Hunting Ground

At the start of Hunting Ground, less than one month has passed since Charles and Anna were married at the end of Cry Wolf. Anna and Charles are still adjusting to their relationship, and Bran is moving ahead with his plan to enlighten the general public of the existence of werewolves. A meeting is to take place in Seattle, and Bran has sent Charles and Anna to liaise with the European delegation. Interestingly, we learn that werewolves are a European monster and that there are very few in Asia, where there are other monsters who don't like them very well. I wonder what these other monsters are, and why Briggs keeps alluding to them! Is she developing another series regarding these monsters, or will they be later introduced in this series? Anyway, back to wolves. There are two packs in Australia, consisting of about 40 wolves, and only a few in Africa. There are also some wolves in South America, but we don't learn exactly where they are located. Although the decision to introduce themselves to the world ultimately rests with the Marrok, he has invited the other wolves to express their concerns and to discuss how they can lessen the impact of becoming public.

A fae, Dana Shea, has been invited to the conference to act as mediator for the wolves. Because she is a neutral party, she is supposed to ensure that no violence erupts. Dana is not just an ordinary fae, but a Gray Lord - one of the most powerful fae. She is also an old flame of Charles.

First, a human mate of one of the European Alphas is attacked and brutally killed. Then, a European Alpha is killed. The main suspects appear to be a group of vampires, but are they acting on their own or have they been hired and - if so - by whom?

Wow, Hunting Ground just blew me away! I love how Briggs has intermingled other non-human species with the wolves. In Cry Wolf, the antagonist was a Black Witch. In this book, we have not just wolves but also vampires, fae, and even a White Witch!

I love how the relationship between Anna and Charles has developed. Anna is a real kick-ass heroine, and it is nice to see that even someone as strong as Charles sometimes needs to be saved by a woman! Bran is über-protective of not just Charles, but also his beloved daughter-in-law and Briggs has done a great job capturing that familial affection.

I was initially very confused when I started this audiobook because I thought that Charles was Bran and vice versa. Having just listened to Cry Wolf, I realized that the voices Narrator Holter Graham used for the two males were not the same. I am disappointed at the lack in continuity and wish that he would have used his original vocalizations.

MY RATING: 5 stars!! Narration issues aside, I loved it! I will likely re-read it again in the future! You should definitely read it!

Good:
While reading this book I found Anna to me a more powerful character. She seems to be growing into her role of not only Omega but Charles' mate and becoming a stronger person.
Bad:
This was a very short book. Only about 200 pages compared to the near 400 page book of the first one and the 300+ of the Mercy Thompson series. That being said it also cause the book to not have a lot happen. The story line didn't really have any significance to me. I get that the whole thing was about the Werewolves coming out to society and how some didn't want that, and of course power and control, but there was still something missing.
Also:
There wasn't much revealed. At least in the other novel we found out so much about Bran and Samuel's history. This one not so much
Overall (Writing style, story line, and general):
Overall...a little weak especially after I had read 7 other books written by Briggs and rated them all 4+. I have to admit I expected more. And although Anna and Charles' relationship with one another is complicated she focuses a lot on their miscommunication or basically how sometimes they barely understand each other at all and sometimes understand each other completely.

Though Cry Wolf was a good read, it was a little confusing, a little all over the place. I much preferred the sequel. Hunting Ground is well-written and well-thought, and the reader gets a better sense of Anna and Charles' relationship. The book is a quick read and hard to put down. An overall good book.

I just love the subtle characterization and the use of the plot to develop the relationship between the two primary characters as well as adding intrigue for pure entertainment. Patricia Briggs just doesn't disappoint and the great thing is the books are solid enough to be read more than once. There's romance without being too sappy. There's intrigue without being too guns and ammo. And there's the solid foundation of the relationship between Charles and Anna. This is an author who I've begun collecting and keep on that special shelf of all time favorites.