Review: The Calling (Darkness Rising #2)

The Calling by Kelley Armstrong

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 336
Published: April 10, 2012
Publisher: Random House Canada
Genre: Fiction, Young Adult

My Rating: 4/5

Summary (from chapters.ca):

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.

Review:

**NOTE: A copy of this book was provided by the publisher.  However, no compensations were made and this review reflects my honest thoughts and feelings.**

**Please also note that this review may contain spoilers if you have not read the first book in the series, The Gathering**

How many ways can your world change before it breaks you in two? 

Maya has discovered that she isn't just a regular girl and in fact, the more she looks around her, the more she realizes that nothing is as it seems.  Her friends all have secrets and as they fight for survival, they must come clean about themselves or face the ultimate risk, death.

As a second book in the Darkness Rising series, I found The Calling to be a decent book.  Sure, there were parts that I found slow and parts that were redundant but that is the general nature of the second book... you need to catch everyone up and/or remind them of things past.  Reading the books so close together generally adds that annoyance of "Ya, I know" to the whole deal, but no worries, The Calling is still worthy of a read.

One part of the whole series, thus far, that has taken me back a little is the fact that no one seems shocked or freaked out about one anothers abilities.  If one of my life-long friends suddenly morphed into a cougar, I would not stand by and wait, I would be running in the other direction as fast as humanly possible.  It would really make things a little more realistic if this had been the case for at least one of the characters.  However, seeing as they all had some sort of powers, although not all have been fully explained, maybe being freaked out isn't so common. 

Once again, Kelley Armstrong has done wonders with her ability to pull the readers into the wilderness of Vancouver Island.  Having lived in the general area, I was thrilled at being taken back there and the imagry was as stunning on the page as it is in person.  Through Kelley's storytelling ability, the richness of colours and feelings literally leap off the pages.

While not all of the characters from The Gathering were in this book, I really enjoyed the more in depth focus on the core group of kids.  I look forward to knowing more of the story in the third and final book in the series.

Overall, another great book by Kelley Armstrong and she has once again left the readers sitting on the edge of their seats as they wait for the finale to the trilogy.