SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion
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Moon Called
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"Moon Called" by Patricia Briggs (BR)
I started this last night and I'm enjoying it. I've read the first two chapters and I like the way Briggs is building up information about the world, so it's not too info-dumpy. For example (view spoiler)
I really like this series and it feels like a million years since I read moon called so I think I’m going to re read!
Oh I didn't realize this was a buddy read, but I bought this book a few years back so this is tempting me to move it up in the queue.
Mod
Oooh, Hoopla also has the graphic novel. Maybe I'll check it out after I finish reading the book.
Nicol wrote: "I really like this series and it feels like a million years since I read moon called so I think I’m going to re read!"This is a favorite series for me too. When I saw it was picked I immediately re-read, umm 2 weeks early. This series is like candy for me; I read them when I need to de-stress.
I loved this book for a lot of reasons1. the main character had an atypical job for a woman
2. she wasn't one of the holy trinity (vampire, werewolf or elf)
3. a lot of minor mythological types were in the book and later in the series
4. she wasn't one of the important people in her world
5. inclusive of all types, sexual preferences, etc
6. she seemed like a real person
This thread reminded me to continue with this series! I read Moon Called last year and enjoyed it a lot, it was such a fun and dynamic read.
Melanie wrote: "Scribd has the graphic novel version. Since it's a reread for me, I am going to read the adaptation. Some of the characters already don't match my imagination ..."The first time I read the series it was eye ball and this time I tried the audio for Moon Called, no one sounded the way I imagined lol. Especially Stefan. Maybe I'll check out the graphic version too.
Liane wrote: "Nicol wrote: "I really like this series and it feels like a million years since I read moon called so I think I’m going to re read!"This is a favorite series for me too. When I saw it was picked ..."
I totally agree! After listening to Moon Called, I'm already listening to Blood Bound - it will be a nice refresher to listen to whole series before I read Smoke Bitten for the first time.
Also I was so happy that a favorite from years ago still held up :)
Melanie wrote: "Scribd has the graphic novel version. Since it's a reread for me, I am going to read the adaptation. Some of the characters already don't match my imagination ..."The cover of the book doesn't match my image of the character in the story at all. Mercy's outfit looks more like a "sexy mechanic" Halloween costume than something that would be work-safe for a car repair shop.
Ch. 7: I liked the scene with Dr. Wallace. So far, this story's been pretty good but nothing special, but that part really affected me, how (view spoiler)
Mod
I agree. Specifically, the books highlight her native American heritage which is not showing (thus far) in the imagery but is always prominent on the print book covers. I'm giving it a chance though. It is doing a good job portraying mercy's internal dialog and keeping the book moving, a feat for this kind of book format.
Mod
Melanie wrote: "I agree. Specifically, the books highlight her native American heritage which is not showing (thus far) in the imagery but is always prominent on the print book covers."Sorry Melanie, I was talking about the cover of the print book rather than the comic, though the outfits on both are nearly identical less the feather earring that gives the print cover a hint of Native American-ness. Does Mercy have sleeve tattoos in the books? They haven't been mentioned in Moon Called so far but are prominent on both covers.
As far as I remember she does not have tattoos in the books but the book covers change the tattoos every new book and depict themes from the plots. I can’t remember the name of the artist but it’s the same one for all the covers. I totally agree her outfits do not look they way she was described in the book or very practical for her job, pretty sure it’s artistic license there. Lol
I always pictured her as looking like Adrienne Barbeau in Escape from New York
Mod
Not waiting anymore :)
Nicol wrote: "As far as I remember she does not have tattoos in the books but the book covers change the tattoos every new book and depict themes from the plots."That's a fun, distinctive way to have "Easter eggs" in the cover art. I'll look at this one a little more carefully with that in mind.
I'm excited to discuss with everyone! This was available at my library a couple weeks ago so I read it then and took some random notes by chapter when it occurred to me.
I think I would have liked this book better if I'd read it when it was first published. I'm not as forgiving now, haha. Also keep in mind that I don't typically enjoy UF with werewolves/vampires etc.
chapter 4
(view spoiler)
chapter 5
(view spoiler)
chapter 6
(view spoiler)
I'll be back later with the rest of my notes!
I really love this series myself. I was told by a budding author that they have very little to say about the covers of the books. However, he is not famous yet so maybe that changes the more books you have under your belt.
Stephanie, I wasn't fond of the thing you noted in Ch. 6 either. I can't even excuse it on a "world building" basis because she could easily have built the world differently. And why wouldn't there be exceptions (view spoiler), regardless?
Mod
for the second part of the chapter 6 spoiler, you'd also have to dislike all the romances in (view spoiler)Also things/situations/etc do change through the series and through Mercy's actions
Stephanie wrote: "I'm excited to discuss with everyone! This was available at my library a couple weeks ago so I read it then and took some random notes by chapter when it occurred to me.
I think I would have li..."
I really like the series BUT totally agree with these points. I even went down a star rating because of it. For some reason I didn't remember it being so prominent (I feel like this very much lessens in the later books except for one) but I did read this a hundred years ago. And as I am re-reading the series I know there is a book coming up that was drowning in this and I might skip it. But there are other things I love about this book/series
I hate the (view spoiler)
Mod
I read a bunch of this series, probably almost 10 years ago now. They were mostly about 3 star reads at the time - very easy to read but I definitely agree with the previous critiques. I like the idea of werewolves in general, but rarely how this is represented in popular media - what I would not give for a good werewolf book/movie that destroyed the stupid alpha/beta/etc hierarchy idea. I wasn't really planning on re-reading this, but it looks like my library has the graphic novel so I may give it a try.
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I put a few things together that may not have belonged together but I saw some significance in the
(view spoiler) I probably won't read on to discover if that comes about though as I really don't like the book covers.
I read my books in Kindle format, so the covers are immaterial to me. Some books with beautiful covers that I've read have been terrible
UF covers are uniformly pulp-fiction-y, imo. This one didn't strike me one way or the other: female figure on the spectrum of badass and/or sexy, some props indicating other elements of the story.This has been pretty sloggy for me, but I've got some stuff going on that is making my reading mind--perhaps undeservedly--unkind to it. (it took me three days to read ch. 7 and this is NOT a book that supports that slow of a read.) I might DNF and finish it off later when the stuff is dealt with.
Ryan wrote: "...I probably won't read on to discover if that comes about though as I really don't like the book covers."I loathe the book covers. It's a tribute to how much I enjoy this author that I'm willing to read her despite the covers.
While it's definitely a light series, it reminds me a bit of Gaiman's American Gods/Anansi Boys, which is how I found it initially, I think. Later on in the series it gets into some of her parents' backstory (view spoiler).
Mod
There's a book I read [redacted] years ago whose cover I can't bear to look at. And I liked it enough to read it twice! So I understand where you're coming from, Ryan, though I wouldn't let that stop me from reading the following books in a series.
Mod
I liked Mercy and her steadfast nature. Just wish she kept better company.
message 35:
by
Allison, Fairy Mod-mother
(last edited Mar 09, 2022 04:15PM)
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rated it 3 stars
Mod
1. Cover.
Do remember the author has basically no say in this in trad pub. And that if you're a woman writing a woman, the assumption by most trad pub (especially until like 5 years ago) was that you were writing either YA or a romance novel. Romance is a huuuuuuge market, so many authors were coached to play it safe by writing towards that audience. Even if they weren't you still get stuff like the cover of Theory of Bastards because...well, sexism. So I hate the cover, but I also hate most covers with women on them because it seems IMPOSSIBLE to have a book set in current times in which a woman (God forbid more than one) can be both fully clothed and not performing for the (cishet) male gaze.
2. Book
As far as the contents of the book, I thought it was fun. It is of the era that her being a shifter means there's gonna be abuse erotica somewhere in there, and it stuck pretty close to the plot of the other UF of the time, IMO. Not bad, but it didn't stand out for me. Fun, light, and you know what you're gonna get out of it.
I had a few quibbles with the things that made her "different" from the other UF heroines. Aside from explaining her (view spoiler) abilities, does her Native heritage play in at all? Or is it scene dressing? Ditto the mechanic. Is it used? Or is it just there to show "she's not like other girls?"
I had a lot of problem with the inconsistencies in this book. We've noted that wolves don't actually have an alpha/beta culture, but also things like they could hear things from a mile away but then not hear or smell things a floor down in a building. And then of course the part that is forever etched into my brain as the thing that killed this series for me is that (view spoiler) Abuse issues aside, that's really anti-climactic for me.
Allison wrote: "her Native heritage play in at all? Or is it scene dressing? Ditto the mechanic. Is it used? Or is it just there to show "she's not like other girls?" "The Native heritage does come up in other books especially when (view spoiler)
The mechanic seems to be real and she's usually working on one or more vehicles in her shop
Mod
That spoiler about later books sounds like it's just a tie in to that element. compare to Marrow Thieves or even Trail of Lightning, which I think focuses (or tries to focus) more on the substance than the aesthetic.
While the mechanic thing does somewhat have a whiff of "not other girls" about it, at least it's more interesting than her being a private eye or mercenary. I think it was Ryan said something in the discord about this, and I came across the line in question in the part of the book I read at lunchtime, where Mercy says something like Darren and Kyle are among her few friends, and as a mechanic she didn't come across many women. What a missed opportunity--Beth's silly alt scenario for this book is Mercy with some women friends who are also interested in German cars (or cars in general) and were thrilled to meet a woman mechanic. One of them perhaps, having a crush on her... etc...
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At the end of Vol 1, I think they did a decent job with the adaptation part of the graphic novel so far, but I really dislike the artwork. The way people are drawn feels very plasticky and creepy. Also the blurbs on the books keep describing Mercy as "eccentric" or an "oddity", but then the only reasons they give are that she's a woman who is very independent and also a mechanic?
message 41:
by
Melanie, the neutral party
(last edited Mar 09, 2022 06:18PM)
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rated it 3 stars
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If you follow the series, the MC does grow and the world-building improves, but IMO it does not get deep in the way you are probably seeking. You are not wrong, but this book/series doesn't claim to be that.
@Kaa, I finished the graphic novel. The art stays weird, there were definite plot holes, and overall I am not impressed. Its strength is in keeping the plot moving despite Mercy's persistent monologue, and ending with quality cliff hangers (graphic novel style), but like that's it.
Mod
it's a bad look and not necessary to tell the story. I still enjoyed it. but I also don't know how purposefully choosing an ethnicity for a character is not tied to the author's choice of framing for the character. so i reserve doubts.
Allison wrote: "hmmm.... I don't think respecting a real culture negates it being light? it wasn't the tone that bothered me, it's the use of the commercial elements of a people's culture who were attacked for tha..."well, she had to be at least part Native American to be a Skin Walker as those are part of the Navajo mythology. You might want to read this book in the series to see where it's woven into the story
"In River Marked, Briggs respectfully slows down the pace to sprinkle-in Native American religious beliefs, lore, history, and heritage. Many of the scenes were written in a picturesque way so that we could see the rich culture and history of Native Americans. I do have to admit, though, a few times the history was a little too much. Overall, though, it was very centering and unobtrusive."
the quote is from this article:
https://aliciamccalla.com/blog/2011/0...
and I consider the book light, comfort reading which is why I had nominated it as one of my three books
Her heritage does become crucial later on in the series. The series also includes several women friends, LGBT characters in happy relationships, various ethnicities, etc. There is zero abuse erotica nor even any explicit sex scenes anywhere in the series.
Allison, I had similar reservations when I was reading. I was surprised that the first book never gets more specific than "Native." I also appreciate your comments on the cover and think you made a lot of great points.
CBRetriever, I've never read the series you mentioned so I can't comment on that. I'm glad to hear that there is growth later, though! And I did like (view spoiler)
a few more notes on other chapters:
Chapter 7
(view spoiler)
Chapter 8
(view spoiler)
Overall I did like Mercy and I even read the next few books, but I didn't like the third book and won't be continuing the series.
Mod
I don't know, I kind of felt like Briggs didn't do her research about Mercy's Native heritage for this book and then realized later that this was something she should have done. Which, growth is great, but I don't think that makes the previous books exempt from this critique (or the critiques about how women and other marginalized groups are represented).Those trying to decide whether to read further in the series should be aware that in book 3 (view spoiler)
Ch. 10 (religious symbols, follow-up to previous post)(view spoiler)
She finished the page, dog-eared one corner, and set it carelessly on the floor.A creature of pure evil!!
Actually the vampires seem kinda cute and winsome in some ways, at least in their fashion sense or style. Stefan's "Mystery Machine" van, toenail polish on Marsilia, silk dress + trainers on Lilly...
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