Tribute to Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld Series

Today day marks the end of an era. Thirteen, the um...thirteenth book... in the (Women of) The Otherworld series by Kelley Armstrong came out and it is the last book in the series for the forseeable future.
Please allow me several minutes for a good long ugly cry *Sobs*

(Urgh...freaky right?? Well to be perfectly honest, I look even worse when thinking about the ending of The Otherworld series!) Okay...now that I've gotten that out, I will be good until I start crying in another 20 minutes or so when it hits me again that this series is over. *WAHHHHH* Okay, okay...really...I'm fine...*sniff* ...really...okay...

Like most of you book lovers out there, I absolutely abhor the ending of a great series. A series that spans a large part of your life becomes more a part of your life than you realize. When something that has been a constant just ends, it's like a friend of yours died and now all you have are the memories. I know, I know...melodramatic much? But for real,it sometimes feels that way, especially when you've spent all this time with these characters. The most traumatic endings are with a series that has lasted over a decade (Harry Potter anyone?) What makes it so hard to part with them is that  you yourself have grown and changed along with the characters. You might have taken some advice that a character used in the book to help you get through a tough patch in your life, or just had the book there to read as a distraction from something in your life that you couldn't deal with. When something like that ends, it's like some small part of you dies right along with them...*sniffle* Okay... I didn't mean for this post to get that deep/depressing...so enough moping...I'm now going to take a moment and commemorate some of my favorite books, moments, characters. etc from the series. I hope you guys have enjoyed these books as much as I have, and if you haven't read them...well, you are truly missing out on something great and should start them immediately...lucky for you, you don't have to wait a year in between each installment like I did. It was PAINFUL to wait so long.

I have followed this series since the very beginning. I started it when there were only two books out, and was called the Women of the Otherworld, as opposed to today's The Otherworld. I suppose by changing the title of the series, Kelley can have male main characters, but I have so far enjoyed the all-female main leads.

When I started Bitten, I hadn't read a single book about werewolves.*gasp* I know right!?! I started reading the series before the whole Twilight explosion hit and there was only a small amount of paranormal series out there...I remember being so captivated by a werewolf protagonist, and not just a werewolf, but a GIRL werewolf. Elena was such a strong and relatable character that I could't help but identify with her and her struggle to deal with becoming furry every month. I still remember how entranced I was when reading about her transformation, and her relationship with Clay, and most of all the introduction of the pack. Since then I have read countless werewolf and shifter books, but none of them stick in my mind the way Elena, Clay, and the rest of the werewolf pack does.

When the POV switched to Paige, I was furious. I absolutely ADORED Elena and Clay and I thought Paige was the most irritating person alive. I couldn't relate to almost anything she said or did  (I mean a herione who was a computer programmer? really?? lol) and she made me want to slap her because it seemed like she let people walk all over her. Over time though, she really grew on me, and I realized that heroines don't all come in skin-tight leather or a werewolf fur...sometimes they are the brainy, nerdy, computer chicks that can hack their way into govermnent security, and just happen to be a revolutionary to witches everywhere.

As the narrators changed and grew, so did the series. It became more than one story about a woman and her struggles, but about all women and their struggles...whether those struggles are supernatual problems or just boy problems didn't make a difference because the whole time you were rooting for, and identifying with, lots of different aspects of these amazing, heroic women's characters.

There was a while there where I wondered where the series was going...there was three leads who I liked...but didn't nessicarily love like the other ones...Hope, Jaime, and Robin were all kind of blah when compared to Elena and Paige...but they were still interesting leads and brought diversity. From a half-demon to a necromancer, these characters were excellent tools to explore just how far Kelley could go in the genre. I remember thinking that there were SO many more paranormal creatures than the traditional werewolves and vampires that have flooded the market, and Kelley is a ringleader when it comes to creating straight up ORIGINAL characters, paranormals, and just...people. Hope and Jaime also brought the series out of a kind of individual book story line and broadened the series into having a plots that continued through multiple books.

All that I have to say now is this:  To Kelley Armstrong, thank you for writing one of the best series I have ever had the pleasure to read. The Women of the Otherworld is definitely one of my top Urban Fantasy series of all time, and I can't believe it is over. You are truly one of the greats of the genre and all I can do is thank you for giving us amazing characters like Elena and Clay, Paige and Lucas, Savannah and Adam, and so many more. I'm sad that the series is over, but am looking forward to reading anything else you write. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you. :)

In honor of one of my favorite Urban Fantasy Series of All Time, I am offering a book of your choice from the Otherworld series! Whether you're on your last leg and wanting to finish off the series with Thirteen, or you want to get Bitten with book 1 (hahah word-pun) I think this is an excellent series and want to spread the word of it's awesomeness! To enter just fill out the Rafflecopter below. There will be extra points for commenting on my reviews of the series and following and all that. Good Luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway