Heroic Hearts by Many Authors – Review

Tags

5 stars, Anne Bishop, Annie Bellet, anthology, Book Review, Charlaine Harris, Jennifer Brozek, Jim Butcher, Kelley Armstrong, Kerrie Hughes, Kevin Hearne, Nancy Holder, Patricia Briggs, R.R. Virdi, urban fantasy

Review of Heroic Hearts

This collection of stories is about the unlikely heroes.  We all know them.  We see them every day.  They don’t even know they are heroes.  Until they need to be.  Heroes.

I wanted to read this for Patricia Briggs’ story about the werewolf Asil, a recurring character in her Alpha and Omega series.  In Dating Terrors, Asil goes on a date (arranged through a dating app) only to find out that he was picked as a date because of his superior strength and lethal talents.  But there is also Ruby, who almost immediately regrets using Asil and wants to back out. As you can imagine, events are propelled toward a showdown that doesn’t work out how Ruby imagined it would.  The question is, will Asil ever find true love?  This is a great story for Ruby, but even more so for Asil.  Over the series, he has grown as a character and will not disappoint Briggs’ fans in this short story.

Believe it or not, before I read Little Things, I had not read anything by Jim Butcher before.  This story is from the viewpoint of a sprite who must save the day while the giants (humans) around him don’t even know anything bad is happening.  I loved this story of the tiny little one using all available resources (even a cat) to overcome danger.

Kerrie Hughes is another new to me author and I was delighted with Troll Life, the story of a train station attendant, Harzl, who is a disappointment to his family because he has not become a station manager yet.  But he is intuitive and strong, so with his pet barghest (large, black, toothy dog) at his side he faces down evil to protect two innocents running for their lives.  Another great thing about this story – sentient trains.

Irish Wolfhound Oberon is the hero of Kevin Hearne’s Fire Hazard.  Perhaps other Iron Druid series readers will also feel that Oberon has always been great hero, but in this story, he proves that to himself. 

I found several new to me authors and enjoyed long-time favorites.  Every single story in this collection is great!  They all stand alone, even if they are part of a series and there are no cliffhangers, so you will get your money’s worth on this anthology.  The collection includes:

Little Things by Jim Butcher

The Dark Ship by Anne Bishop

Comfort Zone by Kelley Armstrong

Train to Last Hope by Annie Bellet

Fire Hazard by Kevin Hearne

Grave Gambles by R.R. Virdi

Troll Life by Kerrie Hughes

The Return of the Mage by Charlaine Harris

The Vampires Karamozov by Nancy Holder

The Necessity of Pragmatic Magic by Jennifer Brozek

Dating Terrors by Patricia Briggs 

Heroic Hearts is glorious proof that urban fantasy is alive, kicking and entertaining readers everywhere! 

Through Netgalley, the publisher provided a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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About Heroic Hearts

In this short story collection of courage, adventure, and magic, heroes—ordinary people who do the right thing—bravely step forward.
 
But running toward danger might cost them everything. . . . 

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Rising Fire (Warriors of the Stone Circles, #1) by Terri Brisbin – Review

Tags

4 stars, Book Review, historical, series, Terri Brisbin, urban fantasy

Review of Rising Fire

Rising Fire is a fantasy set in Scotland where the ancient Celtic gods have been forgotten, to be replaced with the Christian god.  Even so, one of the ancient goddesses, Chaela, is determined to return and rule the world, at all costs.  She has groomed one of her descendants to aid in her restoration to the place she believes she deserves.  Lord Hugh is a nasty piece of work.

A secret group of followers of the ancient gods have been waiting for Chaela’s attempt to return and have plans to stop her reappearance.  The descendants of other gods will need to be rounded up to assist.  Those descendants include William de Brus and Brienne of Yester, Warblood and Fireblood.

William de Brus, warrior on a mission for the king to find out what Lord Hugh is up to, finds more than he bargained for.  Brienne of Yester is young and has been kept in the dark about her past, but knows she is something more. 

Rising Fire brings all these players together, introducing an attraction between Brienne and William, as well as setting up a long game that will involve several showdowns before the goddess and Lord Hugh and put in their respective places. 

This fantasy concentrates on story development over character development.  The story, while not complex (bad goddess against everyone who wants to live happily ever after), is well told.  The darkness of the story gives it an edgy feel.  While the story of William and Brienne is complete, to see the bad guys defeated, you will need to read the rest of the series.

Thanks to the publisher who provided a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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About Rising Fire by Terri Brisbin

Eons ago, six ancient Celtic gods turned on the seventh who promised to destroy humanity. To keep her imprisoned, they passed their powers down through their descendants who could be called on if, when, the time to rise up came. In the dark times of the late 13th century, that time came.

William de Brus, illegitimate son of King Alexander III, is sent to investigate a nobleman thought to have mysterious powers and designs on Alexander’s kingdom. When he discovers the tales are true, and, that he is part of some larger plan, William also finds an enticing young woman who seems to be at the center of it all.

Brienne of Yester knows who her true father is and so do the villagers around her. She knows she is different in other ways and when her powers soar and she can create and control fire, Brienne learns the truth of her father’s nature. And his plan to release their ancestor, the goddess of fire and chaos. The only one who makes her feel safe, the only man she dares trust, may be her soulmate or her destruction.

When passions flare and powers rise, can they trust each other enough to give all of humanity a chance to survive or will the goddess escape to destroy everything in the world?

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Mercy Thompson by Patricia Briggs – Series Review

Tags

5 stars, Book Review, Darynda Jones, fae, fantasy, Geroge Newbern, goblins, Lorelei King, Patricia Briggs, romance, series, trolls, urban fantasy, vampires, werewolves, witches, zombies

The World of Mercy Thompson

Mercedes is a Volkswagen mechanic living in the Tri-Cities area of Washington. Her Native American heritage has gifted her with the ability to take the form of a coyote at will. She’s surrounded by far more powerful supernatural beings, including werewolves, vampires and an assortment of fae. 

Series summary from Patricia Briggs’ website.

Review

Before November of 2021, the only Patricia Briggs works I had read were a book called Dragon Bones and the awesome Alpha and Omega series, which is set in the same world as Briggs’ Mercy Thompson series.  With the Alpha and Omega series, there were enough references to Mercy Thompson to make me curious.  So last fall, I finally started the series.

The entire series was available through my library’s digital collection.  I was able to listen to most of the series on audiobook, with just two exceptions.

The audiobooks are read by Lorelei King, who is one of the most talented narrators out there.  I had previously listed to her read Darynda Jones’ Charley Davidson series, which made things a bit confusing at first.  I had so associated the voice of Lorelei King with Charley Davidson, that at first, I experienced some small difficulty getting my mind to realize that Mercy Thompson was the main character. 

By the end of the first book, I had made the shift in my mind and enjoyed the story enough to go for book 2 and 3.  Now, here is where I knew I was hooked on the series. 

I often find that authors adopt a formula to build each story in a series, leading to predictability and, at the very least, a need to take a break between books.  With Mercy Thompson, each book was entirely unique, and the story kept evolving.  I could discern no obvious pattern or formula.  This kept me fully engaged with the developing story.  So, I kept forging onward with the series, pausing only when I had to wait for the book to become available from the library. 

So, between November and last week, I listened to or read the first 12 books of the Mercy Thomson series plus one additional anthology set in the same world. The entire series is quality storytelling.  Let me tell you why.

Note: The summary I shared at the beginning of this post is very simplistic, but contains no spoilers.  What I share with you now may contain spoilers, but will, hopefully, not prevent you from enjoying the books anyway.

1. Mercy, as a coyote shifter, was raised, in part, by Bran Cornick, the Marrock – ruler of all the North American werewolves, who I first met in the Alpha and Omega series.  Bran is scary powerful, but for the good.  That Mercy often got the upper hand with Bran, is delightful, but also shows that their relationship was special and a good thing for both of them.
2. In addition to humans, so many of the typical urban fantasy paranormal types are present throughout the series.  Werewolves, vampires, sorcerers, fae, witches (white, grey and black), trolls, goblins, guayota (volcano god), zombies, ghosts, Coyote Trickster (and other Native American beings), Baba Yaga, the Golem of Prague, and walkers (which is what Mercy is).  Also, possible: combinations of any of the above.
3. The Columbia Basin werewolf pack is one big happy family.  Okay, not always happy.  But big and very much like family.  The Alpha, Adam, rules absolutely and the pack has a hierarchical structure.  Mercy’s role in the pack evolves over the series, but since she becomes the mate of the Alpha, she will be redefining the status quo.
4. The werewolves and other ‘monsters’ must interact with humans.  In a world where the werewolves have come out, Adam has become something of a celebrity.  His daughter Jessie, and Mercy’s employee Gabriel and one or two other humans help the wolves understand what it means to be human.
5. Mercy Thompson is a kind, compassionate woman that can get along with just about everyone she meets, as long as they don’t want to immediately kill her.  This is true whether they are fated to be friends, foes, or something inbetween.  (Okay, there is one exception, but husband’s ex-wives are fair game for a bit of spite.)  Since the stories are from Mercy’s viewpoint, this means the reader is able to connect with just about every character and care about them as much as Mery does.  This trait also puts her (and the pack) smack dab in the middle of trouble because Mercy needs to help.
6. Mercy’s infatuation with VW’s.
7. Mercy sees dead people.
8. Pack bonds/mate bonds.
9. A trip to Europe.
10. A fae artifact that, despite being returned the fae, always ends up near Mercy when she needs it. Called a walking stick, but rarely acts like one.
11. Bran, Charles and Samuel (from the Alpha and Omega series).
12. Zee (Siebold Adelbertsmiter) and Tad – Fae father and half-fae son. Zee is the original owner of Mercy’s garage. Both father and son continue to a) help Mercy in the garage and b) come to Mercy’s aid when she if fighting monsters.
13. Coyote Trickster – who is Mercy’s father, but not Mercy’s father.
14. Stephan – the vampire who loves Mercy.
15. Adam – who gets his own point of view in Silence Fallen – perhaps my favorite of the series. (In the audiobook, George Newbern narrates those chapters.)   Adam is handsome, powerful, protective, and loving. Also, Adam does not like to use foul language, which is adorable refreshing.

I really enjoyed ‘binge’ reading/listening to the first 12 books – plus Shifting Shadows, a collection short stories from the Mercyverse.  Shifting Shadows stories takes place throughout the Mercy Thompson timeline. Read after Night Broken to avoid spoilers. There are also a couple of Mercy-related graphic novels that I will have to track down.  I’ll have to wait for any future books, but I will be watching for them.  If you are an urban fantasy reader who has not been introduced to Mercy Thompson, I recommend you check this series out. 

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