Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

ISBN:  9780441013814

Publisher:  Penguin Group

Rating: A

I have NO idea what took me so long to start reading this series other than the fact that I kept bringing the wrong book to work thinking it was the first in the series.   I now know that I will have to finish reading the rest of this series in 2009 so that I will be caught up for the next new release.  I just hope they are all as good as Moon Called.

Mercedes “Mercy” Thompson is a walker, she walks between Coyote and human, but being a walker means that she is not a shifter.  Her’s is a magic that is not called by the moon, but one that is called by her soul and born into her.  A walker is unique and not everyone knows exactly what that is, especially Mercy.  She knows she becomes a Coyote, but she doesn’t realize that she is immune to certain magics that surround her on a daily basis.    Mercy is the melting pot of the Tri Cities, she is close to the local Alpha Werewolf, Adam, a local vampire Stefan and a Gremlin, Zee taught her everything she knows about cars.  This seemingly odd bunch of friends has actually endeared me to her as a character because she doesn’t judge a book by it’s cover she makes her own assessments and trusts her own judgment.   

I am thrilled to have enjoyed this story so much and the writing of Patricia Briggs is a huge part of what I loved about Moon Called.  This is my first book by this author and I was instantly engaged into her writing style and the “candor” she writes with.  There are certain authors who write great “worlds” and authors who write great characters, but Patricia Briggs writes great relationships and dialogue which ties all the elements together.  Mercy is a character who is strong in both body and spirit, and she has a mind of her own and you do NOT mess with those who are hers.  And I truly enjoyed watching the “alpha” men in her life convince each other that she will just do what she wants and it’s better for everyone involved if you just agree.  

I have several more of this author on MT TBR and I look forward to delving into these in the future.

If you haven’t read this book yet, I suggest you take it off your shelf before you start hating yourself like I do right now for waiting so long to read it.

I am about to embark on a journey into the future with my favorite Hero and Heroine ever written, Eve and Roarke in the new JD Robb, Promises in Death.

Halfway to the Grave by Jeaniene Frost

ISBN:  9780061245084

Publisher:  HarperCollins Publishers

Rating:  B

Catherine “Cat” Crawfield is a half human, half vampire Night Huntress.  She hunts the undead with a vengeance in order to slay the Vamp who raped her mother thus producing Cat.  Cat has a distinct advantage; Vamps can’t tell she’s one of them because her heartbeat throws them off.  On one of Cats hunts she comes across a vamp who just might teach her there is more to Vampires then blood lust and their lack of heart.

Frost did an admirable job of creating these characters, however for me it was difficult to “know” them.  It took me to almost the end of the book before I really “got” them and it worked so well that I ran out and bought One Foot in the Grave right away because I didn’t think I could wait that long to find out what happens.  This was my other issue, the cliffhanger ending, why do you do that in the first book of a series?  I hate cliffhangers in long terms series so imagine my annoyance that I had to hate the end of this book just as I was starting to like it.  

It is interesting to me that when discussing the ending with a friend she said to me that it didn’t bother her because this book wasn’t a romance and here I didn’t feel like the book was complete until a romance happened.  This is one of the major reasons that I love to read because no matter what you are looking for in a book you can probably find it even if someone else doesn’t see it.  

I do look forward to reading One Foot in the Grave, but it better redeem the ending otherwise I will be a very upset reader.

Heartsick by Chelsea Cain

ISBN:  9780312368463

Publisher:  St Martin’s

Rating:  A

Archie Sheridan, the lead detective on the Beauty Killer task force has been kidnapped by the monster he’s been searching for, for 10 years.  Gretchen Lowell, the Beauty Killer, tortures Archie for 10 days and then lets him go and turns herself in.  She’s a master manipulator and Archie knows this but can’t stop his obsession with her.  He dreams of her and thinks of her and she still controls his every move even though he’s been “free” for 2 years.  There is a new serial killer on the lose kidnapping and murdering 15 year old girls and Archie is asked to head this task force even though he’s been on medical leave since Gretchen took him.  This is a twisted game of cat and mouse that still isn’t over, and I don’t think will ever be over until one of them dies.

This was one messed up book, but I loved every minute of it.  Chelsea Cain wrote and unbelievably twisted book, but wrote it exceptionally well.  Archie is one of the most flawed characters I’ve ever had the occassion of meeting, but it is his flaws that draws the reader to him.  How can a man who is popping so many pills still feel so much?  Gretchen is eery.  I dont’ know if there is another word out there that can describe her.  She’s wicked, manipulative,  and smart but those are just some of what makes her one of the creepiest villians I’ve ever read.

Heartsick is the definition of psychological thriller.  

I look forward to meeting up with Archie in Sweetheart to see if he was able to keep the promise he made to himself at the end of Heartsick.  If you are looking for a good twist of the mind I highly suggest picking up Heartsick because this is now the standard in which I measure psychological thrillers.

The Masque of the Black Tulip by Lauren Willig

ISBN:  9780451220042

,PPublisher:  Penguin

Rating:  A

Back with another adventure is Eloise Kelly, “historian extraordinaire”, in her sophomore novel The Masque of the Black Tulip. Eloise is off to find out more about the elusive Pink Carnation, England’s premier spy during the Napoleonic Wars.  The Pink Carnation’s identity had remained a mystery until Eloise discovered the identity in our first adventure together, The Secret History of the Pink Carnation. Eloise is now on a mission to discover more about The Pink Carnation as well as the deadliest of all French spies The Black Tulip.  Willig’s writing has improved immensely in this novel.  I no longer felt that I was an outsider looking in, I felt like I was Eloise engrossed in historical research, experiencing the discoveries first hand.  There comes a time in every book where it either clicks or it doesn’t, I clicked with “Are we there yet?”

I found myself sneaking off to read this book because I couldn’t wait to find out what was going to happen or to discover if my theories were correct.  I love it when I can have my “aha” moment because every time that happens it makes me feel like the author wrote this book just for me.

I enjoyed this book a whole lot more than I did the previous.  I found a connection with the characters that seemed to be lacking for me previously.   Although I would classify Eloise as a main character, she truly is a peripheral character and Willig was able to make me feel like I was a part of the story this time instead of just reading the words.  Eloise is researching the lives of these characters and is having her own experiences simultaneously, however her experiences are not the forefront of the plot. They are important and I believe they will lend themselves to greater relevance in later novels, it’s her love of the people she is researching that allows the reader to glimpse the strength of her character.  Willig’s characters are multidimensional and have provided me with the need to carry on to The Deception of the Emerald Ring sooner rather than later.

Did Geoff Pinchingdale-Snipe have a crush on Henrietta Selwick?  Will Richard Selwick be able forgive his best friend and his sister?  Will Jane Wooliston survive Ireland?  Will the Black Tulip be caught?

The third installment is now one of the challenge books for my TBR Challenge because I can’t wait to find out what happens next.