totem alternatives to totem hawk/forest?

If you're budget is in the range of Forests - look at the Mani-2. Search the archives on Mani-2 and you'll find plenty. It's not cheaper nor lighter that the Forest, but has the Totem qualities, and if anything is better.
If you're looking to spend less money - check out the Model 1 Sig.

Bdgregory is right on, try either the Mani-2 or Model One Sig. If used isn't out of the question you may also consider the discontinued Tabu - I found this monitor to be quite magical while owning it, I just prefer floorstanders to monitors.

I own both Hawks (living room) and Rainmakers (home theatre) and can say without a shadow of a doubt that they share much of the same characteristics: smooth, musical, transparent presentation that really makes you forget about all that hi-fi stats distraction and lets you enjoy what you're hearing.

Let's take a look at it from the hi-fi stats angle, though:

Hawk: 5.5" driver, 6 ohms, 86db sens
Forest: 6.5" driver, 8 ohms, 87db sens
Rainmaker: 5.5" driver, 4 ohms, 87.5db sens
Model One: 5.5" driver, 4 ohms, 87db sens

So, you can see that the Forest really doesn't have a bookshelf equivalent but the Hawk has two. The Rainmaker is quite a bargain, but of course the Model 1 sounds better if you can afford it.

The Mani-2 is a phenomenal speaker, but has considerable power amp requirements (both quantity and quality) due to its isobarik configuration - search google for more info. Be very certain you have enough power before going down that path, and if you're unsure then you almost certainly don't have enough :)

I agree with Ghunter on this one. However, I will state that it is my opinion that the Model 1 is closer to the Forest in sonic signature and the Arro (not a bookshelf) is actually closer in tone to the Hawk.

Let's just say that you can't go wrong with any of the Totem speakers mentioned in this thread.

What does the rest of your system look like? What are the room dimensions? Those are also large factors in determining what may work best.

Ghunter isi right, room size and associated electronics is the biggest factor in determining the right Totem.

Here's an example: my Rainmakers sound beautiful in a room 14' wide, 9' ceilings, and approx 20' deep. I'm powering them with a 120wpc Denon AVR-3805 receiver with a high quality power supply.

We couldn't be happier with the Rainmakers, playing a mix of music and movies on them. Last weekend we had a live Tabla Beat Science DVD in there and it was like we were at the concert - they were so loud and clear. A few nights ago we watched the abysmal movie Derailed (Jennifer Aniston and Clive Owen) and we thought that the phone ringing was actually the one three feet in front of us on the coffee table.