Cry Wolf: Alpha and Omega: Book 1

I picked up Cry Wolf partly for a book club, and partly because I read its prequel, a story in multi-author paranormal anthology, On the Prowl and was captived by Patricia Briggs' writing.Cry Wolf is the first book (though the first story is actually in On the Prowl - it's not imperative that you read it first, but it does give you some useful background and help fill in gaps) in the Alpha & Omega series. Having finished this one, I'll definitely be adding the others to my wishlist.The book tells the tale of Anna Latham. She's a woman who was made into a werewolf against her will and was then physically and mentally abused by the alpha of the pack, as well as many of the other dominant wolves. So when dominant werewolf Charles comes along and takes on her evil alpha, it's Anna chance to escape. Naturally, she takes it with both hands. But there's an unexpected turn of events which bring her and Charles together on a more permanent basis, which culminates in her going home with him.When they arrive, Anna expects that Charles will be resting up in order to heal the wounds caused by silver bullets during her rescue attempt. However, it appears that Charles is a busy man with never a dull moment in his life, as he's soon sent out on a mission to capture a rogue werewolf before it draws too much attention to their pack. Anna goes along as backup, and she's soon thrown into a scary situation which calls upon every ounce of physical and mental strength she has. But is it enough to help save Charles and the rest of the pack? Only one way to find out...This was a great read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. You're completely thrown in at the deep end as you begin reading and the action doesn't let up, but it makes for an edge of your seat read. If you're into paranormal and you haven't read Patricia Briggs before, I definitely recommend her. Her writing is very absorbing and you'll whizz through in no time, only to wish you had the next book in the series immediately to hand. Recommended.

I love the Mercy Thompson books, and this one is a continuation/spin-off of that world. It is about Samuel's brother, Charles, and his newly found mate, Anna.Since Charles lives in Aspen Creek, Montana, we get to learn a lot more about the Marrok, his home and his pack. I really enjoyed this, and look forward to reading more in the future.However, I was seriously confused when I was reading the book. There are frequent, detailed, references to earlier events, and yet this is the first in the "Alpha and Omega" series. I even re-read the Mercy Thompson books (hardly a chore!) to see if I had missed the plot development there.But my confusion may be solved. I think that Anna and Charles met and "clicked" in Patricia Brigg's short story, which can be bought in the " On the Prowl " collection of stories. I can only assume this from one of the detailed reviews written for Patricia Brigg's short story in that collection (thank you "clairefromwales"!). I have ordered a copy to check this, and will update this review once I have. {UPDATE - Yes, you should really read the short story first. The actions in the short story directly precede this book, and you are missing out on a treat if you don't read the short story first!}So my suggestion - I think you should read that short story before this book. Having said that, even without having read the story of their meeting, I really enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it to all those who love the Mercy Thompson world (or, alternatively, it you have not read that series either, then check out at least the first Mercy Thompson book ( Moon Called (Mercy Thompson) ) before this one !)

'Moon Called', 'Blood Bound' and 'Iron Kissed', the Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs, are excellent books. 'Cry Wolf' is a book in a different series but with many characters the same. At the beginning of the story the hero and heroine have already met each other and discovered that they are 'mated' - these events took place in the short story in the anthology 'On The Prowl'. Although I've read that story it was some time ago and I couldn't remember all that much about it, I think it would have been helpful for it to have been printed at the beginning of this book to set the scene.However part of Patricia Briggs' writing skill is that her books work as standalone novels, even when part of a series. It doesn't take too long before the reader learns about the life of Anna Latham who was Changed to a werewolf three years ago and kept under the thumb of the evil Alpha Leo. She was rescued eventually by Charles Cornick, brother of Samuel who appears in the Mercy Thompson series and son of Bran, the Marrok or top werewolf of North America. Charles is taking her back to their home in Montana and as they arrive Anna starts to wonder what her place will be in this world, what skills she has and whether she can fit in.Charles is his father's enforcer, hired muscle to deal with problem werewolves, and he's worried that gentle Anna who has been badly treated by werewolves might struggle with this. However before they have any real time to settle in Charles is sent out into the Cabinet mountains in Montana to investigate reports of a vicious werewolf attack, and Anna comes with him. As they uncover evidence of what took place it becomes clear that there are links to events that took place hundreds of years ago, that some other wolves in Bran's pack may share some responsibility for events, and that they are working against an evil person.Although I enjoyed this story I didn't engage with it in quite the same way as the Mercy Thompson series. This tale is told in the third person so we see events from Anna's and Charles's view, sometimes from other characters too, which gives us perhaps a more rounded but less involved take on events. The relationship between Anna and Charles didn't entirely work for me and I felt that I didn't learn a great deal about their characters. However the book was very informative about Bran and the werewolf structure and history and there were some interesting side characters such as the briefly-met Leah, wife to Bran.I don't think that Patricia Briggs can write a bad book. However this one wasn't quite to the standard of 'Moon Called' and 'Blood Bound' in my opinion and it's not one for my keeper shelf. The teaser excerpt from the next Mercy Thompson book, Bone Crossed, looked very good though, and I look forward to her next novel with great anticipation.

Well thought out plot and the characters have depth. One gets invested in the story and it is difficult to put the book down. Luckily there are more books in this series to read.

A great introduction to the series. Good characters and story. Sad yet hopeful. Poignant. Over the years I have read the series a few times and expect I will again in some years.

I loved Mercedes Thompson and Anna proves equal. What I like of these series is that the women always stand up to all the very-alpha-males.

This is the follow on from the Alpha and Omega short story.Bran, Charles and Anna return to Aspen Springs to discover dead hikers a rogue werewolf and a black witch.This is well written, interesting and will hold your attention.

4.5-5 starsThis is a great book. I really love Anna and Charles. They're such a great couple that balance each other really well. I will note that this book picks up immediately where the original short story Alpha & Omega leaves off. Since Alpha & Omega contains the story of how Anna and Charles met, I believe it would be best to read that before moving on to this book.Anna is a werewolf from Chicago. She was a member of a pack that had gone bad, brutalizing her for 3 years before the Marrack (the leader of all werewolves in North America) sent his son, Charles, to investigate issues with the pack. Their wolves mated almost as soon as they met (very unusual as it's usually the human side that mates first) and left Charles and Anna to work things out. Once the prolbem with the Chicago pack is settled, Anna agrees to move home with Charles so they can work on a relationship together.Charles is the Marrack's enforcer. He has always had to be tough and show nothing to others, never getting close or making many friends because he may end up having to go against them in the future. When he meets Anna in Chicago, he's very surprised that his wolf decides on her as a mate immediately but he likes Anna and how she makes him feel so he has no objections. For the first time he can laugh and smile and not have to hold back. His main worry is that she'll decide she can deal with what he does for his father.The story begins as Anna and Charles (and the Marrack) head from Chicago back to Charle's home in Aspin Creek (the town of shifters and shifter friendly people that the Marrack runs). Charles is still recovering from wounds he received in Chicago when they get home and they don't even get settled in when trouble shows up. There are indications of a rogue werewolf in the mountains nearby and it's been attacking humans. The Marrack asks Charles to go take care of the problem. He's still injured but it has to be taken care of sooner rather than later. It's decided that Anna will go along to help Charles. Since she's an Omega wolf (a werewolf that calms other werewolves) there's hope she might enable them to bring the rogue in alive if it's not completely mad. Charles and Anna head out on their quest and also try to work things out between them. At this point they've still known each other for less than a week and with Anna recovering from a long time of abuse things aren't smooth. Charles tries to understand Anna and how he can make things better for her but, since he hasn't really done relationships before, he's a bit clueless. They both make an effort though and as they start hiking through the mountains, trying to attract the rogue, they start to get closer and more comfortable wit each other.Charles and Anna search for the rogue and find that they have more trouble than they expected. There's actually a rogue but the main issue ends up being a witch that has come to try to find a werewolf that lives in Aspen Creek and also try to use her power to control the Marrack and all the wolves beneath him. Charles and Anna have to try to fight her as she uses her powers to attempt (and sometimes succeed) to take control of the werewolves she encounters. Things escalate and things almost go very, very badly. Fortunately, Anna is able to utilize her Omega powers to "sooth the savage beast" and saves the day. During the conflict and all they went through together, Charles and Anna's connection grew and the story ends with their very sweet HEA.This is a great story. I love Anna and Charles and was so happy to see them solidify their relationship in this story. They're perfect for each other and I can't wait to read more of their story. I'd recommend this book. 2 thumbs up! :D* note - I listened to the audio version of this book. The narrator did a really good job.