Showing posts with label Patricia Briggs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Patricia Briggs. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 12, 2015

Patricia Briggs: Mercy Thompson Series

My reading is all over the place at the moment. Although it has been prolific throughout the month of April and May so far. I've been reading backlist books and found many new favorites among them. The Mercy Thompson urban fantasy series stands out. I read all the books and novellas with the exception of Night Broken, Book #8. At this point, I'm thinking of leaving that book in my TBR until the next installment is ready to be published.

Briggs' world building is the first thing that jumped out at me. Briggs concentrates and places a heavy emphasis on the wolf pack hierarchy, -- from dominant to submissive -- the biological aspects of being a wolf, as well as the strict rules they must follow. In Briggs' world a wolf's life is not pretty for anyone, not even the wolf pack's Alpha. It is not easy to choose this lifestyle. Unfortunately, the females are royally screwed since the rules the wolves follow were established during prior centuries when a female's worth was next to nil. So, even in modern times single females don't rank within a pack, if mated they take their rank from their mates (i.e., even if a female is alpha by nature, if her mate is submissive the female goes to the bottom of the pack with her mate). To top it all off females are not able to bear children. Their main contribution is limited to fighting and mating. Hurrah for them.

So, it is no wonder that when coyote shifter Mercy Thompson, our Protagonist (with a capital P), comes under the local Alpha's protection and into contact with his wolf pack, everyone resents the heck out of her, particularly the females. A few factors must be taken into consideration: coyotes and wolves do not get along and Briggs captures nature's enmity between these two similar but distinctive species in her world-building. Mercy stands apart, or outside the pack because she is a coyote shifter. However, many conflicts arise from the fact that Mercy is also an independent female who later comes to hold a higher rank than even the males in the pack. Another factor in all of this comes from Mercy's ability to bear a wolf's child. This is key in the series, although from a different perspective.

Mercy's character did not blow me away after reading Moon Called, #1. It took me a little while to shift my viewpoint of her, and it wasn't until late in Blood Bound that I began thinking of Mercy as a coyote instead of a female wolf. When I understood her penchant for causing trouble, playing dangerous games, and came to terms with that aspect of her personality, I enjoyed her characterization much more. The thing about Mercy is that even when she is not looking for trouble, trouble finds her. She is independent of mind but knows how to play games with the dominant/submissive wolves. Mercy grew up within a wolf pack so she understands the rules even as she fears getting too caught up in them.

At the beginning of the series, Mercy is portrayed as vulnerable because of her size and limited power. But what I found as I read along is that Mercy is vulnerable because she cares too much for others, and sometimes not enough for herself. She just wants to lead a normal life, be a mechanic, and love her man. Unfortunately, that's not to be as everything goes into high gear within and without the shifters' world. The worlds of humans, fae, vampires, witches, and shifters are colliding and Mercy along with Adam's pack find themselves in danger from all sides. As the series moves along, Mercy gains power as she gains knowledge about herself as a coyote. Her adventures become dangerous and she, her friends, and Adam's pack are all affected by her actions, mistakes, and triumphs.

Of all the books in the series, Blood Bound, #2 and Iron Kissed, #3 have the most complex plotting of the series thus far, highlighting the worlds of fae, vampires, and wolves alike. The focus on Bone Crossed, #4 is more singular in nature. It is also missing contributions by recurring secondary characters and although the story is solid overall, in the end it falls on the anti-climactic side. Silver Borne, #5 is truly exciting and somewhat angsty, but unfortunately Sam's secondary storyarc lacks all the good, emotional bits pertaining to his romance. This became specially frustrating later after reading the origins novella Silver in Briggs' anthology Shifting Shadows. River Marked, #6 became my favorite for its inclusion of Coyote, Mercy's Native American roots, and Native American folklore -- and let's not forget all the romantic shenanigans. And, Frost Burned, #7 is a solid installment with some exciting action and mysteries. It's worth mentioning that in this book Briggs includes Adam's point of view a couple of times, from the third person perspective. I liked that. Kyle, Warren's human mate was fantastic throughout the second section of the book, which brings me to the fact that Frost Burned shifts directions a few times along the way, unexpectedly so at the end.

Personally I find that contributions by the secondary characters in this series, not just Adam and Sam, are stand outs and invaluable to this series. I have a crush on Mercy's bloody vampire friend Stefan. Bran is a character whose background I would love to see explored in depth, and Zee, Warren and Ben are at the top of my love list.

My one frustration throughout the series is the pack's continued mistreatment of Mercy. Even with all the factors that make Mercy an outsider, there is such a thing as bonding while sharing hardship. Mercy has battled enemies with this wolf pack and has saved them collectively, as well as individually more than enough times to be treated with respect. The continued distrust, jealousy, and bitchiness that goes on should have abated by this point. It is my most fervent opinion that they all need to get over it already.

The romance between Mercy and Adam? I love the way it has progressed thus far. Love them together. And PS: The characters, but most importantly the events in this series fit perfectly with the Alpha & Omega series. Up to date (almost) So. . . another UF series bites the TBR dust.

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

TBR Review⎪Patricia Briggs: Overview Alpha & Omega

This overview of Patricia Brigg's Alpha & Omega series was originally written as my March 2015 TBR Challenge post. It was ready, however, my computer was down and I was not able to post it. I did not want to waste it, so I'm cheating and posting it as my March/April contribution! Included in my overview you will find two rereads, two TBR reads, and one new release.

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NOTE: Take into consideration that I came to Briggs' world from a fresh perspective, not having read the Mercy Thompson books.

I reread the introductory novella Alpha & Omega, and again was taken aback by Anna's violent introduction to her life as a werewolf. The sexual and physical abuse were a turn off to me when I first read it and that did not change the second time around. Additionally, the quick, 10 minute bonding between Charles and Anna's wolves was predictable. The fact that at the end Anna, after having been physically and sexually abused for years, went away with a stranger to a strange place in a matter of days, was a huge turn off for me. Wolf non-standing, her human self should have had more reservations. Those were still my thoughts after rereading the initial novella.

I also reread Cry Wolf. This is where my feelings about the Alpha & Omega series began to change. The book is a thriller in disguise. It's violent with action and a great mystery. But what stands out for me is that this is where Anna begins the process of discovering who she is as an Omega wolf, and learns what she can do. Additionally, although Briggs threw Charles and Anna together in that first novella, their relationship slows down so that Anna as human and wolf can take the time to heal. Charles as Anna's mate is the key to her healing, not necessarily because of the wolf bond, although that is a factor, but because Charles is also a patient and understanding man striving to make her whole again. Charles is a fantastic character -- fascinating in how divided and yet whole he is as man and wolf, lover and killer.

For me, those two sides of Charles really come to the forefront in Hunting Ground, #2 and culminate in Fair Game, #3. Hunting Ground focuses more on Anna's growing abilities and confidence as an Omega wolf, but Charles' duality, his conflict as the Marrock's executioner, is also present. I love Hunting Ground for the excellent introduction (as a new reader to Brigg's world building) to magicks and new characters, the other packs and of course more of Bran, the Marrock who rules the Alphas and the werewolf packs in the U.S. After reading Cry Wolf, I already knew that witches and black magic were part of Briggs' world, but I was surprised to meet vampires and the fae in this story. I particularly enjoyed the Arturian references in the thriller/mystery story arc, which by the way was rife with action, danger, and turned out to be a great mystery to the end.

But really, the fae and Bran really come to life in my favorite book of this series thus far (the one I LOVED) Fair Game! Wow! This book not only focuses on Charles' duality by showing his intimate struggles with his role as the pack's executioner, but it also brings the fae to light with a bang. In this fantastic urban fantasy thriller, Charles and Anna work closely with four agents from government agencies -- FBI, Homeland Security -- as well as two men from a shifter/other hate group to find a serial killer who has been kidnapping and murdering weaker half-breed fae. I also realized while reading this book that Bran is not only ruthless, but also a sad and loving creature. I'm really curious about this complex character and hope his story is told at some point. Fair Game is a well-rounded urban fantasy installment with the romance taking a step forward, as Anna takes the lead when Charles falters -- that is a lovely turn of events. And, it has a fantastic finish! Dramatic, unexpected, and just. . . yes, I loved this book.

Of course after finishing Fair Game, I immediately purchased and read the latest release Dead Heat. I liked it. In this book we see a relaxed Charles and a more confident Anna. A loving couple whose bond is in place. Dead Heat also has a good mystery to solve, one that involves children and the fae. However, the reader also gets an important part of Charles's past here as he and Anna travel to Arizona and meet his old friends at a horse ranch. I have to admit that although I enjoyed the scenes of Charles and Anna at this horse ranch, there are way too many of those scenes to be had. One of my favorite things about this book, however, is that I found out how werewolves are made! Gruesome, but key to Brigg's world building in my opinion. As far as the mystery goes, I figured out who the villain was early in the game (immediately), so although the chase was great, as well as heartbreaking at times, the climax was just okay for me. My favorite aspect of this book has to be how Brigg's shows her main characters' growth -- Anna's kick-ass confidence as mate and Omega wolf, and Charles' friendly and more vulnerable side with other characters beside Anna.

Conclusion: So yes, I'm hooked on this series. I love the world-building, the characters, and the thrilling, action-packed mysteries. However, going from that first novella where I was so turned off by the violence perpetrated against Anna and ending with Dead Heat, what I like the most about this series is how well Briggs deals with Anna's psychological healing. Briggs doesn't use the "love/sex heals all" device with Anna, instead it is a slow and steady process. Anna may never conquer all her fears even with Charles at her side, they both know this, but she is healing and growing. I love that.

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Throughout all these years, I read detailed reviews for the Mercy Thompson urban fantasy series because I never planned to read the books, so I knew that there was a triangle. When this series was first released I did not read UF, and hurtful, angsty triangles do not appeal to me. HOWEVER, after reading the Alpha & Omega series, I wanted to know more about the world-building and some of the characters mentioned, in particular Charles' brother Sam and their father Bran. So, after all these years I went ahead and read Moon Called. And guess what? I just finished Bone Crossed, Book #4 and am going on to read the rest of the series.