Urban Fantasy Reading Challenge: Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

The Particulars: Urban Fantasy, Ace, available in print and as e-book

 The Source: The Bookshelf
The Grade: B+ 
The blurb:

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...

The Review:
I was a bit hesitant to re-read this book, since I have had a bit of bad luck when it comes to re-reads recently. In the end, I am glad I re-read it.

What I like with Patricia Briggs novels is the detailed worldbuilding, and how she can take something and give it a fresh twist. This book, and the rest of the Mercy Thompson series, are no exception. This book focused on the werewolves, but I liked how she introduced the other factions in the world, both vampires and fae. I liked how the werewolves in the US were ruled by the Marrok, and how he kept a firm but benevolent grip on the reins. It felt right, somehow.


Despite the fact that I vaguely remembered what happened, I couldn’t stop reading. I held my breath, from the moment Mercy met Mac, to her search for Jessie and Adam. The plot moved at break neck pace, and I loved how the stakes gradually increased as Mercy and her friends they tried to figure out who was behind this. I'll admit that there was times when I wondered if they would figure out who the villain was in time. 
   

Meeting the characters again felt like meeting old friends. I liked that Mercy a lot. She had a core of strength and confidence. And while she defied Adam a lot, she also knew how to handle werewolves, and when to keep quiet. I also liked her loyalty to her friends, and how she was prepared to do anything for them. 
I couldn’t find anything bad, the only thing that keeps it from getting an A is that I felt it lacked that something.

* The blurb is from the UK edition, since I couldn’t find a proper blurb for the US edition online. Which drove me nuts. I hate when all I can find is a three line blurb.