92) The Hunter & The Hunted by Kelly Armstrong

The Blurb :

This pack of 2 novellas starts with Stalked. It’s not a good sign when Elena Michaels and Clayton Danvers resort to everyday activities on their long-awaited honeymoon in St. Louis. But their encroaching boredom is about to take a backseat to an unexpected threat that catches Clay’s attention. A non-pack werewolf is clearly stalking them—out to claim Elena for himself—and Clay has no intention of letting the upstart mutt spoil their romantic getaway, even if that means deceiving Elena as he pursues the rival werewolf on his own.

In Off-Duty Angel, dark witch and half-demon Eve Levine is desperate for a little entertainment while her lover, Kristof Nast, is detained in afterlife court—enough to volunteer an extra week’s worth of angel corps duty just to pass the time. Luckily something even better comes up: a real celestial bounty-hunter mission to trail a shaman, someone who might prove to be a useful lead in Kristof’s court case. Following the target goes smoothly, until he leads Eve to the British Museum, where she inadvertently steps into a secret dimensional passage and stumbles upon a far more enticing puzzle . . . and a much greater danger.

My Thoughts :

Thirteen is coming. The last book in the Women of the Otherworld series. A story I have been following ever since I can remember. Most likely my favourite ever series. A series that has one of my reviews quoted on the cover! I don't want it to be over. I know I have to let go and that all good things eventually come to an end but I will clutch hold of any little sniff of an Otherworld story. So when I saw this pack of novellas available I couldn't stop myself.

I expected The Hunter and The Hunted to be two new, if yet short, stories. The blurb was non-existent but the promise was there. However the first novella, Stalked, seemed a little familiar. I was pretty sure I had read about Elena and Clay's honeymoon somewhere before. It was only afterwards that my suspicions were proven true. This story was actually part of the anthology 'My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon'. Stalked is actually #7.3 in the series.

Now the story was good. So I wasn't upset that I had been cheated out of a new story. I enjoyed reading the 30ish page long account of Elena and Clay as told from Clay's perspective. Not exactly the best story told by him but it was still interesting to see things from his side. Also I remembered how great Kelly Armstrong is at writing short stories. She really manages to pack a punch in such a short space of time.

The second story wasn't called Hunted or Hunter. This #12.5 part in the series is a new original work called Off-Duty Angel and features Eve. This wasn't a bad story and I liked the fact that we finally get to see more of the character who has been dead for the whole series. However the shortness of this tale showed towards the end when things seemed to go too fast and wrap up far too quickly. I was left a little dazed and confused with only a little bit of satisfaction.

This collection was a little disappointing compared to the hype. A nice teaser and appetiser ready for Thirteen but I have to say I expected a lot more. Of course if you are someone who can't wait for Thirteen you may find this e-special very tasty. It does include the first seven chapters of the Otherworld series finale which releases July 24th. I however refused to read the chapters. Nothing worse than reading something amazing and then having to wait for the rest.

I can't wait for Thirteen but in retrospect I didn't need this teaser. A nice present for the fans but you may be left feeling, like I did, a little disappointed.