The Gathering by Kelley Armstrong

Book:  The Gathering

Author:  Kelley Armstrong

Publisher: Harper Collins

Source:  Checked out from school library

My grade:  A

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.

MY REVIEW

Initial impression

Oh my God!  I have to figure out about Daniel and I’m so glad the second book is already out!!!  (runs to Nook shopping app)

Cover and title

The title is sort of …….neutral.  I don’t feel inspired by it but I don’t feel turned off by it either.  I’m not exactly sure it fits, but maybe it will make sense later.  ::shrugs::  The cover is not so great.  For some reason, I just don’t find it appealing.  I LOVED the covers on the Darkest Powers series but this cover is a little bland to me.  Of course, Kelley Armstrong’s name on the cover would make me pick up any book.

The Plot

Like all Kelley Armstrong books, this one has a strong, action-driven plot that slowly releases clues to build to a whopper of an ending!  Can this woman ever write a paranormal!  I don’t know how she does it over and over.  She is constantly dropping little clues to keep your interest and revealing just enough to keep stringing you along.  This book was exactly like that.  There was the mystery of the town and the animals.  It was interesting to see her use of a more natural setting as opposed to urban. 

Another thing that I really liked about this book was the Native American lore that was briefly introduced.  I’m really hoping that she will reveal a little more about that in the subsequent books.

The Characters

The book is full of strong, charismatic characters.  What’s wonderful about the characters is that Kelley writes them with just enough flaws that they seem real.  They are so compelling and I found myself rooting for all of them, even the ones that seemed to be not so likeable.  Armstrong is a master of working the character’s back stories into the plot and allowing the reader to see a lot of the characters’ motivations for how they act.  Those back stories help to bring a balance to the good and bad personality traits and make the characters compulsively likeable.

The final grade

My grade for this book is a solid A.  Kelley Armstrong has done it again.  I’m so glad to see her expand her writing talent into the YA world.  We are all winners because of it!