A Review of Day Shift by Charlaine Harris

Day Shift by Charlaine Harris
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Day Shift opens five months or so after Midnight Crossroad ended.

Everyone in this town has secrets, some people are in the know, but it seems no one knows the whole story about anyone...and that's why they like it there. Nobody asks too many questions.

Manfred Bernardo, one of the town's newest residents, is an internet famous psychic. He takes a business trip to meet with a client in Dallas and runs into Olivia, another town resident at the same hotel.

Manfred's client dies right in front of him and the couple he seen Olivia with end up dead in their room.

Soon he's embroiled in a murder mystery that puts him, and the town in the spotlight. The residents of Midnight are not happy about that. He turns to Olivia for help, and most of the town residents want to help, too. Anything to get the reporters and police away from their mysteries- like the new boy in town the Rev is taking care of.

Why is everyone worried about the upcoming full moon?

So much mystery. There's like a big question mark next to every character. You can't wait to get the full story on them. Each book, each chapter peels away another layer, revealing a new clue.

I love Charlaine Harris's quirky style and character oriented writing. This is a urban fantasy book but the paranormal undertones are very minimal, at least in the first book.

She lets us get a little deeper into the characters, who they are, what they are and what's going on in Midnight in Day Shift Book 2 of the Midnight, Texas Series.

We discover that this series is set in the same world as the Sookie Stackhouse Southern Vampire series, which you kinda feel in the first book but it is never confirmed. Sookie's name is actually brought up in this book as well as Bon Temps, when a character you might recognize makes an appearance in Midnight. Fans will love that connection. But there's a second character from that series who also has connections to Midnight now. I'm not naming names because I don't want to spoil any one's aha moments :-)

I see a lot of people either love or hate this series. Not enough plot, no drama, not enough romance blah blah blah but if you like well drawn character driven stories that never reveal everything all at once you'll love this. Filled with mystery and curiosity you'll keep reading simply hoping to learn everything you possibly can about these people and the mystery of Midnight and why this band of misfits and outcasts were all drawn to this place.

Each book in the series reveals more (I'm on book 3 now and the revelations keep coming).

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A Review of Fire Touched by Patricia Briggs

Fire Touched by Patricia Briggs
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Mercy Thompson is back in another non-stop adventure that leaves you turning pages until the end...and then you want more.

Fire Touched brings in characters we have seen previously in the books of the Alpha and Omega series and in Shifting Shadows: Stories from the World of Mercy Thompson. I love how Briggs stays true to her world and brings everything together. While the two series and the spin off short stories may be told from different characters POV and have a different voice, they all tie into this world and play a part in the big picture. If you have read all the books and short stories, you feel the puzzle pieces fitting together as you read Fire Touched.

But don't worry if you haven't read the the spin offs, you'll still get through just fine on the Mercy books alone without feeling like you're missing something.

Fire Touched opens in the Hauptman household. Mercy awakens from a nightmare, she feels that something bad is coming. Is it a premonition or just a nightmare? With Mercy you never know.

Either way life goes on as usual for the werewolf/coyote/human filled household- which means there is drama, power plays, and much supernatural mayhem.

Mercy and Adam simultaneously receive calls that something big is wreaking havoc on the bridge and humans are at risk. They are needed in town. Turns out it's a rampaging troll....a really big troll and Mercy and the pack need to stop it.

The troll is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg of what the Fae have in store. Tensions between the Fae, humans, and other supernatural factions have been growing more tense with each book. We're now on the verge of all out war. Now Mercy's pack has things the Fae want, mainly the fire touched child that lived in Underhill for centuries. He's come to them seeking protection from the Fae.

By offering the child protection, the pack now has a big Fae target on their back. And they have to protect themselves because no one else is coming to help. The Marrock has to distance himself from their pack so an all out war doesn't happen between werewolves and Fae, something Bran's been working hard to prevent.

The pack has to come together and be united or they won't survive. Mercy grows into her place in the pack and the pack member dynamics continue to evolve- and Mercy's relationship with Adam continues to grow as we see more of the depth of their bond. This is all showcased while they fight to do what's right and to survive the consequences of their actions.

Full of emotion and a roller coaster ride of action and adventure, Fire Touched will not disappoint.

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