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readingmissfroggy's review
3.0
I don't know why bit this one felt a bit dull and slow. I would have liked to see the story continue on a bit longer, see how Karl would react to what Daniel offers him.
kathydavie's review
5.0
A free short story, 0.13 in the Women of the Otherworld urban fantasy series and involving Karl Marsten, a mutt.
If you're interested, there is a chronological listing of the Women of the Otherworld books on my website.
My Take
Oh, too funny. Armstrong starts off with Karl expressing his sexual interest in a fellow partygoer...an interest that quickly disintegrates under conversation. A lopsided one.
Armstrong makes good use of Karl's radar going off to provide background on his father and his death, the problems of a mutt, and the battles used to enhance reputations, using third person protagonist point-of-view from Karl's perspective.
I gotta agree with Cindy. Apologizing is no good if you keep doing the same thing.
It's all a buildup for events in Bitten, 1. Foreshadowing.
The Story
The pleasant build-up of attraction that's dashed, even as his father's strictures on manners runs through Karl's head.
Should he? Or shouldn't he? A question that's answered when an unexpected nemesis appears with an invitation.
The Characters
Karl Marsten is a rogue werewolf and international jewel thief. His father, Josef Marten, preferred quiet burglary.
The Stonehaven Pack is...
...led by Jeremy Danvers. Elena Michaels is a Pack werewolf with whom Karl has manipulated a friendship. Fellow Pack members include Peter Myers.
Malcolm Danvers is Jeremy's jerk of a father. Wally and Ray Santos are/were part of Malcolm's posse. Daniel Santos is Ray’s youngest son with a taste for satisfying three of his werewolf hungers at once—violence, food, and sex.
Cindy Mays is a wealthy and pretty partygoer.
The Cover and Title
The cover is black, red, and white in blocks of color showcasing Cindy as a silhouette in white enhanced by the red of her lips and the sexy black halter dress she's wearing along with a tiger pendant, stretching her arms over her head. A spare abstract of a wolf in red outlined in white is behind her with black filling the rest of the background. Left justified and beginning at Cindy's waist is the author's name with the title below it in white.
The title is all about Karl's "Territorial" desires.
If you're interested, there is a chronological listing of the Women of the Otherworld books on my website.
My Take
Oh, too funny. Armstrong starts off with Karl expressing his sexual interest in a fellow partygoer...an interest that quickly disintegrates under conversation. A lopsided one.
Armstrong makes good use of Karl's radar going off to provide background on his father and his death, the problems of a mutt, and the battles used to enhance reputations, using third person protagonist point-of-view from Karl's perspective.
I gotta agree with Cindy. Apologizing is no good if you keep doing the same thing.
It's all a buildup for events in Bitten, 1. Foreshadowing.
The Story
The pleasant build-up of attraction that's dashed, even as his father's strictures on manners runs through Karl's head.
Should he? Or shouldn't he? A question that's answered when an unexpected nemesis appears with an invitation.
The Characters
Karl Marsten is a rogue werewolf and international jewel thief. His father, Josef Marten, preferred quiet burglary.
The Stonehaven Pack is...
...led by Jeremy Danvers. Elena Michaels is a Pack werewolf with whom Karl has manipulated a friendship. Fellow Pack members include Peter Myers.
Malcolm Danvers is Jeremy's jerk of a father. Wally and Ray Santos are/were part of Malcolm's posse. Daniel Santos is Ray’s youngest son with a taste for satisfying three of his werewolf hungers at once—violence, food, and sex.
Cindy Mays is a wealthy and pretty partygoer.
The Cover and Title
The cover is black, red, and white in blocks of color showcasing Cindy as a silhouette in white enhanced by the red of her lips and the sexy black halter dress she's wearing along with a tiger pendant, stretching her arms over her head. A spare abstract of a wolf in red outlined in white is behind her with black filling the rest of the background. Left justified and beginning at Cindy's waist is the author's name with the title below it in white.
The title is all about Karl's "Territorial" desires.
krisin95's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
vikingwolf's review
3.0
Karl has a rich and drunk woman on his arm but his eye is on her jewellery. However he has second thoughts about the robbery when he picks up the scent of a werewolf that he has already killed. These are the events directly leading to Bitten and shows how Karl ended up involved.
This is really a filler short story but it was quite interesting to see how Karl ends up in a rebel plot. I would have liked it to be extended to include a discussion of the actual plans to see Karl's reaction to what was going to happen.
I was amused by how badly he was messing up his date though! He is a lot smoother when he meets Hope!
This is really a filler short story but it was quite interesting to see how Karl ends up in a rebel plot. I would have liked it to be extended to include a discussion of the actual plans to see Karl's reaction to what was going to happen.
I was amused by how badly he was messing up his date though! He is a lot smoother when he meets Hope!
garnetofeden's review
3.0
Quality short story but too short for me to feel comfortable giving four stars without being part of a collection.
Rating reviewed 1/20/2023.
Rating reviewed 1/20/2023.
hemloc's review
5.0
Three reasons to read Territorial:
1) I did not anticipate liking Karl's POV, but he is surprisingly endearing because of how courteously he treats the people he's trying to rob.
2) I've seen bits and pieces of Karl's backstory in other books, but his POV brings those elements to life in a way the other characters talking about it couldn't.
3) This first-hand account of his state of mind right before the events of Bitten is interesting. It's a more detailed explanation of what he was going through and why he did what he did.
1) I did not anticipate liking Karl's POV, but he is surprisingly endearing because of how courteously he treats the people he's trying to rob.
2) I've seen bits and pieces of Karl's backstory in other books, but his POV brings those elements to life in a way the other characters talking about it couldn't.
3) This first-hand account of his state of mind right before the events of Bitten is interesting. It's a more detailed explanation of what he was going through and why he did what he did.
readingrenbo's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0