Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Review: MOON CALLED by Patricia Briggs

MOON CALLED

By: Patricia Briggs

Book 1 in the Mercy Thompson Series

Ace Books / The Berkley Publishing Group / The Penguin Group / 375 Hudson Street / New York, NY 10014

First Printing: February 2006

ISBN: 978-0-441-01381-4

Amazon; Barnes and Noble; Goodreads

Concept: “Werewolves can be dangerous if you get in their way, but they’ll leave you alone if you are careful. They are very good at hiding their natures from the human population but I’m not human. I know them when I meet them, and they know me, too.

Mercy Thompson’s sexy next—door neighbor is a werewolf.

She’s tinkering with a VW bus at her mechanic shop that happens to belong to a vampire.

But then, Mercy Thompson is not exactly normal herself…and her connection to the world of things that go bump in the night is about to get her into a whole lot of trouble.

Review: While reading this book, I didn’t realize how involved I was in Mercy’s world until one night, we had some coyotes howling outside our bedroom window and I immediately went to Mercy’s world and thought about those critters in a different way. Mercy is a shifter, she goes from coyote to auto mechanic in the blink of an eye. Around her are werewolves, fae and vampires, but she tries to mind her own business. As her luck would have it, she gets sucked into a mystery/adventure that is not only exciting and smart, but tugs at your heart as well. We learn about Mercy’s upbringing, the people (weres and otherwise) that she has come to love, trust, dislike and learn about. We unravel the mystery with her were friends by getting help from all sorts of urban fantasy creatures.

What I liked: This is a smart story. There's not a lot of fluff in here. It’s a well thought out and well-written mystery -- a thinker. I found myself drawn into Mercy’s world and I was extremely interested in the characters and the outcome. The ending was satisfying even though there are several plot areas that can be developed some more. Mercy is a strong character, but I’d like to see her with a little more sarcasm, maybe some sense of humor? Something to make her a little more endearing. If you want a good read for a good, thinker type of mystery, this is definitely a book to read.

What I disliked: I think that this book, the first one in the series, really tells us what makes Mercy tick. However, getting there was a little boring sometimes. It wasn't bad, but it didn't have me sitting on the edge of my seat or anything either. I also didn’t like that there wasn’t that much romance in the book especially with the promise on the back of a “sexy” next door neighbor. Mercy sort of reminds me of a rather dull Anita Blake character before Anita got all slutty. Like Anita Blake, you find yourself wanting more to see what will happen next, even if there isn't romance. I will keep up with this series. She’s smart enough to entertain me without sex. But sex WOULD make it better. Doesn't it always?

My rating: 3 SOLID Stars.

Kelly

for Book Lover's Hideaway

6 comments:

Alyssa Nelson said...

I agree -- when I first read this book, I was totally disappointed by the lack of sex scenes. Especially considering the cover. You should definitely keep reading the series. It gets way more interesting now that the set-up is done, although these books definitely can't be considered as sizzling romances.

Deea said...

Thanks for the review! I heard so many things about this book that I didn't even know what to think anymore. I'll probably give it a shot later this year too. And the lack of sex is ok for me... I like a book with interesting characters and a good plot too. And we still have the hot paranormal romance books, right?:))

Unknown said...

I have to say, this series gets soooooo much better! stick to it =D

Love it! =D

Julie said...

I like this "Mercy sort of reminds me of a rather dull Anita Blake character before Anita got all slutty" ... so funny! But it really DOES give you a feel for the character! Great review!

LJ said...

Like you, I was kind of bored by this book. I read it when it first came out and I was somewhat disappointed. However, it did have some intrigue to it. Like Larissa says, I've heard from many that the series gets much better, so I'm not willing to give up. I just need to get to the 2nd…sometime.

Logan E. Turner said...

Hi and thanks for the follow! I'm coming by from the hop and am following you back.

I love this series, but I can definitely see your point about the lack of sex. I think that would make this series better!

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