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so_brookeish's review against another edition
4.25
I’ll admit, I watched the show years ago when it came out and then realized they were based off a novel! One day I was thrifting books with a friend and saw this one in practically perfect condition, I snagged it and let it sit on my shelf for way too long!
This was really enjoyable, absolutely a book I’d read again, and definitely one I’ll continue along in the series!
As far as book vs show there were some minor plot/character changes. Some things I disliked in the show (Logan’s entire storyline) weren’t in the books, and some things I liked in the show (a bit more character diversity) were only in the show.
I did enjoy the extra stuff you always get with a book, a bit more character history and growth, a bit more nuances in why a character does a certain thing or behaves a particular way..!
All in all I’m happy I read it (and watched it for that matter!) and plan to keep going in the series!
This was really enjoyable, absolutely a book I’d read again, and definitely one I’ll continue along in the series!
As far as book vs show there were some minor plot/character changes. Some things I disliked in the show (Logan’s entire storyline) weren’t in the books, and some things I liked in the show (a bit more character diversity) were only in the show.
I did enjoy the extra stuff you always get with a book, a bit more character history and growth, a bit more nuances in why a character does a certain thing or behaves a particular way..!
All in all I’m happy I read it (and watched it for that matter!) and plan to keep going in the series!
veraann's review against another edition
3.0
I really like werewolf stories. This one was pretty good. I don't feel I would rave about it and wildly recommend it, but I wouldn't find it a waste of time to read. Characters were done well, and had good depth. I just found times when it was wordy or the main character is going off on a tangent explaining what is going on. There are times of the I'm not gonna get into every little detail, but then goes on for a page about the event and explains the details she is not going to get into. It's like the person telling a long story and at the end saying, long story short...
alba_1994's review
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Interesting world and characters, i wish we would have seen more of them interacting within that world, instead of wasting so much time on a love triangle.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Violence, Toxic relationship, and Sexual content
Moderate: Kidnapping, Confinement, Gore, Death, Infidelity, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child abuse, Death of parent, Car accident, Adult/minor relationship, and Pedophilia
rrgailey's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I was feeling a fun supernatural read, and while this one was darker and grittier than I thought it would be, it was still a good read. Elena is definitely a complex character, and while some of her thought processes and decisions were a bit bonkers, I appreciated the less-than-perfect female protagonist.
samanyana's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
anjalisudarsan's review against another edition
5.0
If you’re into werewolf fiction and fast paced writing, this book is for you. I could put myself in Elena’s shoes so well and picture what she was going through, without having to read through fluff.
The plot was gripping! A wild ride
The plot was gripping! A wild ride
ladylilyofold's review against another edition
3.0
I liked it but I didn't love it. I will keep reading the series but I defintely had some issues with the characters. Elena (who is in a relationship)was alright until she slept with Clay almost upon arrival at Stone Haven. What bothered me is that Armstrong actually makes a very compelling argument as to why Elena should hate Clay for what he did and then two pages later she sleeps with him. This kept happening over and over and as a reader I felt very jerked around. I never really liked Clay and couldn't get behind the relationship at all. Then in the last few pages of the book she totally changes her mind and is going to give it a try. There just wasn't enough buildup to warrant that kind of turnaround. But I really enjoyed Jeremy and the other members of the pack so I'll keep reading but not overly impressed with the first installment.
readrampage's review against another edition
1.0
The plot was boring, but I couldn’t finish this book because the writing was terrible.
The problem began when Elena returned to her pack. Despite her troubled past, she quickly returned to the wolves, defying her desire for a normal life and strength as a woman. Phillip initially put me off because I thought he was being too domineering. He demanded she not go out alone at night, like she can’t protect herself. It also made me dislike Elena because she just accepted, despite her excuse of wanting to maintain their relationship, that he didn’t understand why she needed to turn into a wolf, and therefore couldn’t be told: “Hey, mister! I’m an adult! I can go where I want to, alone if I choose!”
Clayton is probably the most disgusting love interest I have encountered in a book. Am I the only one who finds their first sex scene uncomfortable? Despite their ‘complex’ relationship, I could not tolerate him. In knowing that the book would focus on their dynamic, I just couldn’t go on, as it’s everything I dislike in a romance - a first love who destroys a female character’s life by making some horrendous decision that she cannot return from, yet she ends up with him, anyway. How is that okay? A man who trapped her shattered her hopes and dreams, unable to move forward or shake off his influence.
Phillip had grown on me, despite Elana’s declaration that she loved him. He appeared to be understanding and kind. Elena could go from ‘I love him, my human boyfriend’ to ‘I don’t want sex with my ex, but since he has already won the right to take me into the woods in a game of cards and tie me to a tree...’ in less than seven chapters, I couldn’t handle it.
Find another author who offers good writing, intriguing characters, and somewhat interesting plots. In the end, the lack of character development and plot structure left me disappointed.
The problem began when Elena returned to her pack. Despite her troubled past, she quickly returned to the wolves, defying her desire for a normal life and strength as a woman. Phillip initially put me off because I thought he was being too domineering. He demanded she not go out alone at night, like she can’t protect herself. It also made me dislike Elena because she just accepted, despite her excuse of wanting to maintain their relationship, that he didn’t understand why she needed to turn into a wolf, and therefore couldn’t be told: “Hey, mister! I’m an adult! I can go where I want to, alone if I choose!”
Clayton is probably the most disgusting love interest I have encountered in a book. Am I the only one who finds their first sex scene uncomfortable? Despite their ‘complex’ relationship, I could not tolerate him. In knowing that the book would focus on their dynamic, I just couldn’t go on, as it’s everything I dislike in a romance - a first love who destroys a female character’s life by making some horrendous decision that she cannot return from, yet she ends up with him, anyway. How is that okay? A man who trapped her shattered her hopes and dreams, unable to move forward or shake off his influence.
Phillip had grown on me, despite Elana’s declaration that she loved him. He appeared to be understanding and kind. Elena could go from ‘I love him, my human boyfriend’ to ‘I don’t want sex with my ex, but since he has already won the right to take me into the woods in a game of cards and tie me to a tree...’ in less than seven chapters, I couldn’t handle it.
Find another author who offers good writing, intriguing characters, and somewhat interesting plots. In the end, the lack of character development and plot structure left me disappointed.
kathydavie's review against another edition
5.0
First in the Women of the Otherworld (now shortened to Otherworld) urban fantasy series and revolving around a group of supernaturals. The focus is on Elena Michaels, a journalist living in Toronto versus her life with the Pack.
If you're interested, there is a chronological listing of the Women of the Otherworld books on my website.
My Take
Bitten is a combination of back story for Elena and Clay and a dramatic introduction to the life of a werewolf.
I adore Elena and then again I do not like her. She ticks me off with her constant running away, her hypocrisy, and yet I like her feistiness. She's living a double life, trying for her dream but stuck with her reality, a part of which is the lying she's doing with Philip, trying to be what she thinks he expects. It's no kind of future for which anyone should aim. That trip back to Toronto to be with Philip was full of tense days. Poor Philip. Clay is not someone who cares what others think. And Philip. He's wanting Elena's dream . . .
It's sad and yet too easy to understand when this change was not something she had planned for. Not that you can plan for something you didn't realize existed. And we know all this through first person protagonist point-of-view from Elena's perspective.
Her dream is something Elena treasured throughout her horrible childhood, and Philip and his welcoming family could be the fulfillment of that dream.
Armstrong has thrown in a few red herrings. Nope, I'm not sharing, *grin*. I will share how I laughed at the newer mutts who hadn't yet realized their strengths and Elena's reaction to their bravado.
The mutts are sad in that they don't realize how practical a Pack is about controlling behavior. Especially in these modern days with instant communication and all the surveillance everywhere. They're addicts to the excitement.
Armstrong paints an amazing picture of werewolves and mutts and their contrasting lifestyles. Naturally, she does emphasis the mutts' evil, but she doesn't downplay Clay's obsessions, either.
Bitten has a good pace and a sad, sorry tale that will find you weeping in places. The story is both character- and action-driven — that chase at the airport had my heart going. It's not the only chase or attack, and it certainly demonstrates the differences between Pack and mutt. As for the characters, hoo boy, they are an assorted bunch ranging from peacefully good to incredibly evil.
It's a series to buy!
The Story
It's a truce between Elena and the Pack . . . until "wild dogs" attack people in Bear Valley.
Tracking the mutts had been Elena's job until she fled. Now she's a target.
The Characters
Elena Michaels, the only female werewolf in existence, is a journalist living in Canada who specifically writes about Canadian politics. Philip is her human boyfriend. Anne is Philip's mother; Larry his father. Judith and Diane are his sisters. Ken is Diane's husband.
The Stonehaven Pack
Based in the struggling small town of Bear Valley in upper-state New York, Jeremy Danvers, an artist whose former career had been as a translator, is the calm Alpha of the Pack. The excitable Clayton Danvers, a professor of anthropology (his specialty is in anthropomorphic religions), is his second-in-command and foster-son-turned-bodyguard. Clay has a nasty childhood background as well and it colors how he sees people. Members of the Pack who don't live at Stonehaven include the easygoing playboy, Nick Sorrentino; his successful father, Antonio, who was a contemporary of Jeremy's — both live in the Catskills on their estate; Peter Myers, with the wild red hair and a degree in audiovisual technology, who lives across the border in Vermont; and, the fun-loving Logan, who lives in Albany and is Elena's best friend. Celia is Elena's cousin's "wife". Dominic had been Antonio's father who had had three sons, the deceased Gregory, Benedict who had left, and Antonio.
Rick's Tavern is one of three licensed establishments. Mike had been one of the searchers. Morgan is the town police chief; Officer O'Neil is one of his men.
Daniel Santos, seven when Clay was brought into the Pack, had a brother, Stephen. Daniel has started his own "pack" that includes Zachary Cain, a dumb serial killer; Jimmy Koenig; Scott Brandon, a serial killer from North Carolina; Thomas LeBlanc is a medical lab technician and yet another serial killer; Victor Olson, who's a rapist; and, international jewel thief Karl Marsten.
Sally and Juan are Anne and Larry's neighbors. José Carter was a small-time con man selling the wrong information. Malcolm Danvers had been Jeremy's brutal father and the former Pack Alpha. The Legacy is a centuries-old book that tells the history of werewolves, the Alphas adding to it every generation. Ethan Ritter had been part of a range dispute. A mutt is a werewolf without a Pack, and dangerous.
The Cover and Title
The cover is red. A red sky with the silhouettes of leafless trees. A red-tinged wolf with yellow eyes in the lower right corner. Elena's naked red back with her hair as wild as the tree branches. All the text is white from the blurb starting at Elena's shoulders welcoming us to the series, the title below it with a testimonial below that. Under the wolf's eye on the right is an info blurb with the author's name below it.
The title is the event that brought Elena into the Pack, when she's Bitten.
If you're interested, there is a chronological listing of the Women of the Otherworld books on my website.
My Take
Bitten is a combination of back story for Elena and Clay and a dramatic introduction to the life of a werewolf.
I adore Elena and then again I do not like her. She ticks me off with her constant running away, her hypocrisy, and yet I like her feistiness. She's living a double life, trying for her dream but stuck with her reality, a part of which is the lying she's doing with Philip, trying to be what she thinks he expects. It's no kind of future for which anyone should aim. That trip back to Toronto to be with Philip was full of tense days. Poor Philip. Clay is not someone who cares what others think. And Philip. He's wanting Elena's dream . . .
It's sad and yet too easy to understand when this change was not something she had planned for. Not that you can plan for something you didn't realize existed. And we know all this through first person protagonist point-of-view from Elena's perspective.
Her dream is something Elena treasured throughout her horrible childhood, and Philip and his welcoming family could be the fulfillment of that dream.
"Only humans kills for sport", for the fun of it."It's a scary situation with mutts invading Bear Valley, riling up the human citizens. Lord knows Daniel is doing his best to turn the humans against the Danverses.
Armstrong has thrown in a few red herrings. Nope, I'm not sharing, *grin*. I will share how I laughed at the newer mutts who hadn't yet realized their strengths and Elena's reaction to their bravado.
The mutts are sad in that they don't realize how practical a Pack is about controlling behavior. Especially in these modern days with instant communication and all the surveillance everywhere. They're addicts to the excitement.
Armstrong paints an amazing picture of werewolves and mutts and their contrasting lifestyles. Naturally, she does emphasis the mutts' evil, but she doesn't downplay Clay's obsessions, either.
Bitten has a good pace and a sad, sorry tale that will find you weeping in places. The story is both character- and action-driven — that chase at the airport had my heart going. It's not the only chase or attack, and it certainly demonstrates the differences between Pack and mutt. As for the characters, hoo boy, they are an assorted bunch ranging from peacefully good to incredibly evil.
It's a series to buy!
The Story
It's a truce between Elena and the Pack . . . until "wild dogs" attack people in Bear Valley.
Tracking the mutts had been Elena's job until she fled. Now she's a target.
The Characters
Elena Michaels, the only female werewolf in existence, is a journalist living in Canada who specifically writes about Canadian politics. Philip is her human boyfriend. Anne is Philip's mother; Larry his father. Judith and Diane are his sisters. Ken is Diane's husband.
The Stonehaven Pack
Based in the struggling small town of Bear Valley in upper-state New York, Jeremy Danvers, an artist whose former career had been as a translator, is the calm Alpha of the Pack. The excitable Clayton Danvers, a professor of anthropology (his specialty is in anthropomorphic religions), is his second-in-command and foster-son-turned-bodyguard. Clay has a nasty childhood background as well and it colors how he sees people. Members of the Pack who don't live at Stonehaven include the easygoing playboy, Nick Sorrentino; his successful father, Antonio, who was a contemporary of Jeremy's — both live in the Catskills on their estate; Peter Myers, with the wild red hair and a degree in audiovisual technology, who lives across the border in Vermont; and, the fun-loving Logan, who lives in Albany and is Elena's best friend. Celia is Elena's cousin's "wife". Dominic had been Antonio's father who had had three sons, the deceased Gregory, Benedict who had left, and Antonio.
Rick's Tavern is one of three licensed establishments. Mike had been one of the searchers. Morgan is the town police chief; Officer O'Neil is one of his men.
Daniel Santos, seven when Clay was brought into the Pack, had a brother, Stephen. Daniel has started his own "pack" that includes Zachary Cain, a dumb serial killer; Jimmy Koenig; Scott Brandon, a serial killer from North Carolina; Thomas LeBlanc is a medical lab technician and yet another serial killer; Victor Olson, who's a rapist; and, international jewel thief Karl Marsten.
Sally and Juan are Anne and Larry's neighbors. José Carter was a small-time con man selling the wrong information. Malcolm Danvers had been Jeremy's brutal father and the former Pack Alpha. The Legacy is a centuries-old book that tells the history of werewolves, the Alphas adding to it every generation. Ethan Ritter had been part of a range dispute. A mutt is a werewolf without a Pack, and dangerous.
The Cover and Title
The cover is red. A red sky with the silhouettes of leafless trees. A red-tinged wolf with yellow eyes in the lower right corner. Elena's naked red back with her hair as wild as the tree branches. All the text is white from the blurb starting at Elena's shoulders welcoming us to the series, the title below it with a testimonial below that. Under the wolf's eye on the right is an info blurb with the author's name below it.
The title is the event that brought Elena into the Pack, when she's Bitten.
buggys_books's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0