Book Review: Omens by Kelley Armstrong

Pros: interesting premise, fast-paced mystery, good set up for series

Cons: protagonists show little emotion, paranormal elements are light

Twenty-four year old socialite Olivia Taylor-Jones's life is turned upside down when she discovers that not only is she adopted, her birth parents are notorious serial killers.  Running to avoid the media and protect her mother and fiancee, Olivia ends up in Cainsville, a small town outside Chicago.  While trying to get by on her own she starts investigating the murder case that put her parents behind bars.  And her superstition about omens seems to be giving her good guidance lately.

There's a lot going on in this novel.  There's Olivia's coming of age, as she's forced from her home and social expectations and allowed to find what she wants out of life.  There's the murder mystery, long gone cold with few leads that haven't been followed by others.  And there's the town, with it's unique mixture of people, many of whom have some connection to Britain's folkloric past - though Olivia's mostly unaware of this and the reader's only given hints.  This book is primarily grounding for the new series.  We're introduced to the main players, including the town itself, with its numerous gargoyles and mysterious happenings.  

I loved the plot, that this girl discovers she's the kid of serial killers and how she deals with it.  And she deals with it remarkably well.  Despite the many things she learns, sees and does, she never breaks down.  Which is surprising, because she sees and does some horrific things.  It was strange not seeing her deal with the grief and shock that would have accompanied some of what she does/encounters.  But it certainly set her up as a strong character - much like Ripley from the Alien franchise.  Kick-ass and capable, but not always right.  In many ways she's well complemented by Gabriel Walsh, the lawyer who offers his aid - for a fee - who also displays little emotion.  I liked that the groundwork of a romance between them was set up, but that it's being allowed to develop naturally - assuming that's the direction the author is taking their relationship.

It's a quick, entertaining read and a good set up for what sounds like an interesting series.

Out August 20th.

Kelley Armstrong's Otherworld Series Comes to an End

In 2001 Kelley Armstrong published Bitten, the first book of her Otherworld series.  Today, the final book in the series (book 13) is being released, appropriately titled Thirteen.

If you haven't read the series, now's the time to start.  Here's the synopsis for Bitten, to whet your appetite (taken from Armstrong's website):

Elena Michaels is the world’s only female werewolf. And she’s tired of it. Tired of a life spent hiding and protecting, a life where her most important job is hunting down rogue werewolves. Tired of a world that not only accepts the worst in her–her temper, her violence–but requires it. Worst of all, she realizes she’s growing content with that life, with being that person.

So she left the Pack and returned to Toronto where she’s trying to live as a human. When the Pack leader calls asking for her help fighting a sudden uprising, she only agrees because she owes him. Once this is over, she’ll be squared with the Pack and free to live life as a human. Which is what she wants. Really.

Genre News

I've had some interesting notifications recently, which I thought I'd pass on.

First up, Angry Robot Books has opened their online bookstore, the Robot Trading Company, to other publishers (in ebook format, DRM free).  Currently those other publishers are Anarchy Books and Infinity Plus Books.

What we hope to do long-term is stock ebooks from as many genre fiction (and non-fiction) publishers as we possibly can. And we'll only be stocking genre-interest titles; no mainstream literary stuff, no chick-lit rom-coms, no home-gourmet cook books and definitely no z-list celebrity biogs. In short: we're aiming for an independent genre-only ebook webstore, run by genre fans, for genre fans.

They're asking for help spreading the word by:

1) Visiting www.robottradingcompany.com and browsing our catalogue to see what catches your eye or takes your fancy…
2) Signing up for the Robot Trading Company Mailing List, so we can keep you up-to-date with details of new releases, special offers, competitions and more.
3) Liking the Robot Trading Company on Facebook or following the Robot Trading Company Twitter Feed.
4) Telling your quality-genre-fiction-loving friends about us, too. 

In other news, Kelley Armstrong is releasing her first eSpecial in honour of publishing her final Otherworld book, Thirteen.  The eSpecial, available tomorrow for $1.99, includes two short stories, "Stalked" and "Off-Duty Angel", and an exclusive look at what's to come in Thirteen.  From the press release:

Most honeymoons are all strawberries and champagne, Elena Michaels and Clayton Danvers, two of the most powerful the world, a run-of-the-mill romantic retreat is out of the Stalked, Elena and Clay are the picture of a classic honeymoon when a non-pack werewolf appears on the scene, clearly tracking intention of letting him spoil their vacation, even if that means on his own. Originally part of an anthology of supernatural the perfect action-packed interlude for fans not quite ready to say goodbye to the two characters who started it all.

Off-Duty Angel is an original new story, exclusive to this eSpecial, that features dark witch,
half-demon, and afterlife angel Eve Levine. Desperate for entertainment while her lover, Kristof Nash, is detained in court, Eve stumbles upon a mission of her own—to trail a shaman that might prove useful in Kristof’s court case. Following her target is a breeze at first, but when he inadvertently steers Eve into a secret alternate dimension, she stumbles upon a far more enticing puzzle—one with a much greater danger lurking at the end. Packed with suspense and surprising twists, Off-Duty Angel reveals fascinating insight into a beloved character.

Finally, THE HUNTER AND THE HUNTED will leave readers with just a taste of what’s to come in Thirteen, with an exclusive excerpt from the grand finale. Once again, Kelley Armstrong reminds us all that even thirteen novels in the Otherworld just isn’t enough.