Saturday, April 13, 2013

The Calling by Kelley Armstrong - Darkness Rising #2 Book Review

Maya Delaney's paw-print birthmark is the mark of what she truly is -a skin-walker. She can run faster, climb higher, and see better than nearly everyone else. Experiencing intense connections with the animals that roam the woods outside her home, Maya knows it's only a matter of time before she's able to Shift and become one of them. And she believes there may be others in her small town with surprising talents.

Now Maya and her friends have been forced to flee from their homes during a forest fire they suspect was deliberately set. Then they're kidnapped, and after a chilling helicopter crash, they find themselves in the Vancouver Island wilderness with nothing but their extraordinary abilities to help them get back home.

 


If the popularity of Kelley Armstrong’s YA is any indication, the new trend of stretching a weak plot over three books so you can call it a trilogy is, unfortunately, not going anywhere any time soon.  Darkness Rising is Armstrong’s second YA trilogy.  It reuses her Darkest Powers plot, follows the same formulas, and adds so much filler to make it stretch over three books that what little actual plot there is gets lost beneath the weight.



The Calling is the second book in this companion trilogy, and the last of Armstrong’s YA I’ll be reading for a while.  It wasn’t long ago that I was singing Kelley’s praises, almost willing to add her to my list of favorite authors.  You see, the woman can write.  She knows her characters, and knows how to make us like them.  She can spin a romance that is sweet and addictive without overpowering the story or activating our gag reflexes.  But after five books, that’s just not enough anymore.

I want some actual story progression.

Want to know what The Calling is about?  Maya and her friends survive a helicopter crash but are lost in a forest.  They walk around a lot.  And talk.  And encounter pointless obstacles that do nothing to further the story and only serve to eat up enough pages to call this a book.  There is a teensy tiny nugget of a story arc in all this wandering, which could easily have been summed up in two or three paragraphs.  And probably will be in the next book.  But other than that, this book is a waste of ink, a waste of pages, and a waste of time.

The characters are still likeable, which is really the only redeeming quality I could find.  I especially had a soft spot for Corey in this one; his wit was the cause of most of the few smiles I cracked while reading.  Maya and Daniel are consistent, and though Hayley reminds me a little too much of Tori from Darkest Powers, she’s better than a lot of popular YA side characters.  Rafe, though not in it too much, has that good bad-boy quality that will undoubtedly make him a fan favorite.


I know a lot of people love these books.  I get it; I really do.  The pages practically beg to be turned, and the characters have that rare returning-to-friends quality to them.  But I’d rather find that in a trilogy that also keeps me entertained in the story and is a bit less predictable.  I was able to overlook the weak plot in one of Armstrong’s trilogies; I’m not willing to be so forgiving the second time around.


The Calling - 2 out of 5 stars

11 comments:

  1. I had The Gathering on my Nook wishlist at one point quite a while back but when I was cleaning out the 200 something books I had on there it was one of the first ones to go. And hmm now I'm sorta glad I did!

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    1. Yeah, you're really not missing much. If all three books were combined into one, it'd probably be pretty good. But as it is, you'd be reading one third story, two thirds filler.

      I did like her Darkest Powers trilogy, though. It also suffers from a weak plot, but the characterization is just superb, and the romance is really sweet.

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  2. I hate filler books with a passion, the trilogy curse strikes again. Great characters are essential but we also need a strong plot to keep us flicking pages. I do want to read Kelley Armstrong but won't be starting with this series.

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    1. I know! Trilogies are starting to get out of hand, every single story has to stretch across three books anymore. Ugh.

      As far as Armstrong books, I'd recommend either The Summoning or her urban fantasy books. Bitten is the first in that series. The Summoning is part of a weak trilogy, too, though. But like I told Sheri, the characterization and romance makes it worth it in my opinion.

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    2. Bitten is actually the one I have my eye on. Sounds like a good one to start with.

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    3. It is, it's one of the better urban fantasies I'd say. I only recently read it, still have the second in the series sitting on my nightstand lol.

      But before you go with Bitten, you have to read the Fever series!!!! Baaarrrooonsss!!!!

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  3. I appreciate this review.I had been debating on whether or not to go out and buy this. But it had mixed reviews. I may end up reading it but perhaps getting the ebook instead.

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    1. I'd go with whatever's cheaper if you do get it. It's entertaining and Kelley Armstrong's a great writer, but the plot is just so weak.

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  4. The cover... She looks into my very soul! Ahhhhhh!


    Mgh, excuse me. Where was I? Ah, yes! I haven't read this book, won't be planning on it, and that cover is almost as bad as UnSouled's cover.

    Actually UnSouled's is 100x scarier.


    This comment is terrible. "Cain Freeman, bringing BS to Blogs since..."

    http://NoBSBooks.blogspot.com/

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    1. O.o

      Ooookaaaay then, Nobs....

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    2. For a grammar Nazi, you really mutilated the word "Okay".

      (Just going to ignore my own comment... Out of sight, out of mind.)

      Delete

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