The Mercyverse books (both Mercy Thompason and Alpha & Omega) are one of the few series of books I’ll come back to every few years for a complete reread, or in this case, a re-listen. Something that’s made all the better when you get to the end and there are new books to add to the old favorites!

On the upside, it’s a crazy ride with a whole heap of more backstory for and reason to like Leah (some reviewers say it changed her backstory, but I think it fits), more information about witches, both white and black, and a few new crazy magical beings on the block (Bigfoot! Bigfeet? And that’s not even the crazy one…). It’s a crazy world and a crazy plot and it manages to keep going all the way through.

Characterwise, I still love Anna and Charles and their relationship, although I have to question the idea of having Anna lose her memories and relive her rape and becoming a werewolf . They say the best stories are when bad things happen to good people, but there has to be a line somewhere… Other than that, I love seeing some more of the world building, fleshing out some of the truly old wolves such as Bran (and Leah) and Tag. We’ve seen them for many books now, but now we know a bit more.

Worldwise (and a warning here), this does take the series even darker for a little while. In a series where rape and violence are common threats and plotlines, it’s impressive that you can get even worse and even darker, even to the point of getting downright Cthulhian… I’ll just leave it there. I like it, but it’s definitely pushing the series in an interesting direction.

And then… the ending. Oh boy do I want to see where this story goes next… A crazy awesome story and well worth the read. Onward to a re-listen of the Mercy side of the story!

One side note: What happened to Bran’s voice? It’s the same narrator, but he seems to have forgotten what Bran sounds like. I miss the old Bran.