The Rising

 
I make no secret that I loved Kelley Armstrong's Darkest Powers Trilogy, Chloe was an engaging protagonist and Derek was awesome, the plot was creepy, and addictive, and fun. So when The Gathering (Darkness Rising #1) was published I couldn't get it fast enough.
 
While set in the same universe (most of Armstrong's books are) it lacked... something. While the first series was able to avoid annoying YA clichés, the second one seemed to rely on them too much. The Mary-Sue protagonist with her perfect best friend in love with her (obvious to everyone but her), then the love triangle with an underdeveloped character of a bad boy joining the plot so they could fall madly in... something. Then a transplant of the plot of the previous show more trilogy, so there would be little to keep the reader guessing. It didn't look good.The second of the series, The Calling, was an outright disappointment. There was a lot of running around, stupid decisions, revelations the reader had already guessed before even picking up the first book of the series, and an ending which left the characters exactly where they were at the beginning. Mediocre. Which is something I'd never thought to associate with Kelley Armstrong.
 
But believe me when I tell you that The Rising made up for all of it. Yes, even for the mediocre filler of a second book. Because The Rising ties up all the Darkest Powers and the Darkness Rising plots, and it has everything I could have wished for: a new protagonist which should have been there since the beginning, considering he brought with him all the race issues that should have been addressed throughout the series (I get that she lived in some idyllic compound, but if you're going to have a WOC protagonist, it's disappointing to have all the issues associated be brushed aside), real character development - I have to say Armstrong writes friendships beautifully! - that made the reader really care about what happened to the characters, tensions, action, romance and a satisfying resolution. Kelley Armstrong at her best! show less

The Good Stuff

Loved how much dry humour was in this installment. Always used when you needed it most.
Got a big kick out of the American/Canadian snark (all done lovingly though)
Actually learned a few things which is always a bonus
Satisfying ending - wraps up a lot but still leaves it open enough if Kelley ever decides to write about this world again
Some fabulous parental role models - one of my favorite part of this series is that not ALL the parents are useless or abusive
Plenty of action and twists and turns
I love all of Kelley's books, but I have to say this series has been my favorite of them all.
Love how the author sums up what happened in the other two books in such a way that it gives a reminder to those who read them show more months before, yet not too much for those who maybe just finished them a couple of days ago.
Characters feel very real, they all have faults, in other words people that you can relate to
Strong friendships
Positive mentions of natives - I'm living in Calgary now and cannot tell you how many people here make negative and derogatory comments about the local native population
Loved that most of the series is set in Canada

The Not So Good Stuff

A wee bit of repetition in terms of the angsty moments - hard to explain without going spoiling anything

Favorite Quotes/Passages

"Which was not to say louts are obviously American - only ones who didn't realize they couldn't buy beer in any store."

"You guys aren't really teens, are you?" Ash said. "They've brainwashed you into miniature adults, full of responsibility and good eating habits. I'm surprised you haven't bought a - " He noticed the toothbrush in my hand. "Seriously?|

"Wild animal attacks on humans are rare, but all of the predators in Canada, the cougar may be the one most likely to do it. Obviously, this guy never got the memo. After this, he'd probably be going to zoos, climbing the enclosure, saying. "Here watch this ... " Famous last words, as yet another unfit human is removed from the gene pool."

Who Should/Shouldn't Read

Obviously if you enjoyed The Calling and The Gathering you are going to love this
Fans of Kelley's other books
And basically just anyone who enjoys a good story. Armstrong is a born storyteller which I consider to be one of the greatest gifts one can have

4.5 Dewey's show less

As ever, Kelley Armstrong delivers an entertaining, fast-paced, paranormal novel. With The Rising, Armstrong wraps up the Darkness Rising trilogy, though likely not her young adult tales set in this universe. The Rising brims with actions and tough decisions for the teenage characters. This review is spoiler-free for the series.

Yet again, I'm really grateful to find romance not the central element of this series. Armstrong focuses primarily on the group dynamics and world building, instead. In The Rising, Maya and her friends face their biggest challenge yet: trying to escape to cabals. The stakes are very high, and Armstrong takes a pretty unique direction with it compared to a lot of evil corporation stories. The characters all have show more shades of grey to their natures, and it lends a dose of realism to the supernatural story.

Almost all of the characters in the Darkness Rising series are at least somewhat sympathetic and likable. Bad guys aren't always all bad, and the good guys have their dark sides. Maya is a powerful heroine, who takes care of herself and her friends, clearly the leader of their little pack. Daniel and Rafe, the two love interests, are both decent guys, strong and devoted to their friends. Sam, perhaps my personal favorite, is sarcastic and a bit mean, but the kind of person a group needs to have around to get things done. Hayley may be blonde, but there's more to her. Corey's the clown, around to lighten the mood in the tough moments. In addition to those guys, the Darkness Rising series also joins up with the Darkest Powers series, with the main characters of that series making an appearance.

While there is a love triangle, Armstrong does a nice job with it. Only at the very end is it completely certain which guy Maya will choose, for one thing. Even better, Maya never leads anyone on. She reacts honestly and openly to those around her, and never claims to love both guys equally. When she finds herself in that situation, she takes the time to think things through and make an informed decision.

The Rising does flag a bit towards the end, changing in both tone and pacing. It felt as though Armstrong realized she needed to wrap things up, and did so as quickly as possible. There's a bit more telling through that section, and my mind wandered a bit. Still, I do like where the series left off fairly well, and do want to know more about the characters and the world.

Though the Darkness Rising series is complete, readers have not seen the last of these kids and their world, and I am very glad of that. Kelley Armstrong is the author of consistently enjoyable novels, and I recommend them to anyone who enjoys paranormal stories full of action and a bit of romance. show less

Blurgh. Well, as a series this one is much weaker than her Darkest Powers series. Whereas the story following Chloe, Derek, Simon and Tori is action packed and there's a new twist everywhere, this story is a much slower, basic rehashing of the original series. You could literally chart the plot points from the Darkest Powers series and check them off one by one. While I loved the first series and think it's a great story line this one doesn't have the action and quickness the other used to carry it along.

I hated the first book from this series. Basically it was the first half of the 1st Darkest Powers book, drawn out and slow. Book 2 is essentially the 2nd half of book 1 (finally they escape!) and the beginning of book 2. It made for a show more much better read and felt better timed. Then came this book and I was so excited after book 2 I leapt straight into The Rising. Ugh. For a woman who writes surprisingly strong, well recognized female characters she makes them shockingly dumb. For some stupid reason Maya lets herself get caught in this book. So now we get the whole stuck in an institution thing. Only in Chloe's books there was a feeling of fear. At any moment they could pull the plug and kill our beloved character. There's no such fear for Maya and friends so instead it was just a boring place holder for us to wait out an escape which we all knew was coming.

Yes, we get to see Derek, Chloe, Simon and Tori but it's with a whimper and not a bang. In fact, that's how I would sum up this whole series. Every action has a whimper and no bang. It's slow and repetitive if you've read series one. Characterization is also a lot weaker here. Maya finally won me over and Daniel was a favorite from the start for me but Rafe drove me insane (he felt like a giant cardboard cut out of a every bad boy who's secretly a good boy).

Overall this series wraps everything up but it's so weak, there's just no tension or action. The same ending could have been carried off with action and everything clicking into place as our hero's fight for it all. Instead, it just falls together for them. The last 5% of the book is just happily ever after writing, but it makes the book go from UF (um, or attempted UF) to PNR and I really don't think that was the goal for these books, other than the idea that all YA readers apparently need a romance or else they just don't get your writing.

Hugely disappointed after the first series. This series is readable which is more than I can say for much of the YA out there and I'm sure many will love it just because they loved Darkest Powers, and here you get to read it all over again, just with different characters at place holders.

Series was a 2.5 for me. Book 2 settled at a 4.5. This book is also a 2.5, just couldn't give it a 2 because there's a lot I like (strong female character, sets a boy aside to get some work done, blah, blah, blah) but very far from a 5 in my book. show less

I kinda wanted to give this 3 stars because there were two things I didn't like about it, but it was also better than the first two, so I think that evens it out into four stars.

The first thing that bothered me was the romance, because I do not like how that played out at all. It was predictable and boring, and I especially hated how Maya had to be told by everyone around her who she really liked. Yes, she gave herself plenty of time to consider it before making a decision, but even so.

And she did not end up with Sam, so that was bullshit.

The second thing was the end of the book, it felt a bit rushed. Not that it was bad or anything, but it randomly introduced a whole bunch of new characters (I know they're from the other series, but show more since I haven't read that it felt random to me) and to get there I feel long parts were just skipped over. Before that we've gotten a rather detailed explanation of everything, but here we got summarize if even that. As I was reading and had a hundred pages left I was very confused about how anything would be resolved.

That's not to say I didn't like how it ended, because I did. I just feel that if you look at all three novels as a whole, the pacing was just a bit off. Maybe there should have been a fourth book or something, I'm not really sure.

That said, the series as a whole is great and I will definitely read the other series that came before this. show less

This conclusion to the Darkness Rising trilogy has our characters finding a life they can live with. The story begins with them still on the run from the Cabal that is chasing them and has them trying to find a way to reconnect with the parents who believe they are dead. They are looking for allies who might be able to face down the very powerful and secretive Cabals. They also have to figure out who they can trust since it seems all the adults we see in the book have their own agendas.

Maya meets the twin brother she didn't know she had until a week earlier and has to get to know him too. Ash didn't have Maya's indulged childhood but spent time in a number of foster homes and living on the streets. It gives him a viewpoint that Maya show more does not have. I liked his street smarts and thought his wariness about forming a relationship with Maya and the rest of the kids was very realistic.

On the personal front, Maya is conflicted about her romantic life. Everyone around her is telling her that Daniel wants a deeper relationship than just being her best friend which forces her to reassess how she sees him. It also changes her relationship with Rafe and has Maya, who is normally smart and confident, dithering.

The story is filled with adventure and danger and is also filled with strong relationships. I liked that Armstrong had these kids unite with the kids from the Darkest Powers trilogy but found it hard to keep track of all the characters and the relationships. I think that, if I read all the previous books more recently, it would have been much easier.

This one is for young adult fans of urban fantasy. The characters are likable and the story is well-written. show less

My review and rating were somehow lost, so my review won't be as detailed as before.

This is the conclusion to this series and we even get to see what happens to Chloe's group from Darkest Powers series.

This book wasn't as action heavy as last book but overall I enjoyed it. I did like the ending and was kind of sad that the series was over. Even though it wasn't as much action, all our questions get answered and and we get a conclusion. I don't remember there being anything that was missed or forgotten to answer.

I loved reading this series and Darkest Powers and would recommend them both to anybody. Overall I was very pleased with what was written.