Wild Sign

Alpha & Omega has become my favorite of Briggs' series, though I still love Mercy of course. The romance between Anna and Charles is a joy to read, mainly because they are very much in love but also more of equals. Charles may be physically more powerful, but Anna's Omega power gives her an agency that allows her to stand toe to toe. This installment was especially good because in addition to our fabulous protagonists (and more Bran!), the story was a well done mystery. The plot also explored a character often mentioned, usually in a negative light, but that has never been fleshed out: Leah. Bran's mate doesn't really get on with most of the characters, but she is also known as a good leader in Bran's pack. Now, we finally get her story, interwoven with a missing village of white witches and some eerie music.

I was glad to get to know Leah, and the end of the story made me want to see more of her in future books. Anna and Charles face off against a formidable and disturbing enemy, with some help from another of Bran's "Old Wolves," Tag. He was a fun sidekick and, like Asil, I hope we see him again. Overall, this was a great read and I cannot wait for more! ( )

This episode of the Alpha and Omega series has Charles and Anna along with Colin Taggart traveling to the mountains of California because some people who had been squatting on land owned by the Pack have disappeared. This story finally tells us more about Bran's mate Leah who has been a side character in a number of the stories in this series and in the Mercy Thompson series too.

It has always been sort of a mystery how Bran came to mate Leah and bring her back home to the Pack. Charles's mother died giving birth to him which put a barrier between Bran and Charles since Blue Jay Woman was Bran's mate and the love of his life. Since Charles was so young, he doesn't know Leah's story. Neither she nor Bran have ever discussed it though everyone can see that the mating wasn't a love match.

The FBI comes to Anna and Charles and asks for their help since the disappearance of the town has come to their attention. They want to propose some sort of alliance with the werewolves - but not an official one. They are hoping that sharing the information they have about the town will ease relations.

Bran isn't interested in an alliance but he does want to know what happened in the Wild Sign settlement. He sends Charles who is his enforcer and who is a werewolf who uses Native American magic along with Anna who is an Omega wolf and Tag who is in danger of going berserker and who is somewhat resistant to magic.

They travel to the town meeting some Sasquatches along the way and discover an empty town. Evidence suggests that the inhabitants were mostly white witches who were hiding from black witches. But there is something else magical going on. Apparently the people had made some sort of bargain with, in Anna's words, a "creepy primordial god."

That primordial god is still looking for people that he can turn into walkers to recruit people to his service and he uses music to attract his victims. Anna is especially musical herself having been in college for music when she was first turned into a werewolf. Charles is also quite musical. Their playing and singing in the settlement attracted the god known as the Singer in the Woods to Anna.

It was creepy that the Singer in the Woods could attract with music and could also remove memories or bring long-buried memories to the forefront of a person's mind. Anna relives a time when she was captive and hunted in the Chicago Pack that Charles rescued her from and she also goes back to age seventeen before any of the werewolf stuff had ever happened to her. Both episodes caused both Anna and Charles a lot of pain since Anna forgot about her mate bond with Charles.

The part of the story involving the black witches and the "assisted living facility" where one of Charles's old enemies was now being held and tortured was interesting and also creepy especially since some of the witches were Hardesty witches. Members of that family have had roles in other books in the series.

This was an intriguing story that kept me reading late into the night. I'm sure I'll be rereading it often. It also had me visiting YouTube to hear some of the musical selections that were mentioned in the story. ( )

Rounded up from 3.5 ( will you guys - GoodReads- please, please, please get half stars like LibraryThing!!! We beg you!!!)

This was not a bad book and did manage to answer a few questions while opening up the way for many different questions. Parts of this book were boring, but for the most part, it kept me absorbed in Anna and Charles's world.

I didn't particularly appreciate that Ms. Briggs used too many ideas from previous books and both series.

Does anyone remember Mercy's ordeal in "Iron Kissed"? Well, it's used again but with a different creature and NOT Anna.

Good, very good, but not great. ( )

I am such a huge fan of the Alpha and Omega series and I’m thrilled to share with you that another installment is out in the world today, yay! Charles and Anna are such a great couple and I have always admired the way they complement each other’s strengths and weaknesses. Their connection was tested throughout this story and I will admit that my heart was in my throat many times. I also was uncertain if my worst fears for these characters were going to be realized. Wild Sign kept my interest firmly on its pages from the start.

I love a good mystery and there is nothing better than one that seems to have no answers. Anna and Charles were asked to investigate into a disappearance, though, not because of the people involved, but because of the location. They did not really understand the significance, or the history, of what they were looking into and that was actually quite fun to be a part of. As a reader, I was right there with them uncovering facts and discovering truths that were pretty darn terrifying.

I don’t want to give anything away but I will tell you that this story heavily involves the Marrok’s mate, Leah. I have never liked Leah, I will freely admit that, but after reading Wild Sign, well, my feelings may have changed. I am eager to see if the reveals and circumstances that took place in this book will change things in the future for certain members of this pack?! Overall, Wild Sign was an engrossing mystery with moments of tenderness as well as moments that were so terrifying as to increase my heart rate. It was a good read!

This review is based on a complimentary book I received. It is an honest and voluntary review. The complimentary receipt of it in no way affected my review or rating. ( )

Oh, how I loved this book! I feel almost giddy when I get the chance to read a new Patricia Briggs book because I know that it is going to be something special. This book was as good as I had hoped it would be and my expectations were extremely high. I was completely entertained from the very first page and the excitement never lessened. I had a fantastic time with this story.

All of the residents of a small town in the California mountains go missing and the FBI brings the issue to the Marrok since the land is owned by the pack. Charles and Anna, along with Tag head out to investigate. They find the town of Wild Sign empty and it appears the residents had magic but something in the woods has even more. Things get very complicated quickly as the trio tries to discover what has happened.

I love these characters! Charles and Brother Wolf are the perfect mate for Anna. I love the two distinct personalities that makeup Charles and his wolf and how they are always watching out for Anna. Anna had some challenges in this book but she never quit fighting and I loved how resilient she is time and time again. Tag was a great addition to the team and I loved the bond that he had with Anna. Leah played a larger role in this story and I was thrilled to get to learn a bit more about her history and see a different side of her character.

There was plenty of action and excitement in this story to keep things moving along. There were a few times that I was worried about how things might work out so I was glued to the pages. The mystery behind the lost residents of Wild Sign kept me guessing until the very end. It was great to see Charles, Anna, and the rest of the characters in action. I would highly recommend this series to others and cannot wait to read more from this talented author in the future.

I received a digital review copy of this book from Berkley Publishing Group via NetGalley. ( )