Book Review: Taken by Storm

Title: Taken by Storm by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Release Date: May 22, 2012
Publisher: Egmont
Pages: 314 pages
Genre: Paranormal

Goodreads Summary: Bryn knows first-hand that being the alpha of a werewolf pack means making hard decisions, and that being human makes things a thousand times worse. She's prepared to give up her humanity, but the wolf who promised to Change her is waiting - though for what, Bryn doesn't know. Still human, she must take her place in the werewolf Senate, the precarious democracy that rules the North American packs. Standing side by side with werewolves who were ancient long before she was ever born is enough of a challenge, but Bryn soon learns that the Senate has been called to deal with a problem: the kind of problem that involves human bodies, a Rabid werewolf, and memories that Bryn, Chase, and the rest of their pack would rather forget. With bodies stacking up and political pressure closing in from all sides, Bryn and her pack are going to have to turn to old enemies and even older friends for help - especially when it starts to look like this time, the monster might be one of their own.

When I read Raised by Wolves a few years ago, I had some issues with it (read my review here) but I absolutely loved the sequel, Trial by Fire as it easily the best book in the series (read my review here). I was not sure what to expect from the last book, Taken by Storm and while it was better than the first book, it was not as good as the second.

Taken by Storm starts out fast and the pace never slows down. So many plot points surfaced and were quickly resolved, a bit too quickly in some cases. While I’m never a fan of an author making a book longer than it needs to be, at 314 pages, a lot happens in Taken by Storm. The book could have been a little longer and more developed and still been fine.

Bryn’s character has matured a lot since the first book. Instead of being the defiant 15-year-old in Raised by Wolves, she is much more responsible and level headed at 17. One of the things I loved the most about this series is that the romance between Bryn and Chase is never all consuming and is not the focus of any of the books in the series. Bryn is a girl who puts her responsibilities before the boy and Chase knows it and never gives her grief about it. Kudos to Jennifer Lynn Barnes for writing a story where the girl does not fall apart and lose her mind if the boy is not with her all the time!

Barnes is also great at writing well developed and complicated secondary characters. I hated Callum (Bryn’s father figure and leader of her old pack) in the first book. While I’m still not a fan of how he manipulates situations based on his precognition (and I don’t agree with his ‘the end justifies the means’ mentality), he is always looking out for Bryn’s best interest so I guess that makes him a good guy. There are also some new paranormal characters that are introduced and the plot of this book is much richer because of them.

Overall, the Raised by Wolves trilogy is one of my favorite werewolf series. The books are heavy on action, political drama and shows how a girl can get out of impossible situations using mostly brains and sometimes brawn. Taken by Storm threw some plot twists that I did not see coming and ends the series on a bittersweet note. Some readers may not be content with how Barnes ended everything but I was very satisfied with how things were wrapped up. If you like werewolf books, this series is definitely for you.

Content: Kissing, teenage pregnancy and violence.

My Rating: Really Good!