The L'eihr were a beautiful creation and I fell in love with the world that Cara and Aelyx live in (though not so much with the HALO).

I give all the props in the world to Ms. Landers. You've captivated me and I can't wait to read Invaded!