Moon Called (Mercy Thompson, book 1) by Patricia Briggs
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Edition Reviewed: Paperback
Amazon: Paperback | Kindle
Goodreads: Moon Called (1)
Mercedes "Mercy" Thompson is a talented Volkswagen mechanic living in the Tri-Cities area of Washington. She also happens to be a walker, a magical being with the power to shift into a coyote at will. Mercy's next-door neighbor is a werewolf. Her former boss is a gremlin. And she's fixing a bus for a vampire. This is the world of Mercy Thompson, one that looks a lot like ours but is populated by those things that go bump in the night. And Mercy's connection to those things is about to get her into some serious hot water...
Review:
Even before I had read Moon Called I knew I would love it. Maybe because I already had read a few Briggs works and knew she was awesome. It's fond memories of being let in by my bookstore friends early to grab a copy on the series big debut that help to make this series so dear to me. (R.I.P Waldens and Borders.) Or because that year I read it over and over again. It also doesn't help that it was such an instrumental addition to the Urban Fantasy genre. Right before it boomed. Especially helping to make world building in the genre so important. Especially for werewolves.
Many years later, and many other authors have done wonderful things with werewolves, Moon Called it's still absolutely amazing with it's realization of werewolves in their mannerisms, packs, laws, and all that werewolf drama. Moon Called—too me—is what made werewolves finally seem so amazing. Personally I had always loved them, but finally an author was developing them enough that I could believe that they were 100% real. (Well you know.)
Mercy is awesome. What I love most is that she's not a badass. Or anything like some of the shoot/stab first ask questions gals that soon followed her debut and now over populate the genre now. No she's a mechanic, with a history degree. Sure she turns into a coyote, has some tattoos, can shoot, and takes some self defense classes. She's witty, but not snarky—cough, rude snark, cough—that seems to be dominating leading ladies in UF. No she's legitimately witty. Making jokes by referencing things and she thinks outside the “mouthy” box. Mercy is awesome, she's observant, and all of the attributes I've been talking about is probably what makes her so relatable. Also, makes her friendships and relationships more realistic. She is a strong character, and she’s real enough to be flawed.
The world of Mercedes Thompson is right in the sweet spot. The Faye have just come out and things took a very realistic spin. Instead of accepting that the Faye have been living among humans since forever. After some really bad stuff the Faye now live on reservations. Which is a nice touch considering what happened with the Native Americans by the USA and that Mercy is Native American. The werewolves have been playing around with the idea of “coming out” since human science has become too advance for the supernatural to stay hidden. Werewolves are the governments best known secret.
Moon Called is probably one of the best world building books out there. Mercy is already pretty far into the supernatural community, especially with werewolves. She already has a rich history and life. All the major factions are introduced in Moon Called, werewolves, vampires, and Faye. All to varying extents. Which is probably why Moon Called is hit and miss. It's a world developing books, there's a lot of ground and information to cover. Personally I think the mystery here is pretty cool, even if it just all unfolds. Hey, sometimes that happens. Not only is the world developing but readers are fully submerged into Mercy's world. A lot of characters are introduced. If you like well developed worlds and can handle lots of information being handed out you'll do fine. Personally I thought all the pacing was perfect. Others might find it slow.
Now going back as a re-read it hits me every time how much I think all the male love interests aren't worthy? Samuel is cool. While I understand that he's lived a long time and he thought he was making his intentions clear. It's obvious he didn't make them clear enough to penetrate the mind of a naive girl. Even though I do believe he truly loves Mercy, he kind of did a big betrayal there. I wouldn't trust him again. Adam is a controlling ass. He's basically been told by Bran—the werewolf Alpha of the entire US and Mercy's father figure—to watch her. AKA spy. Sure he may say that he's doing it not just because of Bran, but that still sounds creepy. Plus, he has a picture of Mercy and it sounds like they don't really have much of a relationship for him to be having said picture. Oh, Mercy didn't know about him having one. Let alone one that goes in his bedroom! Creepy. Creepy. It's both unnerving to see how I grew to love both of these guys. Oh, and Stephan . . . he isn't even in the equation in the romance here! (No really I remember reading something by Briggs stating she pitched the series as a werewolf and vampire love triangle. But to be honest I've never seen it. Ever.) Samuel and Adam are both so well developed for love interests, that anyone can see the clear path to romance for either of them. And I'm sure many a reader will already be in love with one or both.
In the end this was such a solid entry into the genre because Moon Called developed werewolves . . . so freaking amazingly that Moon Called clearly inspired many series after. Briggs showed many readers what they had always wanted for werewolves. Sure werewolves' politics are sexist, but it's believable and part of the fun. Can you not see some strong modern female werewolves and Mercy breaking some sexist boundaries? There's a lot I'm not covering here. Because the world of Moon Called is so well realized! Some readers may find it overwhelming, and simply want action-action-action. There is action, but this is a book that gives readers like me what they want: mind boggling world building and a fully developed lead. The charm is Mercy is a person, not some badass urban fantasy woman who has no friends. She has relationships, personal issues, and a past. One that doesn't wait until book 3 or four to be revealed. Or to make character connections. Mercy is the kind of strong female lead I'd like to see more of in the genre. The mystery is actually pretty darn cool if you think about it, the real issue is that it all falls into place for Mercy to figure out. Moon Called is just too busy setting up the world and characters. Hey, it worked.
Sexual Content: Some kissing and mild sexual humor. It’s clean kids! (But that does not make it a bad read! Gosh people.)
5/5- Fabulous, a beautiful obsession!
| Previous book(s) in series: | ||
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| Moon Called (1) Wolfsbane and Mistletoe (1.5) Blood Bound (2) Iron Kissed (3) Bone Crossed (4) Silver Borne (5) River Marked (6) Down These Strange Streets (6.5) Frost Burned (7) Night Broken (8) Fire Touched (9) Untitled (10) Untitled (11) Shifting Shadows: Stories From the world of Mercy Thompson (?) | Moon Called (1) Wolfsbane and Mistletoe (1.5) Blood Bound (2) Iron Kissed (3) Bone Crossed (4) Silver Borne (5) River Marked (6) Down These Strange Streets (6.5) Frost Burned (7) Night Broken (8) Fire Touched (9) Untitled (10) Untitled (11) Shifting Shadows: Stories From the world of Mercy Thompson (?) | Moon Called (1) Wolfsbane and Mistletoe (1.5) Blood Bound (2) Iron Kissed (3) Bone Crossed (4) Silver Borne (5) River Marked (6) Down These Strange Streets (6.5) Frost Burned (7) Night Broken (8) Fire Touched (9) Untitled (10) Untitled (11) Shifting Shadows: Stories From the world of Mercy Thompson (?) |
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