Effortlessly Reading

My Rating: 4.0 The Calling is far the best paranormal book I've ever read written by Kelley Armstrong. I still can't stop staring at the beautiful cover. It's a lot better than her Darkest Powers trilogy and better than The Gathering. So much better that I can't wait for the next book in the Darkness Rising trilogy, The Rising. Like her other books that I've read, Kelley Armstrong doesn't really write a plot, yet there's so much in the book, if that makes sense. The Calling managed to make me on edge, cringing and gasping at events that I wouldn't have ever guessed, namely Nicole's real personality. In The Gathering, Nicole is portrayed a a nice girl in the swim team that has a crush on Daniel, but in The Calling, her true colors are revealed. Turns out that she might have been the one who murdered Serena in the lake due to deep jealousy over Daniel (seriously, over a boy?) and again tried to kill Maya when they were swimming to another surface using her underwater powers that isn't yet explained. It's bad enough that Nicole blamed the whole thing on Sam (in The Gathering), but to also drug Maya's drink while Maya was with Rafe? Damn unforgivable. Nicole is also the spoiled brat. When she realizes that Maya knows about her true colors, she gives Maya away to the kidnappers, and dares to whine about Maya nearly killing her when Maya was in her cougar form. I don't get why Maya is so nice and won't tell Daniel Nicole's true colors, as far as I know, I hope Nicole dies. And then there's Rafe. I don't get why Maya still likes him, he lied and used her in The Gathering, and left when he realizes Maya doesn't know anything. In The Calling, Rafe nearly dies and comes back waltzing back in to [surprise, surprise!] betray them. No, it doesn't matter if he told Maya about the kidnappers' plans. Sometimes, I just want to smack Maya in the head. Why go for Rafe when there's Daniel by her side, who obviously likes her as more than a friend far back, even though Maya doesn't realize it after having it repeated to her multiple times throughout the book, and whose clearly better for her? Ugh, I can't believe The Rising won't be out until a full year. Can't wait to devour it, finally learning about Maya's twin brother, who Maya will end up with, what Corey, Nicole, and Hayden really are, and (hopefully) Nicole's demise. ohdamnbooks: the calling