Customer Reviews

Haunted (Women of the Otherworld, Book 5)

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(26)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Haunted by Kelley Armstrong, is another fantastic adventure in the Women of the Otherworld series. Haunted has a very unusual main character - Eve Levine, Savannah's mother and a ghost. Eve was a black witch and a half-demon when alive. She believed witch magic had been corrupted and diluted, as Paige discovers in Dime Store Magic. Eve has done many murky things to gain sorcerer and witch spells that she was able to use. This quest for greater power made Eve careless, which lead to her death before the events of Stolen occurred. While her death was a peripheral plot line in the series, the consequences where far reaching for Savannah. Much of Dime Store Magic was the result of Savannah coming to terms with her mother's death.

Haunted gives a great deal of insight into how Eve and Savannah are so much alike. Eve will not let go of Savannah and spends a great of her time in the afterlife checking up on her. Eve has been reunited with Kristof, Savannah's father, but will not allow him to be more then a friend. Kristoff is not your average Cabal sorcerer. He has regretted not pursing Eve and Savannah for 15 years and is determined not to make the same mistake a second time.

The Fates, overseers of the supernatural afterlife, have decided to call in the favor that Eve garnered at the conclusion of Industrial Magic. Eve is being sent on a mission to track a Nix, a Germanic demi-demon nymph who feeds off chaos. This particular Nix has been jumping from woman to woman giving them the necessary drive to murder. The Nix feeds off the chaos and anguish these murders create. Eventually she grows weary of her partner and devises a way for them to be caught and create even more chaos. The Fates have sent three previous hunters to catch the Nix and return her to hell. Each has failed leaving the Nix to continue her reign of terror.

The Fates hope Eve, with her unusual talents will be successful is catching the Nix. With the help of Kirstof, an angel named Trsiel, and the infamous necromancer Jamie Vegas, Eve sets out on a course that changes everything.

Haunted starts out slow and is hard to relate to at first since all the main characters are not corporal beings. Once the plot with the Nix begins to unfold, the characters transcend death and the afterlife they live in begins to make sense. Kelley Armstrong is author to be lauded. Instead of cranking out another adventure using werewolves, witches, or sorcerers, she has created an entire mythological inspired afterlife that exists as another layer to the series. The world Eve and Kristoff inhabit is fascinating to read about. The living and the afterlife are connected, but the dead cannot touch, feel, or communicate directly (except through a necromancer) with the living. Eve has been desperately searching for a way to influence and protect Savannah - at the cost of her sense of purpose. The afterlife is supposed to be a nice retirement of the worries of the living. Eve is definitely not ready for any sort of retirement.

Haunted is well worth reading. Kelley Armstrong has created an entertaining novel and stretched her wings. Many writers in her position simply rest on their laurels, but Kelley has instead decided to create something entirely different. And it works as an entreating piece of fiction.

Kelley Armstrong currently resides in Ontario, Canada with her family. She has published five books in the Women of the Otherworld series; Bitten, Stolen, Dime Store Magic, Industrial Magic, and Haunted. The sixth in the series, Broken, will revisit Elena, Clay, and the werewolves and is to be released in May 2006. A mainstream novel titled Exit Strategy is forthcoming in 2006. She has an extensive website at http://www.kelleyarmstrong.com/ Her website contains original novellas and short stories from the Women of the Otherworld series.

I have loved all of the 5 books in this series. I like this one the very best. Contrary to what some reviewers have said, I like the familiarity with the characters and I also like the growth and development of the characters. This book was interesting with unexpected plotlines. Usually by the 5th book in a series, plots tend to become a rehash of the same old thing. However, with this Armstrong's books, it goes beyond what has gone before in new and surprising ways. The development of the supernatural worlds is always enjoyable. I dont expect Faulkner or Hemmingway when I read an Armstrong book, I expect fun and pleasure and that is what I find always.

I was skeptical at first, wondering how on earth I was going to identify with a main character who has no physical form, but Kelley Armstrong got me again. By the third chapter, I was hooked.

Thanks to consistent and believable "rules" in the world of her work, Eve's afterlife came alive for me. I wanted to see her prove herself worthy of the task assigned her and redeem herself in the eyes of all the readers who saw her as less-than-honorable from Paige's perspective over the course of the last two books. And she didn't disappoint me.

We already knew Eve was a good mother. Even Paige told us that. But through HAUNTED, we come to learn that she is also a good person, with a strong, if a bit tarnished, moral code of behavior. Sure she kills, and she doesn't try to hide that fact or make excuses for it. But she only kills those who deserve to die, and by the end, I was wishing she could have added a few more notches to her belt, as there were several bad guys worthy of her particular brand of justice.

The best part of this novel by far was how incredibly real Eve's angst felt over being unable to help, or to let go of her daughter. I was literally brought to tears twice, once by her horror and frustration as Savannah faces death and Eve is unable to do anything but watch. And again when she is realizes the inevitable conclusion: that life is for the living and she must let Savannah go, for the good of them both. I couldn't help feeling that Ms. Armstrong was writing about her own reluctance to let go of her children as they grow up, and based on the dedication, I think I may be right.

In HAUNTED, Ms. Armstrong has given us all a gift, a truly touching story about a woman who recognizes life's precious moments for the miracle they are and learns to cherish them as she reaches emotional maturity just a little too late - in an afterlife that is anything but restful and boring. With her best work and most compelling heroine since BITTEN, Ms. Armstrong has claimed her place on my permanent bookshelf, and a little piece of my heart, as well.

In order to earn her wings, Eve has to stop a Nix, a demon that possesses her victims, then uses their body to commit murder. Eve at present is a ghost, a rather rebellious witch who was killed in Stolen, leaving her daughter, Savannah, with Paige (Dimestore Magic, Industrial Magic). Until she was offered this assignment, Eve was content to keep an eye on her child's very interesting life from afar. Now, things change, and to up the stakes, it looks as if the Nix might want to make Savannah, Paige, and Lucas her victims. There is nothing, not even Hell, that Eve won't face to save these three. Fortunately, she is not alone. With the help of a full blood angel with attitude and Savannah's father, Kristoff, Eve sets off on what seems like an impossible, at times, quest.

***** Through it, readers learn more about Eve and Kristoff; and trust me, Kris is much more than the bad guy he seemed to be when last we saw him. Ms. Armstrong is an excellent writer in all respects, but she does seem to have a special knack for creating memorable heroes. However, all her characters are three dimensional, with realistic, yet not fatal, flaws that don't mar their perfection, merely make them endearing. *****

Armstrong's 5th outing in the Women of the Underworld series is diverting, but doesn't achieve the same high quality that her previous books had, and is the first of her books that I can not award five stars to.

The trouble with this book is that there are long pieces set in the afterworld that do not add to the story, but seem to exist soley to entertain the writer. Eve's long visits to "Ghost-World Pirateland" and "Serial Killer Hell" in her hunt to catch the villain do not move the plot along nearly enough to justify the almost 100 pages Armstrong devotes to them, and only serve to bog down the action. Likewise, the final battle between Eve and the Nix, which also involves old favorites Lucas, Savannah, and Jaime, the necromancer, takes way too long to come its conclusion, and features a plot device that was never hinted at.

I enjoyed this book, but it's the first one by Armstrong that I will not be giving to any of my friends to read. I'm hopeful that her next book, which will feature Elena and the werewolves, will regain the taut suspense that Armstrong's earlier books had. Stephen King's best writing was done when his editors had the guts to edit him. Let's hope Armstrong is amenable the next time an editor offers a suggestion.

Kelley Armstrong is one of my favourite writers: she writes about strong preternatural women and thoug they're set in an fantasy world, they are completely believable. And unlike most writers, she has the guts to change her main character and thus avoiding the way most series end up: going downhill, because how much can you make one person do and keep it still believable ? So she takes a character she introduced in another books and makes that her main character.

In book 5, Eve Levine is that main character. In the first two books we had a werewolve, in books 3 and 4 a witch, now we have a witch/half-demon/ghost.
Her being a ghost, a big part of the book is set in the afterlife. Eve was not a "good" person like Paige, but she was a good mother and loved her daughter above everything else. So much, that she can't let go of her after she died: Eve spends most of her afterlife checking up in Savannah, though there is nothing she can do if anything would happen to Savannah. So she tries to find a way to get involved in the real world.

But then the Fates give her a job: a Nix they caught a few 100 years ago, escaped about a hundred years ago, and they've had a lot of trouble a) finding her and b) catching her. The Nix has been found three times, but escaped three times, with great damage to those they send after her. So now they send Eve "where angels fear to thread" as another review said it. And they were quit right ! Because, to catch the Nix, they need someone who can think like she does but is still a decent person. (The Fates had tried sending a serial-killer after her, but that didn't go too well).

Catching a Nix is already a full job, but Eve needs to find time to check up on Savannah and there is also Kristof, Savannah's father. And the only thing he regrets about his life is letting Eve and Savannah go, so he's not about to give her up, now that he found Eve in the afterlife !

So, if you want to know if Eve finds a way to contact Savannah, catch the Nix and avoid kristof, you better read the book !

I enjoy in how this series of books doesn't forget the characters of the other books and keeps the connections, but never so much that it takes away from main character of the book you're reading. Kelly Armstrong is, in my opinion, doing a good job of letting you see the characters through the eyes of others, and still the characters remain who they are. You as the read get a more 3 dimensional look at people. The good, the bad and what the character him or herself don't know about themselves. That's a tough thing to do, but Kelly seems to be doing it well.

Eve in this book helps to develop all the other worlds that Kelly has created. There are many dimensions and you get a good look at the complexity and how things are connected, but not connected.

I'll admit this isn't one of my favorite books of this series, but I do appreciate the enhancement and the intricacies of the relationships throughout this book.

This book is about Eve Levine, deceased mother of teenage Savannah. I have to say that although I enjoyed this book I didn't enjoy it quite as much as some of the others. If you liked the other books in this series you will probably like this one too, although whether you like it more or less than other titles in the series probably depends mostly on the subtleties of personal taste. These are the things I particularly enjoyed about it:

1) The main character is a ghost. She can't affect anything in the real world and the only living people she can communicate with are necromancers. I can't think of another book off the top of my head where the protagonist is not only a ghost, but a ghost unable to do anything but 'watch' the world of the living. This had novelty value for me.

2)Eve is no innocent and I find the practical approach she takes to 'good' and 'evil' interesting. Very much 'the end justifies the means' sort of character.

3)The baddie, the 'Nix' was pretty cool. By cool I mean she was evil but smart enough that the chase lasted the whole book. I get bored with stupid baddies. The Nix's motives, whilst sick, were also made understandable. Hmmmm, on second thoughts maybe it's not such a good thing that the author clearly explained why the Nix gained so much fulfillment and pleasure from such terrible acts! There's also a scene where Eve has to go to a serial killer's hell which is very creepy.

Things stopping it from gaining another star or two:
1) Some aspects seemed a little too easy, too transparent plot devices. Other scenes I didn't feel added anything to the overall story. Like the pirate town. It just annoyed me without providing amusement or adding anything to the story. It seemed a little like the author went 'well I guess I should put some scene in so it doesn't seem like they got to their destination too quickly - everyone loves Pirates, I'll put some in!'. But they just didn't do it for me.

2)There were several points where I didn't understand why things were done a certain way. *Spoiler Alert*
Like sending Eve to the serial killer's hell to talk to Daschev; surely if the Fates can pluck ghosts from wherever they are to their throne room, Dashev should be no exception? And when Eve temporarily takes over Paige's body; surely once she's explained the situation to Lucas she could then remove herself and let Paige and Lucas take care of the situation in the living world? Why does it need to be her controlling Paige's body? Surely Paige would do it better since it's her own body? And the ending with Kristof and the whole angel thing seemed a little bit too neat. With Eve's personality it would have made more sense to me if she'd just broken a bunch of rules and made a general nuisance of herself to the Fates to be with Kristof.

"Haunted" sort of a detective novel in a fantasy setting. The main character, E--, is a ghost who regrets the foolish risk that got her killed, leaving her daughter S-- to grow up without her. E-- can teleport around the world and to an afterlife relm for creatures with magical talent. Near the beginning of the novel, E-- agrees to repay a major debt by finding and arresting another ghost, N--, who is possessing people and causing them to commit atrocities. The question is, how to locate a trecherous ghost who doesn't wish to be found? (This is simplified; you'll enjoy the details as you read.) E-- is portrayed as a tarnished soul, someone of dubious morals but who usually does the right thing.

There's a lot of enjoyment to be had reading this novel. "Haunted" is a stand alone novel, fast paced and entertaining. The universe is intersting and unique. The interaction between living creatures and ghosts and other spirits was intreguing.

My problems with it are thus. First, the author slanders an inocent woman, Lizzy Bordon. Lizzy was found inocent at her trial, and recent re-investigations into the case again found that she was innocent. Someone else murdered her parents, and then she was most likely tortured by strangers for the rest of her life by similar accusations, due to the catchy poem. Perpetrating this lie seems unnecessarily cruel. Second, the "afterlife" portrayed is pretty bland. What is the purpose? Why are they there? Really, it sounds BORRING -- stand around and pretend to do what you've been doing for your entire life. Yawn. So, while that aspect of story was entertaining, I really think the author could have done more with it. Third, E-- says she is morraly corrupt, yet she doesn't act that way. Thus, the "I used to be so bad when I was alive" musings got old.

"Haunted" is overall an interesting and entertaining fantasy nove, well suited for a lazy afternoon.

Like most fans, I got hooked on this series with the very first, the book that introduced the werewolves, "Bitten". When Kelly left the werewolves to tell the story of Paige, who I couldn't stand in "Stolen", I was annoyed. And I ended up loving the Paige oncw we had the story from her view and the stories of both "Dime Store Magic" and "Industrial Magic". I was a bit skeptical I would have the same change of heart towards Eve though after hearing over and over again in the previous books how evil she was.

But in the end, Kelley Armstrong managed to do it again. Eve is a strong, fun, quick-witted charecter who shares many traits with both Paige and Elena while still being her own person. I think in the end, Eve's my favorite yet and I really hope in the future we get another story from Eve. Hopefully one where she can interact with the charecters from previous stories more as I found the chapters where she was with Lucas some of the most fun of the book.

It was a fast paced, very fun read. I can't believe I feel this way but I'm kinda not looking forward to leaving the witches to go back to the werewolves for the next book!