Review: Moon Called

Moon Called

Pages:  304 pages

Published: Ace; 2006

The author: Patricia Briggs

Mercy Thompson's life is not exactly normal. Her next-door neighbor is a werewolf. Her former boss is a gremlin. And she's fixing a VW bus for a vampire. But then, Mercy isn't exactly normal herself.

The long story short: Mercedes "Mercy" Thompson is a mechanic - and a "walker," able to shift at will into a coyote.  Though she has connections to the supernatural world she doesn't get overly actively involved - until the supernatural world comes looking for her.  Overall a fairly fast paced and enjoyable read, I really found myself drawn to several of the characters, and cheering for others, as well as wishing I had bought the second book when I bought the first one. 

Final rating: 3 1/2 of 5 stars 

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I've read several Briggs books so far, and after reading this one, I think urban fantasy is her strong suit.  I've really enjoyed every book of hers I've read (and have several more I plan to read, including the rest of this series, or rather, what has been published to date), but there was something about how strongly and fiercely her voice, as a writer, came across in this book.  I was a little unsure at first if I was going to like this cast of characters - the alpha male, Adam, the vibrant and headstrong Mercy, and the other various supporting characters: her once-love, Samuel, his father, pack leader Bran, gremlin Zee, and vampire Stefan.

But there is more than meets the eye to each character - and Briggs reveals just enough of that "more" to have left me wanting to get to know the characters further.  I liked Mercy a great deal after I started getting to know her.  And Briggs doesn't leave the reader bored.  The action zips along nicely with just enough back story to bring you up to speed, without bogging you down with said back story.

The story really takes off when a brand-new werewolf comes to Mercy's shop looking for work - and then turns up dead a few pages later.  The next thing Mercy knows, she's spiriting the local Alpha, Adam Hauptman, off to Bran's territory, to recover from an attack no one is sure who to blame for.  It's there and after that the plot continues to thicken delightfully, and we get a taste of werewolf life and politics, as well as a few secrets from Mercy's past.  Oh, and  I can't forget the witches.  :)

I will admit am not sure how to feel about the love triangle between Samuel, Mercy, and Adam that seems to be forming, but maybe that's because Mercy and Samuel stole my heart right away.  (I feel that love triangles are too over done.)  I don't quite buy Adam and Mercy as a couple, though there is definitely sexual tension.  I just hope there is more to it than that for them in the coming books if I am going to cheer for them.  :)

The arc of this story is executed fairly well; by the end, most of the loose ends of Moon Called are tied up neatly, but the end easily sets the stage for possible sequels (of which there are 6 thus far with at least one more planned.) 

Molli Reviews...Wolfsbane

Shapeshifting mercenary Aralorn leads a dangerous existence. Now she must return home for her noble father, the Lyon of Lambshold, has passed away. But when Aralorn and her companion Wolf arrive, they find he's not dead, but ensorcelled by the ae'Magi, using him as a conduit to destroy Aralorn and Wolf. She must overcome this mysterious mist or fall to the blackest of magic.

@ amazon.com / @ goodreads
Pages: 304
Published: Ace; 11/02/10
The Author: Patricia Briggs

The long story short: I liked this novel more than I did its predecessor.  Wolfsbane felt much more polished and cohesively told than Masques.  I could definitely tell Briggs had grown as a writer, and this story held me raptly fascinated!  I was very satisfied overall with the story told, and actually ended it thinking, "sequel.  now. please!"  3 1/2 of 5 stars

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This time around, Patricia Briggs brings back her heroine, Aralorn, and her companion, Wolf, for an all new adventure.  Aralorn's father has died - or so she believes.  Upon returning to her home for the first time in the decade since she left to become a mercenary, Aralorn finds many changes: teenage siblings who were babies when she left, a newly built temple to the goddess of death, a brother who is suspicious of her and her magic, and a father who is spelled and asleep, but definitely not dead.

  

Aralorn dives into the mystery surrounding her father's condition, while dealing with a few particularly painful reminders of just why she left home.  Added into the mix is her increasingly  complex relationship with Wolf.  I think this is my absolute favorite thing about this book, seeing their relationship change and grow.  I love that Wolf is turning to her, and not away from her, and learning that someone loves him.  I just wanted to reach through the pages and hug him, watching - him - change and grow.

The threat of the ae'Magi (did he survive, when everyone believes him dead?  and if so, how?) looms though, and is a definite threat to Aralorn's happiness, and to her father.  Someone is forcing those around her to work black magic.  I enjoyed how she, Wolf, and the others - including her uncle - all came together to fight against the dark magic.   

My only complaints with this book were, I wish it had lasted a little longer, and I thought the ending was perhaps a little too neat for my tastes.  I would have liked to have seen the book carry us a little father past where it did, perhaps set the stage for another adventure with Wolf and Aralorn.  And I wish we'd see a little more of her family.  I loved at least two of her grown brothers.  : )  

Teaser Tuesdays - #3

{ ++ } Hosted over at Should Be Reading, this weekly meme is fun and simple: open your current read.  Pick out a juicy couple of sentences, and...tease away!

Generally I don't have the control problems that the werewolves do - coyotes are adaptable, amiable beasts. But at that moment, if I'd been in coyote form, I'd have been running away as fast as I could.

- Moon Called

Mercy Thompson's life is not exactly normal. Her next-door neighbor is a werewolf. Her former boss is a gremlin. And she's fixing a VW bus for a vampire. But then, Mercy isn't exactly normal herself.  @ amazon.com

Molli Reviews...Masques

After an upbringing of proper behavior and oppressive expectations, Aralorn fled her noble birthright for a life of adventure as a mercenary spy. Her latest mission involves spying on the increasingly powerful sorcerer Geoffrey ae'Magi. But in a war against an enemy armed with the powers of illusion, how do you know who the true enemy is-or where he will strike next?

@ amazon.com / @ goodreads
Pages: 320
Published: (This re-issue) 09/28/2010; Ace
The Author: Patricia Briggs

The long story short: This book had its fair share of growing pains; I went into reading it knowing it was Brigg's first book - but that didn't mean I didn't eagerly approach the story.  At times the pacing was off, and I would have liked more description in some areas, but overall the story was one that I enjoyed, definitely enough to read the sequel.  3 of 5 stars.

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I like female lead characters with some spunk to them, and Aralorn, spy of Sianim carries off this personal well.  She wields green magic as a shape shifter, largely untrained, but between that, her skills as a spy, and her general no-nonsense attitude, I found her immensely likable almost right away.  With her on-again, off-again companion, Wolf, the book follows Aralorn as she stumbles into the heart of the evil that surrounds the ae'Magi (who is bound to all the mages in the land), Geoffrey.  Everyone loves the man - and no one sees the corrupted soul he is, except Aralorn.  To speak ill of him is to risk not only disfavor, but having ones friends and allies turn on you.  The charisma spell the ae'Magi has cast out around himself is a tangled net, designed to catch and hold everyone.

The odds seem totally against Aralorn, and the rag-tag group of refugees she falls in with.  The Reithan king, Myr, impervious to magic is also not under the ae'Magi's spell, and neither are those who reluctantly follow him.  Aralorn and Wolf - who is so much more than he seems - sometimes a wolf, sometimes a man - search frantically for a way to defeat the ae'Magi.  And all the while, old magics stir, rumors of the ae'Magi's son, Cain - a mage who it is said was darker even than his father - spread into the refugee's mountain camp, and Aralorn and Wolf's struggles incease.

I liked Aralorn and Wolf's relationship best out of all the aspects and arcs of the book.  Wolf himself is an entirely different character, easily the most fascinating character (for me) in the book.  Seeing little glimpses of his layers thrilled me, as did trying to figure him out.  I also enjoyed that Aralorn is such a story-teller.  I wasn't a fan of the pacing in the book - I'd have liked to have seen more of Aralorn's life as a spy, and I'd like to have seen more of the refugees coming together so to speak.  The end was wrapped up a little too neatly for my choice, but overall I would give the book a recommendation, but I would tell anyone who was going into reading it that this was the author's first book and as such, there are some awkward moments.

Teaser Tuesdays: Masques

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

+ Grab your current read
+ Open to a random page
+ Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
+ BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
+ Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
 

"Having experienced the ae'Magi's touch firsthand, if only for a brief time compared to whatever he'd gone through, she finally understood some of what caused Wolf to be the way he was.  It increased her patience with him - but it didn't mean she was going to let him pull away again without a fight."

 

Masques, by Patricia Briggs - page 212