Blogetary (Weblog + Commentary = Blogetary)

I received Stray late last week after winning it in one of Rachel Vincent’s blog contests. I was really looking forward to cracking it open this weekend and once I got around to it Sunday afternoon it was difficult to put down.  Oh, there were times when I wanted to throw it across the room and swear at it, but that had nothing to do with the writing and everything to do with how engaged I was with Faythe Sanders, the main character. This morning, around 3AM, I finally finished it and immediately began to wonder what would happen next cuz Faythe, for me at least, is just one of those characters.

Some books, when you read them, are like candy.  They’re a fun read and you go through them lightening fast and when you’re done you think “wow, where did it go?”  For me Stephanie Rowe and Lilith Saintcrow are like that.  I zip through their stuff and have fun, put the books down and go on with my life until another one of their books catches my eye.  But there are OTHER books that are stickier.  You get more involved in them.  Their worlds are more real, more sensual, more emotional.  They get under your skin, make you uncomfortable and you might put them down because of that, but find yourself picking them back up again soon after.  For me, Vicki Pettersson is one of those writers and I think after reading Stray, that I need to add Rachel Vincent to that list of writers as well.

I guess I should explain a little.  Faythe is part of a Pride of werecats and much like her counterparts in other parts of the cat world, Faythe and her family and cohorts are individualistic and independent – ie stubborn and idiosyncratic – and they have to live together.

Have you ever watched cats who live together?  Sometimes it can get a little hairy.

Faythe, in a bid to escape the claustrophobic living style of the Pride, has tried to go out into the world and make something of herself, and once again finds herself sucked back into the family life she tried to escape. She’s furious about it and I don’t blame her a bit.  As I was reading I could feel how uncomfortable I was and tried to figure out why. Why was I irritated?  I finally figured out that I was identifying with Faythe so strongly that I was empathizing with her.

Seriously.  When my male cats misbehave as badly as these toms do they do not get away with it.  I had thoughts of taking Faythe’s father and brothers and guy friends by the scruff of their necks and shoving them in the bathroom and leaving them there until they settled down and realized what dicks they were being (that’s what I do with my male cats when they act up).  Meanwhile, I figured, Faythe and I could go out and have a good time without them buggin’ us.  Really.  I just wanted to drive out to her ranch, honk the horn and tell her to grab her duffel and get the hell out of there! “Girlfriend, you’re comin’ with me and we’re not comin’ back until your family agrees to counseling.”  Not that they don’t love her – but they love her so much they strangle her and you can feel it. Even the man she is drawn to despite her better judgement does not get her. Oh he may *know* her, but he doesn’t *get* her.  You can feel her frustration at how these people just won’t listen.

Faythe is not perfect.  She is a faulty person who makes mistakes and won’t see that her family has her best interests at heart. However, she’s also brave, intelligent, sensuous, independent and has a streak of ingenuity that keeps her just enough out of trouble to keep her alive during the grittiest parts of the story.  While there’s mystery and suspense and romance aplenty (pretty spicy romance) and a good story to follow, it’s Faythe that keeps me reading.  Rachel Vincent has done an excellent job of creating a very compelling character in Faythe Sanders.

By the end of the story there is a resolution and an equilibrium is reached, but it’s not complete.  There’s more coming and I’m excited to find out what happens next.