THE GOODiES >> BOOK REViEWS

TITLE Bitten AUTHOR Kelley Armstrong RELEASED September 2002 ISBN 0-770-42909-2 This was Kelley Armstrong's debut novel, and the first installment of her Women of the Otherworld series. Available through all major retailers, or through order at your favourite online bookstores.

Elena Michaels, our heroine, is a werewolf who left her secretive pack in upstate New York for a so-called "normal" life among the humans of Toronto. In the year since her relocation, she's begun a career as a successful journalist and a pleasingly simple relationship with an uncomplicated male. Her new life is jeopardized when she agrees to help her pack hunt down some murderous mutts who are converting common criminals to werewolves and leaving a trail of carnage in their wake. Reunited with her alpha and her still devoted ex-boyfriend, and forced back into the lycanthrope fold, Elena finds that maybe normalcy isn't what she truly desires.

This book is addictive, and once picked up, can't be put down. I found it to be very edge-of-your-seat, thrill fest, with a satisfactory conclusion. Armstrong's style absorbs the reader, engrossing you in a world of characters you actually begin to care about. I was surprised at how easily I was able to get into the story and how I could identify right away with Elena's character. The world of Bitten is rich and imaginitive, and gives a new and fresh prespective of lycanthrope society. The characters jump from the pages and come alive, and aren't weighed down by the pages and pages of self-pity that usually come with stories in this genre.

The plot unfolds slowly at first, and then picks up the pace exponentially. The characters and their relationships are strong, and yet leave room for further development in later installments. The relationship between Elena and Clay, her ex, was a favouite point for me. Their angsty love is written well, and the emotions involved come right off of the pages.

Highly recommended. :)

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