At the end of Moon Called (first book in the series), Mercy Thompson the shapeshifting mechanic, owed the local vampires a favour, and in Blood Bound they want paying back. A visiting vampire is causing problems and Stefan, (Mercy's vampire friend) wants her help whilst he tries to sort it out.
In my opinion Blood Bound is a much more tightly written story than Moon Called. We already know about the relationships, pack-conflicts and back story, so here we are able to get stuck in to the meat of the story straight away. Although I do think it's possible to read Blood Bound as a standalone, it would be much better to read Moon Called first so you've got all this rich background information in your head. Plus we find out even more in Blood Bound so it’s nice to have the layering of information, it adds even more depth to Mercy’s world.
The relationships within the werewolf pack continue to evolve and I think this is far and away my favourite part of the story. Each werewolf is such an individual character and to see how they are located within the hierarchy and how they struggle or accept that, gives the story a depth it might not otherwise have had. In Blood Bound this pack structure is held in direct comparison with the more clinical vampire society, which makes for fascinating reading.
This is the book where we start to get to know Ben - one of the more complex characters in the werewolf pack - better. And it’s interesting to see here Mercy’s initial attitude towards him and his attitude to the pack that he finds himself in. Also how her attitude to other werewolves in Adam's pack, (Honey for example) evolves over the books.
If I had a concern at all, it would be the fact that Mercy picks up another admirer and I think this has the potential to take away from the tension in her relationships with the two werewolves already vying for her attention. I admit here to being torn between who I would like her to end up with, though I do have my favourite. (Lol – you can tell I wrote this review before reading Iron Kissed).
It’s interesting in this book that Mercy is more honest with herself
“Falling in love with a werewolf is not a safe thing to do – but falling in love with an Alpha is worse.”But this is in keeping with her character. It’s not until Iron Kissed that she really understands her situation, I think. And when you suddenly realize you may be out of your depth you can’t always be expected to act rationally. I find myself very much looking forward to seeing where Bone Crossed (Book #4 takes us).
Blood Bound is resolved very nicely, but there are enough plot threads left dangling to leave me desperately looking forward to the next book in the series - especially the new werewolf who only appears off-page here. (I think this is a plot thread that’s still currently dangling, however maybe there’s a chance this one will be picked up in the Charles and Anna series?)
Moon Called (Book 1)
Iron Kissed (Book 3)
Bone Crossed (Book 4 Feb 2009 Hardcover)
4 comments:
Nice review! But I think, in the title, you mixed up Mercy's name and the name of the Author.
Everyone loves this series. I'm not normally a person who likes a book without a HEA at the end (if it's romance) but I may have to change that. Is this 1st ppov?
Anonymous - OMG - you're right!. This is what I get for writing a post when I'm tired. All corrected now and thanks for letting me know.
Tracy - Yes, the Mercy Thompson series is written in 1st PPOV. There is an ongoing relationship story in the series.
I'd say each situation in the books is resolved at the end but not always in the way you think it will be. Patricia Briggs urban fantasy world is very real, there aren't really get out of jail free cards for her characters - if you know what I mean.
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