Stray (Shifters, #1)

Jul 18, 2011 The Holy Terror rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to The Holy Terror by: Who's Your Author? Group

Shelves: paranormal-romance, strips, shifters, dumb-females, hated-this-book, forgot-to-drink-the-kool-aid

I had a really difficult time with this book. I went back and forth from really liking it and then really hating it. In the beginning I could sympathize with Faythe; nobody wants their life decided for them. But as you start to learn exactly what she's running from - responsibility and family obligation - the sympathy turns to annoyance.

Faythe is one of the few female werecats in the United States. For some reason females are very rare, although it's never really explained why. Faythe wants to...more I had a really difficult time with this book. I went back and forth from really liking it and then really hating it. In the beginning I could sympathize with Faythe; nobody wants their life decided for them. But as you start to learn exactly what she's running from - responsibility and family obligation - the sympathy turns to annoyance.

Faythe is one of the few female werecats in the United States. For some reason females are very rare, although it's never really explained why. Faythe wants to go to college and try to have a career and a life separate from her Pride. She doesn't want to be stuck in the role of mother and housewife so she tries to run away from it all. The thing is, someone is hunting the tabbies, female werecats, and so Faythe's Father makes her come home from college so she can be protected by her numerous brothers and the enforcers working for him.

At the best of times, Faythe is mildly retarded. A tabby was found beaten and raped and very much dead, and then soon after another tabby goes missing. So naturally, Faythe's family decides that they need to protect her at all costs. But Faythe gets it into her head that she wants to live outside the Pride so she tries to negotiate with her Father to leave. Um, hello? Did you miss the part about the kidnapping and rape? Why not wait for a better time to throw a temper tantrum?

There are countless times where Faythe does the one thing that she shouldn't do, resulting in her own kidnapping, attempted rape, beating, and so forth. Some of the situations she gets into are so ridiculous that you almost have to think that the author didn't know how else to move the plot along.

Also, Faythe fights her attraction to Marc for most of the book, so much so that she bites his leg to the bone in cat form when he tries to rub his scent on her. But then she gets drunk and sleeps with him. So not only is she stupid, she's also a stupid cheating whore (she has a human boyfriend back at college.)

One final thing, this book was over 600 pages long and honestly there was so much description, explanation, and world-building included that really could have been shortened or even altogether left out. I found myself skipping over parts because they just weren't important, and I don't think I've ever done that before unless I'm reading a textbook.

All in all, this was a pretty mediocre book. The only thing that makes me want to read more are the male characters. Faythe makes me want to strangle her though so I don't know how much more I can put up with. (less)

64 likes · like · see review

Dec 08, 2010 Jessica rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 08-couldn-t-finish, 21-urban-fantasy, 18-wolves-shifters

This is me being excited about Stray:

description

I guess you get the picture. Alright, let’s see...what’s to say about this book? For starters: I didn't even finish it. I stopped at page 340 of 618. I think I gave it a fair chance, didn’t I?

Our heroine in this story is a 23-year-old werecat named Faythe. Werecats are basically organized like wolves, they’re living together in packs with an Alpha as its leader and they look like panthers. No wait. They can't look like panthers because there is no such thing...more This is me being excited about Stray:

description

I guess you get the picture. Alright, let’s see...what’s to say about this book? For starters: I didn't even finish it. I stopped at page 340 of 618. I think I gave it a fair chance, didn’t I?

Our heroine in this story is a 23-year-old werecat named Faythe. Werecats are basically organized like wolves, they’re living together in packs with an Alpha as its leader and they look like panthers. No wait. They can't look like panthers because there is no such thing as panthers. Those are all werecats. What you see in the jungle, in zoos...yep, all werecats. I’ll never be able to look at Baghira the way I used to.

Anyways, Faythe is the daughter of the pack’s Alpha and is supposed to succeed him in leading the pack some day. The problem: Faythe doesn’t want to become the Alpha and she doesn’t want to marry Marc, one of the pack's enforcers, whom her dad has “chosen” for her. She wants to live on her own somewhere far away from her pack mates because she feels like she’s not respected among them. Bohoo. Anyways, she managed to talk her dad into letting her go away to study after graduation but when one of her fellow tabbies goes missing (they are very rare and therefore extremely valuable to the prides) her Dad decides he wants her back home under the protection of the pack. Of course Faythe is less than thrilled by this idea and ends up being dragged back kicking and screaming. Even after she got attacked herself, I might add.

Back home, she’s restless and unhappy and shows her disapproval of the general situation by being a major pain in the ass and to make things at least a little bit interesting for her she decides to kill some time by playing with the feelings of the two guys who love her. Marc, her ex-boyfriend, and Jace, another one of her father’s enforcers. Even though Jace has always been like a brother to Faythe he now became interesting to her in a forbidden fruit kind of way. May I introduce you to an old friend of mine? I’m sure you’ve heard of him before, his name is Mr. Love Triangle. Be good and say hi to the group, Mr. Love Triangle.

It’s hard to nail down what exactly kept me from getting sucked into the story but somehow the whole thing was just lacking. I also had a hard time relating to Faythe. She really is a piece of work and more often than not she’s just a selfish bitch. She does irrational stuff like going for a joyride in the middle of the night all by herself without paying a thought to the gang of psycho murders that is out to abduct tabbies, beat the shit out of them, rape them and eat them afterwards. Nooo, Faythe isn’t concerned at all by this because she’s oh-so though and independent. *facepalm* So yeah, I had a hard time relating to her and to be honest, I couldn’t have cared less whether she gets eaten or not.

To sum it up: The story was kind of ok but neither could I relate to the heroine nor could I swoon over the two guys. Seeing as I bought all 5 books of this series in a fit of book mania I'm really kicking myself right now. Hard. With stiletto boots.

(less)

47 likes · like · see review

Nov 04, 2012 Stacia ~ Mistress of Mediocrity rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: adult

Had to redo this review after reading my original review from last year and finding it to be pretty crappy and non-informative.

Stray is the start of a fun, action packed series featuring a very kick butt heroine and a yummy love triangle. The female lead can hang with the boys (and pretty much does, since there aren't many females hanging out at their compound). Faythe can fight like a man, and has the balls of a man when it comes to bravery. She has her stupid and selfish moments, but I also fe...more Had to redo this review after reading my original review from last year and finding it to be pretty crappy and non-informative.

Stray is the start of a fun, action packed series featuring a very kick butt heroine and a yummy love triangle. The female lead can hang with the boys (and pretty much does, since there aren't many females hanging out at their compound). Faythe can fight like a man, and has the balls of a man when it comes to bravery. She has her stupid and selfish moments, but I also feel like she had to go on the journey to become a better a person in the end, even if it meant making decisions that came across as self-serving to start.

Comparisons have come up between this book and book 1 of Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld series. There are some similarities, but after the first book, both series branch off into opposite directions. It seems that people tend to have preferences based on which one they read first. Since I read this one first (even though Armstrong wrote her book first), I prefer Stray. Both Jace and Marc are appealing for different reasons, and the black panther/werecat concept is so much more fun than "overdone" werewolves. I also prefer Faythe's family structure hands down over Elena's. I didn't care for the side characters in Bitten, whereas I love every single side character in the Shifters series (except for the one sadistic brother). Something about being in Faythe's head every time she shifts also sends chills through me. Vincent made me feel as if I was shifting right along with Faythe.

I actually enjoyed the series from book 1, but some people don't start feeling the love until around the third book. The first in the series is the weakest of all the books, and they do get progressively better, but I still felt hooked on my werecats from the start. Even with this being over a year later and reading other series that I have liked better, I refuse to drop my original 4 star rating for book 1. These books will always hold a special place in my heart for being the first adult UF series to get me excited about the genre.(less)

14 likes · like · see review

Oct 03, 2010 Kat Kennedy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: kat-s-book-reviews, just-plain-bad

When I put this book onto my TBR list, I was immediately asked to confirm suspicions that Faythe was a horrible name. It's true. So very, very true. Especially when her first name is a perfectly respectable Katherine or some such derivative spelling!

This book is a lot like her name. It's a horrible bastardization of an otherwise sound concept. Faith is a perfectly acceptable name apart from the Pavlovian upchuck reflex it gives me when it reminds me of Faith from Buffy and Angel.

The concept is o...more

29 likes · like · see review

Jan 12, 2010 I ♥ Bookie Nookie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to I ♥ Bookie Nookie by: FlibBityFLooB

Shelves: genre-pnr-uf, species-weres-and-shifters, 2010-read-in, zz-reviewed, i-love-this-old, a-series

I really liked this book. I was a little nervous about reading it because it is so long and I have seen such mixed reviews about the series. Well, let me put it to you this way--it is 600+ pages and I read it in 2 nights.

Faythe is the daughter of an Alpha who is also the lead Alpha for all the US werecat territories. She is also one of only 8 unmated tabbies or females in the US. Of course, she is very valuable as there are probably hundreds of unmated males to their one. Faythe has 2 potential...more

9 likes · like · see review

Feb 07, 2011 Galla rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: nbrc-group-monthly-pick

*cuing guitar riff for musical review*

MARC & JACE:

Well we guess it would be nice
If we could lick your cat fur
'Cause you can make a tom purr
No hotter furry than you.

JACE:

But I've got to think twice
Before Marc beats me 'til I die
That shit hurts; I ain't gonna lie
Maybe a kiss or two...

FAYTHE:

Oh, but I need some time off
To go to grad school
I'll read some books and send my dad the bill.
And when the mean Enforcers
Drag my ass home, yeah
I'll forget about my boyfriend,
And get all up in your grill.

'...more

43 likes · like · see review

Nov 27, 2011 Dee rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-and-fairytale

This book is Bitten but with werecats. (Yes, werecats.)

In fact it has almost exactly the same premise as Kelley Armstrong's book...

Girl flees uber-intense 'were' family to live alone in the 'real' world. Yet, despite her best efforts to lead a normal life she never truly feels like herself. Girl is forced (literally) to return home to a house full of domineering male 'were-creatures'. Were-females are slim pickings so, of course, all the males fight over her. And there is this one super intense...more

17 likes · like · see review

May 04, 2011 AH rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: shifters, book-challenge, own, zzread-nov-2010, were, first-in-series

Before I began reading paranormal and urban fantasy books, I didn’t really know about the variety of “were” worlds out there. I’m glad to have discovered them.

Stray is the story of a Pride of werecats. The werecats are led by Faythe’s father, in a kind of mafia-like arrangement of leadership and enforcers. There are very few female werecats of breeding age; most of the werecats are male. In Stray, someone is kidnapping the tabbies (female werecats) and our heroine Faythe Sanders becomes a victi...more Before I began reading paranormal and urban fantasy books, I didn’t really know about the variety of “were” worlds out there. I’m glad to have discovered them.

Stray is the story of a Pride of werecats. The werecats are led by Faythe’s father, in a kind of mafia-like arrangement of leadership and enforcers. There are very few female werecats of breeding age; most of the werecats are male. In Stray, someone is kidnapping the tabbies (female werecats) and our heroine Faythe Sanders becomes a victim.

Faythe is forced to go home after she is attacked on campus and her cousin Sara vanishes. Her family and her father’s enforcers are at her home, set to protect her. This is where I had problems with her character. Faythe is in danger, yet she decides that this is the right time to negotiate with her father for her independence and freedom. As for the boyfriend department – Jace is all over her, Marc is very possessive of her, and well, there’s also a boyfriend back at college. A love square.

I have a love/hate relationship with Faythe. For the most part, she is likable except when she is being annoying. Confused? That is a perfect description of Faythe. Faythe is independent (at times), impulsive, petulant, and a little bit spoiled. When we are first introduced to Faythe, she is away at college working on her post graduate degree. She is living like a human girl – she has a human boyfriend, she has a human roommate, and she is a typical 23 year old. Except that she does have a little security detail hiding in the shadows.

The story is told in the first person, from Faythe’s point of view. Usually I find that this style makes the story difficult to follow, but I liked it this way. I felt that just enough information was revealed and that I had my a-ha moments about the same time as Faythe did.

I loved the descriptions of the werecats, their changes, and their mannerisms. There is a point in the novel where Faythe is describing the reactions of humans to her group as they walk by. I could just imagine the humans changing directions and allowing the werecat people through.

I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.

Update - May 2011 - I finished reading Alpha (book 6) at the end of April. I wanted to add that those of you out there that may be annoyed by Faythe - keep reading - the last 3 books in the series were quite an emotional and action packed ride.
(less)

14 likes · like · see review

Mar 22, 2010 Leah rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: in-my-harem, 4-stars, love-triangles-can-kiss-my-booty, scars-and-tats-and-piercings-oh-my, happy-slapsgiving, signed-by-the-author, horrible-heroine-alert, book-cover-skank, bad-boy-take-me-away

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Stray is the first book in Rachel Vincent's Shifters series. It is about a werecat named Faythe Sanders and her struggle to accept life in the Pride. She wants nothing more than to escape and have her freedom, from her father, from her "responsibilities" to the Pride, from Marc. However, when one of her fellow tabbies, Sara, is kidnapped, one of her father's enforcers come to college and take her home. When she gets there, she is faced with all the things she wanted to leave behind. After a few...more Stray is the first book in Rachel Vincent's Shifters series. It is about a werecat named Faythe Sanders and her struggle to accept life in the Pride. She wants nothing more than to escape and have her freedom, from her father, from her "responsibilities" to the Pride, from Marc. However, when one of her fellow tabbies, Sara, is kidnapped, one of her father's enforcers come to college and take her home. When she gets there, she is faced with all the things she wanted to leave behind. After a few days, her cousin Abby, another tabby, is kidnapped, and the council congregates at Faythe's house to work out how to deal with the issue. Sara is found, naked, propped up against a tree behind her house for her brothers to find after being beaten, raped, and murdered by her captors. After a night of drunkenness and having sex with Marc, Fathye goes out to the barn "to think" and ends up getting kidnapped herself. She is drugged and then dumped in a cage in a house in Mississippi. She stops Abby from getting raped, fights Miguel, chats with her brother who happens to be one of the captors, and eventually kills Eric and escapes. After getting out of her cage, she traps Ryan in her empty cage and searches for the key to Sara's cage, while talking to her father about what's doing. Her father sends Parker, Marc, Ethan, Owen, and Lucas to go get Faythe and Abby, making Jace stay at home since Marc beat him badly, and then talks to Ryan, working out a small deal with him. After the guys come to get them, Parker, Marc, Ethan, Lucas, and Faythe fly to where the next girl about to be captured lives and meets up with Sara's brothers, Vic and Anthony. They go and set up a trap for Miguel and Sean. However, Faythe falls into Miguel's trap and almost gets taken again. In the end, Faythe frees herself, Marc and Ethan kill Miguel, and Faythe ends up with Marc, much to my chagrin (I love Jace).

Overall, I liked Faythe. She was a good, strong female character. I understood her need for independence, but I did not understand her reckless need for independence. She wanted to leave the ranch at a time when it was extremely dangerous for her to, and it was proven that she would not have been able to take care of herself by the fact that she was kidnapped. I liked that she eventually accepted that she liked being back at the ranch and starts working for her father. I, however, did not like that she led Jace on and then hurt him by sleeping with Marc, and when Marc threw him into the wall, she did nothing to help Jace, not that it would have done much but she should have tried to help him.

I'm not sure how much I like or dislike Marc. To a certain extent, I like him and appreciate his loyalty to Faythe and her father. However, I did not like that he often seemed to use his power as second-in-command to boss around the other guys and hurt Jace. He really needs to get his jealousy and anger under control and stop hurting poor Jace. I did not like that Marc gets his way in the end with Faythe choosing him.

Jace, however, I completely love. Some of it, I know, is because he's the "underdog" and her family doesn't approve of him as Faythe's mate, but he's funny, gorgeous, smart, and loyal. I loved that he was able to get that steamy kiss in with Faythe (that was one of my favorite parts), but I hated that Marc came in and ruined the moment and threw Jace into the wall. I teared up when Ryan told Faythe about how badly Marc had hurt Jace because he thought Jace had given her the keys to his car so she could leave. I wanted to cry at the end when Faythe told Marc she loved him and Jace was the one who heard, the witness. Also, I loved Jace's sensual greeting to Faythe when she first got back to the ranch.

In the case of Miguel's death, I was rather unhappy. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm glad the bastard is dead, but I didn't like that Ethan and Marc were the ones who got to kill him. While it's true that he beat on Faythe and tried to rape her and Marc and Ethan were avenging her, I feel that Vic and Lucas should have been the ones allowed to kill Miguel. Their sisters were the ones who were raped and abused, and in Sara's case, murdered.

In the beginning of the novel, I think there were some parts that had way too much description and not enough dialogue, but I quickly got over that as I moved through the novel. There was a conspicuous lack of sex in Stray, the only sex scene being between Marc and Faythe with a small sexual encounter with Faythe and Jace.(less)

10 likes · like · see review

Jun 01, 2011 Emily May rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal-uf, 2011, weres-shifters, wtf-sexism, love-triangle, annoying

There are a good many reasons why this book was lucky to get 4 stars from me, but also equally as many reasons why it could have possibly got more. I'll start at the beginning by explaining the general plot. So... Faythe Sanders is a werecat in a world where female werecats are rarities and also highly protected by the males in an often teeth-grindingly annoying fashion (but more of that in a bit); after 5 years at college, she is summoned back home in a bid to keep her safe from a wild, tabby-k...more There are a good many reasons why this book was lucky to get 4 stars from me, but also equally as many reasons why it could have possibly got more. I'll start at the beginning by explaining the general plot. So... Faythe Sanders is a werecat in a world where female werecats are rarities and also highly protected by the males in an often teeth-grindingly annoying fashion (but more of that in a bit); after 5 years at college, she is summoned back home in a bid to keep her safe from a wild, tabby-killing stray and his gang of murderous followers.

Well, for a start, this Were book was a million and one times better than Moon Called, Faythe was far easier to relate to than Mercy (a college girl battling for independence rather than a mechanic) and definitely likeable. Unlike Mercy, I actually gave a damn what happened to her. But I spent half of this book wanting to sing it's praises and half of it seriously contemplating throwing it at the wall. The misogyny of the werecat society was painful, if I'd have been Faythe I would have locked myself in a room and screamed. For a start, the possibility of leaving the Pride is a luxury only open to the males; the women, on the other hand, have no say in the matter of where they wish to live. It's so bad that Faythe's father even threatens to lock her in a cage for a year if she tries to run away. I think the author took some steps towards redeeming both her mother and father as the book progressed but it never really worked for me. They'd already become one of the enemies in my mind when they tried to bully Faythe into marrying Marc, and her father enjoyed asserting his authority over her and proving that he would always 'win'.

I've come to accept that a lot of Were novels play on the idea that women are seen as weak and inferior within a Pack or Pride (whether true or not), but I repeatedly wanted to tear my hair out in frustration when Faythe's wishes were laughed at because she is female. There is one part of the novel where her father orders her to 'sit', she refuses and so then her brother forcibly knocks her to the floor and throws her onto the couch. Eek. In my opinion, her family and Marc are misogynistic to the point of being abusive. And that's another thing...

Marc. Marc is the big strong hero to her quirky, strong-willed heroine. He's good-looking, intelligent, strong, brave, good in bed... and a complete dick. I didn't like him. At all. So yeah, he got a bit better as the novel went on but he was all about expressing his dominance over others, including Faythe. I can't see them in a proper relationship, or at least not one that I personally would put value on (i.e. equal), but Rachel Vincent left the book in a way that would suggest that there is to be a future for their relationship. But there are quite a few books in the series so I'm hoping Faythe comes to her senses and gets together with the one guy who is sexy, funny and considered her wishes and opinions from day one...

Jace. Now, there's a good hero for you. For me, there's absolutely no contest between him and Marc. He's not even the 'good guy', he's the sexy, dirty talk kinda guy... and yet, he treats Faythe better than her father, her brothers and Marc combined. As it stands at the moment, I really want her to be with him. Or maybe she'll finally find a way to break free from the constraints of the Pride and discover that she needs no one: man, woman or cat.

The story was good too, not the most original one I've ever read but I was kept interested throughout, which isn't that easily done when a book is 600+ pages. What I really can't understand is why so many people shelved this book as 'young adult'. It isn't, to put it plainly. It has graphic sex, graphic violence and some seriously awful rape/attempted rape scenes. This is not in any way a young adult novel. Even though Faythe is a college student, the majority of the main characters are upwards of twenty-five so I don't really see how it could be mistaken for one.

Even with the frustrating men in the book, I loved Faythe and I really enjoyed Vincent's writing. I definitely intend to read Rogue, I'm just keeping my fingers crossed for Jace.(less)

15 likes · like · see review

Feb 06, 2012 Kathryn rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: first-in-a-serie, pnr-urban-fantasy, books-i-own, read-2012, finished-series

I will not read the second book of this series, probably.

I can say for the sake of the author, that it wasn't her writing style per-say that I have not liked this book. It is most definitely her characters.

*spoiler alert*
Faythe Sanders, first seemed to be the confidant woman who knew what she wanted in life. But turned out to be the same old, same old. Her rebellious streak ran out of luck when she was reunited with her gorgeous and possessive long broken-up-but-still-in-love-with boyfriend Ma...more

4 likes · like · see review

Sep 26, 2007 Sarai rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormalromance, dnf

Well I have to admit I couldn't finish it. It was so long that I finally gave up. I was tired of hearing about poor me I need my independence and I will do anything to get it including risking the lives of my friends and family. And don't think for a second that I will see the error of my ways or compromise. AND MY GOD this book was long... way longer then it needed to be so this is a no. Maybe next time she could cut it in half.
I did like how she described the shifting but she didn't get the c...more

14 likes · like · see review

Jan 01, 2009 Brenda (b) rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy, 1-print-books, 2-2009-read

For the most part, I liked this book. The world of werecats that the author created was interesting but I don't feel a strong need to read more about them. I wavered back and forth as to whether I felt sympathy or irritation for the main character, Faythe. She complained a lot about wanting to be independent and I didn't completely agree with how she was treated by the males, but I didn't feel a connection with her on a more personal level either. And maybe I missed it, but I never fully underst...more

4 likes · like · see review

Jul 30, 2011 Christen *Goldilox And The Three Weres* rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Christen *Goldilox And The Three Weres* by: MISS VAIN, Cat Russell Embraces the Dark

So I finally read this book. I put it off for a while because I had heard so many mixed reviews about the series, most often that the main character, Faythe, is annoying. While I can see why some would say that, I in no way found her to be as obnoxious as some others have. She is a flawed character who grows even just in this first book. Even though she is supposed to be twenty-three, I see her as a little bit younger because her behavior and lack of want for responsibility makes her seem that w...more So I finally read this book. I put it off for a while because I had heard so many mixed reviews about the series, most often that the main character, Faythe, is annoying. While I can see why some would say that, I in no way found her to be as obnoxious as some others have. She is a flawed character who grows even just in this first book. Even though she is supposed to be twenty-three, I see her as a little bit younger because her behavior and lack of want for responsibility makes her seem that way. If you try to think of her like that, she's not bad at all. Faythe is slightly reminiscent of Mac at the beginning of the Fever series for me, meaning that I found her a bit young and silly at first but by the end of the book I loved her.

"You mostly.” Her hands went still again as her eyes stared off into the past with a look so wistful it made me ache for her. “The boys tended to take care of each other but you were too much for anyone else to handle.” I poked at the ball of yarn avoiding her eyes. “I wasn’t that bad.” She smiled. “You broke Ethan’s arm.” “It was self-defense. He wouldn’t let go of my foot.” “He was helping you tie your shoe."

I won't bother going into a summary of the book, since so many others have. I will simply talk about what I liked and didn't like. First of all, let's get the dislikes out of the way. I felt like Faythe's relationship with her dad was part of the reason she seemed so young to me. Faythe never knew when to quit asking to leave the Pride, even in the midst of a serious tragedy she was still trying to make her case! After a particularly tramatic part of the book where Faythe seemed to grow up a little bit, she deferred right back to her old ways as soon as she got on the phone with her father.

I also was not fond of Jace in this book. I've heard so much about the two love interests in this series, Marc and Jace, that I expected more from the Jace character. Yet I found him to be immature and, frankly, inappropriate (sorry Jace lovers!). When Faythe comes back to the Pride at the beginning of the book, Jace greets her by pinning her up against a wall and practically licking her! And later he tries to make a bet with Faythe that would involve Faythe sleeping with him if she loses. Um...weird! Especially since they had nothing more than a flirty friendship prior to Faythe leaving to go to college. Obviously there is more to the Faythe/Jace relationship in later books or he would not even be considered a love interest, but at this moment I can't even forsee what that might be.

My final gripe is about the writing style. I really liked the smooth style of Rachel Vincent, but at times I felt like she was over describing things. I don't really know how to explain what I mean by that, except to say that its a flaw one would typically see in a YA novel.

Okay, enough of the bad - let's get on with the good! With everything said about Faythe, I expected her to be much worse than she was. I was prepared for someone whiny and immature who complained a lot and drove me crazy most of the book. To my delight she was not like this at all! In fact, she kicked some serious ass (literally). Faythe definitely has her flaws, but you can see her growing and changing as the story progresses and that's a good thing. I could also understand why she fled the Pride five years ago - that IS a lot of responsibility to commit yourself to and I could completely understand why she made a run for it!

"Apparently the complete works of Shakespeare packed quite a wallop. To think, my mother said I'd never find use for an English degree. Ha! I'd like to see her knock someone silly with an apron and a cookie press."

What I could NOT understand, however, was how she left Marc! Yummy, sexy, Marc! I didn't really see the appeal in him until I was about a third into the book...that scene where she was ogling him (or rather, trying not to ogle him...) in his towel put me right at the front of the Team Marc train!

I also thoroughly enjoyed the actual plot of the book and couldn't wait for the "bad guy" to get what was coming to him. Everything that happened once Faythe became more "involved" with aforementioned "bad guy" had me turning the page sos fast I almost ripped a few.

Okay, so all in all I ended up really enjoying the first book in the series and am excited to read the next one! :)

"Kicking ass is surprisingly therapeutic" (less)

2 likes · like · see review

Feb 25, 2011 Misty rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: disappointing-or-excited-for-nothin, read-in-2011, supernatural-paranormal, series, timesuck

Honestly, I was disappointed in this one. First of all, it's SO EFFING LONG. It doesn't look like it because the pages are super thin (damn you, marketing ploys! *shakes fist*), but it tops 600 pages. Very fewauthors can sustain a book that long well enough to keep me fully invested. In fact, only 1 comes readily to mind, where I didn't feel anything should have been cut, it was perfect as it was. Stray needed some serious trimming with a sharp pair of editing shears. For real. There was so much...more

7 likes · like · see review

Jul 04, 2011 Liliana ♥s Mythology rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: shapeshifters, favorites, love-the-book-cover, werecats, own

I think I want to start off by saying that werecats are way awesomer (yes, I said awesomer :P) than werewolves! I would choose a werecat over a werewolf any day!! The idea of werecats is so unique that I love it! Maybe there’s more books out there about werecats, but this is the only book I’ve heard about them. I really liked how Rachel said in this book how Hollywood got the transformation right but got the species completely wrong!! I was LMAO! Ha ha werewolves, ha ha :)

Okay, so the review…
Fay...more I think I want to start off by saying that werecats are way awesomer (yes, I said awesomer :P) than werewolves! I would choose a werecat over a werewolf any day!! The idea of werecats is so unique that I love it! Maybe there’s more books out there about werecats, but this is the only book I’ve heard about them. I really liked how Rachel said in this book how Hollywood got the transformation right but got the species completely wrong!! I was LMAO! Ha ha werewolves, ha ha :)

Okay, so the review…
Faythe Sanders (a werecat) has been trying to stay away from her Pride by going off to college. But five years later she returns home, leaving behind her normal college life, human boyfriend Andrew, and her somewhat confused roommate Sammi. Of course, not by her own account.

Female werecats (tabbies) are very rare, and therefore, valuable (there are only 8 in the US to be exact). So when someone starts kidnapping (or is it catnapping? lol) some of the few tabbies from across the country, Faythe is forced back to the protection of her home. She isn’t happy about it, but there isn’t anything she can do about it either.
The first tabby taken was Sarah, a friend of Faythe’s. The next one to disappear was Abby, Faythe’s own 17-year-old cousin. One or two days later, Sarah was found…dead.
Now completely pissed off and agreeing that this has been going on too far, all of the Alphas of the American territories come together in a meeting to figure out what to do about this.

But in one distracted moment, Faythe gets caught by the mysterious kidnapper as well. Now, I have to admit this was pretty stupid of her. I mean, her father gave her 24/7 protection for a reason: Abby is still missing!!! But, oh no, Faythe has to go out by herself early in the morning before anyone is a wake, and get herself in trouble.
In a way though, I think it was a good thing she got captured. If this would’ve never happened to her, who knows what would’ve happened to Abby. Plus, they would’ve never found out about Ryan (Faythe‘s brother). I have one word for you: Ryan is crazy!!!! I understand that he had no choice and was forced to do the things he did because if not, well, they would kill him. But OMG!!!!! I still cannot believe him!! *takes deep breath*

Faythe has become one of my favorite heroines. She is very strong, smart (sometimes, lol), independent, and she proved that she can take care of herself. To sum it all up, she is badass!!! Love her!
Another character I love, Jace. *sighs* And I will admit, the reason why he caught my attention was because of his name (if you don’t know already I am a huge Mortal Instruments fan…especially a Jace fan ;)). And I couldn’t help myself but compare them. The results: They are more alike then I would’ve thought! Of course, they’re looks are different (but both are still gorgeous!), and Jace from TMI is more cocky and arrogant than Jace from Stray. But I still love them both!!

So when Marc beat the hell out of Jace because Faythe took his car keys, I got very, very mad!!! I would’ve liked to pull Marc out of the book and showed him how I felt…okay, that’s a little aggressive lol.
I also feel like Faythe should've chosen Jace over Marc. But I still have a few more books ahead of me to find out :)

And the strays who did the kidnapping,…OMG did they get under my skin! They are so sick!! And I don’t want to reveal too many spoilers, but I never thought I’d see the day where I’d be sooo happy that someone got dismembered! But come on, they sure as hell deserved it!!! But now I’m wondering if they’ll catch the last of the five guys who were doing the kidnapping. I guess I gotta stay tuned for the next book :)

http://lili-lost-in-a-book.blogspot.c...(less)

4 likes · like · see review

Jan 18, 2011 Bianca rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-own, books-i-loved, goodreads-reading-challenge-2011

I loved this book, right from the very beginning. At first I thought hmm not sure but by chapter two I knew I wasn't going to be able to put it down.

Vampires, Werewolves? Pffftt.. Go the Werecats! This concept was completely new to me, I had never thought of big 'cats' or I rather think of them like tigers. It was bizarre to think about at first but I soon became used to the idea and felt myself loving the storyline more and more.

Faythe... she is kickass, awesome, flawed, tough, bitchy and rebel...more

2 likes · like · see review

Oct 04, 2010 Jenny B rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: all-pnr-uf, 2010-read, 6-series-read, x-reviewed-old, 3-urban-fantasy, 5-read-fiction, 1st-in-series

Faythe is one of only eight Tabbies in the country and now they have started to go missing. After she is attacked on campus she returns to the Pride but in characteristic fashion refuses to just do as she is told. Once returned she is also confronted with dealing with her ex-boyfriend Marc, more unfinished business.

Faythe can be a challenging character to like at times, she is strong, determined and can seem a little immature at times but comes to take on her responsibilities and matures nicely...more

3 likes · like · see review

Aug 16, 2011 Natasha rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Stray is the first installment in the Shifters series by Rachel Vincent.Stray is an urban fantasy/shape-shifter romance, which are two of my favorite genres. It’s told in the first person. With a first person narrative that is wonderfully written and make us really feel for the characters.

Vincent's debut is fast paced and highly addictive. Faythe is you typical graduate student in many ways, except one...she's a werecat. Faythe is a kick-ass heroine. Her father(the Alpha of the Southwest terri...more Stray is the first installment in the Shifters series by Rachel Vincent.Stray is an urban fantasy/shape-shifter romance, which are two of my favorite genres. It’s told in the first person. With a first person narrative that is wonderfully written and make us really feel for the characters.

Vincent's debut is fast paced and highly addictive. Faythe is you typical graduate student in many ways, except one...she's a werecat. Faythe is a kick-ass heroine. Her father(the Alpha of the Southwest territory) taught her how to fight when she was a child and being one of so few female were-cats, she is used to being surrounded by too much testosterone from tomcats, so knowing the ropes helps. But that doesn't put her down, she can handle them and she can keep her own. Fathye is trying to grow up and be in control of her own life, but even though she has been away from home for five years at university, she is never left to total freedom. Greg(The alpha male and her father) has constant watch on Faythe to protect her, but Faythe feels she doesn't need any protection, and has proved that a time or two.

But now she must return. Someone is hunting tabbies and someone close to her was taken. And not all reunions are a blessing with Faythe's history. There's lots of tension along with her loving welcome and she finally realizes she has to deal with her past and not hide from it. With everything that's happening with Faythe you'd think she'd have her plate full, but the men in her life don't make it that easy for her. Faythe is stuck with life alternating decisions and finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time..now everything else is the least of her problems when she's kidnapped by the same ones who kidnapped her cousin and now she might have finally found something she cannot kick her way out of.

If your a fan of Paranormal romance/Urban fantasy and lots of action, this is the book for you. I enjoyed every bit of it and found myself sitting on the edge of my seat most the time. I love Vincent's writing and how she adds twists and secrets that end up with a bang! I don't know why I took so long to read this series, but I'm really glad I finally started! I'm off to read Rogue(book 2 in the Shifters series). :)(less)

8 likes · like · see review

Jan 10, 2010 Krista (One Love) (Critical) rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: annoying-narrator, funny, own-ab, want-to-own, fave-author, shifters, fantasy

Okay, so PLEASE tell me I'm not the only one who HATES Marc!! ANYONE!?

Warning: This is more of a rant than a review and may contain minor spoilers...

I simply could not enjoy this book, because I was too busy hating Marc's guts. I mean, really. What is the attraction? Marc is the biggest A-hole of all time. Call me crazy, but if cold-blooded murder has become the new "sexy," then I really have to wonder what the world is coming to. I just found it creepy how Marc readily admits on several occasi...more

3 likes · like · see review

Apr 23, 2010 Lady Valee rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy

3.5 stars.It would be a 4 stars rating if it wasn't for the slow beginning.

This book is so good that I must recommend it. I loved it. And if this book is supposed to be the worst of all the books in the series, I can't wait to get my hands on the nexts.The first half of the book wasn't as good as the second, but what an ending!

I loved the fact that the book was written in first person, and also that all the books in the series are about Fayth, at least I Hope they are.
Fayth is just this awesome...more

4 likes · like · see review

Oct 03, 2010 FlibBityFLooB rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2009, love-triangle, read-in-2010, loved-the-audiobook-narration, witty-i-am-not, read-more-than-once, shifters, urban-fantasy-or-paranormal

Re-read in 2010: Still loved the book. If anything, re-reading made me like the character of Jace even more...
---
I stayed up all night reading this book. It got to be too exciting and I had to know how the main character would get out of the situation she was in.

I will say that I liked the secondary love interest better than the main one. I don't know if the next book in the series features the same characters, but if it does, I will cheer him on. Go Jace!

8 likes · like · see review

May 04, 2012 Ashley rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Rachel, Rachel, Rachel. I came VERY close to giving this one two stars. In the end, I just couldn't give it less than I gave Vanish. Sadly it seems that Jacinda has some stiff competion for most annoying protagonist of all time.

Look, I have five daughters (three of whom are grown and out of the house). My wife is a pharmacist who makes more money working part time than I make working full time. I'm all about equal rights for women, but the thoughts storming around in the mind of Faythe Sanders a...more

1 like · like · see review

Aug 10, 2011 Ariana Deralte rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy, supernatural, chicklit

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

1 like · like · see review

Oct 31, 2012 Hanife rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: pnr, 2011, own-a-copy, reading-turkish, recommendations, series-i-haven-t-finished, shifters

Bu yorum aynı zamanda Romancekolikte yayınlanmıştır.

Evet dişli bir kediyle tanışın!

Faythe türünün 8 dişisinden biri ve ailesinin göz bebeği. Buna rağmen isyankar tavırlarıyla ailesinden 5 yıl uzakta kalabilmeyi başardı. Ama bir serserinin kendisine saldırması ve akabinde bu saldırıların bir çok dişi kedininde başına gelip kaçırılmasını öğrenmesi Faythe'nin iyice canını sıkmıştı. 5 yıl elinde tuttuğu özgürlüğü ondan alınıyor ve eve dönmeye zorlanıyordu, buna eski erkek arkadaş sendromuda eklenin...more

1 like · like · see review

Feb 06, 2011 Shannon rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I feel like I have been missing out! I am surprised at the reviews of this book on Amazon. Though more good than not, they are pretty mixed. I have read a lot of books in this genre and this has added the series to my new favorites. Some reviewers didn’t warm to Faythe, one even called her a B**** ! Well, I disagree!

I LIKE Faythe and kinda want her to be my friend. I don't expect my heroines to be perfect, if they were it would be an awfully short book now wouldn’t it? I need a touch of reality...more I feel like I have been missing out! I am surprised at the reviews of this book on Amazon. Though more good than not, they are pretty mixed. I have read a lot of books in this genre and this has added the series to my new favorites. Some reviewers didn’t warm to Faythe, one even called her a B**** ! Well, I disagree!

I LIKE Faythe and kinda want her to be my friend. I don't expect my heroines to be perfect, if they were it would be an awfully short book now wouldn’t it? I need a touch of reality to make the paranormal sink in. There were times when I wanted to yell at her. You know how when you watch the scary movie and pretty blonde panty wearing girl walks into the dark room or runs INTO the dark scary woods? Yeah, It was like that. Now how many times have you heard a noise in your house at night and gotten out of bed in your PJ’s (or nothing, I don't know you like that) and went to find out what it was. Mmmmm Hmmmmm. So give Pretty blonde panty wearing girl a break, because even though you know you shouldn’t, it is what you would do too. My point is that I agree that Faythe is immature and pretty selfish sometimes, everyone can be. She is also young and in college and in the context of the life she has lived, it makes sense. This is a series, so I look forward to her character development.

Yes, I see some parallels to Bitten by Kelley Armstrong, no I am not bothered. When you read a book about Vampires, you can’t call it a copy of Anne Rice – well you could, but really?? She didn’t invent Vampires. Similar is not the same. If I pick up a book about werecats, there are certain things I expect to be there. I expect her to turn into a cat, I expect her to be a little bit tougher than a human and I expect that there will be some form of pride mentality. If she started making them only purple and with an extra eye and they only became werecats after being visited by the Ghost of Christmas past then it would be nothing like anything else we have ever read, but would it still be a novel about werecats? I don’t think so.

SO, here is thing, I really liked it. I can understand the reason behind making the females valuable and rare; as they are in this book. I think I like Faythe so much because I can see me BEING her. I don’t like to be told what to do, and will often not do something just because I was told too. Ask my mom, she knows. I don’t think that wanting to make your own way makes you a b****.

Aside from Faythe, there are some fun supporting characters. Marc is a bit of a hothead to say the least, but he seems a fun match for her as does Jace. I like her family and I would love to visit the ranch that they live on. I was able to sink into this book and barely look away from it until I finished. I can’t wait to read the next ones to get caught up.
(less)

4 likes · like · see review

Apr 06, 2011 Celine rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: urban-fantasy, werewolves-shifters

Stray really was one big meh for me. There was nothing that really stood out. Yes, I know, I haven't read about werecats before. Yet, these cats live together in a system that reminds a lot of the werewolf hierarchy like in Bitten. Main character Faythe was a little bit too ignorant for my taste. She has one hell of a strange view on the world. She constantly boasts around that she's so tough, she's not weak, she can handle anything! Yet when anyone tells her bad news (yes, it was horrible news,...more

2 likes · like · see review

Jan 13, 2010 Chichipio rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy

Terrible book. In the first two chapters, Faythe goes on and on about how she wants to be independent. Then she introduces Marc, her love interest, in a way that you can't help but dislike the guy. They had a history and, apparently, not a terribly good one. Anyway, if her words don't convince you, then his actions do. He's a complete Neanderthal that doesn't understand that no means no. Of course, this wouldn't be a problem, except that he likes to make this point by getting physical about it.

O...more

4 likes · like · see review

Oct 06, 2009 Summer rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal, shifters-werewolves, urban-fantasy

So in Stray a young woman named Faythe is in college as a grad student. She's an English major with a roommate, a boyfriend, and the usual college problems. Or at least she likes to think so. In reality that's only half her story. Faythe is also a werecat. She can Shift and turn into a solid black cat similar in size to a panther. Most of her life has been spent with her Pride, which is the equivalent of a wolf's 'pack'. Her father is the Alpha of the Pride and has certain ideas about her future...more So in Stray a young woman named Faythe is in college as a grad student. She's an English major with a roommate, a boyfriend, and the usual college problems. Or at least she likes to think so. In reality that's only half her story. Faythe is also a werecat. She can Shift and turn into a solid black cat similar in size to a panther. Most of her life has been spent with her Pride, which is the equivalent of a wolf's 'pack'. Her father is the Alpha of the Pride and has certain ideas about her future. Faythe wants nothing at all to do with her father's ideas or the Pride. She'd like to lead her own life, away from the strict rules that govern the Pride. After high school she talked her father into letting her move away from the Pride and go to college on her own. She's been sticking it out on her own since. However, she doesn't have total freedom. She's noticed over the years that every so often she scents or sees one of the Pride members spying on her. She knows they were sent by her father and hates that he thinks she can't take care of herself. That very ability is called into question when a stray starts kidnapping female werecats. One of them attacks Faythe at school and her father's enforcer comes to take her back home. Faythe has no choice but to go with him and face her family. Her past has come back to bite her and she can't run away from all her problems anymore.

I do agree with some of the reviews I've read in that Faythe can be kind of whiny. Maybe it's just me but I also found it odd that she's supposed to be 23 and she always refers to her father as 'Daddy'. But perhaps that's just me. She wasn't annoying though and I felt like she got better towards the end of the book. Her love interest was interesting but sometimes he got on my nerves with his Alpha attitude. The book did sometimes feel bogged down with explanations of how their social structure worked as well. But I felt in total though that it was still a good book. The characters were interesting and the plot kept me hooked. (less)

3 likes · like · see review

Oct 11, 2008 Cheryl rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Fathe Sanders is definitely not your typical college student. She is a werecat. Fathe has resisted joining her father, Greg’s pride in exchange for her independence. But not to worry as Fathe’s father would not leave his precious daughter unattended. One night Fathe gets attacked by a Stray. Strays are rogue werecats that do not belong to any pride. After that its game on as Fathe is ready to fight and the claws are coming out. Greg wants Fathe to come home where he can protect her. Now Fathe is...more

3 likes · like · see review

topics	posts	views	last activity
Series/book like this one?	9	32	May 13, 2013 12:56am
Vampire Book Club: Oct. Group Read > STRAY > end of month discussion (Spoilers!)	3	35	Nov 01, 2012 08:19pm
Vampire Book Club: Oct. Group Read > STRAY > The Pride (Spoilers!)	4	32	Oct 26, 2012 11:02pm
What really annoys me...	4	90	Oct 25, 2012 09:57pm
Vampire Book Club: Oct. Group Read > Will you join us in reading STRAY?	23	40	Oct 25, 2012 12:33pm
Vampire Book Club: Read-A-Long Shifters Series	1	10	Oct 23, 2012 08:54am
Vampire Book Club: Oct. Group Read > STRAY > your thoughts so far...	6	10	Oct 22, 2012 08:58pm

title link	preview: Stray
avg rating	preview: Stray Goodreads rating: 3.86 (17063 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7519646-stray?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348966599l/7519646.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7519646-stray?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Stray by Rachel Vincent[/url]

Stray (Shifters #1)

Friend Reviews

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topic
Discuss This Book

combine
Other Editions (19)

Genres

Readers also enjoyed similar books

About Rachel Vincent

Books by Rachel Vincent

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website

Trivia About Stray

Quotes from Stray