Introduction:
Dear reader, you hold in your hand (or your e-book reader) the entirety of every short story ever published (plus four) that I have written in the world of Mercy Thompson. Short stories have allowed me to explore Mercy’s world from different perspectives, to tell stories that couldn’t be told in the books, and to go places the books do not.
We have organized the stories by order in which they happen. There are a few that could have gone anywhere (“Gray”) and a few that were difficult because they happened in different times, but we managed to find a place for each. I hope you enjoy the journey as much as I have.
-Patricia Briggs
Silver (takes place many, many moons before Moon Called)
Silver is the story of Ariana and Samuel’s first meeting, the first half of the story that continues in Silver Borne. It tells the very difficult background of Bran and Samuel and how they came to be how they are now. Silver is a painful story because the reader is given a glimpse into Bran’s story before he was the all-powerful Marrok we now know him as. It is a little humbling to find him down and hurting.
Samuel’s story is just as hard as he starts off the journey grieving for the loss of his wife and child. From there him and his father are taken by his grandmother and forced to provide her with sustenance in the form of their lives. Eventually they manage to break away from the witch and Ariana enters the picture. As we know though, things to do not go as they should and the couple parts on unhappy terms. Silver is not a happy tale but one that is written so we would know more about the history of Bran and Samuel.
Fairy Gifts (takes place before Moon Called)
Fairy Gifts is a story about the hometown of Patricia Briggs, Butte, Montana. Thomas a Chinese vampire making his way in the old tunnel mines in the town of Butte. Early in his life he runs across a woman who is able to give him everything he wants, freedom from being a slave to blood, sunlight and his Master’s death.
Eighty years later he is called back to Butte by some sort of magic to be asked to find that same woman again. A group of strangers asking for help come across as doing the right thing but they are really looking to harm the woman. Thomas is only too happy to find the woman and repay the gift she gave him so many years ago. Freedom.
Gray (takes place before Moon Called)
Gray takes place in Chicago around Valentine’s Day. Elyna is a turned vampire who killed her husband in a fit of bloodlust. She has bought their old home hoping his ghost still remains there so she can be with. Elyna pays a group of cops a large amount of money to help her fix the place up all while trying to stay out of the notice of the Master vampire holding the territory. This is Elyna’s tale of finding her true love again.
Seeing Eye (takes place about a year before Moon Called)
Moira is a good witch who makes an appearance in Hunting Ground. Tom is the werewolf who shows up at her door asking for help. He is looking for his brother who is being held by a local coven. As good witches are few and far between these two have a story that needs to be told. Seeing Eye is a small glimpse into the couple and Ms. Briggs has said she will “write more about Tom and Moira eventually”.
Alpha and Omega (takes place during the events in Moon Called)
Alpha and Omega is the well-known prequel to the Alpha and Omega series, Charles and Anna’s story. This is a prequel most fans of the Alpha and Omega series would have read as it shows how Charles and Anna met and the situation Anna was rescued from. It also shows a glimpse of Charles’s power and what he can do. This is one of my favorite series so I will never get tired of reading this prequel.
The Star of David (takes place at Christmas time after most of the events in Moon Called)
The Star of David features a werewolf who appeared in Moon Called but did not have a large role. He is a fellow Army Ranger of Adam’s and has a tragic past. Not knowing he was a werewolf he returned home from war and killed his wife and her lover which caused a terrible break in his relationship with his children. Here David is given a second chance and helps his daughter save a child from vampires.
Roses in Winter (takes place between Bone Crossed and Silver Borne)
Ms. Briggs has long talked about how fans always ask about Kara. Kara is a child, who though she never made an appearance in any of the books, was brought up in Blood Bound. Her father asked Mercy for help and Kara was sent to live with the Marrok’s pack. Kara is one of the youngest children to survive the original change to werewolf however, once changed, she is not able to force herself back to human.
Kara takes refuge with Asil, a lone Alpha wolf waiting for death, and takes comfort in his presence. Both characters are fan favorites and the short story is a good one with its tale of acceptance and comfort. The glimpse into Asil’s mind is well worth the read on this one. I so want him to be stable and happy. Maybe Kara will help with that.
In Red, With Pearls (takes place between Silver Borne and River Marked)
Another set of fan favorites, Warren and Kyle, are featured in this short story. Warren is a werewolf and he is gay. He has suffered through many, many years of hardship because of who he is but has finally found someone in Kyle he can trust. Warren is also a very dominant wolf and he needs a place high up in the hierarchy of a pack.
In Red, With Pearlsallows Warren to work with Kyle. Kyle is a divorce attorney but he has a bit of zombie problem. He is attacked in his office and Warren calls Elizaveta, the witch on the Columbia Basin’s payroll, in to help. Warren is the one to investigate and hand out justice to the person responsible for trying to harm his mate. Yes, I did say mate. Warren calls Kyle his mate in this one and it was awesome. I love this couple.
Redemption (takes place between Frost Burned and Night Broken)
Ben is an interesting character in the Mercy Thompson world and the reader never knows what to expect from him. He is usually aggressive and temperamental. This story is a day in the life of Ben and how he is learning to be a werewolf. The reader is able to see Ben’s progression of dominance. There is a lot of humor thrown in as Ben has a bet with Adam that he cannot stop swearing. I can’t wait to see more of Ben in Mercy’s world. He deserve more page time.
Hollow (takes place after the events in Night Broken
Hollow is a story about Mercy Thompson and the fallout of from events that happened in Night Broken. As Mercy deals with what to do with her broken, beloved garage she is asked to get rid of a ghost. Mercy manages to get injured and cause Adam grief is only a handful of pages. Things are perfectly normal in Mercy world. Seeing Adam’s reactions to Mercy being hurt again help my disgruntledness over Night Broken a little, but I still have a long way to go.
There are also two outtakes at the end of the book. One from Silver Borne which is a happy scene for Samuel and Ariana. The second outtake is from Night Broken and focuses on Adam’s reaction to Mercy being hurt and almost dying.
Shifting Shadows is everything fans of Patricia Briggs will like. It features stories from Mercy Thompson, Alpha and Omega and then some she has just written on her own. Shifting Shadows is an excellent way to pass the time until the next full length Patricia Briggs novel is released. Personally I loved the Mercy Thompson stories and Alpha and Omega stories best as they were the ones I was able to connect with. But there is no disputing that Ms. Briggs is a superb storyteller. Final grade- B
Rating: B
Shifting Shadows: Stories from the World of Mercy Thompson by Patricia Briggs
September 2nd 2014 by Ace Hardcover
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Review: Shifting Shadows: Stories from the World of Mercy Thompson by Patricia Briggs was first published on Fiction Vixen
