Blood Bound (Mercy Thompson Series)

Book two of the Mercy Thompson series finds our heroine at the (hardeharhar) mercy of the vampires. She owes her friend, Stefan, a favor, so she tags along on what he promises is a relatively harmless errand. Of course, you should only trust vamps as far as you can throw them (which, if you're a walker, is a decent length...)! You may be wondering why Mercy, being mostly mortal, is asked on this little mission? Well, Mercy's got a semi-secret. Since she's a walker, she's also partially immune to vampire mojo! Yeah for the wacky, weird quirks that go along with being a walker! As such, she is the one who helps track down the oogie-boogie that is a demon-possessed vampire with a thirst for violence and mayhem in order to save Stefan's life. Just to throw a wrench in matters, Samuel is now living with Mercy, while Adam is only a stone's throw away from her front door (and the dilapidated, spray painted Rabbit she keeps in the front yard as a sign of defiance). 

Once again Briggs provides a believable heroine, but this time she gives us more to go on with Mercy's feelings in relation to herself and her potential lovers. The testosterone flies (again), and Mercy's relationship with the Pack feels the strain when she choses to help a vamp. Despite this, Mercy relies on the Pack to help track down the crazed killer, only to find that their super-strength and speed are hardly assets against a crazed maniacal killer vamp with super strength! So, it's up to Mercy to figure things out and save everyone's ass. After all, what are heroines for? 

Stars: 4.5 out of 5 (Honestly, the back and forth with Adam and Samuel gets old! Pick one!)

Moon Called (Mercy Thompson Series)

[Well, as an introduction, I'm a big fan of classics, murder mysteries, and supernatural thrillers. I'd give you a list, but that's what this blog should eventually be! Thus, keep reading if you want to know more. ]

As for the Mercedes Thompson series, it's a group of four (so far) books about a kick-ass-but-knows-her-limits heroine named Mercy. She's of mixed decent, one part white girl, one part Native American Walker. Walkers are people who have the natural ability to turn into animals, more specifically coyotes. Oh, yeah, and she's an awesome VW mechanic (named Mercedes... yeah, they play with that joke in the book, too). The first book in entitled Moon Called and starts the reader off on the trail of a kidnapper. Basically, her next door neighbor is the Alpha of the Werewolf pack in the Tri-Cities area of Washington state. Thanks to Mercy's kindness, the Alpha (aka Adam), gets saddled with a young wolf named Mac who is wanted by... someone. Basically, a few troubled rabbit trails later, and Adam is wounded, Jesse (Adam's teenage daughter) gets kidnapped, and Mercy's stuck trying to track down these people who have hurt her friends. Being the savvy coyote that she is, Mercy uses the help of the Pack, the vamps, and the fae to track down the crazies. Did I mention that her previous boss and close friend is also a member of the fae? Also, things get interesting when Samuel, Mercy's ex-lover, shows up and starts a testosterone competition with Adam. Yeah for sexy beasts (literally)!

 

Despite having a rather convoluted world to introduce the reader to, Briggs does a great job hooking you in the first book. Mercy, like many heroines today, is a tough, no-nonsense type of girl when it counts, but she's made real through her sense of humor and the fact that she knows how to play a system in which she is not (excuse the pun) top dog. She also has a unique friendship with a few of the characters that helps the reader see her as a real person, and she often makes mistakes and misjudges people. However, Mercy's instincts don't fail her and in the end she rises mostly victorious. 

Stars: 4.25 out of 5 (Definitely a new favorite series, but this is the intro.)