Tag Archives: urban fantasy

Silence Fallen

Book Review of Silence Fallen (Mercy Thompson #10), by Patricia Briggs

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I borrowed Silence Fallen, by Patricia Briggs, from my local library.

Description from Goodreads:
Attacked and abducted in her home territory, Mercy finds herself in the clutches of the most powerful vampire in the world, taken as a weapon to use against alpha werewolf Adam and the ruler of the Tri-Cities vampires. In coyote form, Mercy escapes—only to find herself without money, without clothing, and alone in the heart of Europe… 
 
Unable to contact Adam and the rest of the pack, Mercy has allies to find and enemies to fight, and she needs to figure out which is which. Ancient powers stir, and Mercy must be her agile best to avoid causing a war between vampires and werewolves, and between werewolves and werewolves. And in the heart of the ancient city of Prague, old ghosts rise…

Review;
Sloppy. I really hope that this isn’t ANOTHER series that’s become so popular that the author has become complacent about it.

I disliked the little, sarcastic comments by Mercy at the start of each chapter. I saw no reason for the story to be told out of chronological order, requiring these comments to break the third wall to explain where they fall in relation to one another. In fact, it seemed to me as if Briggs just couldn’t be bothered to clean her timeline up. I found it jarring that the whole book, except one or two small snippets, were from either Mercy or Adam’s POV. Those sections felt out of place and lazy. And honestly, I just wasn’t all that invested in the story as a whole. We didn’t get to see much of the pack. Adam and Mercy weren’t together, so we didn’t get any of their byplays, and it never settled into anything truly engaging compared to past books in the series.

It’s still better than many urban fantasy books on the market but nowhere near as good as early Mercy Thompson books. Speaking of the early Mercy Thompson books, I apparently never did post reviews of them on the blog. But I did make notes on some of them on Goodreads. I’ll add them below.

#1 Moon Called:
have to express my surprise at liking this book as much as I did. I’ve found most of my forays into traditionally published UF and PNR to be disappointing of late. But I stayed up until ten past three this morning to finish this one. I was simply enjoying it so much I didn’t notice night passing. Now, it’s not edge of your seat exciting. It’s UF, not PNR, so there is no sex, and the little bit of romance that there is is in the background. But I simply enjoyed Mercy, Adam, Sam, Warren, and everyone else in a kind of mellow, go-with-the-flow way. I’ll definitely be looking to read more of the series.

#2 Blood Bound:
I enjoyed this second instalment of the Mercy Thompson Series. Mercy is still wonderfully independent and I like her tendency to purposefully rile the big bads up. She does seem to be establishing a bit of a harem though. Not sure how I feel about that, but I look forward to seeing where this series goes.

#3 Iron Kissed:

#4 Bone Crossed:
Four books into this series, and I’m still basically enjoying it. However, this one played heavily on Mercy’s status as a recent victim, and it seriously compromised her previous impression as a strong, unflappable character. (Someone please tell me why it’s required that so many UF/PNR heroines have to be traumatised at some point? I don’t get it.) I disliked this and just plain got tired of it. I understand she can’t be expected to have healed instantly, but half the book was dedicated to the aftereffects and her response to being attacked in the last book. IMO, not fun, not fun at all. Writing is still good. Editing is still good. The rest of the characters are still fun. I did find the frequent recaps of previous books repetitive and distracting. Plus, the challenge to overcome was both diluted by virtue of being two-fold, and I felt overcome too easily. All in all, however still a good book.

#5 Silver Borne:
#6 River Marked:
#7 Frost Burned:
#8 Night Broken:

#9 Fire Touched:
The one where, having been married a while, Mercy apparently needs a kid, but no one could bother with a pesky pregnancy.

Not as satisfying as past books. I kept waiting for this to really develop into something, but it felt like a continual building that never culminated into a true plot.

White Hot

Review of White Hot (Hidden Legacy #2), by Ilona Andrews

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I borrowed White Hot, by Ilona Andrews, from my local library. I reviewed the first one last in 2015.

Description from Goodreads:
Nevada Baylor has a unique and secret skill—she knows when people are lying—and she’s used that magic (along with plain, hard work) to keep her colorful and close-knit family’s detective agency afloat. But her new case pits her against the shadowy forces that almost destroyed the city of Houston once before, bringing Nevada back into contact with Connor “Mad” Rogan.

Rogan is a billionaire Prime—the highest rank of magic user—and as unreadable as ever, despite Nevada’s “talent.” But there’s no hiding the sparks between them. Now that the stakes are even higher, both professionally and personally, and their foes are unimaginably powerful, Rogan and Nevada will find that nothing burns like ice …

Review:
Can I start by saying that I think this series has some of the most off-putting covers ever? I really hate them and they really don’t represent the tone of the books? Do yourself a favor and don’t judge the books based on them. Ok, having said that, moving on.

It’s been a while since I read the first in this series, Burn For Me, and I admit that I’d forgotten a lot of the details. I was still able to catch up and follow the story well enough. However, I seem to remember loving the characters a lot more than I did here. I mean, I liked them, but with all the action and running around and killing people and blowing things up, I don’t really feel like the story slowed down and gave me much time to get to know them again.

One of the things I like most about Ilona Andrews is their ability to write alpha males who are all alpha, but still able and willing to support and encourage their kick-butt partners (not to mention the strong females). You get that here in much the same way you do the Kate Daniels books and that’s what keeps me coming back. No doubt I’ll be finishing this series out too.

Lastly, I appreciate that there is a pleasantly diverse cast in the Hidden Legacy universe.

Rivers of London

Review of Rivers of London, by Ben Aaronovitch

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I borrowed an audio version of Rivers of London, by Ben Aaronovitch from Hoopla.

Description from Goodreads:
Probationary Constable Peter Grant dreams of being a detective in London’s Metropolitan Police. Too bad his superior plans to assign him to the Case Progression Unit, where the biggest threat he’ll face is a paper cut. But Peter’s prospects change in the aftermath of a puzzling murder, when he gains exclusive information from an eyewitness who happens to be a ghost. Peter’s ability to speak with the lingering dead brings him to the attention of Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Nightingale, who investigates crimes involving magic and other manifestations of the uncanny. Now, as a wave of brutal and bizarre murders engulfs the city, Peter is plunged into a world where gods and goddesses mingle with mortals and a long-dead evil is making a comeback on a rising tide of magic.

Review:
I quite enjoyed this once I figured out that it and Midnight Riot are the same book. Why do publishers change titles other than to confuse readers? Anyhow, once I figured the title out, such that I realized it was the first of the series and picked it up, I enjoyed it. I loved Peter’s sarcastic voice, the cast and the introduction to all of the magic creatures of London. Not to mention the descriptions of the city and it’s rivers.

As an American I can imagine that Peter’s casual references to race could be uncomfortable. But I have to say, after living in England for several years, the ability to acknowledge it without the instant assumption that it is meant to be racist was refreshing. I never sensed Aaronovitch was being racist simply because he acknowledge someone to be of Nigerian decent or Arabian or Traveler. Peter is supposed to be of mixed race, his mother from Sierra Leon and his father white English. It’s not that it was always delicate or tactfully handled, it’s just that it was matter of fact and benign; the character’s insider perspective. Seeing a main character of color was nice in and of itself.

I laughed a lot in the course of this book and I was especially impressed with Kobna Holdbrook-Smith’s narration of the audio version I eventually got my hands on. The obvious swallowing and the fact that some sections ended abruptly was annoying, but beyond that I thought it was an amazing rendition. In fact, despite having the next book in paperback already, I think I’ll get the audio instead.