Cursed by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Two years ago, Ember was in a car accident with her family. She died in that accident, felt her soul leave her body. But her 3 year old sister, Olivia, brought her back from the dead. Just by touching her.

Now, two years later, Ember is taking care of her mother and Olivia. Her father died in the car accident and her mother is acting like Ember died with him - which she technically did though now she's alive and doing the everyday normal stuff.

Well...almost normal.

When Olivia brought her back to life, she got her own ability. While Olivia can bring back dead things to life, Ember has the opposite ability - with just one touch, any living thing will die.

Ember found this out by touching animals and plants, so now she has a no touch policy that everyone in her life knows.

But no one wants to get close enough to touch her anyway. A side effect of being dead is that her blue eyes are now pale blue, almost transparent. And she has scars on her arms and upper body. She's known as the freak and gets tormented everyday at school or in town.

That doesn't stop her from taking care of Olivia, though. Her mother is useless when it comes to going to work, etc. so Ember gets the groceries, takes care of Olivia going to school and back, pays the bills, and other adult things.

It's not a great life, but it's hers. Then everything changes when she sees an attractive guy in town. It changes because he actually looks at her and doesn't look disgusted by Ember's disfigurement.

Turns out Hayden is like Ember and Olivia - he has his own ability. So does his "family" who he lives with in West Virginia. And that is where Ember is sent after being ... abducted ... from her house.

Now she has to live with complete strangers to stay with Olivia. And everyone at this house hates her. Her ability to kill with a touch is not looked at lightly and no one wants her near them. Except Hayden. Hayden acts like her guardian angel and tries to help her handle her "gift".

When things start to show up in her locker, things that no one should know about Ember, she claims someone in the house did it. But other things start to happen, like a car trying to run her over, that makes Ember realize her past is not what she thought it was...

Can Ember figure out how to control this curse she has been given? Will she find out who is trying to kill her and why? Read Cursed by Jennifer L. Armentrout to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
I. Love. This. Author.

There, I said it. I first read her through the Lux series and now I just ordered her Half-Blood series which I know I'll love just as much as the previous series. And Armentrout didn't disappoint with this novel!!

Could you imagine killing a person with just a touch? Just a whisper of a touch, or bumping into someone at the grocery story and naked skin connected? That would be horrible, and Ember had to go through that everyday for two years.

Plus she was taking care of her 5 year old sister, and if anyone knows 5 year olds, they always want something and put up a fight when they don't get it. So having to take care of her and making sure she is wearing long sleeves and gloves before touching her has got to be hard on a person.

Ember is strong willed and tough, even if she thinks differently. Thankfully she is kind spirited and didn't want to use her "gift" or curse for bad.

I have always been a fan of X-Men and this reminded me of that movie a little bit. All of these gifted teens in one house learning to live with their ability. Although it was different because a lot of the abilities were mental - empathetic, telepathic, healing, killing. It wasn't shooting fire or ice at others in battle and it was a lot of internal struggling.

I feel the need to pick up every one of Armentrout's works and read and re-read over and over again. Sadly, I don't own any of her novels - I've checked all of the ones I've read out from the library. When I find some extra cash, I will be fixing this problem and probably buying all of her novels just so I can stare at them lovingly on my bookcase.

So basically, go read this book. And her other books! I would recommend this for any reader wanting to read something similar to X-Men that shows a lead female character struggling to live one day at a time, just to find out that she's not alone and may be able to make friends who are like her.

Fantastic novel! Fantastic Author!