This was excellent, but it felt slower than her other books. Tier, a soldier returning home from the wars, rescues Seraph, a 16-year-old orphan Traveller from being sold, and ends up marrying her. This is a story that explores the nooks and crannies of the village of Redern -- Tier's family, sure that his return means he'll take over the family bakery, a retired trader, Seraph deciding to stay instead of finding another band of Travellers, Tier deciding to be a farmer and leave the bakery to his sister, the prejudices against Travellers, and a hint of what Seraph really is.

The story meanders, and introduces characters and places. Then fast forward 20 years, and they have three children, each with their own version of Traveller magic. The strands of the story's web catch more tasty nuggets, until half-way through we begin to see what the story is about. It is a story that builds slowly, carefully, with a satisfying ending that sets you up for a sequel. ( )

Patricia Briggs brings us another good tale. Raven's Shadow is the first half of a duology. Typical Briggs, the plot is actually original and unpredictable. I felt there was a bit much world-building exposition that slowed the book down in places, but the characters are strong and she keeps you guessing. ( )

Like gypsies, Travelers are persecuted and shunned by townsfolk, but their presence has a purpose - holding the warp and weft of the world together against the dark magic and ancient evil of the Stalker. The only living member of her Traveler clan, Seraph is a Raven, and one of the last. Rescued by ex-soldier Tier from an angry mob, Seraph builds a life with him, giving up her duties and raising a family. But when Tier goes missing and evil threatens her family, Seraph has no choice - she'll have to act.

Very readable. The plot winds around a bit, and Seraph is perhaps a bit flat, but there is more than enough going on that one "main" character isn't necessary to carry the story. Definitely worth reading, even if it isn't one of Briggs' strongest. ( )

I am a huge fan of Patricia Briggs’ Mercy Thompson series, but I had never read any of her other books before “Raven’s Shadow.” I was not disappointed. As always with the novels of Ms Briggs, the characters were complex and sympathetic, and the plot, after a slow beginning, was fast-paced and interesting. I also like that the new magic system that Briggs created. It contained enough familiar terms and abilities to be easily understandable, but also included enough new and different aspects that it did not feel like a knock-off of previously established systems. I look forward to reading the sequel. ( )

Centuries ago Magi released a big evil into the world. Because of this they crafted into their descendents the ability to fight this. This evil erupts in pockets as well as it's central core and so these magi travel around dealing with it. Still they were a bit too good at the job and when someone started killing them off no-one really cared. Add to that the fact that they were slightly caught up in their own importance and you could see where people didn't really care much. When Seraph meets Tier and they marry to save her, they find that it's not just convenience keeping them together, particularly when Tier goes missing.

I did enjoy this but sometimes it lagged. ( )