Mercury's War (Breed Series, #16)

by Lora Leigh

book data

283 ratings, 4.43 average rating, 39 reviews (more data...)

rating	frequency	%
5		56%
4		33%
3		7%
2		1%
1		0%

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published

September 2nd 2008 by Berkley

binding

Mass Market Paperback, 325 pages

url

http://www.loraleigh.com/breeds/mercurys...

characters

Mercury Warrant, Gloria "Ria" Rodriguez

setting

The United States

isbn

042522418X (isbn13: 9780425224182)

description

There's trouble brewing at Sanctuary. Someone has been slipping secure information to a pharmaceutical company. Now it's up to Ria Rodriguez to pose a...more

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08/23/08

Julie (jjmachshev) rated it:

bookshelves: 2008-reads, erotica

Read in October, 2008

The latest in Lora Leigh's 'Breed' series is "Mercury's War". This story delves deeper into the troubles at Sancturary and the mystery of who is leaking what information to the enemies of the Breeds.

When the lioness Mercury believed was his mate was taken from the labs, he went feral and on a rampage. When he was eventally restrained, he was given drugs to 'cage' his beast. Since that time he has learned control and never allowed his 'other' nature to control him. Now...more

Like this review? yes (10 people liked it)

8 comments

07/11/08

Melissab rated it:

bookshelves: favorite-paranormal-romance, lora-leigh-breeds, paranormal-romance

Read in October, 2008

recommends it for: fans of the Breeds series, paranormal romance lovers

Mercury was one of most animalistic Breeds ever created. He was stronger, had better senses and was one of the best soldiers in the labs until one day when he went into "feral displacement" and killed people when he thought he lost his mate. Mercury was put on a drug program that pushed his animal side deep inside him until he barely had extra abilites but he survived. As part of his job as a Breed enforcer for Sactuary, Mercury is assigned to protect Gloria "Ria" Rodriguez w...more Mercury was one of most animalistic Breeds ever created. He was stronger, had better senses and was one of the best soldiers in the labs until one day when he went into "feral displacement" and killed people when he thought he lost his mate. Mercury was put on a drug program that pushed his animal side deep inside him until he barely had extra abilites but he survived. As part of his job as a Breed enforcer for Sactuary, Mercury is assigned to protect Gloria "Ria" Rodriguez while she does some short term work at Sanctuary. He is being watched closely for a return of feral displacement, which is a problem because when the animal inside him senses Ria it begins to wake up.

Ria Rodriguez is supposed to be at Sanctuary reviewing the spending of funds donated by the Leo. She is actually there to figure out who is selling information about the mating heat and prolonged lifetimes that occur between mated pairs. Ria dresses as a dowdy woman, hiding herself from the world because she thinks if she doesn't attract attention she won't be hurt and she can do her job better. Mercury sees right through her disguise to the more flashy, strong woman inside.

The attraction between Mercury and Ria is instant and powerful but Ria refuses to give into it because she knows Mercury's mate has died so she would always be his second choice. The physical heat between them eventually boils over and they have some insanely hot love scenes. Mercury decides that she is the mate of his heart, no matter that the signs of mating heat are not there despite how much he wishes they were.

Just when Mercury and Ria start to get together, his supposedly dead mate comes back. The consequences of this explode the story, causing Mercury's animal to finally emerge. Mercury is unbelievably sexy once he is finally the powerful Lion Breed he was supposed to be. Secrets that Ria had hidden come alive as well, allowing her to be strong enough to fight for what she wants - and what she wants is Mercury. The girl fight scene at the end was great, I love how Ria took care of the problem herself and didn't hide behind Mercury.

Mercury and Ria's story is now one of my favorite Breed books. The physical heat between them was scorching plus I really felt that they loved each other and belonged together. I enjoyed finding more out about the Leo, Dane and of course Jonas who is really growing on me. Mercury's War is too good to miss, I highly recommend reading this story and the other Breed books.(less)

Like this review? yes (8 people liked it)

4 comments

09/15/08

Heather rated it:

bookshelves: queuemyreview

Read in October, 2008

recommends it for: Fans of Lora Leigh's "Breed" series

Reviewed for queuemyreview.com

The drama! The suspense! The action! The romance! Oh boy, the romance! Mercury’s War by Lora Leigh had me straining my eyes to finish the story as quickly as I could. This is the 16th book in Lora Leigh’s “Breed Series” and in my humble opinion; her books are only getting better with time.

Mercury Warrant is a lion breed that has spent most of his adult life trying to repress the lion inside of him. When he was a young man, Mercury i...more Reviewed for queuemyreview.com

The drama! The suspense! The action! The romance! Oh boy, the romance! Mercury’s War by Lora Leigh had me straining my eyes to finish the story as quickly as I could. This is the 16th book in Lora Leigh’s “Breed Series” and in my humble opinion; her books are only getting better with time.

Mercury Warrant is a lion breed that has spent most of his adult life trying to repress the lion inside of him. When he was a young man, Mercury is told that a lioness breed thought to be his mate is dead. He is so enraged by the mere thought of his mate dying; he goes into a killing rampage, sealing his fate as a breed to be feared. When Ria comes to Sanctuary for a job verifying funding, he knows there is something special about her. She tries to hide in the dowdy clothes she wears, but Mercury knows that Ria is hiding. From what, he’s not sure, but he intends to find out.

Ria doesn’t want to crave Mercury, but there is something about him she can’t resist. She knows his mate died years earlier, and she doesn’t want to be his second choice. Whenever she kisses Mercury, she’s dying to taste the mating hormone, and she knows it can never be because she isn’t his mate. Or is she? The feelings they have for each other are so strong and so pure; she can’t believe they aren’t meant for each other. Then the unspeakable happens. The woman Mercury thought to be dead, his “mate”, shows up at sanctuary claiming to want Mercury back. Ria is devastated. Is she truly Mercury’s mate, or was it all in her imagination? Will the two of them work things out, or will the woman claiming to be Mercury’s mate get in the way?

The chemistry between Mercury and Ria is tangible its so thick! They desperately love one another, and have to constantly prove their love with all sorts of obstacles thrown in their way. Mercury’s War by Lora Leigh is one of my favorites in her Breed series, and I can’t wait for the next one to come out!

xo
(less)

Like this review? yes (7 people liked it)

7 comments

07/04/08

Celeste rated it:

bookshelves: favs, lora-leigh, paranormal

recommends it for: Paranormal romance

This is why I love Lora Leigh! WOW - the chemistry between Mercury and Ria is AMAZING. And Mercury himself? OMG - break me off a piece of that! This is going straight to the keeper shelf, 5+ stars. Would def. recommend to any and all Lora Leigh fans, or really anyone else into the paranormal genre. However, I wouldn't recommend beginning the series w/ this book, having the background of the Breeds and knowing and understanding all of their idiosyncrasies is a must to know what's going on w/ mati...more

Like this review? yes (6 people liked it)

1 comment

03/09/08

Kathrynn rated it:

bookshelves: 2009, hot, own, reviewed, romance-scifi, series-breed_leigh

Read in March, 2009

Complicated. A lot of families and relations were thrown around in this one and I finally had to right down who was related to keep it straight. Also, the Breed hierarchy became more complicated than I was interested in knowing...not a good thing.

The "games" that were referred to--repeatedly--that Dane and Ria played were silly. I didn't get the "game" part. The secret(s) Ria kept from others didn't seem like it should have been a secret to me. I didn't get it....more

Like this review? yes (5 people liked it)

5 comments

08/23/08

Ladiibbug rated it:

Read in March, 2009

#16 Breed series - One Star

This exciting & sexy series is one of my absolute favorites, but this one was a huge disappointment.

Ria, the heroine, is just a #itch. She's so insecure, so annoying, just an angry and thoroughly unlikeable character. I mean, we're talking throw-the-book-at-the-wall type dislike of a character. If I read one more time "poor little me, I grew up an orphan" ... I didn't even want to keep reading this book. Fine, make a character an...more

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10/30/08

Holly rated it:

bookshelves: lora-leigh---breeds

A long time ago Mercury Warrant thought he lost his mate. When he found out about the death of the young lioness, he went on a bloody and brutal rampage and the scientists had to inject him with gene therapy to calm the feral beast within. While it may have solved the problem of his rage, it silenced the animal within him, hampering his Breed capabilities. He's been living with the handicap quite well, until Ria Rodriquez walked into his life and now his hormones are all over the place. Ria is a...more A long time ago Mercury Warrant thought he lost his mate. When he found out about the death of the young lioness, he went on a bloody and brutal rampage and the scientists had to inject him with gene therapy to calm the feral beast within. While it may have solved the problem of his rage, it silenced the animal within him, hampering his Breed capabilities. He's been living with the handicap quite well, until Ria Rodriquez walked into his life and now his hormones are all over the place. Ria is at Sanctuary to quietly investigate the possibility of a leak. Someone is selling information about the Breeds' ability to stop aging and that type of information in the wrong hands could prove deadly. Mercury is assigned as her bodyguard and while she's rooting through the files, his animal is slowly awakening and starting to stalk it's prey. This time the animal within Mercury has scented it's true mate and it means to claim her, slowly and carefully, but when Ria bends over for some papers, all reasoning is lost and he all but forces himself on her. Their passion explodes and it's forceful and breathtaking and unfortunately, in full view of the security cameras. The last thing the Pride needs is a loose cannon and with his violent history, he's looked at with suspicion, but is it really his feral side coming out, or is it his newly awakened animal, finally unleashed and ready to merge with the man? When his animal side finally does blend with the man in a pure mating of genetics, Mercury and Ria's relationship is cemented, even with the arrival of the woman thought to he his mate from long ago. With that woman dogging their heels and not knowing who is friend or foe within Sanctuary, all they can do is indulge in the glory of their mating heat and hope to survive the latest threat to the Breeds.

I really, really liked this book. Mercury's War is my new favorite of the Breeds books because I just loved everything about it. Mercury was an extremely hot and dominating presence and while he was extremely sexy, he was also funny and very intelligent. Ria was a fascinating enigma and I enjoyed the sparks between them. She presents herself to the world as one thing, while inside, she's an entirely different woman and Mercury instantly senses her hidden feminine self. He forces her to bring out her inner animal and the methods he uses are not subtle. Nor is his sexuality. When he made up his mind to have her, Mercury didn't hold anything back. Also, Lora Leigh seems to have an affinity towards males in leather pants. Noah Blake and Clint McIntire to name a few and everytime it seemed to fall flat for me. I just didn't get the appeal, until Mercury walked across the page dressed in leather pants and suddenly, I saw the appeal. Oh, yeah. My only complaint would be that Mercury's animal side has a personality that seems slightly stalkerish. It's inner ramblings came across as the ramblings of a serial killer and I didn't know what to make of it. Also there is a stupid typo that states Taber, not Tamber tries to kidnap David which I thought should have been noted and fixed before release.

I highly recommend this newest book in the Breeds series. It's sexy and fun and there was enough going on behind the scenes to make my mouth water for future books. Lora Leigh has created an extremely compelling and seductive character in Mercury and she's paired him with a more than worthy heroine.(less)

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09/26/08

Aberforth rated it:

bookshelves: paranormal, romance

Read in October, 2008

recommends it for: paranormal romance fans

Book number... 16? of Lora Leigh's Breed series.

I got started on the Breed series about a year ago, reading one of her mass markets and loving it so much that I even went and collected all of the Ellora's Cave books in the series as well.

The weird thing? I'm not even all that sure why I like them so much. There's a weird furry/beastiality type feel to the series that can be a little...er, interesting at times if that's not your particular kink. In this particular book, i...more

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01/31/09

Alathea rated it:

bookshelves: a-t-f, breeds, erotica, lora-leigh, own, paranormal-romance, series

Read in February, 2009

recommends it for: everyone

Enforcer Mercury Warrant is said to be the greatest Breed ever created, more beast than man. Unfortunately, the beast had been drugged into oblivion years ago, after Mercury's enraged violence after the death of his mate.

He's been off the drugs for years now, but the advantages of his unique genetic makeup are long gone and so is the beast...Until Gloria "please call me Ria" Rodriguez shows up in Sanctuary with the mission to evaluate if the Leo's money is well spent.
...more

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03/10/08

Christel rated it:

bookshelves: lora-leigh

Read in November, 2008

recommends it for: any paranormal erotica reader

Wow just as good as the others I have read from her. Actually I think this is one of my favorites from the author. Just really intense and the sex was nuclear.

Like this review? yes (1 person liked it)

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02/11/09

Michelle rated it:

bookshelves: science-fiction

Read in February, 2009

Mercury is one of the first of the Breed--genetic creations of scientists trying to meld human and lion DNA into something they can use indiscriminately. He looks like a predator and could never simply blend into human society but he has buried the animal side of his nature for years. Now it seems that those he thought were his friends at the Sanctuary have turned against him and want to lock him up fearing a return of the wildness that could not only kill them but undo every advance the Breed ...more

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02/26/09

Jennifer rated it:

bookshelves: erotica

This is my other favorite Breed book, with Dawn's. I cared about the main characters and wanted them to be happy.. not always something I find with Leigh's books. I appreciated that they fell in love without the "mating heat" but ultimately got what they... deserved too.

I also liked that it takes place within the Breed compound, so we get lots of interaction with Jonas, Callan, Ely, Kane, etc. And having read the early books and seen glimpses of Mercury I liked it that he ...more

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11/12/08

Martina rated it:

Read in November, 2008

According to some, Mercury's War is the 16th book in the Breed Series. However, since this author writes about Wolf Breeds, Coyote Breeds, and Feline Breeds, it's really only the 8th in the Feline Breed series. And really, the first three of the Feline Breeds were originally only available as e-books, so it's really only the 5th one published new.

Now that the confusing part is over, let me give you the exerpt from the back of the novel:

There's trouble brewing at Sa...more According to some, Mercury's War is the 16th book in the Breed Series. However, since this author writes about Wolf Breeds, Coyote Breeds, and Feline Breeds, it's really only the 8th in the Feline Breed series. And really, the first three of the Feline Breeds were originally only available as e-books, so it's really only the 5th one published new.

Now that the confusing part is over, let me give you the exerpt from the back of the novel:

There's trouble brewing at Sanctuary. Someone has been slipping secure information to a pharmaceutical company. Now it's up to Ria Rodriquez to pose as a clerk and uncover the leak. And she has no idea of the danger she's about to encounter.
Years ago, Mercury Warrant - who, according to his file, is one of the greatest Breeds ever created - thought he'd lost his mate, and he's had to live with the idea that he'll never know true bonding. Then he's tapped to protect the mysterious Ria - and finds himself falling in love.
But Ria is a woman of many secrets, and she fears being consumed by her feelings for Mercury. Little does she know that se has every right to be afraid. Because the woman believed to be Mercury's true mate is back from the grave, and she's not about to let Ria - or anyone else - get in the way . . .

Okay - so I've read all the Feline Breed series since Megan's Mark. I like the general premise of the half-human, half-animals (lion, cougar, & tiger) created in the labs finding their freedom and learning how to find their way in the world. It appeals to me in the same manner that TV show from awhile back, Dark Angel (with Jessica Alba), did.

I'm also a fan of romance and this isn't just romance - it's most definitely erotica. Hot, steamy, incredibly sexy romance. If you don't like that kind of thing, then this is not a book for you. If you occassionally do like that kind of thing, give this series a try. I recommend starting with either "Tempting the Beast" which was the first Feline Breed book and originally only available as an ebook. Or, you can do as I did and start with "Megan's Mark".

Similar series:

- C.T. Adams & Cathy Clamp's Sazi Series
- Marjorie M. Liu's Dirk & Steele Series
- Nalini Singh's Psy-Changeling Series
- Christine Warren's The Others Series(less)

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10/19/08

Bookaholics rated it:

recommends it for: paranormal romance

Mercury’s War by Lora Leigh
Mass paperback release date: October 7th, 2008
Rating 5 stars

Lora Leigh latest Breed installment is one not to be missed! I cannot express the joy and sheer heart-pounding pleasure I experienced reading this book. What makes this book different was the sincere and touching interaction between the 2 main characters.

Mercury Warrant is a genetically engineered Breed without a mate. His one and only mate died and as a result he vi...more Mercury’s War by Lora Leigh
Mass paperback release date: October 7th, 2008
Rating 5 stars

Lora Leigh latest Breed installment is one not to be missed! I cannot express the joy and sheer heart-pounding pleasure I experienced reading this book. What makes this book different was the sincere and touching interaction between the 2 main characters.

Mercury Warrant is a genetically engineered Breed without a mate. His one and only mate died and as a result he violently killed those responsible. To control his aggressive rage, Mercury was drugged. Since then the ferocity of his animal nature has not returned. Mercury now lives without living. That is until Ria comes to Sanctuary. Although Mercury is assigned as her bodyguard he can’t seem to keep himself from her delectable body.

Ria’s assignment does not include falling for hunky Mercury. Passed experience has left her with a guarded heart, but she can’t help the overpowering and frightening emotions he invokes in her. When she finally takes the steps toward trusting Mercury, her confidence is met by the sudden appearance of Mercury’s ‘dead’ mate.

This book has an absorbing plot and enough drama to keep you hooked. Lora Leigh has created very dynamic characters that seem strong on the surface but are deeply wounded. What makes this book so meaningful is each finds salvation in the other as well as the ability to appreciate their genuine strength. The moments between Ria and Mercury are incredibly touching. Ria is a spectacularly strong woman who holds no bars when it comes to her friends and business, but lacks the ability to defend her personal worth. Mercury sees, from the beginning, Ria’s beauty and pushes her to see it too. Again and again he shows Ria how much he cares and it was fascinating to see the masculine and stoic Mercury take Ria out shopping for a make-over. In turn, Ria forces Mercury to find his true nature. This book was like having your cake and savoring every delicious bite, too! Sinfully good and wonderfully satisfying.

Reviewed by Steph at Bookaholics Romance Book Club

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06/16/09

Agnes Kullap rated it:

Read in January, 2008

While my favorite breed book is The man within and I also very much liked Aiden's Charity I really loved Mercury's War too! I was completely devastated when I read that Merc's mate had died years before in those hideous labs! After learning that his book is coming out I was expecting to read that her mate had survived or sth! But bringing Ria to the picture was a very good turn. I really loved it...:)

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12/28/08

July rated it:

Read in January, 2009

Wow. I have to say that this has to be one of my favorites so far. I LOVED this book...
Mercury feels like he was changed after he was put on a drug to control a rage that he went into after his mate was killed. The rage where he brutally killed many men. The drugs have made Mercury's animal go into hibernation. But a woman that he is protecting Ria seems to be bringing his animal out of the hibernation that the drugs did damage on. The attraction between these two is off the charts.

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05/04/09

Jen Devall rated it:

My favorite of all the Breed Books - Mercury is super hot and I loved his and Ria's story together. I cannot wait for Cabal's and especially Jonas' stories!

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12/05/08

Angel G added it

Another of the ones I had been waiting to read since the beginning! And I did of course, love it!

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04/06/09

Daune rated it:

Read in January, 2008

I enjoy all the breed books can't wait until the next one comes out.

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