Bitten by Kelley Armstrong - Top Reviewer

Stella @ Ex Libris!

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Here is her review:

Grade: 5 stars

Novellus Perfectus!

Amazon appetizer:

Elena, heroine of Kelley Armstrong's impressive debut thriller Bitten, never planned that a casual sexual encounter would transform her into a werewolf. Neither did Clay, her lover and one of the leaders of the exclusive werewolf clique known as the Pack; women do not generally change or survive if they do.

Elena's considerable reservations about her new life come to a head and she walks out on the Pack to return to something like normality, finding herself a boyfriend who turns a blind eye to her occasional disappearances in the middle of the night.

She may have done with the infighting of werewolves, but they have not done with her; her former family call her back when they find themselves under threat from those they have excluded and dominated. Kelley Armstrong is very good on the sheer exhilaration of shape-changing, of running on four feet through forests, suburban greenery and urban back alleys; if there is a weakness here, it is that Elena's relationship with the taciturn, untrustworthy Clay is sometimes a little too conventionally romantic--but the dark poetry of the best of the book overcomes this entirely. --Roz Kaveney

My thoughts: Bitten is the first in the Women of the Otherworld series by Kelley Armstrong. It is narrated by Elena, a beautiful willowy young woman, who happens to be the only existing female werewolf! The story is fast-paced and exciting and Elena's voice is fresh and laugh-out-loud funny in Kelley Armstrong's typical sarcastic, witty way.

I discovered the paranormal, urban mystery universe 2 years ago, and Bitten by Kelley Armstrong was the 3rd book I have read in the genre, and the best one of all. Ever since discovering the Women of the Otherworld series and Kelley Armstrong, this series has been one of my favourite UF novel and Kelley my favourite UF author!

The writing style and quality are amazing, really brilliant! It made me determined to read more from Kelley Armstrong. (And apparently Angelina Jolie after reading the novel and loving it so much has bought the rights to do a movie of Bitten, so the movie is in the works.) What I love about her writing is not only the truly interesting twisting plot, but her quirky, funny dialogues, the dry wit of her characters, they make me laugh out loud, they are not only entertaining but also have so much humanity, that they are believable, real, 3D characters, they leap off the paper.

Not only the writing style is fantastic, but it is funny, bitingly sarcastic at times, and the heroine, Elena, is a great one. It all praises Kelley Armstrong's storytelling qualities that even though the heroine keeps resisting the hero's advances, that she keeps on hating him, being angry with him and not forgiving him for being the one responsible for changing her, she won't even consider or hear him out why he did it, that in spite of all this you don't want to slap Elena and tell her a piece of your mind. No, thanks to Kelley Armstrong's great writing you feel for her frustration and anger. Even though you see and understand why Clay changed her, and your heart goes out to him, at the same time you sympathize with Elena too and completely understand her anger and bitterness. Kelley Armstrong does it all brilliantly.

As Joanne Harris, author of Chocolat (quite a different kind of book, is it not?) has said of this book: "It's clever, quirky, hip, and funny, skating between genres with style and grace. More please!" I can only second that. This book has so many sub-genres, it is quite hard to label it.

Verdict: An amazing debut novel for a fantastic urban fantasy series! A must for any UF fans!
If you like urban mystery or paranormal novels, I would definitely recommend this book and author as they are exceptional!

Plot: 10/10
Characters: 10/10
Ending: 10/10
Writing: 10/10
Cover: 10/10

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong Reviews

In order of submission. 

Sarah's Book Reviews
StoryWings
i Just Wanna Sit Here and Read!
Ex Libris
My 5 Monkeys
25 Hour Books
Silly Little Game Called Life

HBIC Reviews:
What Book is That?
TinasBookReviews
Parajunkee's View

Total BWB Rating:  3.4 out of 4

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong - HBIC Review

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong
Review copy purchased.

PJVs QUICKIE POV: What can I say? Kelley Armstrong is one of the reasons I am addicted to Urban Fantasy. Armstrong bridged the gap from Horror to Urban Fantasy, for me, thereby refining my literary tastes and setting me on the path that is -- well my Paranormal Junkeeness. Elena and Clay were my first couple loves and they still to this day have an effect on me. I usually reread Bitten every 2 years and then move on to the rest of the series. I'm actually bummed that I will not have the time to move on to Stolen after this.

REVIEW: Elena is the only female werewolf in existence.  She did not come to be this way by her own machinations and because of this she is on a mission, a mission to avoid her other "self" at all costs.  She is avoiding the Pack, she avoiding her past and trying to live as human of a lifestyle as she possibly can.

When her other life intrudes rudely into her human life, Elena must go back to the Pack, if is only to push herself further away. She'll just do this last task and then she can wash her hands on the other wolves and rejoin the humans that she wants to embrace as her own.  The problem is, Elena isn't human any more. Higher metabolism, strength, senses and a penchant for nighttime disappearances tend to be noticed the closer you get to someone and to live in the human world, you have to let the humans get close.

Going back to the Pack isn't an option for Elena, but as she gets sucked back into the fold she might just have to realize that neither is going back into the human world, especially when Clay, the man she once loved sets his mind on keeping her close.

I think I've said it all on this one. Fans of UF and PNR, this is a must read. It is also a great break-in for readers that want to be introduced to the genre. The characters are larger than life, the world is exquisitely crafted, the emotional turmoil that Elena goes through is exactly what I would believe would happen to a female werewolf.  Kelley Armstrong is a veritable titan in the Urban Fantasy genre, don't miss out.

RECOMMENDATIONS: For mature audiences, there is violence and sexual encounters.

BWB Rating 4/4







 Discussion Questions for BWB:

1. Let's talk relationships.  What did you think of Elena's relationship with Philip? Were her feelings for him genuine? Why or why not?
   Personally I viewed Philip as a non-entitiy. Probably because I am so infatuated with Clay. When I first read Bitten, Clay was a little too much in the beginning for me - one word - feral. But then he gets under your skin and by that time I was like "Go Away Phillip!" I think her feelings for Philip were her talking herself into it. You know, that guy that is supposed to be perfect for you. Your mom likes him, your dad likes him, he has a good job, no kids, perfect - right? But you just can't get over some hump in the relationship, that last little spark that goes from really like to love. I think Elena really liked Phillip and talked herself in thinking she loved him and as soon as Clay stormed in she realized that really liking someone is nothing compared to really loving someone.
   
2. Keeping secrets from someone you love, is it being true to yourself?  Elena was hiding out in Toronto and away from the Pack. Did this make Elena a stronger character or whiny?
   I really don't think either. Elena was in denial mode, much like a diabetic that is completely in denial and keeps on snacking on those chocolates - bad analogy I know - but it is similar. I don't think it makes her strong, because to be strong we face our problems head on instead of running from them. Whiny, I wouldn't take it that far, I think she was just scared, scared to let go of a part of herself that she didn't want to let go of.
   
3. Kelley Armstrong's werewolves lean more towards the traditional side of the wolf legend. What "were" type are you? Do you enjoy the pain riddled, desiring human flesh werewolves like the Wolfman or the intensely scary wolves like in the movie Silver Bullet or do you prefer painless shifters that keep a majority of human emotions...ie..Twilight and other light PNR novels?
   I really liked these wolves and find myself comparing them to others in the genre. I believe Armstrong painted a very realistic picture on what could be, if they actually were to be.
   
4. Could you forgive the man you loved if he were to BITE you like what occurred with Elena?
   That was a serious breach of trust and I think it would be hard to overcome, but when you break it down to the basic reason for his actions, it was love motivated, how can you not forgive that. Now you can be seriously mad at him for awhile.
   

The books in the series (reading order):
Bitten (Women of the Otherworld, Book 1)
 Stolen (Women of the Otherworld, Book 2)
 Dime Store Magic (Women of the Otherworld 3)
Industrial Magic (Women of the Otherworld, Book 4)



Haunted (Women of the Otherworld, Book 5)
 Broken (Women of the Otherworld, Book 6)
 No Humans Involved (Women of the Otherworld, Book 7)
Personal Demon (Women of the Otherworld, Book 8)

Living with the Dead (Women of the Otherworld, Book 9)
Frostbitten (Women of the Otherworld, Book 10)

Tales of the Otherworld
Men of the Otherworld: A Collection of Otherworld Tales



Coming Soon!

HBIC Review Bitten by Kelley Armstrong

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong

September 2004 by Plume (first published 2001)
Paperback, 436 pages
Purchased/ Blog with Bite Selection
Review Posted by Tina @ Tinasbookreviews


My first taste of Kelley Armstrong came a few months ago when I read her short story in Evolve based on a character from one of her Otherworld series. I was interested in reading her other works and Bitten did not disappoint. With its sharp writing and entertaining plot line, I found myself a new PNR novelist to love.

Elena after fleeing the pact and having a serious case of "he violated me issues" seems to be content living with her mediocre boyfriend, having a daytime career and prowling as a wolf in the middle of the night, that is until trouble strikes. With the craziness breaking loose and a string of murders going unsolved and the pack she ran away from threatened, she returns by overpowering instincts to help out.

The pack soon realizes they are up against a "mutt" pack and when the battle begins, Elena finds herself in a war over power, greed and testosterone fueled wolves fighting over property including her. I actually loved the story with the wolves fighting over the one female. You cant help but think (even though Elena knew who she belonged to) a big group of men fighting over you had to boost the ego...you know...I also loved the story between Clay and Elena and I think underneath the betrayal and angry feelings she had for him, she couldn't deny the love either. The dynamic between them defiantly sizzled throughout the thrilling plot line. The mutts as well I thought were interesting to read about. Each one who was human before without the hereditary gene bore evilness, a few serial killers, couple pedophiles, a nice icky mix of men who you wouldn't want creeping around your house at night. I'm excited to continue Armstrong's series and travel to her YA series as well.

Rating

A fun, thrilling PNR to sink your teeth into.Recommended for adults. Violence. language, sex, frightening themes and gore tangled with a range of everyday human feelings like betrayal, anger, jealousy and lots of testosterone!!

3/4- PNR, Werewolves

BWB Discussion Questions


1.Let's talk relationships. What did you think of Elena's relationship with Philip? Were her feelings for him genuine? Why or why not? I think they were mixed, I think Elena loved the idea of Philip, I think she wanted to hold onto every aspect of human life without wolf tendencies and that included a human clueless boyfriend. He was a nice character just not Clay..........

2.Keeping secrets from someone you love, is it being true to yourself? Elena was hiding out in Toronto and away from the Pack. Did this make Elena a stronger character or whiny? At first it could seem whiny...but Elena felt very violated and betrayed by being bitten. I think she needed the time hiding out to realize who she was and how her life was going to change.

3.Kelley Armstrong's werewolves lean more towards the traditional side of the wolf legend. What "were" type are you? Do you enjoy the pain riddled, desiring human flesh werewolves like the Wolfman or the intensely scary wolves like in the movie Silver Bullet or do you prefer painless shifters that keep a majority of human emotions...ie..Twilight and other light PNR novels? When I try connecting to a wolf character I think the more light shifter, the kind featured in Twilight or even Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver work better for me. I liked that Armstrong's central pack still carried somewhat human control. The scary one's who just want to eat people come off as complete monsters, which are good for a scare but not to connect to in a book. BTW Silver Bullet scared the crap out of me when I was a kid and watched it.....when it was the priest....ahhhhhhh.......

4.Could you forgive the man you loved if he were to BITE you like what occurred with Elena?
hmmmmm...I think over time I could. And I think when it was all said and done Clay really didn't mean to hurt Elena, he loves her. I'm a big sap- I think love can conquer all-

Bitten HBIC Review: Emily @ What Book is That?

Title: Bitten
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Page Count: 436 pages
Publisher: Plume
Genre: urban fantasy
Copy for review was from my personal library

50 words or less: As the only female werewolf ever to exist, Elena has her fair share of issues to contend with. While she's busily trying to concoct a "normal" life among humans for herself, she finds out that her past has never really left her, and maybe, just maybe, the perfect guy and life for her has been waiting the whole time. Maybe.

I had Bitten on my bookshelf for a long time; I've heard great things about this series and about this author's writing style, but just had never picked up the book before now (I have more books than I know what to do with- I'm sure someone out there can relate.) I'm glad that I finally got to it, though, as this is an engrossing book from start to finish.

Elena is someone who definitely needs someone in her corner. She thought she had that in Clay, except instead of being only the incredibly loving and devoted lover she thought he was, was also a werewolf who, after accidentally biting Elena, turned her into one as well. This is important to the story because female werewolves before Elena were nonexistent, which means that's gone from being her regular old self to a definite person of interest in the male-dominated world of the werewolves. Come to find out, all of Clay's friends and family were werewolves too, so not only does Elena have to deal with what she perceives as deception and betrayal on Clay's part; she has to deal with the fact that everyone around her knew the truth and didn't tell her as well. So, she does what most people would do if they were backed into a corner and felt they had nobody on their side; she ran for it.

The story picks up when all of that is old news; Elena is working at a newspaper, living with her devoted if completely uninspiring boyfriend Philip, and doing an okay job of hiding her werewolf side from the rest of the world. That all comes crashing down too, when Elena gets word from Jeremy, the Pack Alpha, that Pack members are being harmed; going back to help with the search for the killers throws her right back in the ring with Clay, and with all of their unresolved issues and feelings.

While the relationship aspect of the story definitely plays second to the overall story of the werewolves and their search for the killers and battle with outsiders, it's definitely an important facet that determines the tone of the entire book. This is the story of Elena having to figure out what her place is in the world; is she a human who has some weird habits, or is she a werewolf who happens to be able to blend successfully into the human world? Elena honestly doesn't know, and much of the book revolves around her figuring that out. Unexpectedly, this was one of my favorite aspects of the story. I liked that Elena was not willing to sell herself short or let herself be anyone's prize, even Clay's, and while it usually bugs me to no end when a character doesn't know what he or she wants, I felt that it was pretty easy to understand Elena's position.

Elena takes a lot of heat for being indecisive and, as some would perceive, shallow and weak. I think that's not the case. Even though we as readers know that Clay is crazy about her and never meant to hurt her, either emotionally or physically, the bottom line is, he did keep secrets from her (granted, because he had to,) and that hurt her recently-blossomed feelings, heart, and confidence. Add to the mix that all of her friends were in on the secret (again, because it was their secret too,) but didn't tell her and it is a pretty isolating situation. For someone who's only ever wanted to fit in somewhere, suddenly finding out you were on the outside the whole time, and now are attracting attention for all the wrong reasons, would be pretty devastating. Elena has a change of heart throughout the course of the book, and seeing her start to develop a sense of self definitely motivated me to seek out the other books in this series.

My only complaint about this book is Philip, Elena's totally human, architect boyfriend. After awhile, I just got tired of him! He was a great guy- sending the flowers, calling to check in (but mostly to say he was unavailable), and to make vague promises that he never ended up keeping. I don't think he was a bad guy, per se, I just think he was about as interesting as watching grass grow and didn't get a lot in the way of character development; he was definitely there to serve as a contrast to Clay, but the point and comparison were made early on and didn't need to be hammered home over and over again.

Besides that, you all know how much I love a good shifter story, and this is definitely a good shifter story. I'm definitely on board to read more in this series.

Overall Grade: B+
Blog with Bite rating: 3/4

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong - BWB Discussion Questions

1. Let's talk relationships.  What did you think of Elena's relationship with Philip? Were her feelings for him genuine? Why or why not?
2. Keeping secrets from someone you love, is it being true to yourself?  Elena was hiding out in Toronto and away from the Pack. Did this make Elena a stronger character or whiny?
3. Kelley Armstrong's werewolves lean more towards the traditional side of the wolf legend. What "were" type are you? Do you enjoy the pain riddled, desiring human flesh werewolves like the Wolfman or the intensely scary wolves like in the movie Silver Bullet or do you prefer painless shifters that keep a majority of human emotions...ie..Twilight and other light PNR novels?
4. Could you forgive the man you loved if he were to BITE you like what occurred with Elena?

Get Your Bitten Reviews In!

Anyone who has read/reviewed Bitten by Kelley Armstrong, submit your reviews by May 14th to be considered for our Top Reviewer award. Discussion questions will be posted on the 13th.

Bitten (Women of the Otherworld, Book 1) by Kelley Armstrong

Elena Michaels is the world's only female werewolf. And she's tired of it. Tired of a life spent hiding and protecting, a life where her most important job is hunting down rogue werewolves. Tired of a world that not only accepts the worst in her— her temper, her violence—but requires it. Worst of all, she realizes she's growing content with that life, with being that person.

 

So she left the Pack and returned to Toronto where she's trying to live as a human. When the Pack leader calls asking for her help fighting a sudden uprising, she only agrees because she owes him. Once this is over, she'll be squared with the Pack and free to live life as a human. Which is what she wants. Really.

May Books Chosen

Our May Books have been Chosen...

Adult Selection
Bitten (Women of the Otherworld, Book 1) by Kelley Armstrong
Released September 7, 2004

REVIEW DEADLINE MAY 14TH


If you haven't read this series yet, this a great time to start! If you've already read/reviewed - this is a good time to dust that old review off and let us know about it.

Elena Michaels is the world's only female werewolf. And she's tired of it. Tired of a life spent hiding and protecting, a life where her most important job is hunting down rogue werewolves. Tired of a world that not only accepts the worst in her— her temper, her violence—but requires it. Worst of all, she realizes she's growing content with that life, with being that person.

So she left the Pack and returned to Toronto where she's trying to live as a human. When the Pack leader calls asking for her help fighting a sudden uprising, she only agrees because she owes him. Once this is over, she'll be squared with the Pack and free to live life as a human. Which is what she wants. Really. 

Books in the Series - Reading Order (click images if you would like to go to amazon.com):

 

May YA Selection:

 Birthmarked by Caragh M. O'Brien
Released March 30th, 2010

REVIEW DEADLINE MAY 31ST


After climate change, on the north shore of Unlake Superior, a dystopian world is divided between those who live inside the wall, and those, like sixteen-year-old midwife Gaia Stone, who live outside. It’s Gaia’s job to “advance” a quota of infants from poverty into the walled Enclave, until the night one agonized mother objects, and Gaia’s parents disappear.

As Gaia’s efforts to save her parents take her within the wall, she faces the brutal injustice of the Enclave and discovers she alone holds the key to a secret code, a code of “birthmarked” babies and genetic merit.

Fraught with difficult moral choices and rich with intricate layers of codes, BIRTHMARKED explores a colorful, cruel, eerily familiar world where a criminal is defined by her genes, and one girl can make all the difference.