Kitty Takes A Holiday by Carrie Vaughn

We’re on Book 03 in our Kitty Norville read-along.  Kitty is hiding from her own life when she is forced to save the life of one her friends.  This is one of the best books of the series!

Title:  Kitty Takes a Holiday
Author:  Carrie Vaughn
Series: Kitty Norville Book 03
Publish Date:  April 1, 2007
Genre:  Urban Fantasy
Source: Purchased

Publisher’s Description: After getting caught turning wolf on national television, Kitty retreats to a mountain cabin to recover and write her memoirs. But this is Kitty, so trouble is never far behind, and instead of Walden Pond, she gets Evil Dead. When werewolf hunter Cormac shows up with an injured Ben O’Farrell, Kitty’s lawyer, slung over his shoulder, and a wolf-like creature with glowing red eyes starts sniffing around the cabin, Kitty wonders if any of them will get out of these woods alive…

Possible spoilers beyond this point.

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Kat Mandu says…

In this action-packed installment to Kitty Norville’s epic werewolf saga, Kitty finds herself in strange company when she retreats to a cabin in the woods. With people trying to curse her, the local law enforcement against her, and a friend in trouble, she’s back to being in way over her head.

The romantic plot that covers most of the series begins in this one as Ben becomes more than just a human friend Kitty has come to rely on. Now he’s stronger and yet he needs Kitty to help him. Kitty’s got her own little pack now and she’s stepping up to make sure he’s protected. On the other hand, Cormac becomes distant after the events that take place before the story begins, especially now that he knows things are firing up between Ben and Kitty. I love the newness of the relationship and how they can explore and be curious in those first few steps.

I also love the introduction of skinwalkers into the plot – seems like there’s a new species of the supernatural popping up with every book. And humans, always thinking they know best, get right in the middle of things they don’t understand – leaving behind devastating consequences, once of which lands Cormac in jail.

This was a fun read and one of my favorites in the series! A shiny five!

Invested Ivana says…

Kitty Takes a Holiday is my favorite book in the Kitty Norville series, and not just because of the romantic relationship between Kitty and Ben.  The story arc in the first four books is about Kitty taking control of her life.  She’s growing up, but not in a YA “coming-of-age” way.  It’s more about whether, as an adult, you can overcome adversity and thrive, not just survive.

In Holiday, Kitty has run away from dealing with life as a werewolf, from being exposed to the world, even from the fame her radio show has brought.  She’s full of self-doubt and uncertainty about the future. There’s sort of a cocooning period you have to go through when you reinvent yourself, time to be introspective and really examine who you are and what you want.  This is what Kitty’s holiday is about.

Who knows how she would have emerged from that cocoon if Cormac and Ben hadn’t shown up.  On a mission to hunt a rogue werewolf, Ben was bit.  Cormac brought him to Kitty–the only other friendly werewolf he knows–for help. Kitty has to show Ben that being a werewolf is preferable to death before he makes Cormac shoot him.

So she takes on the role of Alpha in her pack of two.  Though she doubts her own ability to play the Alpha, she’s the only one who can, and Ben is depending on her.  This, more than anything, is the push Kitty needs to see herself as a strong, independent person who is capable of dealing with adversity.  Sometimes, we are willing to do more for others than we are for ourselves.

The other great growth moment for Kitty is when she calls into a competing radio show to give some advice to another caller.  Kitty has been hating “Ariel, Priestess of the Night” for quite some time, seeing her as a threat.  She calls her “the sleezebag,” makes prank calls to the show, and tries to find a way to sue her.  What Kitty really hates, of course, is that Ariel is doing the show while Kitty is hiding in the woods, but she isn’t willing to admit that.  When Kitty makes a genuine call to Ariel and is recognized, she doesn’t get the response she expected.  Ariel is a big Kitty fan, one who is trying to carry on Kitty’s work and add strength to the “voice” of the supernatural.  The big difference between what Kitty believes about Ariel and what she discovers is true is a major reality check; one that shines light on her own self-pity and pettiness.

Kitty Takes a Holiday is a pretty great study of the psychology of adapting to adversity. Kitty’s positive growth is contrasted by the actions of the antagonist, of course.  And, as in most things in adult life, the ending is always perfectly happy.  But it’s real, and the perfect launching pad for what Kitty has to face in the next book.

Our reviews in this series…

• Kitty and the Midnight Hour
• Kitty Goes to Washington

Other reviews…

• Fangs for the Fantasy
• Love Vampires
• SF Site

If you like this book…

…you might try Patricia Brigg’s Mercy Thompson series, Rachel Vincent’s Shifter series, or Eileen Wilk’s World of the Lupi series.