Blood Bound (Mercy Thompson, Book 2)
by Patricia Briggs
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Book Reviews of Blood Bound (Mercy Thompson, Book 2)
Book Review: There's a new bad boy in town and all he wants is everything
Summary: 5 Stars
It was foolish of me to assume that it would take some time to get back into the dark and intense world Patricia Briggs has woven. I loved the first book so when a few months later I picked up the second I was back in an instant, everything was fresh and vivid as it should be. There is a lot going on in this saga, its and insanely through out masterpiece where the author takes the extra step to really inform the reader about the werewolf from her point of view and what makes it tick and what irritates it. For those who didn't read book one I strongly suggest starting at the beginning, it's really such a fantastic journey that it won't be wasted on reading in order. As rich and complex as it was, the moment I was nearing the last page I was craving the next book like never before...I am comforted by the thought that there are two more books waiting for me in this series.
Mercy has a new problem on her hands, there's a dangerous presence in town, a vampire possessed by a demon. If vampires weren't evil and irrational before then they really start to show their teeth and claws now. Her vampire friend Stefan who's strangely enough easy to like, had been given a mission to contact the intruder, but instead something horrific happens and Mercy who went disguised in her coyote form is thrown in a midst of a new battle, one that even vampires are afraid to enter. Things also heat up close to home with her favorite werewolves, Adam and Samuel as they treat her more like their own territory than a female friend and Mercy shows us with great spirit that there's more to romance then the initial infatuation and possible obsession, that she wants and demands respect from very dangerous and volatile creatures and somehow gets it. If the demon alone wasn't dangerous enough it provides an added element of fright when it makes any wolf or vampire around it act crazy, committing crimes they cannot bear to live with. Mercy must be quick, relentless and really lucky to pull this one off.
The story was amazing, it was a juicy read that was hard to put down and I can't wait to get back into it. I also love how real the characters are even though they are magical; the dynamics between the wolves is so fun to read, sometimes bordering on a psychology manual but still interesting. I also loved learning more about the vampires and especially about Stefan, he's slowly but surely growing on me.
- Kasia S.
Book Review: Great Follow-up!
Summary: 4 Stars
In the 1st book in the series, Moon Called (Mercy Thompson, Book 1) the author introduces Mercedes "Mercy" Thompson. It was learned that Mercy is somewhat resistant to vampire compulsion. Because of her resistance in the 2nd book, Blood Bound (Mercy Thompson, Book 2) Stefan Uccello, a vampire, calls in on a favor. He wants her to come along while he delivers a message to Cory Littleton, a visiting vampire, who failed to pay respect to Stefan's seethe. He believes that Cory might be able to compel him to do things he against his will. He asks Mercy to accompany him, in coyote form; since she is immune to compulsion and would be able to report back to his seethe if anything happen to him. Things turn bad and soon Mercy gets involved in a hunt for a vampire-sorcerer.
The werewolves have also made their existence known to the public. As with the Fae centuries earlier not all werewolves were made known.
Mercy must also contend with Adam Hauptman and Dr. Samuel Llewellyn Cornick's "Sam" interest in her and the territorial contentiousness that results from it. Sam once chose Mercy as his mate, even though he didn't love her - he wanted her to have his children, after she left his pack he mourned the loss of his mate. Apparently her feelings for Samuel, an old flame, are still unresolved. More recently Adam claimed Mercy as his to his pack, even though she has not accepted - and it not official considered his mate. Mercy and Adam went on 3 dates between the of end `Moon Called' and prior to `Blood Bound' but, then she avoided him - she didn't want to fall in line with his pack and as an Alpha's mate, that would have been unavoidable.
Throw in a bit of vampire, Fae, and werewolf politics and this story really takes off.
The other book in the series...
Blood Bound (Mercy Thompson, Book 2)
Iron Kissed (Mercy Thompson, Book 3)
Bone Crossed (Mercy Thompson, Book 4)
Book Review: Mercy Thompson series gets better in this strong continuation
Summary: 5 Stars
This is the second of the Mercedes Thompson books. In Moon Called, Mercy recruited the help of her vampire friend, Stefan, to help out with some werewolf trouble that descended on the Tri-Cities. Now, the favor has come due, and it is Mercy's turn to help Stefan and the vampires -- a dangerous position to be in. Her partial immunity to vampire magic (a result of her walker heritage) may not be enough to help her when the vampire trouble turns into sorcerer trouble, which turns into demon trouble.
Though I rated Moon Called a 4 (nearly a 5), Blood Bound was an easy 5 for me. It is good at being exactly what it's supposed to be. The tension is taut throughout, even when the story splits off and goes in a direction I wasn't expecting. The action and the danger were intense enough to lend a sense of urgency to the book, while never making it seem too extreme (leaving nowhere to go in the rest of the series). Briggs' characters are full and dynamic, even many of the minor characters; they're layered and interesting, but not distracting. There aren't tangential paragraphs describing rippling abs and long waving hair; what description there is, is to the point and effective.
I continue to be surprised by Briggs. She makes choices that initial make me leery, and then she makes them work. I'm not used to that. Normally, if I stumble on something that I think is going to make me groan, it eventually does. In Blood Bound, the potentially groan-worthy thing was a split focus at the end. When the main trouble is over and the foe vanquished (is that spoilery? We all know how these things work out, don't we?), Mercy still has a bone to pick, a score to settle. It didn't really fall into the category of tying up loose ends because it was a bit too big for that. I expected it to be dealt with in the next book, and instead, a little mini-plot developed while Mercy pursued this new Big Bad. I really thought it was going to feel disconnected and tacked on, and instead it worked out perfectly. It fit the story rather than being wedged in to it, and it was just as engaging and proportionately dangerous and tension-worthy as it should have been. Briggs handles things well and either has a damn good content editor or a keen sense for it herself. Well worth the read.
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Book Review: Not quite as strong as Moon Called, but still worth five stars.
Summary: 5 Stars
Blood Bound picks up not too long after the first in the series, Moon Called. Introduced to mechanic and sometimes-coyote, Mercedes Thompson in book one we get to dive right back into her world. A walker raised by werewolves, trained in mechanics by a fae and friend to vampires and ghosts, Mercy's world is far from ordinary. Blood Bound finds her vampire friend Stefan calling on her for return of a favor from Moon Called (book one). There's a new vampire in town and he's brought a demon with him. From here the story takes off at a stop-start pace involving both the local wolf pack and the vampire seethe, even getting some of the fae involved. But it is Mercy's ability to speak to ghosts that is in high demand and eventually she saves the day.
With diverse characters carried over from the first book and a few new ones salted into this one there were no faces I missed. I look forward to more unique and enjoyable characters as the series continues. Her efforts to make Mercy a girl-next-door-who-just-happens-to-be-a-shapeshifter character who is a girl most readers can relate to are spot on. I won't compare her to other characters of books in this same genre because she tops them all in sheer likability.
As a native of the area Briggs' tale takes place in I was once again impressed with her knowledge of the region and pleased at how well she carried me back home through her accurate description of the simple things like the climate, local culture and real places within the area. The unique choice of location certainly adds to the story as cities like New York, New Orleans, Los Angeles and such, while all wonderful places, have been over-used in similar series. Using an area not widely known has given this series a refreshing change from the cliched and expected.
If you enjoy a good paranormal tale with vampires, shapeshifters, ghosts and the like that won't get lost in between pages of sex scenes this series is for you. While there's still a tantalizing love triangle element I appreciate that Mercy is a very real woman who doesn't sport a harem of Adonis-like fellows at her beck and call. Briggs never loses the story's plot in attempts to hook her heroine up with her heroes.
Book Review: This book was excellent
Summary: 5 Stars
So, I really enjoyed this book. This one was the best written out of the 3 so far. I did read the current books in this series in like 3 days! For some reason my favorite parts of the book are the ones with Adam! I really like the way Mercy and Adam relate to each other - it is very teasing. They feed off each other and it really seems like they enjoy challenging one another. Whereas, her relations with Samuel are purely sexually charged in nature and she continually says that he already used her once to try to get children. I just don't feel a connection between her and him, like I do with Adam.
Okay, away from the love story. The rest of the story is great too. I really like the details they give about vampires. I like how to the explain their menageries. This series makes vampires extremely evil. Which I don't mind, as long as she isn't trying to carry on a relationship with one while he obviously has a 12 other people he is carrying on a relationship with too.
My favorite part about this series is that it is werewolves. I especially like to read the parts when Mercy is a coyote! The way she describes things like her movements and the way she is doing things is great. It makes it very unique. I also like all of the references to dominance and the way she explains body language within the pack. It is all very interesting and gives the series the little bit of something extra that some of the others cant seem to capture. I love the way she knows exactly how to behave with the wolves to be able to maintain her independence while still being sort of the pack. She knows how to calm Adam down by being defiant! Its great and very much interesting to read about. I am sure though, if he wasn't in love with her, she wouldn't get away with quite so much. I am interested to see what happens if she does end up accepting Adam. She will definitely be part of the pack then, how will she change her behaviors to work with the pack instead of being the lone coyote! (Cause she will pick Adam - its the best way to go, and if this author turns her into some Anita Blake tramp and sleeps with them both, I am gonna be HEATED).