Twisted Kingdom

When her former boss and mentor is arrested for murder and left to rot behind bars by his own kind, it's up to shapeshifting car mechanic Mercy Thompson to clear his name, whether he wants her to or not. And she'll have to choose between the two werewolves in her life-whether she wants to or not.

The second book I read of 2008 was the latest book by Patricia Briggs. The third book in the Mercedes Thompson series, it was a book that I just had to have and I could not wait to read! In each book, Mercy is the main character, but the book revolves around a different paranormal group each time. This book centred on the Fae community. It makes for an interesting series because we continue to learn more about Mercy and her friends; but we also learn more about the different paranormal groups that may have had characters present in the previous books, but were not centred around. I have always been interested in the Fae community. Before paranormal books were the big industry that they are now, I was a big fan of this particular sub-group. So, now that this sort of literature is very popular, it is nice to see some of the lesser groups being explored.

I love this series, I think I might have mentioned before. The second book was a favourite read of last year and the first book was a favourite read of the year before, so we all know that this book will likely end up on the year end list. I just love Mercedes Thompson's character! She can annoy me, do not get me wrong, but Briggs has created a character that really interests me. I read other paranormal authors and the books do not always have characters that I have any sort of feelings about, but Mercy I do. I genuinely cannot wait until book four to see what happens next, and I will be very sad when this series reaches the end!

Mercy is a favourite stubborn person. This is a characteristic that really plays out in this book. The person that she is out to save, the fae that sold her the garage she is currently running, is in danger, but he does not want her help. She puts herself on the line for him, though, and it makes for an intriguing read. Bad things happen in this book, but good things come out of the bad. The love triangle that is a theme in the previous two books also makes an appearance in this one, so people will want to read it to see just what guy trouble Mercy gets herself into in this book! I was not really surprised, but others might be.

Anyways, the best way to sum this review up is by saying that Patricia Brigg's series is hands down the best series I have read in a while. Of the paranormal nature, anyways. I also love Kelley Armstrong and Colleen Gleason. Those are my top three. With those authors writing, I do not even need to attempt anymore paranormal authors (although, I will, of course), so you know I am in love! In February, I get to read Gleason's new book, I have several books to go to get caught up in Armstrong's series, and Briggs has a new book out in a new series later this year, so I am pretty set for a while.

I strongly recommend Patricia Briggs if you are looking for a new paranormal author to enjoy!

This is such a great week! Two guest reviews in one week! LOL :D All right, let's be serious. The following guest review is by Katie from Rhinoa's Ramblings. The book reviewed is Moon Called by Patricia Briggs! I hope everyone enjoys!

(psst- the week is not over, contest is ending on Sunday!)


Moon Called - Patricia Briggs
Published by Ace Books, New York 2006

Rating: 4/5
Genre: Horror, Fantasy
Series: Book One in the Mercy Thompson series

Mercy Thompson's sexy next-door neightbour is a werewolf. She's tinkering with a VW bus at her machanic 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.

A new series by Patricia Briggs about Witches, Werewolves, Vampires and Walkers. Mercedes (Mercy) is a Walker and can transform into a Coyote at will who was mostly raised by Werewolves. Since growing up she became a car mechanic sharing a back wall with a werewolf and fixing cars for local vampire Stefan. Her life changes when a newly Changed werewolf turns up on her doorstep looking for work.There are obvious parallels with the books by Kelley Armstrong. Both have a female lead character, a variety of supernatural creatures, danger lust and love and a smattering of violence. It did retain some originality and I preferred the characters in this book as they seemed somehow more real despite the supernatural element. I liked the idea of Mercy being a Walker and the stories about the Fae coming out in public was interesting.

At times though it seemed the author was over complicating the plot. It seemed she was trying to cram in a few too many twists, turns and ideas and could have perhaps toned it down nearer the end a little. There were also a couple of discrepencies eg only Bran was supposed to be able to communicate with other werewolves but it seemed Mercy as a coyote and a couple of the wolves could talk to others of their kind as well as humans. It was a little unclear.Overall though I really enjoyed this book and will definately be reading the next in the series.

Book Description:

Mechanic Mercy Thompson has friends in low places-and in dark ones. And now she owes one of them a favor. Since she can shapeshift at will, she agrees to act as some extra muscle when her vampire friend Stefan goes to deliver a message to another of his kind.

But this new vampire is hardly ordinary-and neither is the demon inside of him.

I just finished reading this new book from Patricia Briggs. The sequel to Moon Called, which I read last year, this was a good way to start of February. This book has quite the paranormal cast of characters, there are werewolves, vampires, fae, witches, and many more characters to attract your interest. Patricia Briggs is best known for her fantasy novels, but this move to paranormal fantasy has been quite enjoyable. I started to read her backlog of books, but I have not read them all yet. I have lots of time to do so, though, while I wait to see if there is going to be a book three, and if there is, when it will be out.

In this book, Mercedes is proving to the paranormal world that she may not fit into the categories that their society has made for non-human creatures, but she is worthy of many "bad" guys. Mercedes is a Walker. She has the ability to turn into a coyote. The Walkers were destroyed many years ago by the Vampires, so a part of Mercedes heritage has been lost. She knows what she is, but the only people that can really tell her what she is capable of are the vampires, and they are not talking. Mercedes learns a bit more about herself in this book, though, mainly because it is the vampire society that she is helping.

One of the things that I like about this book is that she writes tastefully. There are hints at romance, but other than a few kisses, the book has been pretty tame in that department. That means that there is more time to concentrate on action. Many people will not read fantasy novels by female authors because there generally is a great deal of romance, but so far Briggs has done a good job in giving the readers action and a strong female that you can respect.

There is the potential for the books to go in any direction. I am worried, there is a bit of a hint at a possible love... situation... that could present itself. I hope that Briggs figures out what she wants Mercedes, um, doing, before she writes the next book because the last thing I need is there to be more about the romance and less about the fantasy. So far she has done a very good job. I believe that this book stands up well to the one that came before it. Let's just hope it stays that way!

That being said, I liked the first book better. Not by a lot, but I am not getting into part ratings, so I will give it a 4/5 and you can pretend it is like a 4.25 or something.