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Stray (Shifters, #1)

Rachel Vincent

Start date: July 2, 2011

Finish date: July 31, 2011

Discussion: (2011) BBA Reading Challenge

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(2011) BBA Reading Challenge

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What Members Thought

Apr 23, 2010 Claire Louise¤°.¸¸.•´¯`» rated it liked it · review of another edition

Rated 3.5 stars

Buying 5 books in a series by an author you've never read before is a risk to any reader. if the book is pants you're stuck with 5 books you wont ever read again and you've wasted money. But after hearing so much good things about the Shifter series that is what i did. And i'm glad i did. Stray by Rachel Vincent is told in the first person by Faythe. She's a werecat trying to live the normal American lifestyle, go to school, have friends who don't shed fur and fit into society. Rated 3.5 stars

Buying 5 books in a series by an author you've never read before is a risk to any reader. if the book is pants you're stuck with 5 books you wont ever read again and you've wasted money. But after hearing so much good things about the Shifter series that is what i did. And i'm glad i did. Stray by Rachel Vincent is told in the first person by Faythe. She's a werecat trying to live the normal American lifestyle, go to school, have friends who don't shed fur and fit into society. Her pride however has other plans for her. Mainly for her to come home, train and one day take over as Pride leader. As much as her family try to make her do one thing, she rebels and does the opposite. It was that mentality that at times Faythe irked me. I feel it will be an on going irksome/liking her relationship.

Much to Faythe's chagrin, she has to go home when female werecats go missing, and then turn up dead. And this is where i began to really like this book, i adore character interactions, lots of dialogue, a steady pace with action, steam and angst tossed in for good measure. I got all that and more.

yes Faythe will irritate me throughout this serious, she did on numerous occasions, she reminded me of the girl you see in movies, they aren't supposed to go into the dark alleyway/woods/basement but she always does..and regrets it afterwards.

Stand out characters for me were Faythe, Marc (SWOON) and Jace (love that name) Although Faythe is in love with Marc but heavily denying it having been in a relationship with him years ago and ended it, and then there is definite chemistry with her and Jace too, the frissons made my fingers tingle! Do i smell threesome/and or love triangle? I think so! It makes me want to get to book two immediately if not sooner. There was alot of arguments between Marc and Faythe, Marc seems much more mature and together in knowing what his future entails, and Faythe doing her teenage tantrums made me wonder what he saw in her. Other characters, such as Faythe's brothers and her school boyfriend all seemed to morph into one, hopefully in future books they'll stand out more.

I loved the shifter aspect, Vincent described it vividly so i had no doubts to what my mind saw, i loved them in cat form, there was no telepathy most shifters books have and i found i liked that aspect better, they had to communicate as animals do with growls, nudges, nips and even full out fighting. When she was a were cat is when i liked Faythe best.
Along with the descriptive shifting, Vincent gave us heavy scenes when the bad guys kidnapped female werecats, thankfully we only see the aftermath but even that was enough to cringe in parts. It added to the drama of the entire storyline.

What i did find though is the book was extremely long, i felt it had ended a hundred or more pages before it actually did. Saying that i am looking forward to the second book in the series Rogue, seeing Faythe hopefully mature and stop throwing tantrums, have empathy for others and to see how the burgeoning relationship with Marc/and possibly Jace too continues. ...more

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Jul 27, 2010 katrina rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Initially at first wasnt sure this book seemed very differnt then most I read. But I must say I really enjoyed this book. The storyline runs smoothly and i liked the concept and idea. I am now hunting down the rest of the series to read and have started anohter Rachel Vincent book . For anyone who likes Fantasy fiction suspense and something difernt this is the book for you.
**
I look like an all-American grad student. But I am a werecat, a shape-shifter, and I live in two worlds.

Despite reserv ...more

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Nov 02, 2010 Caroline (Words & Whispers) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: my-library, reviewed

Okay, so while I was busy making false promises to myself and saying I wasn't going to get hooked on yet another book series, I was busy falling in love with Stray. Seriously, this book had all I could ever ask for: a complicated love triangle; a smart-ass, kick-ass heroine; a huge amount of hot guys; tons of suspense and action; a sexy, in-your-face writing style; a paranormal twist; and an ending that made me pull out a couple of my own hairs. Maybe I'm in a great mood, but every page was a cl Okay, so while I was busy making false promises to myself and saying I wasn't going to get hooked on yet another book series, I was busy falling in love with Stray. Seriously, this book had all I could ever ask for: a complicated love triangle; a smart-ass, kick-ass heroine; a huge amount of hot guys; tons of suspense and action; a sexy, in-your-face writing style; a paranormal twist; and an ending that made me pull out a couple of my own hairs. Maybe I'm in a great mood, but every page was a cliffhanger in itself and every chapter was like its own short story. Faythe (whose name I loved) is so hilarious and so sarcastic I was laughing out loud every time I wasn't biting my nails at the nonstop action. Marc, the sweetheart, left me aching so badly for my own ferociously hot, muscular, funny... Okay, I'll stop drooling. I loved Jace, too, even when he got a bit annoying and seemed a bit, shall I say, ardent in his sudden affections. Who doesn't love a good love triangle? Anyways, while the action and romance were fantastic, I had a few complaints, my main being that Faythe was a little bit of a big talker. She acted like she was tougher than she proved, until about 400 pages in. Maybe I'm being picky, but for all her big talk, she sure needed a lot of rescuing. Another thing: near the end of the novel her affections were suddenly set in stone, and I was a little shocked that she had so suddenly made her decision, seeing as for the first half she seemed to be so convinced she wanted a completely independent life. Lastly, the ending got really graphic. I'm a horror movie fan, don't get me wrong, and I love some good, old-fashioned gore, but the graphicness seemed kind of random in the book. I don't know, maybe it served its purpose, and while I didn't blink at the grotesque description, I thought some readers might have been a little more disgusted and maybe even turned off. I just found it unnecessary. Anyways, great book, and I'm definitely getting Rogue as soon as humanly possible.
4.5 stars and a recommendation to adventure-romance (is that even a genre?) fans or readers looking for a kick-ass first novel to a promising series. ...more

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Mar 15, 2011 Bella rated it liked it

Shelves: adult-fiction, ebook, paranormal, science-fiction

When I started this book it took me quite a while to really get into it. A lot of that had to do with the main character, Faythe Sanders. Faythe is a grad student in a Texas college with no desire to deal with her werecat family.
Tired of familial obligations and lack of privacy, she does everything she can think of to put off the inevitable issues having such a background entails. But in trying to do so she can be really immature, spoiled, and in many scenes downright unlikeable. I found Faythe ...more

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