Section 1: Urban Fantasy Books Similar to Blood Bound
Both stories host main characters with unique magical abilities, but neither character is fully aware of the extent of their gifts. In Briggs’s series, Mercy is a shapeshifter, but she’s not a werewolf controlled by the full moon, and neither is she a skinwalker who needs an animal’s skin to shift. She can simply transform back and forth between human and coyote. From the Dowser series, Jade knows she comes from a family of witches in the magical (Adept) universe. Still, she has abilities that go far beyond witchcraft and must uncover that mystery.
While the first books in each series were gritty urban fantasies/tension-building romances, the second books in both series sit closer to that horror genre line with some gruesome murder scenes.
In Blood Bound, Mercy is after an unusual killer capable of changing memories and controlling supernatural beings. While Mercy is not physically stronger or more magical than most of the other characters in her world, she can resist certain powers, giving her an edge against the over-the-top characters.
In Dowser #2, Jade is also after a murderous character, but she has a much closer connection to her target. Unlike Mercy, Jade has excessive power that she’s still figuring out. But even with all her power, Jade’s emotional link to the murderer gets in her way and becomes a significant obstacle to winning the day.
Section 2: Most Powerful Themes Represented in Blood Bound
Mercy was raised with werewolves, and even though she is not one of them, she keenly understands pack dynamics. The Alpha of her neighborhood pack, Adam, has developed lustful and emotional feelings for Mercy, but she’s not 100% sure she’s on the same wavelength. Nevertheless, Adam claims her as his mate to protect her — BTW, it’s only a verbal claim/proclamation to his pack. No physical violations.
While this seems bizarre and even stalker-creepy behavior, it highlights how the werewolf hierarchy functions and the power behind each rank. For example, since Adam claims Mercy, none can hurt her without it counting against him. But claiming her does something unexpected. Adam’s act also temporarily transfers some of his Alpha abilities/ status to her.
When Adam goes missing, for instance, her voice calms and soothes the troubled werewolves who recognize her rank in the pack. Briggs is not entirely clear if Mercy gains actual abilities or if it’s simply wolves following the power paradigm. Still, something at work here supercharges Mercy’s ability to be dominant among wolves.
Briggs further shows the intricacies of hierarchy among werewolves by bringing in an interesting aside concerning the LGBTQ+ community. If Adam is the Alpha, his #2 wolf is Darryl, and his #3 is Warren. Within the story, Warren gets seriously wounded when Adam is missing. By the hierarchy, he should submit to Darryl, but the problem is that Warren is far more dominant than Darryl. The only reason he’s #3 is because Warren is gay, which is frowned upon within the werewolf community. Were it not for Mercy somehow having access to Alpha powers, Warren may have torn up Darryl and hurt him if not killed himself in the process.
Section 3: What I Did Not Like about Blood Bound
For example, one of the subplotlines includes a father desperately trying to find Adam via Adam’s connection to Mercy. At first, Mercy assumes that this guy is trying to hurt Adam, since Adam is among the few werewolves who are publicly known to humans. Then Mercy discovers this man has a teenage daughter who was turned into a werewolf. He’s tried to keep her safe but knows he can’t do so forever, and he’s looking for answers. What’s worse is that he’s worried about wolves taking advantage of his daughter due to the misogynist patriarchal system amongst werewolves. Recognizing this chilling reality, Mercy puts the father in contact with an alpha she trusts not to take advantage of the girl.
While this is an interesting aspect of supernatural/human relations in this universe, it felt like a random story. The father does help Mercy figure out a clue of the main plot since he owes her for helping him protect his daughter, but it felt like a roundabout way to bring in some character who could find answers for Mercy.
Another random subplot occurs at the end of the book with the name-dropping of an artist who used to date Adam. Now I googled around trying to find this name without spoiling future books, as I thought I must have forgotten the name from somewhere earlier in the book or from the first book, but no one mentioned it before this point. I’m guessing it sets up future problems between Adam and Mercy, but it comes out of left field! The two already have enough issues and personality differences to cause problems. An old flame coming into the picture doesn’t seem necessary.
Section 4: Who Will Love and Hate Blood Bound
On the other hand, if you’re not a huge fan of sexual tension and awkward romantic feelings, parts of this series will make you uncomfortable. Also, if you prefer your main characters to be among the most physically and magically powerful in the story, then this book and series are not for you.
Section 5: L. Rigdon’s Star Rating of Blood Bound
While I enjoyed going deeper into this universe, the story was not as strong as the first book. That said, I loved the main plot about a mad sorcerer demon-possess vampire. How often do you get to say that phrase? I just wish there would have been more focus on the main plot versus getting distracted by all the subplots.
I obviously still love the series, as I gave it such a high ranking, and I plan on continuing to discover what else Mercy’s abilities can do.