The vampire Wulfe is missing. Since he’s deadly, possibly insane, and his current idea of “fun” is stalking me, some may see it as no great loss. But, warned that his disappearance might bring down the carefully constructed alliances that keep our pack safe, my mate and I must find Wulfe—and hope he’s still alive. As alive as a vampire can be, anyway.  

But Wulfe isn’t the only one who has disappeared. And now there are bodies, too. Has the Harvester returned to the Tri-Cities, reaping souls with his cursed sickle? Or is he just a character from a B horror movie and our enemy is someone else?  

The farther I follow Wulfe’s trail, the more twisted—and darker—the path becomes. I need to figure out what’s going on before the next body on the ground is mine.

Even after 13 books by Patricia Briggs in the Mercy Thompson series, I eagerly await the next. There is something about the characters and the world that is easy to slip into and I always find the books completely absorbing. In “Soul Taken”, Patricia Briggs continues that trend in this novel, the story insightful and compelling. 

For me, part of the reason this novel is so successful even though it is number thirteen is that you are easily immersed in the characters, the world, and the plot. Patricia Briggs does this by reminding you of the secondary characters, showing the reader the world from Mercy’s eyes. She also introduces the narrative quickly and the action is quick paced. 

I love how complex and real her characters are in her world. Mercy grows and evolves as time goes by in the books and so too do the other characters. I loved that we got a chapter from Adam’s point of view, getting a glimpse inside his head. I love Mercy’s voice, snarky and thoughtful, insightful. The story flows well, the intrigue and mystery of the situation still leaving room for interpersonal dramas and showing us more of the world around Mercy. I adored getting glimpses of the background on Zee, Sherwood and Wulfe. This story is rich, complex and as usual I loved the ending but hated it at the same time, because I wanted to stay in Mercy’s world a little bit longer. 

If you loved the other books in the series, I highly recommend you read this book. It picks up after the other books. I do recommend you read the other books in the series. But this book was insightful and compelling, giving us rich details on the world and an intriguing problem for Mercy and the Pack. 

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars