Mikela

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..

This is a far cry from the books I normally read and a genre that I'm only mildly familiar with, but I'd heard from others that this was a good series and wanted a change of pace. Moon Called certainly was a change of pace but also one that I did enjoy.

Mercy proved to be a strong protagonist, a woman comfortable in her own skin, whether it be as a woman or as a coyote, confident in her abilities and more than able to handle herself in the most trying of situations, yet also aware of her own limitations. It's so refreshing to read about a smart, confident woman who doesn't wilt at the first sign of trouble nor go running to the nearest male for protection, but works with them as equals.

When Mercy's neighbour, Adam, the alpha male werewolf of her area's pack comes under attack and his human daughter kidnapped by outside forces, Mercy springs into action to help him.  Fearing that some of his own pack were responsible for the assault, Mercy can think of only one place where he can be totally safe until he's able to heal himself, to the Marrok, Bran, who is the acknowleged leader of all the werewolves in North America, and the leader of the pack that raised her. The trip is not without great risk, a six-hour drive with a wounded werewolf who when he becomes conscience will be ravenous and more than a little ticked off, is not what is described as a pleasure jaunt.

I enjoyed the dynamics of Samuel, son of Bran, and Mercy who, until Mercy left the pack was her intended lover or mate. One could easily see that there were still unresolved issues between them as well as a strong attachment to each other.  Then there is Adam who has claimed Mercy as his although they have yet to even date. One can see a change in relationship developing here as well. The pace was brisk and the characters on the whole very likable.

Our narrator, Mercy, takes us into a world where shapeshifters, werewolves, witches, gremlins and vampires all exist and a world where magic rings out, where they are all brought together to find who orchestrated the assault and to rescue Adam's 15 year old daughter. The mystery was well disguised, until the end I went from culprit to culprit in my mind only to find I was wrong on all counts.

Much to my surprise I enjoyed this book which begins the series and will certainly look for the next one. After all, who wouldn't be attracted to a nice guy until the full moon when he turns into a wolf on steroids. Hmm, sounds like a few men I dated in my time.