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seanan_mcguire) wrote2008-10-13 10:29 am
seanan_mcguire) wrote2008-10-13 10:29 am
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Book review: 'Bitten,' Kelley Armstrong.
Bitten, by Kelley Armstrong.
Plume, paperback
448 pages, dark urban fantasy/supernatural romance, werewolf-centric awesome
Currently in print
***
Kelley Armstrong is one of my favorite authors currently publishing (the others who dependably make that list are Stephen King and Terry Pratchett). With the latest entry in her Women of the Otherworld series coming out later this month, this seemed like an excellent time to go back and review the series from the beginning. Because yes, I am just that much of a fan. That being said, like every fan, I have opinions and biases relating to the series, and will try to mark them clearly.
Bitten was originally written as a stand-alone novel. Armstrong didn't know she'd be going back for a sequel, much less an entire series. Consequentially, when we meet Elena -- the world's only female werewolf, our cranky and critical heroine, and our first-person narrator for the first two volumes -- we meet her as a representative of the only supernatural species in the world. It's refreshingly straightforward. Me werewolf, you potentially dinner (except that good girls don't do that sort of thing). Elena grew up human, only to be betrayed and bitten by someone she trusted with her life, and has been fighting to adjust to life as a werewolf by...not adjusting. She's doing her damnedest to suppress all those pesky werewolf urges, which can be a bit of a problem when changing forms isn't just a choice, it's a physical need.
Trouble arises fairly shortly after the book begins, and Elena is summoned from her human life in Toronto back to Stonehaven, where the werewolf Pack has been waiting for her. Not just the Pack; her Alpha, who still refuses to acknowledge that she doesn't want to be a part of that world anymore, and worse yet, the man who bit her...
Elena is an interesting, engaging narrator, and brings a refreshing lack of bullshit to the table. Even when she's clearly wrong in her assumptions, they're clearly defined, and it's easy to see how she got from point A to point B. Despite this being a first novel, Armstrong doesn't over-complicate things or clutter up the scene with an excess of characters; if anything, her cast is smaller than I would have liked it to be at certain points. I would really have loved to see certain of Elena's relationships shown a little more clearly. At the same time, the pacing of the book is just about perfect, making that sort of extra material unnecessary.
Is there plot? Yes, and the plot is excellent. Is there porn? There are a few sex scenes, but they're short, plot-essential, and actually interesting to read. Armstrong is one of the few authors whose sex I greet with 'oh, cool, sex,' rather than 'dammit, not again.' This is a tribute both to the approachability of her characters, and to the quality of her writing.
If you're looking for a place to start reading the Women of the Otherworld, Bitten remains your best bet: it's the first book in the series, and provides a foundation that makes everything else all the more enjoyable. Plus? How often do you get werewolves with a Southern drawl? Comedy gold.
Eight re-reads, and my love remains undimmed.
Plume, paperback
448 pages, dark urban fantasy/supernatural romance, werewolf-centric awesome
Currently in print
***
Kelley Armstrong is one of my favorite authors currently publishing (the others who dependably make that list are Stephen King and Terry Pratchett). With the latest entry in her Women of the Otherworld series coming out later this month, this seemed like an excellent time to go back and review the series from the beginning. Because yes, I am just that much of a fan. That being said, like every fan, I have opinions and biases relating to the series, and will try to mark them clearly.
Bitten was originally written as a stand-alone novel. Armstrong didn't know she'd be going back for a sequel, much less an entire series. Consequentially, when we meet Elena -- the world's only female werewolf, our cranky and critical heroine, and our first-person narrator for the first two volumes -- we meet her as a representative of the only supernatural species in the world. It's refreshingly straightforward. Me werewolf, you potentially dinner (except that good girls don't do that sort of thing). Elena grew up human, only to be betrayed and bitten by someone she trusted with her life, and has been fighting to adjust to life as a werewolf by...not adjusting. She's doing her damnedest to suppress all those pesky werewolf urges, which can be a bit of a problem when changing forms isn't just a choice, it's a physical need.
Trouble arises fairly shortly after the book begins, and Elena is summoned from her human life in Toronto back to Stonehaven, where the werewolf Pack has been waiting for her. Not just the Pack; her Alpha, who still refuses to acknowledge that she doesn't want to be a part of that world anymore, and worse yet, the man who bit her...
Elena is an interesting, engaging narrator, and brings a refreshing lack of bullshit to the table. Even when she's clearly wrong in her assumptions, they're clearly defined, and it's easy to see how she got from point A to point B. Despite this being a first novel, Armstrong doesn't over-complicate things or clutter up the scene with an excess of characters; if anything, her cast is smaller than I would have liked it to be at certain points. I would really have loved to see certain of Elena's relationships shown a little more clearly. At the same time, the pacing of the book is just about perfect, making that sort of extra material unnecessary.
Is there plot? Yes, and the plot is excellent. Is there porn? There are a few sex scenes, but they're short, plot-essential, and actually interesting to read. Armstrong is one of the few authors whose sex I greet with 'oh, cool, sex,' rather than 'dammit, not again.' This is a tribute both to the approachability of her characters, and to the quality of her writing.
If you're looking for a place to start reading the Women of the Otherworld, Bitten remains your best bet: it's the first book in the series, and provides a foundation that makes everything else all the more enjoyable. Plus? How often do you get werewolves with a Southern drawl? Comedy gold.
Eight re-reads, and my love remains undimmed.
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Incidentally, are you watching True Blood? The books that series is based on are absolutely wonderful too. :) (Charlaine Harris. I can't recall if you've mentioned you've been reading those...)
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Her lack of porn-driven plot may be a factor, sadly. The series that go huge are either a) fluffy (like the Undead and Un____ series, or Don't Talk Back to Your Vampire), b) porn (Laurell K. Hamilton anyone?), or c) much more oriented towards the romance side of the market. (This isn't one hundred percent, but it still seems to be a serious trend.) Being darker and more serious isn't going to help her with the 'looking for the hot sexy true love with the sexy' crowd, and her lack of sex isn't going to help her catch the Anne Rice spill-over.
Which then brings her to an issue I've been discussing with several people lately: assumptions made about female authors. It's very likely that Newsflesh will be published under a pseudonym, just to prevent confusion with the Toby books, and it's also likely that the pseudonym will be gender neutral, if not male. Why? Because women only write 'sexy' horror. Newsflesh isn't sexy, but print it with a woman's name and the assumption will be made. So that assumption, combined with her covers, may be driving readers away, since they're assuming that she's just doing Anita Blake all over again.
I am loving my weekly dose of True Blood. Truly, it rocks me hard, rocks me easy, and rocks the pain away. I like the Charlene Harris books, although I sadly lost interest after the fifth or so.
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And don't get me wrong -- I love a good romance, and I've even written a few. But when I pick up a Meg Cabot, it's because I want the romance, and when I pick up an urban fantasy, I don't want stealth porn, y'know?
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And yes, I totally understand what you mean. I'm a total sucker for Edwardian romance. And I know which authors to read for that. But if I'm looking for that, those authors are where I go. I stopped reading Laurel K a while ago.
Jane Eyre is my favorite romance of all time. Probably says something about me. ;)
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I had to be strongarmed into reading the first Mercy book, and I love Patricia Briggs as an author. I should have known she wouldn't be doing Anita Blake over again. But...I didn't even trust a known quality.
I'm really glad you're doing these book rec posts, because they encourage me to pick up things I'd basically been hissing and making signs of evil to avert for no damn reason.
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Book reviews are fun, especially with my stated 'only books I like' policy keeping them nice and positive. If I recommend it, it's because I want you to read it. So there.
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