Review: The Rising by Kelley Armstrong

Title: The Rising (Darkness Rising #3)
Author: Kelley Armstrong 
Publisher: Harper Teen
Release date: April 2nd 2013

Rating: 5/5

Buy on: Amazon | B&N | BookDepository

You can read my review of The Gathering - here & The Calling - here

Things are getting desperate for Maya and her friends. Hunted by the powerful St. Clouds and now a rival Cabal as well, they're quickly running out of places to hide. And with the whole world thinking they died in a helicopter crash, it's not like they can just go to the authorities for help.

All they have is the name and number of someone who might be able to give them a few answers. Answers to why they're so valuable, and why their supernatural powers are getting more and more out of control.

But Maya is unprepared for the truths that await her. And now, like it or not, she'll have to face down some demons from her past if she ever hopes to move on with her life. Because Maya can't keep running forever.

Old secrets are revealed and unexpected characters make a surprising return in this stunning conclusion to Kelley Armstrong's New York Times bestselling Darkness Rising trilogy.

I love the world where it takes place this trilogy, and it´s the same world as Darkest Powers but also is the same world as her adult series Women of the Otherworld, so I felt this book like a farewell to the series I've been following for some time and that I loved so much.

Maya, Daniel, Rafael and Corey have been fugitives since they discovered that they were subjects of an experiment called Phoenix and that they were of a type of supernatural that supposed to be extinct, two rival groups of sorcerers have been on their heels with intention to capture them. In this book, Maya and her friends try to find a way to escape once and for all and be free of  both groups of cabals (groups of sorcerers), and reunited with their families and live a more or less normal life. And to achieved this they need the help of another group of teenagers, who are subjects of the Genesis experiment. This is the part that I was dying to read, the return of the characters of the Darkest Powers trilogy, I couldn't wait to see Chloe, Derek, Simon and Tori.

Since I found out that Chloe and Derek from the Darkest Powers trilogy would be in this book, I put it as a priority to read books, yet I had a bit of fear because my expectations were high. And although the ending is not what I expected or ideal (in my opinion), I can live with it and it is the closest thing to a good ending for the main characters. Another thing that I really liked, was that also make a cameo or make a mention of the characters from the adult series (yay!). And what I love the most was the epilogue because it takes place eight months after the ending and I could see how they are adjusting to their new life and I also like that Maya end up with the guy I expected. This is a book for fans of paranormal and Kelley Armstrong novels.

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The Calling by Kelley Armstrong

Title: The Calling (Darkness Rising #2)
Author: Kelley Armstrong 
Publisher: HarperCollins
Release date: April 10th 2012

Rating: 4/5

Buy on: Amazon | B&N | BookDepository

You can read my review of The Gathering - here

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.

In THE CALLING, the sizzling second book in the Darkness Rising trilogy, New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong pumps up the romance, danger, and suspense that left readers of THE GATHERING clamoring for more.

I really loved this book but not as much as The Gathering, in this book there is more action, a bit of suspense and romance, but I felt a huge deja vu comparing it against The Awakening, the second book in the Darkest Powers series, although there are several things that are different, I could not help but compare them.

The book begins moments after the events in The Gathering, Maya and some of her friends are in a helicopter in route to meet with their families, when the blessed helicopter crashes leaving them in an uninhabited part of the island of Vancouver, filled with predators and certain people trying to catch them. So most of the book is them trying to stay safe while returning home. What I really liked was that I was able to see more interaction between Maya and her best friend Daniel, seeing how well they understood and trust in each other.

This is a very good second book, but it left me with more questions than in the previous book. The Calling has a cliffhanger ending that left me wanting to read The Rising, the last book in the trilogy and I can´t wait to see Derek, because is hinted that in The Rising, there could be a cameo of my beloved characters from Darkest Powers trilogy.

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The Gathering by Kelley Armstrong

Title: The Gathering (Darkness Rising #1)
Author: Kelley Armstrong 
Publisher: HarperCollins
Release date: April 12th 2011

Rating: 4.5/5

Buy on: Amazon | B&N | BookDepository

Sixteen-year-old Maya is just an ordinary teen in an ordinary town. Sure, she doesn't know much about her background - the only thing she really has to cling to is an odd paw-print birthmark on her hip - but she never really put much thought into who her parents were or how she ended up with her adopted parents in this tiny medical-research community on Vancouver Island.

Until now.

Strange things have been happening in this claustrophobic town - from the mountain lions that have been approaching Maya to her best friend's hidden talent for "feeling" out people and situations, to the sexy new bad boy who makes Maya feel . . . . different. Combine that with a few unexplained deaths and a mystery involving Maya's biological parents and it's easy to suspect that this town might have more than its share of skeletons in its closet.

In The Gathering , New York Times best-selling author Kelley Armstrong brings all the supernatural thrills from her wildly successful Darkest Powers series to Darkness Rising, her scorching hot new trilogy.

This is the second time I read this book and I didn´t really remember many details about it, so it was good to read it again. The Gathering is the spin-off of Darkest Powers, a trilogy that I loved! . This new trilogy takes place in the same world as her adult series Women of the Otherworld (this series has different characters than the YA trilogies. The main characters of the adult series have not crossed paths with the characters from Ya trilogies).

The Gathering takes place months after the end of The Reckoning and the main character is Maya, a girl who lives on Vancouver Island, in a tiny town called Salmon Creek with a population of less than 200 inhabitants, this village is a medical research complex, where all adults work for the St.Cloud company. The employees and their families have the best of the best, the best education in a private school, the best medical care, the best entertainment facilities, etc., so that everyone is happy in the town, until an alleged reporter starts appearing everywhere and investigates Maya and her friends.

The book is told from the point of view of Maya, she is very sarcastic, strong, confident, smart leader and she loves her adoptive parents. Her romantic interest is Rafe, a mysterious guy, he is new in town and have a bad reputation. And finally we have Maya´s best friend, Daniel which has been her friend since they were five years-old, as Maya he is strong, a natural leader, intelligent and support her completely (for once I would like the protagonist end up with her best friend).

I really liked this book and I may a bit biased in this new trilogy, because I love the "world" where the story unfolds and I particularly like the background where the plot unfolds .... Vancouver Island , surrounded by nature, mountain lions (cougars). The Gathering is a good first book in a trilogy, but ultimately leaves you with many questions about the powers of Maya's friends.

Book trailer

Book trailer 

(Canada)