Review: The Gathering by Kelley Armstrong

Title: The Gathering

Author: Kelley Armstrong

Publisher: Harper

Publication Date: 4.12.2011

Pages: 359

Genre: Paranormal

Series: Yes (Darkness Rising #1)

Rating: B

Summary (from Goodreads):

Sixteen-year-old Maya is just an ordinary teen in an ordinary town. Sure, she doesn't know much about her background - the only thing she really has to cling to is an odd paw-print birthmark on her hip - but she never really put much thought into who her parents were or how she ended up with her adopted parents in this tiny medical-research community on Vancouver Island. Until now.

Strange things have been happening in this claustrophobic town - from the mountain lions that have been approaching Maya to her best friend's hidden talent for "feeling" out people and situations, to the sexy new bad boy who makes Maya feel . . . . different. Combine that with a few unexplained deaths and a mystery involving Maya's biological parents and it's easy to suspect that this town might have more than its share of skeletons in its closet.

Review:

This is most definitely not a book for the faint of heart. The action pulses with each flip of the page and the romance sizzles at an audible level. And there is the pesky matter of a cliffhanger that is driving me insane with curiosity. Kelley Armstrong is a fantastical writer, and this book is a great addition to any reader’s shelf.

I found Maya to be an extremely likeable character. She was somewhat sheltered, but how could she not be considering the way she (and all the other kids in town) have been raised? In fact, the whole cast was fun to read. I loved reading the scenes where several characters interacted (like at Maya’s birthday party) because they played so well off each other. Writing a chapter that throws 90% of the characters together but still gives each a distinct, individual voice is quite a talent that Armstrong seems to have mastered.

My only hang up was the predictability of the book. Well, that and the brutal cliffhanger that the reader is left with. But this book wasn’t one to throw a curveball at you. Sometimes that’s a good thing, and other times not so much. I think I just had higher hopes for this book, and was somewhat disappointed when I figured out the plot less than three chapters in.

I most definitely recommend you guys check this one out … you just might want to wait until the next book is almost published so you aren’t left feeling bereft and alone when you finish the last sentence.