Savage by Kelley Armstrong (Otherworld online novella)

Author: Kelley Armstrong
1^st Published: 2005

Savage is Armstrong’s first online novella & is a prequel to Bitten in that it follows Clay’s story, of how, as a boy, he became a werewolf & was subsequently found & taken in by Jeremy Danvers.

It was incredibly interesting to see the dark beginnings of Clay, who, as all Armstrong fans know, eventually grows up to be the main muscle of The Pack & Jeremy’s body guard as well as Elena’s lover. It’s entirely written in the first person, from Clay’s point of view. This is something that usually annoys the hell out of me in novels, but the Otherworld series seems to be the exception to the rule & I’ve barely noticed it while reading any of the books. Same goes for this novella.

It’s well-written, full of action & insight, & is completely engrossing – I literally sped through it despite currently reading another book at the same time. I found myself literally gagging to get to the next page & see what happens next, so much so that I’ve already begun reading the next online novella in the series, Ascension.

This is my introduction to online fiction & Armstrong’s approach seems to be a particularly good in that she asks for input from her fans & actually takes their ideas & opinions on board – it’s not every writer who would be so humble. Long may it continue & long may she write; both books & online fiction – there’ll always be an audience for it!

Rating: 7