werewolves | The Obsessive Bookseller

Title: Dead Heat

Author: Patricia Briggs

Series: Alpha & Omega #4

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Release Date: March 3, 2015

Rating: 5/5 stars!

The Overview: For once, mated werewolves Charles and Anna are not traveling because of Charles’s role as his father’s enforcer. This time, their trip to Arizona is purely personal, as Charles plans to buy Anna a horse for her birthday. Or at least it starts out that way…

Charles and Anna soon discover that a dangerous Fae being is on the loose, replacing human children with simulacrums. The Fae’s cold war with humanity is about to heat up—and Charles and Anna are in the cross fire.

The Review:

Patricia Briggs has always been a fantastic writer and storyteller, but these last few novels have been absolutely spectacular. The crime-solving mystery elements are interesting and complex and are partially responsible for why the books are such page-turners. Not to mention that the characters are all lovable and dynamic, the world-building is rich with history and culture, and the plot gains momentum with each chapter.

The stakes of this world have gotten higher with each novel, and I find each new story adds to the momentum of the series. The more I find out about werewolves and their culture, the more I want to know. The more I find out about some of our favorite characters and their origins (much like in Shifting Shadows), the more invested I feel in their plight. The same goes for the other supernatural creatures. The Fae have, up to this point, been involved in the story, but mostly on the periphery. There has been a lot of mystery surrounding them, so each new discovery about their nature has me devouring the pages to learn what they’re going to do next and how our heroes are going to respond.

As great and momentous as the broad conflicts have been, my favorite element has been smaller conflicts – the dynamics between the characters themselves. Family drama is always a problem, but when you add to that magic and pack hierarchy, things get a lot more difficult. Seeing the bad guy brought down at the end is always great, but seeing the characters find solutions to these familial conflicts is what leaves me feeling truly satisfied at the end of her books.

After all this time with the series, the characters have such depth and history that it’s impossible not to enjoy reading about anything involving them. I also love that there are two different sets of POV characters within this saga (Mercy vs. Anna & Charles) and I would be hard-pressed to tell you who I enjoy reading about more. Their stories are separate, but integrated within the world enough that I don’t think I could enjoy one nearly as much without the other. I’ve definitely never seen a spinoff add so much to the saga as a whole, but the Alpha and Omega series continues to blow away my expectations at every turn.

A neat attribute to this particular novel is the slight focus on horses. I have gotten the impression that Patricia Briggs is just as passionate about her horses as she is about writing. It’s a whole other aspect of her life that she hasn’t really expressed in her writing to this point. It was a lot of fun to get a sneak peek into that world, and I’m glad she finally found a way to work it in. It made it more personal and special in a way. Although there are wonderful things about each of her novels. It’s a small wonder I’m always chomping at the bit to devour each one that comes out (pun intended).

Overall, I consider Dead Heat another masterpiece from an amazing writer. I love the characters, the world, the magic, the story, and pretty much everything else about this book (and saga). There’s a reason Patricia Briggs is considered a staple in the urban fantasy genre and a reason why she continues to be one of my favorites! If by some chance you haven’t read this series yet, I would highly recommend reading it alongside the Mercy Thompson series in a specific order based on the publication date (starting with Mercy Thompson #1: Moon Called). You won’t be disappointed!

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by Niki Hawkes

Title: Nightshade

Author: Andrea Cremer

Series: Nightshade

Genre: Teen Paranormal Romance

Rating: 4/5 stars

The Overview: The first time I read this book was several years ago when it was just an arc. I remember liking it enough to want to continue on, but by the time the second book came out I had forgotten almost everything. In my defense, I read the arc several months before the first book’s release date, and then it was well over a year and a half before I got my hands on the next installment. I always knew I wanted to go back and reread, but it kind of got put on the back burner. Earlier this year, however, I finally found the motivation I needed to pick it back up. You see, my book blogging friend Chanzie at Mean Who You Are had made it one of her nominations for people to vote for as her Book of the Month. We ended up having a read-along, and it was so much fun I can’t wait to do another! In any case, I want to thank her for getting me back on this series because, while I appreciated it the first time around, I absolutely loved it the second time!

The Review:

This is actually my second time reading Nightshade, and I liked it much better this time around. I have to thank Chanzie over at Mean Who You Are for letting me read along with her chosen Book of the Month because I think without her it would have been a very long time before I picked this series back up… not to mention the read along itself was a ton of fun!

I can’t say enough good things about the writing style – Cremer has such a strong voice, and the way she put together words to describe even the most mundane things was beautiful. I’m not saying she was flowery with her descriptions, by any means, I just appreciated how she composed her sentences. Even to the point where I’d be willing to read just about anything she writes because I’m certain the craft side of it would be done beautifully. Come to think of it, when I first read Nightshade, I was not the aspiring writer I am today… I think we may have figured out why I liked it a whole lot better the second time around. Isn’t it weird how books can do that to you?

One thing my pre-writing self and I agreed on is that the characters in this book are a lot of fun. Even though they’re not incredibly dynamic yet (I have high hopes for the second book), they are interesting and easy to get behind – their conflicts really tug at your heartstrings. Let’s take a moment for some girl talk: my first inclination was to crush on the new boy in town, Shay. In fact, during the first read through I did just that. Now, however, I have found a new appreciation for Ren, the boy who Calla has known since she was a child – the one she’s supposed to marry. Each boy has flaws, which is what makes them realistic characters, but the unfortunate thing is that the flaws are kind of deal-breakers for me in the relationship department. Shay’s actions tell me he’s not as concerned with Calla’s safety as I think he should be (it’s not malicious, but he does take a lot of risks where she would pay the price) whereas Ren is kind of a man-whore (but I at least think he’d be loyal to Calla). Five years ago, Ren’s promiscuity threw me off immediately, whereas now Shay’s actions bothered me more. Anyway, to make a long story short: go team Ren! While I’m on the subject of characters, I should also mention that the secondary characters (primarily the fellow pack-mates) were fantastic. I was just as interested in their conflicts as I was the main character’s and am really excited to see how things change for them going forward.

The only thing I could say I didn’t like about this book is that its beginning was a little too much of a whirlwind. It was difficult for me (both times) to wrap my brain around what was happening and I got slapped over the head with what felt like a major instalove. My advice is to stick with it. It only takes a couple of chapters before it transitions into a highly entertaining story. I have read a lot of werewolf books, but I’ve never read one quite like this. :-)

Overall, Nightshade is an excellent start to this series and perfect for fans of teen paranormal. If you can be forgiving for the first couple of chapters, you are in store for excellent writing, great characters, and a cool concept!

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