The Gathering: Book 1 of the Darkness Rising Series (Darkness Rising, #1)

by Kelley Armstrong

The world seemed to dip and darken and I smelled wet earth and thick musk and fresh blood. The wind whipped past, like I was running. Running so fast the ground whizzed beneath me and the wind cut across my skin ...Maya Delaney has always felt a close bond with nature. The woods around her home are a much-loved sanctuary - and the pawprint birthmark on her hip feels like a sign that she belongs. But then strange and terrible things begin to happen in the tiny medical-research town of Salmon Creek (population: 200). The captain of the swim team drowns mysteriously in the middle of a calm lake. Mountain lions appear around Maya's home, and won't go away. Her best friend, Daniel, starts experiencing 'bad vibes' about certain people and things. One of those people is Rafe - the new bad boy in town. What is he hiding - and why is he suddenly so interested in Maya ...?

• ISBN10: 1907410171
• ISBN13: 9781907410178
• Publish Date: 7 April 2011 (first published 1 January 1960)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
• Imprint: ATOM
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 384
• Language: English

Reviews

Somehow my rating and review for this book was lost, so it won't be as detailed as before.

This is another book series for Kelley Armstrong and another one that I loved reading. I think I like this one more, but only a little bit.

I loved the main character Maya, she is strong, level-headed and a natural leader. The beginning is building the world up and getting to know the characters. The main action doesn't start til close to the end and will continue on into the next book.

I didn't mind that about this book, since I loved getting to know the characters and Maya is not annoying to read from her POV.

I would recommend this book and the series to anybody. I read them all quickly and enjoyed them very much.

[stefu1]

ehhhh... compared to Kelley's other books, this one is just there

[Chelsea]

I generally love Kelley Armstrong's work but this is definitely not her best.

[kimbacaffeinate]

I am ashamed to say that The Gathering is the first book I have ever read by author Kelly Armstrong. I am delighted to say it will not be my last. The Gathering is the first book in the trilogy entitled Darkness Rising. Armstrong’s urban fantasy brings us supernatural elements, Indian lore, romance and a town full of secrets. The tale grabbed me from page one, and while the pace wasn’t mind-boggling I enjoyed every minute of it.

The Gathering takes place on an island located across the water from Vancouver. The town folk all work for a highly classified lab, and there are around two hundred townspeople. The protagonist Maya lives with her adoptive parents in the park. Her dad is the park ranger. The lab demands total secrecy and they are all trained on what to do and say to outsiders. Surrounded by woods, cliffs and lakes, Maya feels right at home. She will be turning sixteen, attends the small high school and last year lost her best friend Serena, to a drowning. Her best friend is Daniel and he was Serena’s boyfriend. Maya takes care of injured animals and she has a gift for it. The town veterinarian is amazed at her powers to help animals recover. A recent increase in mountain lions, a nosy reporter, a cute boy and an old Indian woman calling her a witch turn Maya’s world upside down. The tale that unfolded was delightful and I loved Armstrong's writing style. The town and its surrounding woods came alive for me, and the characters were unique and had depth.

I absolutely loved Maya. She is independent, witty, stubborn, loyal and inquisitive. She has a high moral code and she can sometimes be unyielding when she feels she has been wronged. Even though Maya was adopted, she really has no interest in her biological parents. She wishes she knew a little about her Indian ancestors and the birthmark that resembles a paw print. She is proud of the mark, and would like to enhance it with a tattoo. She loves working with animals, but has been experiences weird dreams and blackouts. In them, she feels as though she is the injured animal, or is an animal herself running through the forest. The whole thing scares her, and she wants answers. Serena's death has impacted her, and she thinks it was more then an accident. She misses her best friend and worries about Daniel. Daniel is a sweet and loyal friend. She trusts Daniel; he has a sixth sense when it comes to people and danger. If he gets a bad vibe, she listens. The school they attend is very small, and Maya while liked, has issues with some of the kids. The new boy Rafe, who makes her stomach flutter and annoys her with his playboy antics suddenly takes a serious interest in her. I liked Rafe and the more I learned about him and his family, the more I cared. There were other colorful characters and I am hoping to learn more about them in book two. The romance was sweet and fragile. I am anxious to see how it develops and wonder if there is a love triangle in the making. *shivers*

Armstrong’s tale grabbed me from page one. The first part was fast paced and immediately drew me in. The middle slowed, which allowed me to take in the details and absorb the world she has created. The third half of the book progressed at a delightfully maddening speed to end in a cliffhanger. I have a love/hate relationship with cliffhangers. I get mad, run to see when the next release date is, then fall in love with the anticipation it’s created.

I highly recommend The Gathering to fans of urban fantasy, the supernatural and lore. I have added Armstrong to my list of must read authors, and look forward to reading her other series. The Gathering is available in paper, eBook and audio formats. The second book, The Calling will be released in April of 2012. I am very excited to have discovered this author.

[lizarodz]

I really enjoyed Kelly Armstrong’s Darkest Power’s series, so obviously The Gathering was in my TBR list for a while, and now I had the opportunity to “read it” (I listed to the audiobook) and really liked it.

Maya is a very different character; she is pragmatic, headstrong, stubborn and a little inflexible as well. She has a very strong set of values and a clear vision of right and wrong that can be annoying to some of her friends. She is adopted and hit the lottery with her adoptive parents, therefore she is not that interested about her natural parents, that is, until she starts experiencing some changes.

Daniel is a great friend and I am assuming that he also has some powers, and we will learn more about it in the next book. He is very protective of Maya, a great friend, and has freaky good instincts. I was a little confused as he didn’t seem to be interested in Maya in a romantic way (I don hope this doesn’t develop into a love triangle). Rafe was a complicated character, with a shady history, and lot of baggage. He does seem to genuinely care about Maya and is in search of answers for himself and his sister Annie, although he at least knows more than Maya. Maya’s parents are a treat, as well as some of her friends.

The plot is new, it seems to mix two seemly different problems that I’m guessing might have to do with the same lab (Maya , Rafe and Daniel’s abilities). The writing is very straightforward, and the forest seems to be alive and become another character as well.
The ending was a complete cliffhanger which was very cruel Ms. Armstrong! The Calling, the second book in the series will be published in April of next year *sits down to wait*

About the cover: Maya is on the cover and we can see (or imagine) what she looks like. The dark background paired with the blue tinged skin makes it look very mysterious.

[liz089]

OMG this was one AWESOME book !! I bought this book on good luck, because I like the author and I've got more books from her. But this one is just as good as the others !
I cant wait for the next one !! Aagghhh april 2012 :( Why !!

[Melanie]

I love Kelley Armstrong. This book did not disappoint. I was better than I was expecting. This series looks to be better than the previous teen series. This books is fast paced and has great characters. I can't way to seemwhere Maya, Daniel and Rafe. Let's not forget Annie. I will warn everyone though, this book does have a cliffhanger ending. The next book cannot come out fast enough.