Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson: Moon Called Volume 1

Mercy Thompson inhabits two worlds without truly belonging to either. To the human inhabitants of the Tri-Cities she's an oddity, a female mechanic operating her own garage. To the town's darker residents, werewolves, vampires, and fae, she's a walker, a last-of-her-kind magical being with the power to become a coyote. Mercy warily straddles the fine line dividing our everyday world from that darker dimension... 'till a boy, mauled by vicious werewolves and forever changed by the attack and on the run from those who committed the crime, appears at her door. Now her two worlds are about to collide!

Outnumbered and out-muscled, can Mercy possibly save the boy... or even herself?

~~

I don't think I'm meant for to read comic versions of books I've already loved. I'm the kind of reader that takes the time to mold the author's words into a vision in my head, and with that I have my own thoughts about what the character should look like. There's good and bad to that, but this is a perfect example of the bad because the art here just didn't live up to my own personal movie.

The characters look stilted and childish, with not enough of the depth that made them so compelling when in written form. The rapid movements of Mercy as a coyote or the werewolves translated into them looking like they were flying - actually flying - on the page, which was humorous and not exciting at all. Since the words were Briggs' I don't have a lot of complaints and the placement of the thought and speech bubbles weren't bad to tell the story to new readers. I just couldn't get over the artwork and after about 60 pages I realized that this one had no where to go but down.

If you're a new comer to the Mercy series, just buy the books. They're worth it in the long run and the soul of what makes the story and writing so great shines through, without any bad drawing to distract you. (Plus Adam is much hotter than this comic makes out. MUCH hotter.)

Overall Feeling - DNF. Thumbs down.

Series - Mercy Thompson Moon Called: Volume 1, Volume 2, & Volume 3

**I requested this title for review from NetGalley**

Hexed by Ilona Andrews, Yasmine Galenorn, Allyson James & Jeanne C. Stein

Four of the bestselling names in romance and fantasy come together in this collection of thrilling novellas featuring powerful women who know how to handle a hex or two...

New York Times bestselling author Ilona Andrews spins "Magic Dreams." Shapeshifting tigress Dali Harimau finds herself in deep waters when she must challenge a dark being to a battle of wits or risk losing the man for whom she secretly longs.

In "Ice Shards," New York Times bestselling author Yasmine Galenorn returns to the Otherworld as Iris Kuusi, a Finnish house sprite, journeys to the frozen Northlands to confront the crazed shadow of her former lover and break the curse that is keeping her from marrying the man she loves.

National bestselling author Allyson James takes you to Magellan, Arizona, where Stormwalker Janet Begay and her friends are trapped by a powerful curse. It will take every bit of magic simmering beneath her skin for the Stormwalker to survive being "Double Hexed."

From national bestselling author Jeanne C. Stein comes "Blood Debt," in which bounty-hunter-turned-vampire Anna Strong is visited by three witches who ask her to right an old magical wrong. Anna will have to live up to her last name to make it through alive.

~~

I can't say that all anthologies leave me feeling satified but this one defintiely doesn't disappoint. Even though I'm not reading the full novels by Galenorn anymore I enjoyed her entry. It gave me insight into the background of a character I already like and by itself introduces new readers to at least a bit of the back story of the whole series. Plus it doesn't have any creepy rape-ish undertones anywhere so that's always an A+ thing in my book :)

I have to say something similar about James's Walker addition. I liked Janet from the series already, but here we get a quick action filled look at the world she lives in. New readers might be taken aback by the sex under pressure, lol, that James includes here but in the overall realm of the series it makes sense, thus it worked for me. Also the inclusion of supporting characters that made sense and displayed clear personalities of their own was a lot of fun.

I'm not going to talk about the Andrews story again (you can read about here) but I do want to say that as a new reader of Stein's work she almost has me ready to read more. I like her character, I liked the plot of the vignette she included here, but I'm not sold on whether how she writes would annoy me in the long term. Which is aggravating to say the least. There was just something about how she uses first person that, especially when compared to Andrews, irked me. I kind of felt that I was getting a jumbled up look at how the protagonist was feeling while also including some third person observations that interrupted the general flow. I guess I'd have to give this story an 'eh' review, but keep in mind it's more because I'm not really jiving with how Stein writes, even though on the whole I liked it.

Overall Feeling - Thumbs up.

Series - Various.

Happy Captain Picard Day!

....belated anyway. Sometimes I could wish The Mary Sue would update just when I'm remembering to reload the site because then I'd see things like this more quickly! Still, from The Mary Sue...

"It’s the day that corresponds with Stardate 47457.1, that’s what. It was first mentioned as Picard Day in Star Trek: The Next Generation‘s, a day when the Enterprise would host children as a way of showing them what the Starfleet experience was like."

And before anyone asks me, yes I know which episode they're referring to in that explanation. I've seen it multiple times. Because I'm just that cool. But if you're one of the poor lost souls still looking for a reason to love Captain Picard, please see what kind of greatness can occur when he pops up on Sesame Street.

Enough said, am I right?

Mini Me: Kiss of Snow by Nalini Singh

Since the moment of her defection from the PsyNet and into the SnowDancer wolf pack, Sienna Lauren has had one weakness. Hawke. Alpha and dangerous, he compels her to madness.

Hawke is used to walking alone, having lost the woman who would've been his mate long ago. But Sienna fascinates the primal heart of him, even as he tells himself she is far too young to handle the wild fury of the wolf.

Then Sienna changes the rules and suddenly, there is no more distance, only the most intimate of battles between two people who were never meant to meet. Yet as they strip away each other's secrets in a storm of raw emotion, they must also ready themselves for a far more vicious fight…

A deadly enemy is out to destroy SnowDancer, striking at everything they hold dear, but it is Sienna's darkest secret that may yet savage the pack that is her home…and the alpha who is its heartbeat…

~~

Yes this book is amazing. I may have not have broken down into tears of joy at the ending, but I don't think we can blame Nalini Singh for that. The truth of the matter is that if I could have gotten to one of her signings in 3hrs or less I would have made the trip - AND nagged by BFF until she agreed to go with me. 

Hawke's fantastically alpha - that wonderful mix of protective and sensitive that Singh's created. It's like she looked into the secret fantasies of millions of women and created the perfect hero who loves babies. 

It's that irresistible. If they weren't already in animal form half the time I'd say the only thing that was missing was a dog. But they have that too! It's really no wonder that I love them.

The only itsy bitsy minor little thing I can say that took me aback for a minute was how 'young' Sienna seemed sometimes. Yes I guess I got caught up in thinking she was extra mature because of her powers and how she was brought up because of them, but I'm just saying. I was surprised when some of her emotional concerns and lack of experience reminded me of how actually 'young' she was in years. That could legitimately be a fault of my own though, so let's just keep things real.

Buy the series, borrow the series, whatever - READ the series.

Trace of Fever by Lori Foster

Undercover mercenary Trace Rivers loves the adrenaline rush of a well-planned mission. First he’ll earn the trust of corrupt businessman Murray Coburn, then gather the proof he needs to shut down the man’s dirty smuggling operation. It’s a perfect scheme—until Coburn’s long-lost daughter saunters in with her own deadly plan for revenge.

With a smile like an angel and fire in her eyes, Priscilla Patterson isn’t who she seems to be. But neither is the gorgeous bodyguard who ignites all her senses. Joining forces to plot Coburn’s downfall, Priss and Trace must fight the undeniable heat between them. For one wrong move, one lingering embrace, will expose them to the wrath of a merciless opponent...

~~

**I requested this title for review from NetGalley**

I know I reviewed the first book in this series not too long ago, but I feel like you guys would want to know when an author is still keeping things fun and interesting :)

Alpha male military series can be tricky, keeping the hero strong but writing a heroine that's his equal. Not as easy as it sounds really. In this particular book what keeps things interesting is just how ready for anything Priss is. She's introduced as this strong, knowledgeable character that's not going to take Trace's crap. She'll listen to him when he's saying something intelligent, but she's just as committed to make sure her own goals remain in sight.

I also liked how in this book Foster has depicted a further chunk of Trace's life that makes sense. After what happened concerning his sister in the Edge of Honor book, it makes sense that he wouldn't be able to let that go. He's too much of a protector to let the fact he couldn't help his sister go. Aligning himself in the battle against human slavery and forced prostitution allowed him the opportunity to work for a cause he believed in and help some of the weakest part of humanity.

The only part I'd have to say I didn't love as much was just how 'innocent and wide eyed but ready to go in the bedroom' Priss was. I can't say it didn't ring true with her background, it did, it just irked me. I guess I had seen Trace with a take charge woman in all ways and while Priss wasn't a wilting flower in the bedroom, it just seemed off. In my opinion Foster has written better virginal characters, and .....ugh. Sorry. I'm not sure how to explain what bugged me about it, but it just wasn't my favorite. If you're concerned about the spice level of the love scenes though don't be, because they're great as usual and Foster doesn't skimp on the electricity between these two.

All in all it's another fun book, filled with action though not as much suspense. I'm definitely looking forward to reading how things conclude in Savor the Danger.

Overall Feeling - Thumbs up.

Series - 1) When you Dare 2) Trace of Fever 3) Savor the Danger (6/28/2011)

Ruby Red Winner!

It's that time again -  time to pick a winner! The Random.org gods have spoken and the winner of a copy of Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier is...

jldean729!

Congratulations! Please check your email and send me your shipping address as soon as possible so that your book can be on its way!

If you didn't win this time don't despair readers, more giveaways are already in the works ;)

Teaser Tues...ok let's just be real. This is an excerpt. You're welcome.

And Dee gave the only answer she could think of. "So?"

"Could you at least pretend to be happy for me?"

"I'm not unhappy for you. I guess I just don't care one way or the other."

"What's wrong with you?" Ronnie demanded.

"Nothin'. Why?"

"Sissy was happy for me! I got a hug and tears. What do I get from you? A 'so.'"

"Sissy's your best friend."

"And what are you?"

"Your Packmate. On more occasions than seems right, your drinking buddy."

"That's it? That's how you see me?"

"I don't know why you're so upset."

"Because we're friends, and friends are happy for each other."

"When did we become friends?"

Frowning, Ronnie asked, "We're not friends?"

Dee though about it a moment and finally answered, "No."

At this point, Sissy Mae was lying on her side, hysterically laughing, her arms around her stomach.

"How could you say we're not friends?"

"We're not enemies."

"I don't understand you sometimes."

"Thereby proving we're not friends."

"Stop!" Sissy begged. "Stop! You two are killing me!"

"I don't think it's funny, Sissy Mae."

"Is this where you tell me I hurt your feelings?" Dee asked.

"Yes!"

"Sorry. Not my intent."

"Are you like this with Ric?" Ronnie Lee demanded.

"No. 'Cause with him I'm usually naked when we're having these kinds of conversations which makes them a lot less painful."

"This is not funny, Sissy Mae!" Ronnie bellowed.

"The hysterical snorting and feet kicking would suggest she feels different on that."

"Shut up, Dee-Ann."

Dee shrugged. "I would, but you keep talking to me."

-pg 227, Big Bad Beast by Shelly Laurenston