Book Review: Stolen

Stolen (Women of the Otherworld #2)

By: Kelley Armstrong

Published By: Plume

Publication Date: June 2010 (This Edition), December 2002 (1st Published)

Page Count: 551

Buy it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or IndieBound

Source: Purchased by Reviewer

Audience: Adult - Urban Fantasy

Review of Book #1: Bitten

Elena Michaels and Clayton Danvers are two of my favorite characters - EVER. The ARCs that keep finding their way into my grasp have taken a lot of my reading attention, but I vowed after loving the first novel in the Women of the Otherworld series and loving the tv show, Bitten, that this year I would make reading this series a priority. (I also wanted to get book #2 read before the series returns in February.) This isn't an easy commitment as Armstrong's novels are often hefty, but it will end up being time well spent. Let's be honest - any time spent with Clay is well spent.

Stolen moves the focus of the series away from The Pack and places it more firmly on the women of the supernatural world. Elena is still the main character in this one, but other women will start to take more prominent roles to set up future novels in the series. At the beginning of this one, Elena heads to Pittsburgh hunting down information for Jeremy about a group who is selling werewolf secrets online. She quickly finds out that she has been tricked into a meeting with Ruth and Paige Winterbourne, two powerful witches. These women open Elena's eyes to a supernatural world she never knew existed. I found Elena's shock to be slightly amusing. How could a werewolf not think that there would be a slew of other supernatural beings out there? Elena's contact with the Coven Witches will send her on a dangerous path that will land her stuck in a cell at supernatural research facility.

The vast majority of the novel takes place within the walls of the research compound as Elena struggles to piece together what is happening within the walls and how to escape. She knows that Clay and Jeremy are making plans to rescue her, but deadly events force her to take her destiny into her own hands. Her very survival depends on her wits and strength.

As always, I loved that Elena is a kickass heroine. I want to be her when I grow up. She breaks all the stereotypical gender molds and forges her own path. Being the only female werewolf isn't an easy task, but she manages to leave her mark on a male dominated world. I found that this novel allowed me to get to know her on a deeper level than Bitten. There are many moments when Elena is stripped down to her base emotions in this one. I found that even in her vulnerable moments she was still someone I admired. I also enjoyed watching as she worked through her complicated feelings for Clay.

I was sad that since so much of this one takes place within the compound that I didn't get to see as much of Clay as I would have liked, but the moments he is on the page are well worth the wait. I love his mixture of humor and raw power. You can't read about Clay without melting a little bit. I swear everytime he says darlin' I get a shiver up my spine. He might be the ultimate book boyfriend for me.

In addition to spending time with old favorites, I enjoyed getting to meet other supernatural beings. I was fascinated by the lore surrounding the half-demons. I'm intrigued by the characters that were introduced in this installment and look forward to seeing how things play out for them in the rest of the series. I loved the banter between Paige and Adam; I can see them both becoming favorites of mine. I can only hope that when a different female is driving the story that Elena and Clay will still make appearances. I'm also interested to see if the tv show will use this plot line or forge their own story.

One Last Gripe: I did get a little queasy when the gruesome moments were described. This one has a lot of blood.

Favorite Things About This Book: Meeting the new supernatural characters

First Sentence: He hated the forest.

Favorite Character: It's always a tie between Elena and Clay.

Least Favorite Character: Ty

Summary:

In Book 2 of the Women of the Otherworld series, Elena Michaels is back-and she has company. Lending a mission of vampires, demons, shamans, and witches, Elena is lured into the net of ruthless Internet billionaire Tyrone Winsloe, who is well on his way to amassing a private collection of supernaturals. He plans to harness their powers for himself-even if it means killing them.

For Elena, kidnapped and imprisoned deep underground, unable to tell her friends from her enemies, choosing the right allies is a matter of life and death.