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    The Calling
    The Calling
    The Calling
    Audiobook7 hours

    The Calling

    Written by Kelley Armstrong

    Narrated by Jennifer Ikeda

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    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.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateApr 10, 2012
    ISBN9780062120793
    Author

    Kelley Armstrong

    When librarians finally granted Kelley Armstrong an adult card, she made straight for the epic fantasy and horror shelves. She spent the rest of her childhood and teen years happily roaming fantastical and terrible worlds, and vowed that someday she'd write a story combining swords, sorcery, and the ravenous undead. That story began with the New York Times bestselling Sea of Shadows and continues with Empire of Night. Armstrong's first works for teens were the New York Times bestselling Darkest Powers and Darkness Rising trilogies. She lives in rural Ontario with her husband, three children, and far too many pets.

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    Reviews for The Calling

    4/5

    96 ratings49 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Creepy scary!
    • 3/5
      The second book of her second YA series shows it is the middle book and is really just a bridge to the final book to see what will happen once she wraps it all up. I'm reading these books more to see what is going on in that universe than for just on their own merits.
    • 2/5
      Action, action, action, but not much happens. It wasn't bad, but I just didn't feel as connected to these characters as I did to the ones in the Darkest Powers series.

      And honestly with the love triangle crap... Daniel or Rafe? Rafe or Daniel? I swear, I'm so tired of this cliché I've started rooting for Maia to end up with Sam! At least she's undeniably kick-ass and awesome!
    • 4/5
      Let me say first, I'm a huge Kelley Armstrong fan. I love the adult Otherworld series. I enjoyed the YA series Darkest Powers. This trilogy is even better. I love Maya, Rafe and Daniel. I'm also a very large fan of Kenjii. She is a cool dog. Now have I have to wait a year for the next book, that sucks.
    • 2/5
      The Calling picks up where The Gathering left off. From my review of The Gathering, it’s already apparent that I’m not a fan of this series. I admit that I enjoyed this book more than the previous one, but it was still just mediocre. There’s not much to say because nothing really happens. They’re on the run, they get captured, they escape, rinse and repeat.Everything I said about Maya still stands. She’s still smart, athletic, sensible and a really great role model for younger girls. I just don’t feel any chemistry between Maya and Rafe or even Maya and Daniel. There’s no spark or charm to this series. The book is just dull. I’m hoping the last installment will have more adventure in it since it’ll also involve the characters from The Darkest Powers.I just want to finish this series and be done with it. It’s not exactly the reaction people want in the books they read, but it’s what I’m stuck with.
    • 4/5
      Excellent 2nd installment; all go from start to finish. Quite exhausting!
    • 5/5
      My Thoughts: I LOVED IT. The setting being so close to home was something new and exciting that I want more of!If any of you don't already know, I live in a city about an hour out of Vancouver, BC. It's a rarity that my family travels over to Vancouver Island, but we do occasionally. Reading this book was so great. If you are from BC, especially the Lower Mainland to the island region, I can assure you that you will definitely appreciate some of the humor directed to our suckish weather, (a.k.a our TERRIBLE winters). Those of you who live in tiny, tiny towns will probably appreciate this book as well. This was actually one of my favorite parts about the book, because I could relate to a bit of how Maya was feeling about her environment. The setting was realistic and enjoyable. I could almost see the forest Maya loved so much and smell the many trees she so enjoyed.There is the feeling of absolute isolation and at times I had to 'wake up' and remember that I don't live in Maya's town.Now onto the story. This is the first book I have read of Armstrong's. I tried reading her Darkest Powers series but couldn't get into it that easily. That being said, I was hardly hesitant about reading this book. The plot sounds interesting enough and once again, the setting intrigued me. Reading the blurb, the story sounds like your generic teen paranormal with the epic bad boy and the mysterious powers. But while those two aspects are true, this book is not 'generic'. I was expecting something a lot different than what we got. For example, the cougars were a nice change in animals. I think everyone's so used to reading about wolves that even the smallest thing, like having a feline instead of canine can make the book just that much more unique.I really liked Maya. She was funny and strong, while still vulnerable. She falls hard for Rafe, even though she doesn't think it's that great of an idea... Rafe is definitely a great love-interest. I'm curious to know more about him as we don't find out a lot in this book. I also really enjoyed the importance of Maya's heritage. It's an interesting twist to put into a supernatural type of book. Here's a girl with two incredible adoptive parents. She seems to act pretty uninterested in her background, but on the inside she's craving to know more. Then there's Daniel. I'm definitely hoping that the author won't make a love-triangle with him and Rafe and Maya. There were little hints to that, but nothing seriously worrying. Though, I cracked up at the suggestion of Maya's father buying Daniel a new truck just so that he'll marry her.This was a truly incredible book. I've got The Calling on my shelf, ready to go as soon as soon a I post this, because the cliffhanger was almost unbearable. Well, no. The chapter sampler in the back of my paperback version is what made the wait a bit excruciatingly painful. I usually don't read those, but something made me keep reading. Oh well!
    • 4/5
      I actually liked this better than the first one. The setup is all out of the way so there's room for more character development. It still feels like it's moving pretty slow in terms of plot and reveals partly because this is a Kelley Armstrong Otherworld book so obviously there's going to be magic and supernaturals and such. Looking forward to the next one which promises to bring the two trilogies together.
    • 4/5
      As much as I enjoy Kelley Armstrong's adult books, I've been frustrated by her teen books - specifically the need to stretch a story into a trilogy. Honestly, this and the Darkest Powers trilogy could each have been one book; each book in the series ends on an unnecessary cliffhanger and the second book (in each series) is just one long chase scene. Sigh.However, she does write interesting characters, and Maya is no different. She has recently discovered she's a shapeshifter - a cougar - and dealing with a Cabal (a magic mob, basically) trying to capture her and her friends. Exciting, yes, but I'd wait to read the series til they've all been released. To do otherwise is an exercise in frustration...
    • 5/5
      love it
    • 4/5
      A good sequel. Still not as good as the darkest powers trilogy. Am enjoying it nevertheless. Looking forward to the finale as it is rumoured that the darkness rising crowd meet up with the darkest power crowd.
    • 4/5
      For July's TBR Jar pick I finally got around to reading The Calling. I LOVED the Darkest Powers Trilogy (and I do mean LOVED!!!!!!) and The Gathering of the Darkness Rising Trilogy caught my attention as well, but the characters aren't as great (in my opinion) as in Darkest Powers. So...on to the review...This second book in the series is a great second book as far as trilogies go. Maya and her friends/ fellow test subjects are on the run -- and that is the whole book. We pick up right were book one left off and so I had to do a recap of book one since it was so long ago that I had read it, but after doing so the storyline just keeps on going in book 2. I think that the reason I have enjoyed the books so far is because of the action, they are teens on the run and the badies have guns and supernatural powers on their side.I like Maya the main character, she is strong and interesting, but I can't love her as much as I loved Chloe. I found Maya conflicted too many times for my liking - about trusting others, about her feelings, it was just bothersome. The other characters are all interesting as well but I feel needed more depth, there are the stereotypical clown guy, the strong trustworthy guy, the girly girl and the brute girl and that is really all they are so far, I hope they grow in book 3.I did enjoy this book, the action had kept this trilogy on my radar so I hope to pick up book 3 at some point.
    • 4/5
      Pretty brave to have your heroine as a 61 year old woman who is divorced, has a drinking problem and lives with her mother! Hazel must solve a small town Ontario murder. She doesn't want the RCMP coming in to take her case away. I don't know who the author really is and it is a well hidden pseudonym.
    • 5/5
      Contemporary, Paranormal, Young Adult, Vancouver IslandMaya is on the run with her friends after they survive first a forest fire that was deliberately set and a rescue team that is not only fake but seems to have some dark intentions where they are concerned. When their helicopter crashes in the wilderness of Vancouver Island they realize that they have a ways to go before they are safe again.Maya has a secret that just might help as she can fun faster and climb higher and see better than just about anyone else. It seems to have something to do with her mysterious paw-print birthmark and is also just part of who she really is. As Maya and her friends deal with dangers that they couldn’t have foreseen she realizes that she isn’t the only one in her group that has special abilities. They are all going to need their extraordinary abilities if they are going to have any chance at survival. This is the second book in the trilogy that picks up right after the first one left off. It is proving to be fast paced and action packed. It also has a mystery woven through the books so far that makes it interesting as the characters work to figure out just what is going on and who knows what. It is one series that is worth taking the time out to just sit and read all of the books. The story pulls the reader in emotionally and will have them turning the pages just to see how things turn out. With each tidbit that is revealed it pulls the reader in more and more and will have readers wondering just where this one will end up.
    • 5/5
      Reading this book was an absolute treat because I cherish opportunities to read genre fiction, with content that meets or exceeds what I look for in literary fiction. Inger Ash Wolfe definitely exceeds what I often find in literary fiction. Multi-dimensional characters carry the intriguing story through to a satisfying end. I only hope that Ian Mason and Father Glendinning have better developed characters if they show up in future stories.
    • 4/5
      Kelley Armstrong is one of my favorite paranormal writers, not only because she is Canadian and lives less than half hour from my hometown but because she writes some awesome books. They are not even close to literary fiction and the book snobs would probably never read them, but they are perfect for a relaxing afternoon. While I prefer her Otherworld novels, the YA books are pretty decent as well. The Calling in the second book The Darkness Rising series. It is pretty impossible to give a plot line for this book without giving information about the previous book, The Gathering.I won't give anything away and just say that if you like paranormal books and don't mind YA books then give this series a shot. It's a nice easy read and pretty entertaining
    • 4/5
      Review courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: The second installment of the Darkness Rising trilogy moves the plot forward when Maya and her friends escape from the people trying to hunt them down, but not much additional information is added to what we already know about the characters and their situation. Opening Sentence: I don’t know who was more anxious—Daniel or Kenjii—but they weren’t making this emergency helicopter evacuation any easier. The Review: I have to start off saying I love Kelley Armstrong’s novels no matter what, The Calling included. She keeps readers hanging on until the last page hoping for more juicy secrets about the characters and the people trying to take control of them. I felt like The Calling was more of a filler novel between the two larger events taking place in Book 1 and Book 3 since action did take place, the novel did move forward, but not a lot of new information was gained overall. Being a long time reader of Armstrong’s novels, I am pretty familiar with the background information already, and wanted to know more about the characters introduced in the first book, especially since they seem to be new types of supernaturals. Not a lot is revealed in this novel, which was kind of depressing, but it makes me that much more excited to read the final installment, The Rising, next April. The novel starts at the same place The Gathering ended, in a helicopter flying away from a forest fire and the small town of Salmon Creek. Maya and her friends soon realize the people in charge of rescuing them are in fact trying to kidnap them. The teens react by saving themselves, but the helicopter crashes, leaving them stranded and the adults dead. It is up to them to make their way back to safety while also avoiding abduction by two different groups of people, a supposed rescue group including a member of Maya’s family and the St. Clouds, a corporate supernatural family in charge of genetically mutating the teens to begin with. Unable to trust anyone, not even really each other, the group of teens try their best to make it to safety without all of them being put into their pursuer’s custody. Though not a lot of new supernatural information is revealed, the characters and their relationships do evolve. Maya and Rafe still find each other irresistible, but we learn where Rafe’s true loyalties lie, though Maya does not fault him for it. Daniel and Maya talk more about Serena and her death, and how they are coping over a year after her mysterious drowning. An unexpected revelation about one of the other characters involved made me interested in rereading The Gathering to see if I could see any signs of the character’s true nature. Of course, I am not going to tell you who I am talking about; otherwise it would give away the surprise. Maya and her friends learn more about each other and become closer as they run for their lives through Canadian wilderness. Though we do not find out a lot of new information, Maya learns more about what it means to have the skinwalker gene. I love how Armstrong writes about her characters when they take other forms since it feels so true to the animal she portrays, but it is still obviously the character we know and love. Honestly, it makes me want the ability to change into an animal just to experience being me but in an entirely different body. Overall, I enjoyed the novel, and so will anyone else who has read any of Kelley’s books or enjoys a fast paced, supernatural thrill ride about the lives, futures, and freedom of characters written so well, I sometimes forget I am reading a book. Notable Scene: A loud buzzing sound made us all jump. I found a radio tucked under the counter. “Hello?” “Maya. I should have known you’d be the one to pick up.” My hand gripped the radio tighter as I recognized the voice. “Who is this?” “I think you know.” I moved to the front window. He was there. He lifted his free hand and smiled. I pulled back from the window. “My name is Calvin Antone,” he said. “But what’s important isn’t who I am, but what I am, to you.” Daniel moved closer. He could hear Antone. They all could. I thought of lifting the radio to my ear, but I knew that wouldn’t help. I walked back to the counter, taking shelter behind it. “What are you doing to my dog?” “We’re taking good care of Kenjii. We just didn’t want her to get hurt trying to protect you.” I twitched when he said her name. I didn’t want him knowing that. He had no business with her or any part of my life. “Maya?” “What?” He sighed. “All right. We’ll pretend you haven’t already guessed. You’re my daughter.”FTC Advisory: Harper Teen provided me with a copy of The Calling. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
    • 4/5
      Note: There are necessarily spoilers for book one of this series, The Gathering.The Calling, Book Two of the “Darkness Rising” series, picks up where The Gathering left off. By page 24, though, the author has come up with a totally uncontrived way to give an excellent and complete summary of The Gathering, for those who hadn’t read the first book or had forgotten it.Maya Delaney and other teenagers in Salmon Creek (a small town built by the drug research corporation St. Cloud) have discovered that they were subjects of genetic experimentation. All of the kids had been enhanced in some way, with the new traits only coming into full flower post-puberty. Unfortunately, a few kids have also suffered from bad side effects, such as debilitating headaches or even psychosis.Maya’s enhancement is that she is a shape-shifter, in this case meaning she can turn into a cougar and back. Rafe, Maya’s sometime boyfriend, is also a shape-shifter, as is his sister Annie, who has, however, become mentally enfeebled as a result. Maya’s best friend Daniel is a “benandandi” - someone who can sense evil. Most of Maya’s friends don’t know what their enhancement is yet, although they can guess at it from what they excel at doing.The teens figure out that they have been changed as part of a lethal inter-corporate struggle between St. Cloud and a rival corporation, both of which are staffed with adult supernaturals. Creating future enhanced employees is how the companies intend to get a leg up on rivals staffed with “only” humans. Maya and her friends realize they are in danger as their skill sets develop, and they endeavor to get away.Both corporations pursue them, not intending to let any of them escape. The fugitives need food, money, and help, but they don’t know who they can trust. In addition, they struggle not to be defeated by fear, increasingly bad side effects, or internecine conflicts.Evaluation: Armstrong writes in such an appealing and persuasive way that I never find myself thinking “this is stupid” from reading her stories. Her characters seem real and for the most part are people you absolutely wish you knew. I also love the interactions among the friends, and they way they learn who to trust, and how they need to mature in order to survive. Importantly, Armstrong is expert at making her female characters strong without having them seem rebarbative. If you don’t mind paranormal, I think Armstrong is one of the best. She writes with a lot of humor, and a great ear for dialogue.
    • 5/5
      I'm in love with this book series, highly recommend people give it a go.
    • 4/5
      Although I enjoyed the book, and am looking forward to the conclusion of the Darkness Rising trilogy, I felt that Armstrong could have made this book a little tighter. It seemed like they were running from "the bad guys" for a ridiculous amount of time, and even when they were in danger, it always turned out to be a tranquiler dart rather than a bullet. Book two continues right where book one left off, with Maya and crew in a helicopter, escaping the fire. A series of events happens (no spoilers from THIS reviewer) and suddenly the crew is not so sure of who is trustworthy and who is not. If you enjoy Armstrong's writing, then obviously you'll enjoy this; I just found it a bit slow in places.
    • 4/5
      Summary: After a forest fire forced an evacuation of their town, Maya - a skinwalker - and the other kids of Salmon Creek think they might have earned a break. But the helicopter that's taking them to the mainland was not sent by a legitimate rescue operation, and in attempting to take down the pilot, the helicopter winds up crashing into the ocean. The survivors manage to make it back to shore, but now they're stranded in the forest, far from home, and being hunted by operatives from two competing corporations that want to exploit their supernatural powers. How can they escape when their every move is being controlled, and they don't know who they can trust... including each other?Review: The Calling, like its predecessor The Gathering, is a great summer popcorn book. What I mean by that is that it's entertaining, exciting, plenty of action, not an overly complicated plot, and the kind of book that you just sit back and enjoy without thinking too deeply about. This book could be adapted into the script of an action movie without much effort, is what I'm saying. None of this is meant to be at all derogatory - everyone needs a break from more serious fare now and again, to just be swept up in something entertaining and fun, whether you're reading such books on the beach or just on your back porch. Also, The Calling has the benefit of being well-written, and having characters that act and interact like real teenagers, without relying too much on high school cliche.However, while I've got no conceptual problems with the summer popcorn style of book, The Calling does at times feel like it's just one extended chase scene, and the cycle of get caught/get rescued/run away does get a little tiring after a while. I think this is one case where listening to the audiobook actually hurt my enjoyment of the book. Jennifer Ikeda did a fine job narrating in every respect, but I was stuck reading at the pace she spoke, whereas if I'd had the physical book in front of me, I could have flown through it at the speed it deserves, and the the action would have seemed breathless rather than repetitive. 3.5 out of 5 stars.Recommendation: The Calling starts only minutes after the end of The Gathering, and while it does recap the events of the previous book, it's still not particularly stand-alone. I'd recommend the series to fans of YA paranormal books that are tired of vampires and werewolves, and looking for something fun and engaging.
    • 3/5
      While I prefer Armstrong's Otherworld books, I'd say this is the best from her YA thus far. Almost like a toned down PG version of Elena. Maya and her group of runaway friends are fleeing from a dangerous forest fire erupting in their cozy town - but soon find out they have more to worry about than a destroyed home. The group learns (a bit more) about their own powers, and start to uncover the disturbing facts about their enemies, and question what they thought they knew about their own lives. There aren't really any dull moments or lulls in the story, and the character development is good. I wish there was a bit more information released to the reader...seems like the story is going on little scraps of what's really going on, but I expect it will come together with the next installment of the series: looking forward to it...
    • 4/5
      I have come to the conclusion that Kelley Armstrong is one of my preferred YA urban fantasy writers out there right now. Her books are just really good. I still haven’t finished the Darkest Powers trilogy, but I have the third book so I’ll get to it. Admittedly, I do like that trilogy a tad more than this one (what can I say, I prefer necromancers to shapeshifters), but this one is no less good.
      Taking place immediately where the last book left off, Maya and her friends are fleeing from a forest fire in a helicopter. Scared and confused from being attacked by supposed ‘rescuers,’ Maya and her friends encounter problems while in the helicopter which leads to the helicopter crashing - stranding them in the forest.
      The book mainly deals with the group trying to make their way back to civilisation all while being trailed by these mysterious rescuers who very obviously do not want to rescue them. From the previous book we learned that Maya is actually a skin-walker, but in this book it’s shown that she might not be the only genetically altered teen on the island (aside from Rafe and Annie, obviously).
      Not a great deal actually happened in this book to move the plot forward, which was a strange move. Yet, it worked. I felt like we got to know the characters better amidst the problem they were faced with. Maya is a great protagonist. I’m not a huuuge fan of shape shifting/shape shifter plotlines, so I wasn’t sure I would initially like this trilogy as much because of that, but I like Maya and Rafe and Daniel so much that I don’t really mind that so much.
      Rafe, for reasons that I won’t say because of spoilers, wasn’t really in this book as much. Which actually was a great move because it took romance pretty much out of the picture. Which is fantastic because these kids were in a survival setting and having Maya hung up on Rafe during that would have bothered me, but thankfully that was not the case. I also really appreciate what is happening with Maya and Daniel. So many YA authors would turn this into a love triangle, but that’s obviously not what is happening here, thank the lord.
      I just really like how Kelley Armstrong treats her characters and relationships. I really like her books. This was a good second book, not the best of the series (which is now looking like a continuation of the Darkest Powers trilogy), but it was good.
    • 4/5
      I liked it. Sometimes serial killer books can follow the same plot pattern. Wolfe does a great job of breaking the mold. The characters were interesting, developed, and necessary. I would read another.
    • 5/5
      What else can I say about Kelley Armstrong's books that I haven't already said? So far, I have enjoyed every single one of her YA novels and have been compelled to pick up her adult novels as a result. The Calling has continued what The Gathering started with its absorbing writing and riveting plot. As The Calling literally picks up right where The Gathering left off, it almost feels as though I'm writing a second review of the latter. Since I read them back-to-back, I was treated to a seamless storyline that just kept getting better and better.We really get to see Maya in her element in The Calling. As she and her friends wander through the wilderness, it is Maya who takes on a strong leadership role. Her talents with all things nature are brought to the forefront and Maya really stands out as a result. While the others struggle with their situation, Maya keeps her head together, showing just how strong and resourceful she is. I could easily have continued following her story had the third book been available right then and there.The plot became even more intriguing in The Calling, which I didn't think was possible. There are even more revelations about the goings on in Maya's town, as well as its citizens, each more intriguing than the one before. The element of danger is quite tangible and the urgency of escape is understandable. The revelation of certain characters' true personalities and intent was so very shocking and I loved the layers it added to the story. Overall, I was absolutely thrilled by the storyline and can't wait for the culmination of the series, just so I can know what happens to all of the characters I have become so interested in.I can't express enough how much I have enjoyed the Darkness Rising series so far. I enjoyed The Gathering immensely, but The Calling was even better with its increase in action, plot revelations, and character development. The setting is near flawless and makes for an even more riveting story. If you want a series with strong characters, paranormal elements, and non-stop action, you definitely need to pick this one up. The Calling, as a middle novel, won't let you down in the least.
    • 3/5
      This was a very quick read, her YA book trilogies could work as a single novel. I didn't like this quite as much as the first in the series, the big mysteries have been worked out and the supernatural teens are trying to find a safe place from the people hunting them through the woods on Vancouver Island. It's very reminiscent of the previous YA trilogy, down to relatives that you can't/won't trust, the only difference being that the powers that these teens have developed are different. The love triangle is a bit clumsy as well. I may have to go an re-read her OCD hit woman books again to restore my faith, and then hold off on reading her YA ones until I can consume the whole series at once.
    • 2/5
      adult mystery. Inger Ash is a pseudonym (to make author seem more scandinavian),but it doesn't help the story that much. This was ok as far as gritty crime stories go, but not anything standout--especially following the biting wit of the heroine in Catch and Release (by Blythe Woolston), a disappointment.
    • 2/5
      READ IN DUTCH

      I hadn't really planned to continue reading the Darkness Rising Trilogy, but when I saw this book in the library I did take it home with me, because after all, I was still a bit curious about what happened next. The end of The Gathering was quite a cliffhanger...

      For me, this book felt quite the same as the first part. A lot happens, but somehow, you're never scared, because you believe that they will succeed and survive everything (as they always do in books). This is a bit a shame, but nevertheless, it was again a nice read, though I thought the story was a bit weaker than the first one.

      If I ever encounter the last book, I will read it, because I now want to know how it ends...
    • 2/5
      Meh. Pacing started off strong and gripping, but broke down midway through. On the other hand, the characters were well-developed and complex, and I'd give them another look should there be a series. Hoped I'd be able to figure out which "literary novelist" the pseudonymous Inger Ash Wolfe is, but no such luck.
    • 5/5
      Soooooooo GOOD! ahh!

      I just couldn't put it down. I am so excited to start the third one. Gah! I can't wait for all the kids to meet each other.

      I'm so glad I waited to have all three books before I started reading, I don't think I could have waited.