From Goodreads: The Hematoi descend from the unions of gods and mortals, and the children of two Hematoi-pure-bloods-have godlike powers. Children of Hematoi and mortals-well, not so much. Half-bloods only have two options: become trained Sentinels who hunt and kill daimons or become servants in the homes of the pures. Seventeen-year-old Alexandria would rather risk her life fighting than waste it scrubbing toilets, but she may end up slumming it anyway. There are several rules that students at the Covenant must follow. Alex has problems with them all, but especially rule #1: Relationships between pures and halfs are forbidden. Unfortunately, she’s crushing hard on the totally hot pure-blood Aiden. But falling for Aiden isn’t her biggest problem–staying alive long enough to graduate the Covenant and become a Sentinel is. If she fails in her duty, she faces a future worse than death or slavery: being turned into a daimon, and being hunted by Aiden. And that would kind of suck.

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I have to say that I really enjoyed Half-Blood.  For me, the idea of gods and mortals is really enticing, and I love reading about special powers within specialty schools, and good versus evil.  Of course, after having read Daimon, I was completely in love with this story before I even began, and Armentrout doesn’t disappoint in this first full book of the series.

I still love Alex dearly.  Sure, she makes some really stupid mistakes, but don’t we all at her age?  She’s recently: watched her mother die a terrible death, been hunted down by daimons, saved by the sexy Aiden, forced back to the Covenant still not knowing why her mother forced her to run from it in the first place… and now she “stands trial” for things she never had control over in the first place.  Not only does she have to prove herself to the elders, worst of all her stepdad, but also to Aiden, her new trainer.  Seriously, if I were in her shoes, I’d probably be a bungling idiot in hysterics.  But Alex takes it all in stride.  She’s seen a lot in her few short years, and it’s only made her stronger.  And yet, she does have a softer side. She’s never been in love, and with Aiden, her first crush, of course things are going to go awry. While her “I don’t need anyone” attitude does grate the nerves a bit after a while, watching her begin to grow as an individual was really nice.  Alex’s close friends were a riot, too, and I think they really helped make the story come together in a way that many readers will love.  There is much kinship, even though Alex has been MIA for three years, and I loved watching her get reacquainted and work herself to the bone to remain a part of the Covenant.

Aiden, as sexy as he is, definitely stole my heart, and I truly enjoyed every scene he was in (which is most).  He’s kind and compassionate, yet steadfast and hardcore.  One of the highest ranked Sentinel’s, he’s got a keen sense for danger and protecting those around him, which makes him the perfect man, in my opinion.  Hence, I can’t wait to dive into the sequel, Pure, and see what awaits him and Alex in their next endeavor.

Aside from the main characters, though, I really enjoyed the plot.  I wasn’t expecting the many twists and turns and I highly enjoyed being along for the ride.  The revelations brought to the forefront were also really entertaining and, like I said, I can’t wait to read the sequel.  Four stars.

I purchased my Kindle and Paperback copies from Amazon.

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AND NOW FOR THE GIVEAWAY!  I’ve got one signed paperback of Half-Blood up for grabs (USA only–sorry), and YOU can win it HERE!  ENDS Oct 12, 2012.