Wild Sign by Patricia Briggs was like water after a reading drought! I was half afraid that the series would have lost its charm, but I needn’t have worried. Happy to report that this was an awesome read.
About the Series:
For the uninitiated, the series revolves around the Werewolf pack of Montana led by their Bran, and his son Charles, who is the enforcer of the pack. The Werewolves follow a strict hierarchy, with the more dominant protectors at the top () and the more laidback wolves as supporters (). But there’s also another rare ranking, that of the , which is neither beta nor does it want to rule as the alpha – it’s simply outside the hierarchy.
Charles’s wife, Anna, is an Omega. The Alpha & Omega series deals with the pack dynamics of the Montana Werewolves, and how Anna’s Omega card both topples and stabilizes the usual power structure.
The Plot:
On one of the lands owned by the pack, a small settlement of encroachers called Wild Sign, has disappeared overnight. There are signs that some Pied Piper type of creature stole them away with his creepy music. Bran’s wife Leah seems to have escaped that same creature many years ago, but she has no memory of the incident. Leah has also started to sing an eerie melody that seems to pull at her from miles away in Wild Sign. Bran sends Charles, Anna and their “henchman” Tag to investigate.
Review:
The investigation is probably the best part of this book (and this series). It is so masterfully plotted, a trail of clues, each leading to a mystifying new angle. Briggs also adds in elements from Native American folklore and other local legends, which makes the hunt even more fascinating.
Charles and Anna are, of course, as adorable as ever. They have their usual marital insecurities now and then, but they are also each other’s best friends, so its works well. But I also liked Tag, who is a berserker wolf, and loves wisecracking and is totally charming.
The drawback to this book is that you cannot read it as a standalone. There are many backstories on the characters, the worldbuilding, the politics of other immortal races (fae, witches, vampires), the tension of co-existence with humans. And without those backstories, your understanding of the world would have holes …
10 replies on “Wild Sign by Patricia Briggs”
I love this genre and I’ve always wanted to read a Patricia Briggs book but somehow never got around to them. Thanks for reminding me! 😉
It is an awesome series, and one of my comfort reads, to be honest. I hope you’ll try this one out for sure!
I love Patricia Briggs’s books! They’re all great. 🙂
Always good to meet another Briggs fan!!
Ok, I only read the beginning of your review, because I absolutely do not want to know anything before reading this… 😝 Planned buddy read in April!
Haha, okay! April is too far away 😝
This is a series that I haven’t started but will keep in mind. I’m reading the author’s Mercy Thompson series atm.
Lynn 😀
Ooh, going through Mercyverse is an adventure. It’s also a lot longer and more action-packed. I hope you have a grand time with it, and please do try the A&O series too afterwards!
Talk about a different world! Really like the enthusiasm with which you talk about this book. I’m not too much into these books but you never know when I’ll want to check one out! Good author to keep in mind.
It’s a very different genre from the one you prefer! But if you ever decide to give Urban Fantasy a shot, this is a good series to start with. My favorite parts are the folklore, pack dynamics and the mystery plotting, but I also like the Charles/ Anna pairing. 🙂