Review: RIVER MARKED

River Marked by Patricia Briggs

Book 6 of the Mercy Thompson series

Genre: adult urban fantasy

About River Marked:

Car mechanic Mercy Thompson has always known there was something different about her, and not just the way she can make a VW engine sit up and beg. Mercy is a shapeshifter, a talent she inherited from her long-gone father. She’s never known any others of her kind. Until now.

An evil is stirring in the depths of the Columbia River — one that her father’s people may know something about. And to have any hope of surviving, Mercy and her mate, the Alpha werewolf Adam, will need their help…

Source: Info in the About River Marked was taken from the GoodReads at http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8087906-river-marked on 29/05/2011.

My Thoughts:

I read this book right after I read Silver Borne so there was continuity in the reading experience which enhanced my reading enjoyment of this book. I think this series is blessed by the cover art goddess in the US. Not so much in the UK. If I was encountering this series for the first time on a bookstore shelf, the US cover would trigger my book buying radar with an irresistible pull!

River Marked is not as dark as Iron Kissed which I liked. The very dark urban fantasies is not too much to my liking. There were also a few revelations in this book which were a pleasant surprise! I said in my review of Bone Crossed (book 4), that Patricia Briggs is getting predictable, this book proved me wrong! I liked these new twists in the plot. It also points that interesting things are happening in the coming books in this series. Something to look forward to! Overall, this is another masterpiece installment in the Mercy Thompson series and I would give it a 4.5 out of 5.

Empirical evaluation:
Story Telling Quality = 5
World Building = 5
Character Development = 5
Writing Style = 5
Plot = 4.5
Pace = 4.5
Story Itself = 4
Ending = 4

Overall Rating 4.5 out of 5 cherries


Books In This Series:
Click on the cover image to go to my review or the GoodReads page of the book for more info.


Thank you to ACE for the ARC of River Marked by Patricia Briggs received!

Review: SILVER BORNE

Silver Borne by Patricia Briggs

Book 5 of the Mercy Thompson series

Genre: adult urban fantasy

About Silver Borne:

When mechanic and shapeshifter Mercy Thompson attempts to return a powerful Fae book she'd previously borrowed in an act of desperation, she finds the bookstore locked up and closed down. It seems the book contains secret knowledge-and the Fae will do just about anything to keep it out of the wrong hands. And if that doesn't take enough of Mercy's attention, her friend Samuel is struggling with his wolf side-leaving Mercy to cover for him, lest his own father declare Sam's life forfeit. All in all, Mercy has had better days. And if she isn't careful, she might not have many more to live...

Source: Info in the About Silver Borne was taken from the GoodReads at http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6587387 on 27/05/2011.

My Thoughts:

The story telling quality is masterful as per usual with Patricia Briggs. Simply compelling! I also like the way the story veered off from being too dark like the previous books were. And I liked that! Liked that a lot! It didn't detract from the quality of the story or book whatsoever, it just makes it a whole lot less disturbing for us readers, and for me in particular, and I prefer it like that. This being the 5th book in the series, I've said most of what I can say about this book in my review of the previous books. The world building and character development is simply wonderful! Keep in mind that my assessment might no longer be objective. Being a long-time Mercy Thompson fan, I am admittedly biased. I love this series and this book did not disappoint! Pace? I inhaled this book overnight, so I would say the pace is pretty fast.

A salient point in this book is Sam the Wolf's appearance. Although this is not the center stage of this story, it did occupy a relatively big part of the stage. I'm not going to say much about it or I will be giving out spoilers... however I imagine Sam as this big white wolf pic here. I think it fits Sam very well.

Overall this is another brilliant installment to the Mercy Thompson series and I would give it a 5 out of 5!

Empirical evaluation:
Story Telling Quality = 5
World Building = 5
Character Development = 5
Writing Style = 5
Plot = 4.5
Pace = 5
Story Itself = 4.5
Ending = 5

Overall Rating 5 out of 5 cherries


Books In This Series:
Click on the cover image to go to my review or the GoodReads page of the book for more info.

IN THE MAIL: RIVER MARKED

I would like to thank the wonderful people at DearAuthor.com for hosting a contest which made it possible for me to win a copy of River Marked by Patricia Briggs which arrived yesterday!

River Marked by Patricia Briggs
Book 6 of the Mercy Thompson series

About River Marked:

Car mechanic Mercy Thompson has always known there was something different about her, and not just the way she can make a VW engine sit up and beg. Mercy is a shapeshifter, a talent she inherited from her long-gone father. She’s never known any others of her kind. Until now.

An evil is stirring in the depths of the Columbia River—one that her father’s people may know something about. And to have any hope of surviving, Mercy and her mate, the Alpha werewolf Adam, will need their help…

Source: Info in the About River Marked was taken from GoodReads at http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8087906 on 28/04/2011