About ten years ago, I walked into the my local library and saw a book on the new-books table entitled Bitten by Kelley Armstrong. It was about a woman who was a werewolf. It was horror and I never read horror. But I had started writing a werewolf romance when there weren’t too many werewolf romances around, at least that I knew of, so I picked it up from the library.
I got sucked right into the story. Bitten wasn’t an entirely successful read for me. I skimmed a lot of the second half, and I was a bit frustrated by Clay and Elena’s relationship. Still, it made an impact.
A while later I tried Stolen and couldn’t get into it. But then I got it in my head that I really wanted to read Armstrong’s Otherworld series, especially after loving Exit Strategy and hearing people rave about all her books. So I picked up Stolen again.
I know I found the prologue difficult. It’s about someone who is doomed, and it’s a little disturbing, as it’s meant to be. But I kept going this time and I found Stolen a satisfying read. I’m excited to read the third book in the series, Dime Store Magic.
Anyway, Stolen is about a psychopath who collects people of the otherworld: werewolves, witches, shamans, sorcerers and half-demons. It’s an introduction to a whole array of paranormal humans who weren’t present in Bitten. It’s kind of like Bitten was very focused on werewolves living and hiding among humans, whereas Stolen opens the world right up.
Elena meets witches, vampires, and half-demons. At first some of them gather together to try to address the threat from this man who is collecting these individuals. But then Elena herself is kidnapped—stolen.
(I didn’t actually remember that Jeremy could communicate with Elena in dreams, but then I guess I’ve forgotten a lot of Bitten.)
It was a bit difficult at times to watch how Elena is treated by a group of quite terrible people. It’s nothing she can’t survive, but it isn’t easy. Nevertheless, she keeps fighting, she meets others, including a twelve-year-old witch she wants to save, and I’m right in there cheering for her to escape and make the villain pay.
I’m a Clay fan too. At least I am in this book. But we’re also introduced to the witch Paige, and I’m looking forward to learning more about her in Dime Store Magic.
I realize this is more a ramble than a review, but hey.




