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Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780441013814
ISBN: 0441013813
Label: Ace
Manufacturer: Ace
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 304
Publication Date: January 31, 2006
Publisher: Ace
Studio: Ace
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Editorial Review:
Product Description:
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.
Average Rating: 
Rating:  -
We have yet another series, the Mercy Thompson books by Patricia Briggs. The first book, Moon Called, looked interesting when I read through the blurb on the back and the first couple of pages. I was intrigued by a shapeshifter who is not a were-creature, which is rather uncommon in modern dark fantasy. However, instead of focusing on just her abilities and her relationships with werewolves, we get introduced to an entire ecosystem of creatures. Far too many to populate one book, they were obviously included to remind the reader that many more books are to come in the series, and eventually, all these creatures' cultures will be thoroughly explored.
One of these days, I'd like to see a dark fantasy novel that tells you vampires don't exist! I'm sick to death of stories about or including vampires, as if they are absolutely essential. Mary Shelley's book didn't have a single vampire in it, yet she managed to write a scary story. If she were writing now, her editors would probably insist that she include them somewhere in Frankenstein. Oh, and her book was just that: a book -- not a series.
Now that I've complained about that, I'll mention that the vampires who did appear in this story seemed to be artificially added in, since they really served no useful purpose in advancing the main story.
Right after Mercy got back to her house after her trip to Montana, the plot slowed to a crawl. No, make that a dead crawl. Nobody seemed to know what to do, least of all our narrator. I got the impression the author didn't know what to do next, either. I grew bored with the book and put it down, not getting back to it until a couple of weeks later. I tried reading again, then got to page 220 and lost interest again. Another couple of weeks went by, then I picked up the book, determined to finish it. I'm still having trouble caring one whit about what happens to any of the characters, even Mercy. This is a sure sign that the plot has fallen to pieces and can't seem to get itself back together again. And as a couple of other reviewers have remarked, using the mystery novel "cheat" of bringing in evidence or witnesses out of nowhere near the end of the book is a sign of poor creative planning.
If this were Ms. Briggs' first book ever published, I might call this "first-novel syndrome", where parts of the novel are shaky, but obvious signs of great potential still shine through. However, I understand she has been published for quite a while before this book, so this kind of inconsistency is inexcusable.
I will definitely not be reading any more books written by this author, because if this is among her best efforts, then her lesser works will be too awful for me to even attempt. I am so glad I only got the first book of the series, and bought no more.
Rating:  -
A fun and entertaining book. Mrs. Briggs creates an interesting universe with some cool supernatural elements, puts some compelling and curious characters in to that universe and tops it with a pretty good story.
I was afraid it would be too romancy, but it wasn't at all. Don't get me wrong, there was a bit of that, but not so much that it made me want to gag, the way some supernatural romance books do.
Rating: -
From the start, this book captured my attention and time and it became a sit and read marathon, something that very few books become to me. The author has skill in throwing in twists that are unexpected, love interests that are genuine, and action that keeps you reading. The heroine is a very believable charecter, unlike many anita blake novels she can actually admit she is not as strong as many of the men. Excellent read. I look forward to the second book.
Rating: -
Mercy Thompson #1: Moon Called, by Patricia Briggs
Urban, paranormal, dark fantasy - whatever you want to call it. These genres are hot right now. Anything with werewolves or vampires is flying off the shelves, and everytime I turn around, there's another new series out. A lot of them have way too much romance and fluff for me - no real story line or characters you want to follow for 300 pages.
Well, bring on "Moon Called," by Patricia Briggs. I just finished this book about 10 minutes ago, and I could read it again, immediately. That's how much I loved it.
"Moon Called" has werewolves, vampires, fae, and a new idea, walkers. Mercedes Thompson, aka Mercy, is a mechanic who transforms into a coyote. The only walker she knows, she was raised by werewolves, and now has a vampire and a gremlin for friends. Mercy's happy minding her own business, but when a newbie werewolf shows up on her doorstep, she's suddenly thrust in the middle of werewolf, vampire, and fae politics, while trying to rescue the local Alpha's daughter from kidnappers.
Briggs introduces a world where lesser fae, such as brownies, have come out to humans. Werewolves are on the cusp of announcing their presence as well, as they can't stay hidden anymore due to advances in forensic science. The world and the myriad politics of supernatural races are described as necessary, with just enough detail to leave you wanting for more. The book is in the first person point of view, which works very well with the character of Mercy. Mercy recognizes her own strengths and weaknesses, but she's also gutsy and impulsive when she feels the need to be.
Briggs' writing is alternatively dark and light - from a fight between dominant werewolves to a scene where a werewolf is acting like a big puppy, the author keeps enough humor in a somewhat dark story to give some needed laughs. The plot is full of twists, and you don't quite see the ending coming until you're there.
"Moon Called" reads to me like everything urban/paranormal/dark fantasy should be.
5/5.
Rating: -
Mercy Thompson is an auto mechanic; she's also a 'walker' who becomes a coyote. Did I mention she has a warewolf living almost in her backyard?
Moon Called is an action packed book that has a great heroine. Mercy takes pity on a young boy (also a warewolf) who shows up at her shop. She gives him a job and decides to offer him a place to sleep (in a vampires's van). When she goes back to work one night to get her purse, she finds the young man and he's in trouble.
Mercy saves him, calls her neighbor, Adam, the Aplha of the local warewolf pack and a witch to clean up the mess. Adam takes the young boy home. The next day, Mercy wakes to the boy's body in her front yard, Adam being attacked in his home, and the news that Jesse (Adam's daughter) has been kidnapped.
In order to help Adam, Mercy must return to the place where she had her young heart broken. Things aren't any easier this time around either. Samuel still sees her as his mate, while Adam is very protective of her. Mercy doesn't allows the bickering between these two stop her from finding Jesse.
The ending is great. The book is well written. It's a good buy.
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