The Calling (Darkness Rising, #2) in SOS: Serious Overload of Series

Nov 07, 2014 Paula Phillips rated it really liked it

One of my favourite paranormal/Supernatural authors is Kelley Armstrong as no matter what her books are about , she does not get boring or disappoint her readers.
After the bushfire that ravaged through their community , it seems that Maya and her friends are really in danger and that due to their special abilities , they are being hunted. As more deaths occur and their chances at surviving and escaping those hunting them become slim, they must join forces in order to survive but what happens wh ...more

Like · see review

Aug 25, 2012 Nairabell rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 5-star, teen-ya-paranormal, read-in-2012

Maya Delaney now knows that she has a unique gift. She is a skin-walker and able to change her form into that of a mountain lion. But with that knowledge came horrifying revelations about her home town of Salmon Creek. Now she is stranded in the wilderness of Vancouver Island with a small group of friends after a suspicious forest fire forced an evacuation and Maya is left questioning not only can she control her gift, but can she truly trust the people she calls her friends?

This is the second b Maya Delaney now knows that she has a unique gift. She is a skin-walker and able to change her form into that of a mountain lion. But with that knowledge came horrifying revelations about her home town of Salmon Creek. Now she is stranded in the wilderness of Vancouver Island with a small group of friends after a suspicious forest fire forced an evacuation and Maya is left questioning not only can she control her gift, but can she truly trust the people she calls her friends?

This is the second book in the Darkness Rising trilogy (after The Gathering) and picks up right where the previous left off so I definitely don't recommend reading this first. There have been too many revelations for this to make much sense separate from the first volume.

Once again the story is action packed but this time the story starts with a bang meaning that it is fast paced throughout with lots of twists and turns, some picking up on little hints in the previous book. There is also a lot of internal stress as Maya and her friends have discovered that Salmon Creek was less of a medical research town and more of a paranormal playground, and that they may have innate supernatural abilities from supposedly extinct species.

Although Maya is accustomed to being out in nature, being totally stranded miles from home is new to her as is becoming the leader of a group of not-so-outdoorsy teens. She is stranded along with Daniel, Sam, Haley, Nicole and Corey which means quite a large cast of characters, although they frequently split into smaller groups which stops it from becoming difficult to keep track of everyone. Forcing such a diverse group together with snobby girls next to goths creates some tension that is great to read.

Taking a leadership role and dealing with her losses makes Maya spend some serious time considering whether her life is better or worse now she knows the truth, and her struggle with her grief is well written. Daniel is dealing with the revelations of his nature as well and trying to grasp what being a Bendanti means for him. Both grow up a lot during the book which is great to read about.

As the second book in the trilogy questions are unsurprisingly left unanswered, especially as to the supernatural species of some of Maya's friends. I'm really hoping these are revealed in the final volume as I'm looking forward to seeing which new species are introduced, particularly in Corey's case.

All in all this was another great read and I'm looking forward to The Rising.

Plot: 9/10
Characters: 9/10
Ending: 10/10
Enjoyment: 10/10
Cover: 10/10

Overall: 48/50 ...more

Like · see review

Oct 26, 2010 D rated it really liked it

I've been a huge Kelley Armstrong fan ever since I first discovered Bitten in 2008. And I've been very pleased with her transition into YA since then. While I always have the lingering feeling that I would have enjoyed her YA more while I was a younger teen, this is at no fault of the author. Her YA books are always well-written and consistent, if slightly subdued.

The Calling is a strong sequel and perhaps an altogether stronger book than it's predecessor. One thing that truly impressed me is t I've been a huge Kelley Armstrong fan ever since I first discovered Bitten in 2008. And I've been very pleased with her transition into YA since then. While I always have the lingering feeling that I would have enjoyed her YA more while I was a younger teen, this is at no fault of the author. Her YA books are always well-written and consistent, if slightly subdued.

The Calling is a strong sequel and perhaps an altogether stronger book than it's predecessor. One thing that truly impressed me is that I'm not recognizing her characters from other series. With time, certain authors become bland because while their characters change in appearance and background, they essentially remain the same in personality. This is not a problem with Kelley Armstrong. Her characters are truly different. I don't automatically recognize the romantic interest as a poorly veiled repeat from a previous novel. The romantic interest isn't always the handsome guy, the nice guy, the misunderstood guy, or even the dangerous guy. Every character is a stranger at first. And it's always a pleasure to make their acquaintance.

My only complaint with this novel is that its setting is limited in scope. Her Women of the Otherworld series (originally, at least) is very much rooted in Jeremy's house. But we also get a nice sense of Elena's world away from the Pack. We feel the contrast between civilization with all its technology- and the Pack with its natural wilds. In the Darkest Powers series, the portrayal of the Lyle House is creepily excellent.

The Darkness Rising series has a lot of movement and nature to comprise its setting, but very little depth and sense of direction. I understand that this is partially due to the nature of the kids' escape. But I felt the setting was handled much better in Darkest Powers where kids were also on the run.

The Calling is another success for Armstrong. I'd recommend (re)reading The Summoning before reading The Calling as I found that I often needed to refresh my memory. ...more

Like · see review