Five reasons to read Broken:

1) Although I had a great time with the previous three books, I truly missed the Pack. The sense of found family, which is so prominent in this series, is at its peak with the werewolves. Witnessing them united always gives me a warm feeling inside.

2) Every character contributes something unique to the books, and each book in turn offers something new to the characters. Nick emerges as the dark horse this time, and rightfully so as he is truly amazing. Jaime begins to come into her own and meets Tee, who is both captivating and a bit unsettling.

3) The character growth occurs gradually and is spread across multiple books, making it almost unnoticeable on the first read but extremely blatant and enjoyable on rereads. The pregnancy serves as a turning point for Clay and Elena, and the events in this book have long-lasting implications, especially for Clay.

4) The books have become increasingly funnier. While they still maintain a dark tone, there are now more light-hearted moments to balance it out.

5) I am completely in love with the entire concept behind the plot, including the portal and Jack the Ripper. The fact that the werewolves are so ill-equipped for this investigation enhances my enjoyment as it is a direct result of their reentry into the larger supernatural community.

Three drawbacks to Broken:

1) Certain ideas and descriptions are repeated throughout the series regardless of the point of view. This is the third book that describes hospitals as smelling of disinfectant and overcooked food. It is strange that three different characters would phrase it in exactly the same way.

2) Figuring out who the villain is was not much of a challenge. I would have derived even more pleasure from the story if it had had a huge plot twist with only the subtlest of foreshadowing.

3) The Jack the Ripper element was not as strong as I had hoped it would be. It seems as though the author was not entirely comfortable with it, so instead of confronting it directly, they danced around it.

It's been quite a while since I delved into the Otherworld series, and currently, I'm experiencing a bit of a dilemma.

I have an intense affection (love, LOVE) for the characters and the way they interact and form relationships. Roughly half of the time, I'm completely enamored with the plot. However, during the other 50% of the time, my enthusiasm wanes. Asserting that I find (some of) the stories to be over-told or lacking freshness might seem too harsh, yet it holds a grain of truth. I once lauded Stolen as the finest retelling of The Most Dangerous Game that I had encountered. And that statement remains valid. But did I have a penchant for The Most Dangerous Game upon my initial reading? The answer is no. Now, with Broken, the situation is similar. Do I have an affinity for interpretations related to Jack the Ripper? Absolutely not. He was a grisly serial killer who preyed on prostitutes and mutilated their faces. What could possibly be likable about that?

Moreover, why do children so often appear to be the targets? Deaths occur in books, and I have no qualms with that. I don't necessarily like it, but I can come to terms with it. Nevertheless, that doesn't imply that one should single out kids. It simply doesn't make sense.

So, even though I hold Clay and Elena dear, and even though I find it highly amusing to witness Jamie getting so flustered by Jeremy, did I truly relish Broken? Regrettably, the answer is no.

Part six in the extremely diverse Women of the Otherworld series, Broken, is, sad to say, not the best one.

Elena, the only known female werewolf, is pregnant with her werewolf boyfriend Clay's child. This makes her more vulnerable, having to rely on her Pack to protect her. When they are sent to Toronto on Pack business, they get tangled up in supernatural troubles. There are rampaging Victorian serial killers, a bunch of long-extinct diseases, and a multi-dimensional portal spitting out zombies. The Pack can use every supernatural help they can get.

After all this focus on the witchcrafting part of the Women of the Otherworld family (Dime Store Magic, Industial Magic, Haunted), I was glad to be back to the reason I love this series - the werewolves! As far as the narrators go, I still enjoy Elena the most. She is so utterly kick-ass that I just love being in her head. However, I didn't like Broken as much as Bitten. With a baby on board, Elena can't kick butts like before. She has become Elena the Clumsy Pregnant Lady, and I don't really like this change. All of a sudden, Clay is this cutesy protective guy. I miss my socially retarded Clay, who was much more fun.

Apart from my grumbling about the character changes, the plot was of the calibre we are used to by Ms Armstrong. It has intrigue, betrayal, friendships, and plot-twists you don't see coming. Even though there was a lot of meaningless running around, doing research, and calling people, I still enjoyed this part a lot. It was good to see a decent plot again, after a bit of a meh one in Haunted.

A minor concern I'm starting to have is that there are too many characters in this series. Every book, we meet new ones, and it's becoming really hard to keep track of them all. At some parts of the story, I was rather confused about who they were calling. Having had a few months break between books, I could use a memory-refresher.

Overall, Broken is a very nice read and a great addition to the urban-fantasy genre. I hope kick-ass Elena is still down there somewhere, and I would love to see her back.