Review: Other by Karen Kincy

OTHER by Karen Kincy
Pub. Date: July 2010
Publisher: Flux
Format: Paperback, 336pp
Age Range: Young Adult

Feathers unfurl from my skin. My plummet curves into a swoop, and I tuck my talons beneath my body. From girl to great horned owl in about a second. Pretty good, huh?

Gwen Williams is like any other modern teenager with one exception: she's a shapeshifter. Never having known her Pooka-spirit father, Gwen must struggle with the wild, wonderful magic inside of her alone—and in secret. While society may tolerate vampires, centaurs, and "Others" like Gwen, there are plenty of folks in Klikamuks, Washington, who don't care for her kind.

Now there's a new werewolf pack in town, and Others are getting killed, including Gwen's dryad friend. The police are doing zilch. In the midst of terrible loss and danger, Gwen meets a cute Japanese fox spirit who's refreshingly comfortable with his Otherness. Can Gwen find the courage to embrace her true self and find the killer—before she becomes the next victim?

Kincy spends a thrilling tale, filled with mythical creatures, danger, and suspense.

Gwen Williams has kept her shape-shifting secret from everyone due to the prejudices against Others. But when Others start turning up dead, Gwen is determined to get to the bottom of the murders even if her own life ends up on the line. I thoroughly enjoyed the world that Kincy created. I never thought I’d be reading about a pooka (a shapeshifting spirit), but Kincy had no problems drawing me into Gwen’s world of shape-shifters.

I was intrigued with the premise of OTHERS. These mythical characters are living in the human world and even shop right alongside us in grocery stores. Mixing both human and Other in a realistic setting, drew me more into this book. Gwen continued to battle against her half pooka nature and the consequences of what it would be like to live freely. Although she considered herself a ‘bloodborn’ Other, she was quick to throw blame on Others that she considered ‘diseased.’ She had her own biases against others to deal with, and it was nice to see the growth of her character throughout the book. Tavian, a fox spirit, was my favorite character in this book. He’s so different from what I typically read when dealing with a paranormal love interest. He was great addition to this book.

I’ll be looking forward to reading BLOODBORN, the next installment in this series. I can’t help but wonder what Kincy has up her sleeve for this sequel! OTHER will be sure to entice readers looking for an intriguing mix of paranormal, romance, and mystery.

Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars