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{{infobox
|title=Men of the Otherworld
|author=Kelley Armstrong
|reviewer=Jill Murphy
|genre=Fantasy
|summary=Two novellas and two short stories filling in some of the backstory to Armstrong's female-dominated series. Fun and for charity, but perhaps more for the avid fan than the general reader.
|rating=3.5
|buy=Maybe
|borrow=Yes
|format=Paperback
|pages=384
|publisher=Orbit
|date=January 2009
|isbn=1841497436
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1841497436</amazonuk>
|amazonus=<amazonus>0553807099</amazonus>
}}

Ever wondered about the men in Kelly Armstrong's ''Otherworld'' fantasyverse? They get involved in all the action, of course, so you probably fancy at least one of them, don't you? But you rarely get much of a look at the inside - after all, this series is all about the girls. Apparently, fans over at Armstrong's vibrant and busy [http://www.kelleyarmstrong.com home] on the web have been very keen on getting some backstory on the guys though, and Armstrong duly obliged with some short stories and extra chapters which she shared with them online. Here, we find four of them published in book form, with Armstrong's royalties going to charity.

They're all about the werewolves. I cheered, because the lycanthropes are by far my favourite creations in this urban fantasy. It all starts with ''Infusion'', a short story about the childhood of the Alpha wolf, Jeremy. We then get two novellas, ''Savage'' and ''Ascension'', in which we see Clayton Danvers' progression from feral orphan to pack bodyguard and the story of how he fell in love with - and infected - Elena. The last story, ''Kitsunegari'', is all about Jeremy's mother.

As ever, I thoroughly enjoyed the read. You simply can't fail to like these good-natured and pacy books.

''Men of the Otherworld'' doesn't really advance this fantasyverse onwards, nor is it intended to, and so perhaps it's more one for the dedicated fan than the casual reader. However, for that dedicated fan it will flesh out some of the background to the male characters and give an extra teaser or two to wonder about. It's written with Armstrong's characteristic easy style and enthusiasm, and it's all in aid of World Literacy in Canada.

My thanks to the nice people at Orbit for sending the book.

If you can't get enough of werewolves, try [[Moon Called (Mercy Thompson) by Patricia Briggs|Moon Called by Patricia Briggs]].

{{amazontext|amazon=1841497436}} {{waterstonestext|waterstones=6212645}}

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